FASTRNU
Enthusiast
\'04 SRT 10 initial driving impressions vs. corvette
Hi everyone,
The rain relented early in the afternoon so I took the Viper out for a drive this evening. Still in break in so nothing over 4,000 rpm. Not a lot of throttle, just cruising mostly.
My previous car was modified and put 393 HP to the rear wheels, so I guess I have about 50+ more RWHP now, if my Viper is like others at the dyno.
The SRT 10 is pretty well mannered around town. Ride is not as cushy as the Vette. You can tell this is more of a street legal race car than a Corvette ever could be. The stock shifter shifts truer than the Corvettes did, but still kind of long. I had a problem grabbing third from second a couple times and grabbed second from third when I meant to grab fourth once, all at low speed so no big deal. Hopefully it will loosen up a bit in time. I had a B & M Ripper in the Corvette, so a lot of effort was needed to shift. I haven't installed the Gripper shift knob yet. I think that will shorten the throw.
I have no doubt the Viper will trash the Vette in acceleration, etc, but since I went easy I can really comment more on the handling.
The Viper handles like it is on rails. The steering wheel turns seem shorter than the Vettes, and the meats on this thing grab like nothing I've ever been in. I have a nice twisty near me and took it moderately fast and had a blast. I took curves probably 10 mph faster than my comfort level ever let me do in the Corvette (stock run craps).
I love the HID lights. The brights light up the roadway big time.
I cruised down to the Buckhead (lotsa bars) area of Atlanta tonight and had people taking pictures of the Viper from the windows of cars driving next to me! Never had that happen in my Corvette!
This car is definetly harder to get into. I don't know if I'd be in the market for one of these if I was 30 years older! Gotta get some sill protection quick.
I can see the difference in the appeal of the Viper vs. the Corvette now. Corvette makes certain compromises in suspension and handling to appeal to a broader and probably on the average older customer base. No compromises on the Viper.
I kind of think I have graduated now from Corvette to Viper, meaning more of everything performance-wise.
Dave
Hi everyone,
The rain relented early in the afternoon so I took the Viper out for a drive this evening. Still in break in so nothing over 4,000 rpm. Not a lot of throttle, just cruising mostly.
My previous car was modified and put 393 HP to the rear wheels, so I guess I have about 50+ more RWHP now, if my Viper is like others at the dyno.
The SRT 10 is pretty well mannered around town. Ride is not as cushy as the Vette. You can tell this is more of a street legal race car than a Corvette ever could be. The stock shifter shifts truer than the Corvettes did, but still kind of long. I had a problem grabbing third from second a couple times and grabbed second from third when I meant to grab fourth once, all at low speed so no big deal. Hopefully it will loosen up a bit in time. I had a B & M Ripper in the Corvette, so a lot of effort was needed to shift. I haven't installed the Gripper shift knob yet. I think that will shorten the throw.
I have no doubt the Viper will trash the Vette in acceleration, etc, but since I went easy I can really comment more on the handling.
The Viper handles like it is on rails. The steering wheel turns seem shorter than the Vettes, and the meats on this thing grab like nothing I've ever been in. I have a nice twisty near me and took it moderately fast and had a blast. I took curves probably 10 mph faster than my comfort level ever let me do in the Corvette (stock run craps).
I love the HID lights. The brights light up the roadway big time.
I cruised down to the Buckhead (lotsa bars) area of Atlanta tonight and had people taking pictures of the Viper from the windows of cars driving next to me! Never had that happen in my Corvette!
This car is definetly harder to get into. I don't know if I'd be in the market for one of these if I was 30 years older! Gotta get some sill protection quick.
I can see the difference in the appeal of the Viper vs. the Corvette now. Corvette makes certain compromises in suspension and handling to appeal to a broader and probably on the average older customer base. No compromises on the Viper.
I kind of think I have graduated now from Corvette to Viper, meaning more of everything performance-wise.
Dave
