MOTOR TREND ARTICLE NEW COUPE

[WANTED]

POSTED PICS SIDEWAYS SO ALL CAN READ THE PRINT, SORRY LMAO, I'LL GET BETTER AT THIS

 

[WANTED]

i do belive this is the new coupe and the car does look different then the voi pic. also seems no hp increase. the blue/white is a color choice and look at the interior - remember the blue/white rt/10 - looks like that. i myself would just add a hardtop to my srt/10 so i could keep a convertible. whats everyone else think.

 

[AG98RT10]

I think my neck hurts from turning my head to read sideways!

But, thanks for posting -- not sure what I think of the new Coupe yet - doesn't look like they did enough to the VOI model and definitely must have at least 550 HP to keep up with new Z.

 

[ChrisGTS]

I will have a very hard time justifying getting one of these unless the horsepower is increased to beat the new Z06. I am not thrilled with the idea of going back to a Z06, but I feel like I may be forced into it by DC's failure to retain its status as "king of the hill." I have my fingers crossed that there will be a weight reduction or power increase when the car is launched in January.

 

[MoparMan]

From what I have been told there will be no HP increase until a year after the new coupe comes out.

 

[NOMERCY]

Not enough to justify a change in my current Viper. Thanks for the pics ...

 

[vipersrt10]

looks cool, but needs a increase in HP if im gunna trade up

 

[dirk989]

I like the looks of it. I'll also bet that it will
still outrun the new Vette, even though the Viper
is clearly the target that GM was shooting for.
Many will disagree, but lets wait til the two cars
are actually released and we get some fair comparos.

No reason to trade the SRT-10 for it though.
I'll be buying a hardtop, hopefully something that
modifies the trunk and matches the coupe look.
I'll also be installing a supercharger. [I do think
that DC could sell a ton of performance enhancements
if they wanted to get into the business.]

I'll have a coupe and a convertible. I'll also have
600+ RELIABLE horsepower in that big ole V-10. Try
getting that out of the chevy without stressing and
straining.

I can't imagine any Viper fan not loving that package.

I also noted that the coupe looks to have the metallic
center console area. As I've posted before, I think that
looks fantastic. I hope to be able to do this to the srt-10.


Dirk

 

[Snakester]

Without a substantial power increase for 2006, the Viper will lose it's status as one of the fastest, exclusive, high performance cars in the world, to just being mid-pack with everyone else.

And you just KNOW that every single auto magazine in the world is going to test the lighter, less expensive, C6 Z06 Corvette against the Viper Coupe.

When all of the media was testing the then-new Ford GT and comparing it to the Viper, Ford silently added 125-150HP, and upped the power rating by 50HP.

And now the Ford GT is being compared to the $670K+ Enzo and $450K Porsche CGT (and doing well), and as a consequence, there is a huge backlog of sales orders at WAY over MSRP (sometimes double)

I just cannot see DC being so horribly shortsighted that they would let the Viper fall behind the Corvette in the ***** eye for even one tiny moment.

My greatest hope is that they are decieving the press (as with the ME412) as opposed to decieving themselves (thinking that they don't need to keep the Viper's performance lead).

 

[kaval]

At this point this magazine article knows less than we know about this car.

 

[Austin]

Thats the same damn car they showed at VOI!

 

[madman]

If it's already 'one of the fastest' what would one more car in the bunch of 'the fastest' change on this status? Is this SRT forum or whining corner? Or one could behave like a ***** and go with whoever pays more (HP). I bought SRT for its unique styling, handling and adequate power. I don't care if Mustang and alike have 1000HP.

 

[Snakester]

The problem is not just the Corvette Z06, the point is that 500HP is more commonplace now than it was just two years ago in performance cars. Even with several sedans.

While it's great that you enjoy your Viper regardless of it's not having more power than many newer high performance cars, we are talking about the future of the Viper.
And maintaining the Viper's perception as one of the most powerful cars in the world.

When was the last time that you saw a new NSX on the street?

Their current sales nationwide is in the hundreds yearly now. And the reason is that they did NOT keep up the car's power compared to it's competition.

Are there die-hard fans that love the NSX regardless? Yes.
Are there people who can appreciate the other great features of the car like handling, braking, build quality, design, uniqueness, and great driving feel? Yes.

But Honda had set their design target as being the Ferrari 328, and now the 3100lb Ferrari 430 has nearly 500HP, with the NSX languishing with 290HP. And NSX sales are virutally non-existant. The same thing happened with the Lotus Esprit because they lacked the resources to keep the car competitive with newer designs.

It's certainly not saying that the SRT-10 Viper is not a fantastic car.
The point is that being percieved as one of the most powerful and fastest cars in the world means always staying ahead of the competition.

 

[ChrisGTS]

Snakesster is right. The whole point of building a Viper is not just to sell the 2000 cars they make a year, or whatever it is. You build the Viper as a marquee to bring attention and respect to the brand. The Viper filled that role perfectly when it had BOTH the great looks and superior performance to the Corvette. Now, someone who is looking to get a new car next year (i.e., me) has to choose between the Corvette, which is much more pedestrian looking and not nearly as special as a Viper, but has better performance, or the Viper, which is a more exclusive, better-looking car with less performance that costs $10k more. It's a choice I hate to make, and it calls into question why Dodge builds the Viper in the first place if someone can spend $10k less and get a faster car.
I still have my fingers crossed that the magazine is wrong, and when we see the official launch, the new coupe will have 550-600hp or will have lost some weight. If it doesn't do those things, it won't appeal to the buyer who wants the fastest car (i.e., me) and will have to trade on its looks and exclusviity alone. Sorry, but I can't swallow spending $10k more to have a slower, but more exclusive car.

 

[dirk989]

Valid point snakester, except your reference to the Esprit. The Esprit more than kept pace. It was continually upgraded and the final version was a twin turbo V8. At that point it was 350 usable torquey hp in an exotic light weight package. An inexpensive chip mod gave more than 450 hp. The Esprit didn't languish or die off. Every year the tiny company pumped out about 200 new, almost entirely hand built cars and sold every one of them. They stopped production of the hand built, low volume Esprit to churn out mass quantities of the Elise. The Elise is a great little car with an enormous profit margin for Lotus. Look for Lotus to use Elise profits to come out with another Esprit with 600+ hp in 06 or 07. Design work has already started. That car will be a major player.

I loved my Esprit tt. It was like a fine swiss watch or a scalpel. I had bought the Lotus instead of the Ferrari 355. The Lotus was, IMO, far superior. Then I bought the Viper. More of a 900 lb sun dial than a swiss watch, more of a sledghammer than a scalpel. When a willing buyer, [ironically a Dodge executive] lusted after the Lotus, it was expendable. At that time my Lotus had around 500 hp in a lightweight package. It had amazing handling. But the Viper, even the SRT-10 that gets bashed for being 'too civilized' was much more of a brute.




I don't expect that the Viper will fall 200hp behind and die a slow death like the NSX. The fact that Chevy is taking a huge risk with the bargain Vette by turning it into a $70k+ car just to take a shot at the Viper is not cause for alarm. Remember, the Viper is not a car squeezing every last drop of potential out of an overburdened engine. It is a sledge hammer that makes 500hp without even noticing. 600hp isn't the tiniest bit of strain for the Viper. This is not a time for desperation and panic. The introduction of the new Vette, if it turns out to be anything like predicted, is simply a nudge in the right direction. The Viper will not need to have such a drastic price increase or clever, but expensive, engineering to up the ante. We've got a great platform with easily achievable hp and torque gains. We have a platform that can handle insane hp with ease.

Until then, like I said, I'll put on the supercharger and the hardtop and I'll still be driving on the top of the hill.

Dirk

 

[ARMORGOD]

Harumph, harumph... the Viper HAS TO have more ponies that the ZO6 (even if it was only a 50hp bump)! If DC ignores this I would be shocked (Lutz would never have let this happen on his watch).

One thing to consider: for the first year, or two, new ZO6s will probably sell for MSRP, or higher. Currently, it is no difficult task to get an SRT at invoice. Bottom line is that you would shell out about the same $$$ for the two cars, until the supply of Zs catches up with the demand. A perspective buyer would have styling and MINOR performance differences to base his/her decision on.

 

[Craig 201 MPH]

Harumph, harumph... the Viper HAS TO have more ponies that the ZO6 (even if it was only a 50hp bump)! If DC ignores this I would be shocked (Lutz would never have let this happen on his watch).

One thing to consider: for the first year, or two, new ZO6s will probably sell for MSRP, or higher. Currently, it is no difficult task to get an SRT at invoice. Bottom line is that you would shell out about the same $$$ for the two cars, until the supply of Zs catches up with the demand. A perspective buyer would have styling and MINOR performance differences to base his/her decision on.

But one won't get thrown out of the track for running 11's stock and one will.

The trump card the Z06 has over the SRT is a fixed roof.

 

[ledfoot]

The ZO6 guys are Jones-ing for a vert. so it goes both ways.......

 

[dirk989]

Duh, Craigster, read the title of this topic. It is even posted above your
clever, as usual, reply. The key word here is 'coupe' The Z06 does not have
the 'trump card' of a fixed roof over the new coupe. I believe that the
term 'coupe' is synonymous with your term 'fixed roof.' However, how is a fixed
roof a 'trump card'????

The SRT-10 has the 'trump card' [in many eyes] over the Z06 in that it is a
true convertible.


The fixed roof is a big deal if you intend to race the car. What percentage of
Z06's race?? What percentage of Vipers race?? What percentage of unemployed,
unlicensed Canadian students race? When you get old enough to buy a car, I
doubt you'll be buying it to race. If you are then you'll have to consider the
costs associated with racing as well.


Dirk

 

[madman]

Right on Dirk, W(**)TF care about all racers. If you want to do
it seriously you buy a Pro equipment... The true joy is the open
top. In fact I can't imagine driving daily coupe with Corsa Track.
I just put it on my SRT and the noise is - well - annoying with top up.
I know that top down it will be one pleasant experience

So (back to the this thread subj.) I know I will be bastardized but for DC
to really make money on coupe means to civilize it even more so it could
be very agile daily/weekend driver for folks with means in the colder (or
very hot) climates. Which means more quiet inside. Otherwise the coupe package
is excellent as it is, much more appealing style then vette.

 

[Craig 201 MPH]

Duh, Craigster, read the title of this topic. It is even posted above your
clever, as usual, reply. The key word here is 'coupe' The Z06 does not have
the 'trump card' of a fixed roof over the new coupe. I believe that the
term 'coupe' is synonymous with your term 'fixed roof.' However, how is a fixed
roof a 'trump card'????

The SRT-10 has the 'trump card' [in many eyes] over the Z06 in that it is a
true convertible.


The fixed roof is a big deal if you intend to race the car. What percentage of
Z06's race?? What percentage of Vipers race?? What percentage of unemployed,
unlicensed Canadian students race? When you get old enough to buy a car, I
doubt you'll be buying it to race. If you are then you'll have to consider the
costs associated with racing as well.


Dirk

Read my post again I was talking SRT-10 to Z06. The intent being that for the same $$ you could get a used SRT or new Z06, why buy the SRT coupe new if it's going to have the same power but weigh more than the Z06? The only way you can compare them is $$ wise and in that comparison you are going vert versus FRC.

 

[MoparMan]

Thats the same damn car they showed at VOI!

That's because MT doesn't have a pic of the revised coupe...

 

[SRTJOE]

Duh, Craigster, read the title of this topic. It is even posted above your
clever, as usual, reply. The key word here is 'coupe' The Z06 does not have
the 'trump card' of a fixed roof over the new coupe. I believe that the
term 'coupe' is synonymous with your term 'fixed roof.' However, how is a fixed
roof a 'trump card'????

The SRT-10 has the 'trump card' [in many eyes] over the Z06 in that it is a
true convertible.


The fixed roof is a big deal if you intend to race the car. What percentage of
Z06's race?? What percentage of Vipers race?? What percentage of unemployed,
unlicensed Canadian students race? When you get old enough to buy a car, I
doubt you'll be buying it to race. If you are then you'll have to consider the
costs associated with racing as well.


Dirk

Read my post again I was talking SRT-10 to Z06. The intent being that for the same $$ you could get a used SRT or new Z06, why buy the SRT coupe new if it's going to have the same power but weigh more than the Z06? The only way you can compare them is $$ wise and in that comparison you are going vert versus FRC.

Blah...Blah...Blah...Blah

 

[RavenFan_94]

lets see for $75k and equal performance, which car would you rather own? If you say Vette, than you were never meant for a Viper in the first place.

 

[ChrisGTS]

If they both have 500hp and one of them weighs 300lbs less, will the performance be "equal"?!

 

[BLUESNAKE367]

I bought my first Viper for more reasons than it would flat out perform a Vette, Heck, I have 70's muscle cars that would do that just fine. I think the new coupe is bangin, just like I thought when I saw my GTS,if DC puts in 50hp more that is cool, if not, I still have to have it,and if DC is listening, where can I send my check for the new coupe.

PS. Yes it looks exactly like the one DC showed at VOI8, and that makes it more believeable...just my thought...

 

[GTS Bruce]

Not equal!same power with less weight means lower ET,shorter braking distances,higher cornering forces.Viper loses without at least a 50 HP bump up. GTS Bruce

 

[Craig 201 MPH]

lets see for $75k and equal performance, which car would you rather own? If you say Vette, than you were never meant for a Viper in the first place.

Are you that oblivious?

Z06 = lighter
Viper = heavier

Z06 = winner.

 

[RavenFan_94]

Yes Craig I am oblivious. I would guess that 90% of us don't track our cars. I don't race Corvettes at suburban stoplights nor 'burn rubber' in the parking lot of the 7-11. (Nor do you for obvious reasons). Those who do the above, well, they just do the above. Hope their insurance is paid up.

Like someone said prior, if you track your car extensively, you are doing it with more than a stock DOT ride. Performance is measured by mags and races involving cars which do not at all resemble their stock counterparts. We read them, say 'neat' and confirm performance by the seat of our pants feel. At this level, and with a car we don't track, this is merely about bragging rights. The Z06 could be 50hp more than the Viper, it could be 450lbs lighter.

Many still will not pay $75k for it.

What I think you are oblivious too is the HUGE risk that Chevy is assuming with this move. They are trying to steal Viper faithful and a relying upon a forecasted uptick in the domestic economy. Go read the Corvette forums. These guys are all screaming about the planned price. I would venture production to be less than 3-5k total units.

When you eclipse $70k, you narrow the scope of the demographic beyond the Corvette's long standing branding message. I don't see them spending the money to rebrand the car so something has to give.

I liken it to Volkswagen's new experiment with the Phaeton. Looks like a great car. But, no one has every walked into a VW dealership and said "can you guys make a $90k VW?"

The guys who can dump $75k into a Corvette are already doing it with mods. Only a small percentage of Viper owners mod their cars. The market segment line betwixt these razor thing demographics is dotted.

Many former Vette owners Vipers. The inverse is less likely. Do you see many Viper owners jumping to a Corvette? If you do, it is your opinion. I don't.

 

[DEVILDOG]

Only a small percentage of Viper owners mod their cars.

BTW, are those stripes on your '96 RT? I didn't know they were factory that year, however, they must be since only a small percentage of Viper owners mod their cars.