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The 2017 Syclone Typhoon Buyers Guide

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  • The 2017 Syclone Typhoon Buyers Guide

    Twenty-five years ago, the production of the Syclone, Typhoon, and Sonoma GT launched and as quickly as it started, it was gone. While some trucks went lovingly into collector status and carefully stored away, some where enjoyed on the weekends and the occasional spirited drive, and many were busy chalking up hard mileage down the track or looking for that victim at the next stop light. The market today is full of trucks with varying histories and condition. While the low mile gems still can be sought out, most of the trucks today show a bit of age with some mileage and modifications. Potential buyers need to be aware that these trucks require a caliber of maintenance that is unique to the SyTySoGT. This buyer’s guide is designed to cover both the common areas of the Sonoma/Jimmy platform but also focus on the unique features of the Syclone, Typhoon, and Sonoma GT and what should be considered when looking to purchase one of these sportmachines.

    BEFORE YOU BEGIN

    Research these trucks and ask yourself if this vehicle is worth your time and money. The SyTy (excluding the SoGT) are trucks that require a high level of maintenance in order to run at peak performance in both stock and modified form. If you are not mechanically inclined, be ready to learn or be sure you have someone who can be trusted to work on your truck. Just like you wouldnt take a Ferrari to a Honda Dealership or some questionable shade tree garage, most mechanics wont be able to diagnose specific issues that the SyTys are known to have. The old adage is – “Many can afford to buy a Syclone or Typhoon, but many can’t afford to own a Syclone or Typhoon.”

    If you can bring along a current owner or someone who has knowledge of these trucks when going to look at a truck, it is to your advantage. What an inexperienced eye might miss, one who has been around these trucks will quickly be able to point out both the positive and negatives. You dont know anyone? Ask. You’d be surprised how many people will offer to help or might already know the truck and be able to give you history on it. Remember, this is a small community!

    Read the ISTR SyTy FAQ page for commonly asked questions!
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    SyTy Registry
    InternationalSyTyRegistry.com

  • #2
    EXTERIOR CHECKLIST


    CLADDING
    • Check for broken or cracked cladding pieces. ALL Typhoons had painted cladding with color (including black) while the Syclone’s cladding finish should be matte black in stock form. The more common pieces to break are the fender arches due to the tabs that secure them to the fender break plus they tend to see the most interaction of touch when you’re bent over your fender working on the truck. While OEM pieces are still available, certain ones are becoming harder to find and can go for hundreds of dollars. Fiberglass alternatives have become available on the market, yet will most likely require a bit of sanding work and adjustment to fit properly and of course paint.
    • Syclone cladding should appear as a matte black finish. The discussion has been brought up that the cladding was indeed painted with the matte finish from the factory due to owners being able to peel what seems like a layer of paint off their aged cladding. This is still up for discussion until documentation can be found. If the cladding appears to be various shades of color (like a sun bleached look), this is actually common due to the different plastic materials used to mold the cladding. ALL Typhoon cladding for 92-92 is painted! Refer to the FAQ for correct color breakdown on Typhoons/SonomaGTs.
    • Look for cladding that is not properly riveted onto the truck. It is common for the front bumper to be misaligned to the front of the fender arches. This could be either from incorrect placement on the bumper hangers (can be easily adjusted by 2 bolts) or a possible sign of a past accident. Be sure to inspect this closely and ask questions. The front fender arches are known to be weak on the tabs around the fender and can easily break off resulting in a lost piece of cladding on the road. Giving a gentle pull on each piece of cladding can help indicate loose or broken pieces. We emphasize gentle. Lets not rip cladding off of a truck you may or may not purchase.
    RUST

    Do a typical inspection as you would for any vehicle for rust. This is more of a concern on trucks that are in areas that snow or near the coast due to salt exposure. It is not untypical to see light rust scale on the frames or suspension. Use your discretion for how much is too much. Other specific areas to look for rust:
    • Check the bottom of the doors
    • Check the bottom of the tailgate (opening the tailgate will expose the bottom side much easier)
    • Rust is known to hide behind cladding. Make sure to reach up behind any panel possible.
    • Typhoon – Check around the gasket seal of the rear windows
    • Typhoon – Check around the rear glass
    • Check body mounts
    PAINT

    While many trucks still wear their original paint, after 25 years, many have also been repainted. Check for signs of paint work along any rubber trim or overspray in the wheel wells or around body panels. If the truck has been repainted, ask if the cladding was removed when painted. A quality paint job should have had the cladding removed to paint the entire body. Cladding can also hide hidden secrets and issues (see rust above). 92 TYPHOONS

    Check the FAQ for color breakdown.
    • Check if it’s a correct 92 color scheme. Other than Blk/Blk, Radar Blue, and Raspberry, all 92s should have painted gray cladding.
    • Silver Typhoon decals (specific for 92)
    • Two-tone grille: Body color + gray headlight buckets and center portion. If grille is all one color, suspect replacement or paint work.
    • Has door eschucheons (plastic piece surrounding door handles)
    93 TYPHOONS

    Check the FAQ for color breakdown.
    • Check if it’s a correct 93 color scheme.
    • Gold Typhoon decals (specific for 93)
    • Monotone grille: The grill is the same as the body color. NO gray headlight buckets or center portion.
    • NO door eschucheons (plastic piece surrounding door handles)
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    SyTy Registry
    InternationalSyTyRegistry.com

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    • #3
      INTERIOR CHECKLIST
      • Know the interior differences between the 92 and 93 Typhoon by reading the SyTy FAQ page.
      • Syclone & 92 Ty Seats – Check for the lumbar support bulb on the front part of the seat. This is a common thing to break on the trucks as the hose becomes hard and brittle and breaks off at the pump bulb. 93 Ty seats are electric controlled! Test to ensure the seat electronics are properly working, including positioning.
      • The emergency jack should be located behind the passenger seat for Syclones and with the spare tire on Typhoons.
      • Check the center console lid. This is also a common area of wear and tear due to usage. The outer cover is known to peel up or the spring to the button will break and not allow the lid to latch and lock (can be opened without depressing the button).
      • Check gauge needles. The oil pressure needle has been known to flip all the way over and become stuck on the lower needle stopper. The fix for this is to take part the gauge cluster and flip it back around by hand. Some have added a 2nd stopper to not allow the needle to flip.
      • Check for cracks in the dashboard. Common places are around the vents and speaker grilles.
      • Check the passenger side carpet under the dash area for any sort of moisture or signs of wetness. Smell the carpet. A common problem with the trucks are the heater cores leaking. When this happens, coolant will dump onto the passenger floorboard. If you notice a coolant smell and the carpet is wet to the touch, changes are the heater core is leaking. The heater core can easily be fixed using this article.
      • The Typhoons are famous for having what is called “window squeak” which is due to the back window latch having worn out and rubbing on the release hook while driving. This is very common among all the platforms (Jimmy/Blazer/Typhoon) and is easily fixed with an aftermarket latch system from Sportmachines.
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      SyTy Registry
      InternationalSyTyRegistry.com

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      • #4
        SUSPENSION & DRIVETRAIN

        • Many trucks today have been lowered by means of using rear drop blocks and then turning the torsion keys on the torsion bars to lower the front. Inspect that the rear blocks are property installed. If the rear wheel seems to be off center of the wheel well, changes are setback plates where not used. Re-centering the rear wheel can be fixed easily with the installation of setback plates. Many also go the route of lowered leaf springs for the rear.
        • Check all bushings and greased parts for signs of cracks or tears. This includes areas such as – upper/lower control arm bushings, tie rod ends, ball joints, idler arm, u-joints, and even CV axles.
        • Inspect the forward propshaft. Stock trucks used a booted propshaft that commonly get ripped or torn, therefore destroying the joints (think in the same manner as a CV shaft). There are stories of propshafts failing and denting/destroying the floorboard right under your feet. The stock propshaft is not serviceable. Inspect the boot for any signs of rips and leakage. Many trucks have switched to an upgraded double cardon joint propshaft. These proshafts tend to be serviceable as well as much stronger than the stock propshaft. They range from $300-400+. Available from Sportmachines.
        • The Typhoons came standard with a ride leveling system in the rear. There is a pump located on the driver side behind the rear wheel. This pump is hooked up to air shocks. If enough weight is put on the rear of the truck to engage the system, you will hear the pump run and the rear of the truck will slowly rise back up to proper height. If the pump is in working order, you can usually make it engage by sitting on the tailgate. Many pumps no longer work or have been disengaged due to lowering the truck. Is it necessary to have? If you plan to haul heavy items in the truck on a regular basis, yes, consider it. If not, there is no harm in not having it and many have choose to unplug it all together. This is something to consider if you are looking at a lowered truck as well. If your shocks have a leak, you will notice the pump running on a regular occasion to keep up with the leak and level the truck. Inspect the shocks and air lines for leaks.
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        SyTy Registry
        InternationalSyTyRegistry.com

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        • #5
          ENGINE CHECKLIST

          Many trucks on the market today have some degree of modification under the hood. This can vary from minor reliability upgrades to heavily built and bolted on parts. Due to the range and degree of modifications, this list is an overview of more of the commonly known areas to focus when looking under the hood. This list mainly covers stock to mildly modded trucks with upgraded stock components or standard bolt on parts.

          BLOW-BY

          Blow-by occurs when the explosion that occurs in your engine’s combustion chamber causes fuel, air and moisture to be forced past the rings into the crankcase. This causes a loss in power and oil dilution. In short, a motor with blow-by means a definite rebuild coming soon.

          Start the engine and unscrew the cap from the oil-filler neck. Look for smoke or vapors coming out of the oil filler. If there is a lot of smoke, the rings/valve guides are worn and the smoke you see is blow-by. If there is no smoke, hold your hand above the filler neck. If there is a lot of air coming out, it’s a sign of blow-by.


          UPPER RADIATOR HOSE / ENGINE MOUNTS

          Run your hand along the radiator hose, specifically nearest the area of where the alternator is. You are feeling for any cuts in the hose (always on outer ride side of the hose, facing the engine bay) caused by the alternator fan. This is a quick indicator of bad engine mounts due to when the engine torques over, the bad mount allows the alternator fan to touch the radiator hose and cut into it. Motor mounts aren’t fun to do on the SyTy, so a quick “bandaid” fix is to install a torque strap which is typically bolted on around the alternator and down to the frame. Various style straps have been made using chains and hooks or billet brackets and turnbuckles. A worn or broken motor mount isn’t a deal breaker when buying a truck as solid mounts are readily available, but the work to install them is a bit demanding due to limited work space.

          STOCK INTAKE TUBE

          If the truck you are drooling over to purchase has a stock intake tube, ask the owner if they could please take it off the truck to inspect. Yes, this sounds inconvenient, but you possibly could uncover a ticking time bomb or worse, a hidden issue that would have gone unnoticed. Check each end of the tube for cracks or if it missing altogether. The intake tubes are prone to cracking when the hose clamp on either end is overtightened. This has resulted in way more than one incident of a piece of the intake cracking, breaking off, and feeding the turbo….thus destroying the turbo. Which leads into….

          TURBO

          If you have the intake tube removed, take an opportunity to inspect the turbo and shaft. You may notice a small amount of oil sitting on the turbo inlet, this is normal. If there is an excessive pool of oil, this could be an issue with the turbo itself or the PCV system. Reach into the turbo inlet and grab onto the intake wheel (the truck should not be running of course) and check the in/out and side/side play. The shaft should have little to no movement. If you can feel the shaft moving excessively around, the turbo is ready for a rebuild. Inspect the intake wheel for any damaged or bent blades – protip: use the camera on your smart phone!

          COMMON MODS & UPGRADES

          Here is an incomplete list of common modifications and upgrades you may find under the hood:
          • Adjustable Fuel Pressure Regulator (AFPR)
          • Intercooler lines changed from stock metal to 3/4″ hose (various methods to route)
          • ABS Delete
          • Stock intercooler replaced with “Air to Air” (A2A) intercooler system
          • Intake elbow or aftermarket cold air box (replaces factory stock intake tube – see above)
          • Electric fans (single or dual setups)
          • Injectors (stock injectors have “red tops”)
          • Battery relocated – Common places to relocate are bed, under the bed, back of truck (Typhoons) or lowered in the fender area
          • Oil filter relocated to the block
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          SyTy Registry
          InternationalSyTyRegistry.com

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