Purchasing & Autoxing a Sy, some Q's...

I

IdahoRT

New member
Fellow truck owners,
I'm considering buying a Syclone. I have two frames of mind:
1. Buy an unmodded Syclone in near pristine condition with original paint, etc. (garaged, no rust, no repainting/repair, period)
2. Buy a seriously used and abused fixer upper that runs.

What could I expect to pay for each scenario?

Do any of you autox or hillcimb with a Syclone. I do lots of autoxing and hillclimbing in my R/T, but I'm looking for something lighter and more nimble, but still different, as in a truck instead of a car. The Syclone seems to be a logical conclusion.

What are the top 3 or 4 weakest points of the drivetrain/suspension? How well does the Syclone hold up to abuse of real world competition in the twisties? How's the transfer case hold up, is it a fluid coupler or a clutch pack system, or what? What does a Syclone weigh? Any other things to be aware of in my hunt for one such as common problems or recalls, etc?

Thanks,
Jason
 
C

Captain Morgan

Moderated User
Re: Purchasing & Autoxing a Sy, some Q's...

IdahoRT said:
Fellow truck owners,
I'm considering buying a Syclone. I have two frames of mind:
1. Buy an unmodded Syclone in near pristine condition with original paint, etc. (garaged, no rust, no repainting/repair, period)
2. Buy a seriously used and abused fixer upper that runs.

What could I expect to pay for each scenario?
Click to expand...

1. anywhere from $12,000 - $25,000
2. anywhere from $5,000 - $12,000
There are ALOT of things to consider on each, miles, who the owner was.
Do any of you autox or hillcimb with a Syclone. I do lots of autoxing and hillclimbing in my R/T, but I'm looking for something lighter and more nimble, but still different, as in a truck instead of a car. The Syclone seems to be a logical conclusion.
Click to expand...

There are a few, I know a few have doen open road races, and i think they had an Auto X track setup at the '01 Nats (i missed it :()

What are the top 3 or 4 weakest points of the drivetrain/suspension? How well does the Syclone hold up to abuse of real world competition in the twisties? How's the transfer case hold up, is it a fluid coupler or a clutch pack system, or what? What does a Syclone weigh? Any other things to be aware of in my hunt for one such as common problems or recalls, etc?
Click to expand...

Weight : 3613

Weak Points: (in no particular order)
Transmission
Suspension (all of it, just old design, not auto x oriented, can be upgraded)
Brakes (ABS) (can be upgraded)
i dont know how well the t-case would do, someone else can answer that im sure.

Its really depending on how much you wanna spend. from the sounds of it, plan on spending $10,000 in brakes and suspention parts alone.
 
I

IdahoRT

New member
Re: Purchasing & Autoxing a Sy, some Q's...

Tranny a weak point huh? Hmm, sounds familiar, LOL. As far as suspension, does anyone make an aftermarket kit for the Sy. I installed a complete Hotchkis kit (coils, leafs, front/rear stabalizers) and custom tuned Bilstein shocks for a parts cost of $1200 on my R/T.

I see on another thread someone mentioning 'Vette wheels will work. That would be sweet because I currently use 275/40/17's Kumho competion tires for autoxing my Dakota R/T and I know that is the size a lot of the 'Vette guys use.

What do you guys do for upgraded brakes? I know some Dakota guys use Viper brakes but the stockers have actually performed good enough for me even though the Dak is a rear drum vehicle. You guys 4 wheel disc?

Oh yeah, what kind of turbo lag do you guys have? I've got a blower on my R/T that works real good with the on again, off again throttle position of autoxing.
 
C

Captain Morgan

Moderated User
Re: Purchasing & Autoxing a Sy, some Q's...

IdahoRT said:
Tranny a weak point huh? Hmm, sounds familiar, LOL. As far as suspension, does anyone make an aftermarket kit for the Sy. I installed a complete Hotchkis kit (coils, leafs, front/rear stabalizers) and custom tuned Bilstein shocks for a parts cost of $1200 on my R/T.
Click to expand...
Yeah, there is someone who makes a kit, not sure how hard they are to get ahold of right now, i "think" there was or is a kit for sale in the classifieds section to give you an idea. I really dont know all that much about them.
I see on another thread someone mentioning 'Vette wheels will work. That would be sweet because I currently use 275/40/17's Kumho competion tires for autoxing my Dakota R/T and I know that is the size a lot of the 'Vette guys use.
Click to expand...
yes, Corvette Grand Sport wheels bolt right up, I run 275/40/17's in front and 315/35/17's out back.
What do you guys do for upgraded brakes? I know some Dakota guys use Viper brakes but the stockers have actually performed good enough for me even though the Dak is a rear drum vehicle. You guys 4 wheel disc?
Click to expand...
stock were disc front, drum rear, but you can upgrade to discs in the rear from the 95 Bravada I think and probably from a few other GM cars.
here is a site i had saved from a long time ago http://www.ultimategarage.com/bbgmc.html and I know Baer http://www.baer.com/ makes a kit for the front and rear.
Oh yeah, what kind of turbo lag do you guys have? I've got a blower on my R/T that works real good with the on again, off again throttle position of autoxing.
Click to expand...
well it cetainly wont be like your R/T, thats for sure. It all depends on the size turbo and how free flowing your exhaust is. bigger turbo = more lag but less restrictive exhaust = quicker spool
 
bdubb

bdubb

I am teh kingpin!
i have a front kit for sale in the classifieds. never used it. letme know. we can work a deal out.
 
K

KGB Pilot125

New member
we should meet up some time I have a sy and a ty and my buddy also has both his sy is set up for autoX. I have brakes and and the rear suspension and can get you the front for real cheap.

If you want to just be fast at an autocross you should keep your dakota and get a shifter kart then run 2 classes and kick some serious ass in the kart.

take care,
Josh (the josh with a sy and ty)
idaho SyTy
 
I

IdahoRT

New member
KGB Pilot125 said:
we should meet up some time I have a sy and a ty and my buddy also has both his sy is set up for autoX. I have brakes and and the rear suspension and can get you the front for real cheap.

If you want to just be fast at an autocross you should keep your dakota and get a shifter kart then run 2 classes and kick some serious ass in the kart.

take care,
Josh (the josh with a sy and ty)
idaho SyTy
Click to expand...

Naw, no shifter cart for me. I like fast stuff that is streetable. I autox constantly and haven't seen you guys. You should come out, we're getting ready to have a 20 event season of autoxing alone. Plus 3 hillclimbs, Freezeout, Bogus, and Teton. The hillclimbs are the sh*t if you don't know about them, they are way fun, even if dangerous.
You ever make it out to Firebird, what kind of times do you put down there. Best I've been able to manage is a 14.1 at 99.9 on street tires with fuel starvation issues. I'd like to get a Syclone and work to get it in the 12's.
You're right, we should hook up sometime. There's only two of us R/T'ers in town that get together, both of us blue club cabs. It's kind of funny, when we're downtown and see the 2 Typhoons, we joke about it like "oh, look, there's the Typhoon club" since there's only a couple of you around too.
Anyway, my name is Jason, I've got the blown Dak R/T I've got some stickers in my back window, John is the guy with the N/A Dak R/T, he's got a Super Dak white decal on his rear quarters. Although, last I heard, he was thinking about NOS so he can dust me.
See you around,
Jason
 
Big Dave

Big Dave

New member
meet up

meet up

Jason...

When was the last time you were downtown? I've been down there the last five weekends with the Sy. I think you might like the way it handles. Even with shitty tires.

I've seen the super Dak truck before. Isnt it the one with the Viper motor in it?

The owner of the Viper motored one also has some nice built RX-7s from what I've heard.

I will be in Cali for the month of February for work but would definately like to come out to the AutoX and definately the hill climbs.

What kind of safety equipment is needed?

Later,
Big Dave
Idaho Sy/Ty
989-2220 (Cell)
P.S. Your Dak looks very fun on that road!!!
 
I

IdahoRT

New member
Re: meet up

Re: meet up

I haven't been downtown for a few months now, we go a lot in the summer though.
No, the Super Dak Dakota is a club cab R/T with a few mods. The Viper Dak is a regular cab blue Dakota with two racing stripes. The Viper Dak owner also has a tri-rotor RX7 that is a terror also.
You don't actually need anything for the autoxing except a helmet. Loaner helmets are available, but for about 80 bucks you can buy one, has to be Snell 95 or 2000. Your vehicle also will have to pass tech. inspection. Just make sure your battery is solidly fixed with a bracket, not rope or a bungee, make sure all lug nuts on on, seatbelt(s) must work, vehicle empty of all unsecured objects, etc.
Now, hillclimbing is a little different. You have to have an AB fire extinguisher with a metal bracket. You also have to wear a long sleeve cotton shirt. Closed toe shoes are required in both autoxing and hillclimbing.
If you want to run hillclimbs, make sure you start autoxing as soon as you can this spring. Check out www.snakeriverscca.org for the schedule. It would be real wise to have at the experience of at least 5 autox's before running a hillclimb. Hillclimbs can be dangerous. At an autox, if you lose control, you spinout and maybe take out a few cones. You do the same thing at a hillclimb where the speeds are much higher (I hit 102mph at Teton) and you can die. Check out the hillcimb website at www.nhahillclimb.org
I'll post a follow up reply with links to two videos of hillclimbs I ran this past year so you can see what they're like.
 
Big Dave

Big Dave

New member
videos

videos

Cool! Thanks for sharing the videos. Looks like alot of fun. How many runs do you get in a day?

If the weather isnt to bad I will be downtown this weekend. Corner of Main and 12th.

Later,
Big Dave
Idaho Sy/Ty
 
I

IdahoRT

New member
Re: videos

Re: videos

SPANKE said:
Cool! Thanks for sharing the videos. Looks like alot of fun. How many runs do you get in a day?

If the weather isnt to bad I will be downtown this weekend. Corner of Main and 12th.

Later,
Big Dave
Idaho Sy/Ty
Click to expand...

We didn't make it downtown. Glad you liked the video's. We get 3 runs per day on the hillclimbs for a total of 6 for the weekend at all the hills I've done. At autox's in town we get 4-6 per day. At Arco events, it's more like 8 per day, plus the open test and tune on Friday nights at Arco. My other half did 23 runs on a Friday night last summer at Arco. Arco events are great because it's a smaller run group, 35 versus 80 here in Boise and the courses are significantly longer and faster.
 
rockvillespeed

rockvillespeed

Member
i'd hazard a guess the r/t would whoop a sy or ty in auto-xing.
sy's are STUPID front heavy; i'm sure worse then your r/t.
yours has a much wider track,a s well, inherently better front suspension design and geometry.
b4 10k people step up and bitch, i am talkin oem front end, not al's or pep's.
i am real pleased with my suspension combo, but knowing what i know, the truck still is a pig....
 
Big Dave

Big Dave

New member
suspension

suspension

I agree with you Rockville. The stock suspension on the sy or ty is not that great for hard cornering. Rear sway bars help alot though for everyday driving and are not much money. I find it hard to believe the skid pad of .89 reported in magazines about the stock sy. I'm happy with dustan's suspension. The truck is very flat now and I need to get decent tires and harness's on it to see how much it can be pushed.

KGB_Pilot can put his to cents in for taking a syclone up Bogus Basin without regard to speed limits....

Later,
Big Dave
Idaho Sy/Ty
 
K

KGB Pilot125

New member
I ran my old sy up bogus made it in like 13 minutes or so the math worked out to where I avereged over 65 mph all the way up. I dont know if thats fast or not but it was fun. syclones handle decenty out of the box with the right tires and rear sway bar and lowered. right now I am running some KD's and they are the shit way more tire than I need.

one thing I will say is that they handle way better than a stock lightning, unless its got some 22's and its on the ground :eek: :D
 
Twins

Twins

Donating Member
Sweet vids....a little Metalica in the background.

I wish we roads like that around here. :x
 
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