I didn't even know this was a thing in 1989 The Shelby Dakota truck with a V8
I'm fairly familiar with those. Damn fun trucks for the day. I put a supercharger on one and it ran mid 13s on street tires and full exhaust. My buddy still owns it.
I may know the guy who worked for Carroll back then and wrote the press kit and photoed these trucks. And controlled the press cars. And travelled with The Man. And got to see the first (crafted at Shelby Automobiles in Whittier CA) Viper prototype chassis, wooden V-10 mockup and the rudimentary body, in early 1989.
Seems to me he's been on here a time or two.