1989 GMC S-15 Syclone Land Speed Record

Banks history is laden with trophies and awards for its accomplishments in gasoline performance. One example was the naturally aspirated GMC S-15 Syclone. That’s not to say that the original idea wasn’t to turbocharge the engine in the Syclone. On the contrary, Banks originally proposed things that would have made the pickup a completely different animal. 

The original configuration was supposed to be a full-size Sierra using all-wheel drive for better traction and more evenly distributed power on the salt. The half-ton pickup would have been powered by a twin-turbocharged big-block 502. Those plans were squashed during a meeting about the record attempt with Chevy executives saying if there was going to be a full-sized performance truck, it was going to be under their banner. GMC reps said that they didn’t make all-wheel-drive trucks and that none of the trucks they sold were turbocharged. The GM top brass wanted the truck’s image to be represented as a hopped-up stock truck that went to the salt. Banks was left the S-15 mini-truck powered by a naturally aspirated V-6.

The largest engine displacement available in an S-15 was a 4.3-liter. Since GM had ideas for power other than Gale’s twin-turbo V8 monster could produce, they decided to bore and stroke the stock V6 engine to 5.0 liters. However, they still needed more power. Banks came up with a rather ingenious way to “supercharge” the air into the intake… naturally, and with no forced induction. The outside air was rammed in from two locations in the front of the truck and then passed through heat exchangers running circulated ice water from a tank in the bed of the truck and then into a specialized intake manifold. The temperature of the intake air dramatically decreased by 40° resulting in increased power throughout the entire run.

In the Summer of 1989, the Syclone went on to take five records, including an FIA International World Speed Record of 194 MPH. 

#bankspower #gmc #typhoon #syclone #gmcsyclone #gmctruck #v6 #throwbackthursday #timemachine #history #science #engineering #design #intercooled #naturallyaspirated #bonneville #saltflats #racing #worldrecord #champion #worldsfastest #nhra #80s #90s #obsgmc