Purchased 1994 Viper with 4K miles.

Nickel · Mar 10, 2013

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Finally bought my first Viper. Found it with only 4K miles. Looks like a museum piece! Absolutely love driving this car with my kids! A real thrill to say the least!
I need good advice in regards to the top....The car has the 3 piece top but one of the pieces is missing and the other two pieces are scratched so Im really starting over with buying a top. I am in Texas and don't plan on driving the car in rain. Would you guys simply buy the original ugly top if your only using a top for emergency rain situations? Thank you for your advice and help!

Zee · Mar 10, 2013

My factory top is a pain in the ass to put on and off and does not store in trunk. For emergencies, you need to get a soft top or a 3 piece to keep in the trunk. Auto form makes a 3 piece and there is a thread about a new top they are developing. I think I am just gonna try and find a cheap soft top for mine.

jes4fun · Mar 10, 2013

Look online for autoform group located in Holland Michigan, they may be able to help.

Indy · Mar 10, 2013

Congrats on the purchase! Whenever I see a GenI, I always think that they should have continued to use a 3-spoke wheel design for later Generations....looks awesome!

Nickel · Mar 10, 2013

Indy said:
Congrats on the purchase! Whenever I see a GenI, I always think that they should have continued to use a 3-spoke wheel design for later Generations....looks awesome!

Thank you Indy. I went through a phase over the years in regards to gen1 wheels....Liked them when the car was introduced back in 92. Then didnt like them much awhile back but now starting to grow on me again. Kind of like popcorn ceilings in a house... Always telling my wife they will be back in style someday LOL!

Nickel · Mar 10, 2013

Thanks Jes and Zee. Will look on auto form. Also didnt know about the soft top. Thought the original was the soft top. Zee...I wonder if I can keep my Lemke windows and use your soft top that your speaking of?

The Roar In The Night · Mar 10, 2013

Nice looking car! What incredibly low mileage on that - sounds like it might not stay low miles for long as you imply it's getting some use at last (which gets my approval, I'm all for great cars being driven, not just looked at

).

Nickel · Mar 10, 2013

The Roar In The Night said:
Nice looking car! What incredibly low mileage on that - sounds like it might not stay low miles for long as you imply it's getting some use at last (which gets my approval, I'm all for great cars being driven, not just looked at ).

LOL! Your right! Ive already driven it 700 miles in a few weeks. Went with the Barrett Jackson insurance. I believe I have a limit of 3000 miles a year. Barrett seems cheap. $433.00 per year.
Also, see your from NE Texas. Im originally from Sulphur Springs. I bet your car is a rare site in that part of Texas?

jdeft1 · Mar 10, 2013

Gen 1 guy here... (3 to date)

Learn how to properly close the hood!! This is paramount.
Swap all the fluids
Time for some new tires too.....

Enjoy!!!

VYPR BYT 94 · Mar 10, 2013

Nickel, does the top look like this? I notice your sport pad is missing.

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If so, just call these guys for a replacement for the missing piece and then paint all 3 together. That makes more sense than buying a completely new top.

http://www.mach7motorsports.com/page/page/3752064.htm
248-328-2222

The Roar In The Night · Mar 10, 2013

Nickel said:
LOL! Your right! Ive already driven it 700 miles in a few weeks. Went with the Barrett Jackson insurance. I believe I have a limit of 3000 miles a year. Barrett seems cheap. $433.00 per year.
Also, see your from NE Texas. Im originally from Sulphur Springs. I bet your car is a rare site in that part of Texas?

I've seen Vipers about 5 or 6 times around here in the last 10 years - and three of those were at once. So not that common to see at all! That said, since joining here I now know there's someone not far from Tyler, and apparently there's a collector very nearby with a substantial number of them, with substantial being well into double digits (looking back, I suspect that was the "three Vipers at once" that I saw as that would have been about the right location). I'd say at a sighting of one per 1.5 years, it makes it fairly rare - of course there are now a lot more Viper sightings, as I've addded about 2K miles to mine in the last 3 weeks :O Lucky local populations, is all I can say.

Nickel · Mar 10, 2013

Tyler is nice country. I bet you get some nice driving time out that way. I have a few cousins in Tyler. One is a Veterinarian. The other enjoys his Harley. Great place to live and enjoy a Viper!

Nickel · Mar 10, 2013

VYPR BYT 94 said:
Nickel, does the top look like this? I notice your sport pad is missing.

You must be registered for see images attach

If so, just call these guys for a replacement for the missing piece and then paint all 3 together. That makes more sense than buying a completely new top.

http://www.mach7motorsports.com/page/page/3752064.htm
248-328-2222

Yes, my top looks like this. Thank you for the information. Does your 3 piece top fit well? I placed the 2 pieces that I have on the car. Looks a bit uneven. So strange about this top...The car looks perfect but the tops look rough. Almost like they were thrown around a bit.

Nickel · Mar 10, 2013

jdeft1 said:
Gen 1 guy here... (3 to date)

Learn how to properly close the hood!! This is paramount.
Swap all the fluids
Time for some new tires too.....

Enjoy!!!

Thank you for the advice...Hood seems a bit tricky to close. Watched the guy on Flemings Ultimate Garage you tube channel close the Viper hood. He seems like he knows what he is doing.

viper67wife · Mar 11, 2013

The roof was probably stored in the trunk without the storage bags. And no, the Autoform windows won't work with the soft top. The soft top windows zipper in.

Diane

VYPR BYT 94 · Mar 11, 2013

Nickel said:
Yes, my top looks like this. Thank you for the information. Does your 3 piece top fit well? I placed the 2 pieces that I have on the car. Looks a bit uneven. So strange about this top...The car looks perfect but the tops look rough. Almost like they were thrown around a bit.

Yes but only after alot of nip-n-tuk is done. These cars are built by hand so every car is gonna be a bit different. Getting it to fit well between the shape of the sportbar and the windshield is the key. You need to get the middle piece in the right position and then fit the sides. I'd at least call them and see what they say... you're 2/3 of the way there.

Mike

Nickel · Mar 11, 2013

viper67wife said:
The roof was probably stored in the trunk without the storage bags. And no, the Autoform windows won't work with the soft top. The soft top windows zipper in.

Diane

Your probably right about being stored in trunk without bag. Hadn't thought about that. I have Jeff Lemke windows (Mach 7 Motorsport). Will soft top work with his windows?

Nickel · Mar 11, 2013

VYPR BYT 94 said:
Yes but only after alot of nip-n-tuk is done. These cars are built by hand so every car is gonna be a bit different. Getting it to fit well between the shape of the sportbar and the windshield is the key. You need to get the middle piece in the right position and then fit the sides. I'd at least call them and see what they say... you're 2/3 of the way there.
Mike

Your top looks great and seems to fit well! I have your same top but probably wont use it much. (Just for emergency rain) Bottom line question...If your out for a drive and it starts to
rain, Do you have to take the bar pad off to install the 3 piece top? And how long does this take? Seems like it would take a good while to change out from ******* to 3 piece.

VYPR BYT 94 · Mar 11, 2013

Nickel said:
Your top looks great and seems to fit well! I have your same top but probably wont use it much. (Just for emergency rain) Bottom line question...If your out for a drive and it starts to
rain, Do you have to take the bar pad off to install the 3 piece top? And how long does this take? Seems like it would take a good while to change out from ******* to 3 piece.

I never did it when it already started to rain... just when the sky starts to make me nervous. So maybe I never tried to break any records doing it. Yes, you must remove the sportpad, just like you already have it off in your picture above, then install the top.
5-7 minutes and you're on your way.

I have Jeff Lemke windows (Mach 7 Motorsport). Will soft top work with his windows?

No, the lemke windows will not work with the oem soft top. They are much smaller than the opening.

sfm79 · Mar 12, 2013

Love your car Nickel, I have the same one with a few more miles than you.

Check out this thread; http://forums.viperclub.org/threads/657232-RT10-hardtop-market

got one · Mar 12, 2013

Do you have the softop? If so, give me a shout, been there and done that with the top research/etc.

512-565-2094

Nickel · Mar 12, 2013

sfm79 said:
Love your car Nickel, I have the same one with a few more miles than you.

Check out this thread; http://forums.viperclub.org/threads/657232-RT10-hardtop-market

Good info. Thank you!

got one said:
Do you have the softop? If so, give me a shout, been there and done that with the top research/etc.

512-565-2094

I dont have the soft top. May like to buy one though.

viper67wife said:
The roof was probably stored in the trunk without the storage bags. And no, the Autoform windows won't work with the soft top. The soft top windows zipper in.

Diane

Your probably right about them sliding around in the trunk. May like to find a soft top that would work with the Lemke windows. Not sure one exist.

GotAViper · Mar 14, 2013

Hey nickel, if you want to sell the peices of the 3 peice top to give you money for a soft top let me know i would be interested!. thanks and nice car!

Nickel · Mar 14, 2013

GotAViper said:
Hey nickel, if you want to sell the peices of the 3 peice top to give you money for a soft top let me know i would be interested!. thanks and nice car!

I spoke with Jeff Lemke today in regards to the missing piece. He ask me to send the other two pieces to him and he would build the missing piece for me. He seems like a good
businessman. I Still have not decided what to do.

GotAViper.....What would be the going the price for the other two pieces that you want? And can I ask why you would want two pieces? Just Curious. You deal in parts?

GotAViper · Mar 15, 2013

Hey Nickel,

No parts dealer here. I have an early 1993 viper and didnt latch my softtop correctly and it flew off and broke while driving

I have been without a top for 3+ years now since the 1992 and early 1993s use a different latch system for the tops. I hunt ebay and other sources for a used top but unfortuneately the only people who have them for sale (hardtop or softtop) want to charge an outragious price. I was told the 3 peice top you have might work for me but buying that top new is just as expensive. So my hopes in messaging you were to basically pick up 2 broken peices from you for cheap and maybe get the third peice and make it all affordable. I dont drive the car in the rain either but even on the most gorgeous day rain comes out of nowhere and leaves me stranded sometimes. Idealy a softop is best for emergencies, since you can pull over and throw it on within a minute or two. There are no 1992 or 1993 soft tops for sale thou. Plenty of 1994+ softtops are put up for sale every couple weeks since there were so many of those cars made.

GotAViper · Mar 15, 2013

Hey nickel i sent you a PM message to discuss further if you would like! thanks.

Purchased 1994 Viper with 4K miles.

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