Hard Top vs Soft Top Convertible Gen V ??? Poll!

[xRUSTYx]

Hey Guys ...

Would like to know what people thoughts of the possibility of a hard top Gen V?

Pro's:
* Keep the double bubble & slick lines of the Gen V
* Wouldn't have to worry about a soft top fading, ripping, etc...
* More Rigid than a soft top

Con's:
* Heavier (Likely)
* Not the same as Gen III/IV
* Even less trunk space?

So, with that said ...

The Question: If SRT offered a hard top convertible Gen V version, would you purchase that over a soft top?

 

[BigDawg]

Cost is the issue here. The amount of R&D required to do a hardtop would drive the cost sky high.

Soft top with a unique rear end.

 

[Jog]

I agree with BigDawg...As much as I would prefer a hardtop convertible; the price would probably be ridiculously high; not to mention the car would be a little heavier plus you would have even less trunk space. A soft top convertible with a unique rear end ( to distinguish it from the coupe ) would be the way to go.

 

[TonyCool]

Cost is the issue here. The amount of R&D required to do a hardtop would drive the cost sky high.

Soft top with a unique rear end.

I agree with BigDawg...As much as I would prefer a hardtop convertible; the price would probably be ridiculously high; not to mention the car would be a little heavier plus you would have even less trunk space. A soft top convertible with a unique rear end ( to distinguish it from the coupe ) would be the way to go.

What's the deal with the different rear end for the convertible? For gen3/4 I think the coupe rear end looks really good on the convertible (of course I'm biased). I think the rear end on the coupe and the vert must be the same:

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I think the gen5 convertible would look great with the coupe rear end:

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Also considering mazda can put a retractable hardtop in the mx-5:

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and price the whole car for $26,850. I truly can't see how SRT engineers could do it without driving the cost of the car sky high. (Sorry I usually don't do written sarcasm but I couldn't help it in this occasion)


I think there are many reasons why SRT will probably choose the soft top but I think that if they really wanted to they could do it. After all they are a group of very smart people. And I'm pretty sure they are going to have to do it at some point.

 

[01sapphirebob]

Soft top convertible here. To me a hard top convertible in just not Viper. Now I know the GEN V is somewhat a departure from the Viper formula but I would hope they just don't go that route with an open air version.

 

[BigDawg]

What's the deal with the different rear end for the convertible? For gen3/4 I think the coupe rear end looks really good on the convertible (of course I'm biased). I think the rear end on the coupe and the vert must be the same:

Good question.

Because the Viper has always had two different rears. People develop preferences. A lot of people only like the coupe rear. A lot of people only like the vert rear. A lot of people like both rear ends. It's a really cool part about the Viper. How many cars out there have two distinct looking rear ends of the same car? None that I know of. There are two aftermarket guys who can easily whip up a solution as they did on the Gen III. I for one never liked the frankencar rear of the SRT coupe. It's out of balance and looks weird. The fenders wrap too tightly over the tail lights and it looks boxy, like an afterthought. Which it was.

I loved the GTS and I loved the RT/10. Yes the Gen III rear resembled a sebring but when lowered it had more of a low/wide road presence than the SRT coupe, which looks too tall. You don't have that problem because your car is a widebody.

And if SRT can't figure out how to make a road legal Viper with GTS-R bodywork and sell it for $150k or less then there is no way in the world they can engineer a folding hard top without a huge increase.

 

[SnakeBitten]

If they made the hardtop out of Carbon Fiber it wont have a significant weight penalty...But the cost would be a problem. If the factory doesnt do a hardtop Im sure the aftermarket will as they did with all years Viper.

 

[TonyCool]

If they made the hardtop out of Carbon Fiber it wont have a significant weight penalty...But the cost would be a problem. If the factory doesnt do a hardtop Im sure the aftermarket will as they did with all years Viper.

You are probably right but a factory automatic retractable hardtop would be eons more practical than an aftermarket hardtop that you need to store at home while not in use.

 

[Jay M]

The problem with an inexpensive light weight hard top is that it doesn't perform well. I have read that on the Miata it not only weighs more, but it also makes the interior more noisy. A soft top absorbs sound, whereas the hard top amplifies it. In a heavy luxury car a retractable hard top works.

On the other hand-- Would I be able to take a Viper with a retractable hard top to more race tracks? If so, the I think it would be well worth it.

I live in southern CA, so a soft top with a glass window works just fine.

~Jay

 

[mnc2886]

If they made the hardtop out of Carbon Fiber it wont have a significant weight penalty...But the cost would be a problem. If the factory doesnt do a hardtop Im sure the aftermarket will as they did with all years Viper.

The extra weight comes from the added mechanics and additional bracing that will be required since the roof will no longer play a role on the cars rigidity and safety. This was not an issue with the Viper before as it was designed as a convertible first, coupe second. However, in the case of a Gen V, it appears to be the opposite.

 

[SnakeBitten]

The extra weight comes from the added mechanics and additional bracing that will be required since the roof will no longer play a role on the cars rigidity and safety. This was not an issue with the Viper before as it was designed as a convertible first, coupe second. However, in the case of a Gen V, it appears to be the opposite.

I didn't think about that. You are probably right. I assumed it was built the same as the Gen III/IV's since its basically the same chassis etc.

 

[01sapphirebob]

The extra weight comes from the added mechanics and additional bracing that will be required since the roof will no longer play a role on the cars rigidity and safety. This was not an issue with the Viper before as it was designed as a convertible first, coupe second. However, in the case of a Gen V, it appears to be the opposite.

Ralph had said in an interview that while he can't talk about future products to just look at the coupe and you will see it was designed with a convertible in mind.

 

[BlknBlu]

I would like to see them revise the RT/10.

Bruce

 

[xRUSTYx]

Ralph had said in an interview that while he can't talk about future products to just look at the coupe and you will see it was designed with a convertible in mind.

I hope this means hardtop, unless they somehow can do a double bubble in a soft top

You all bring up excellent points ... Looks like voting is relatively split across the board! No matter what SRT decides to do, it will have happy campers. I think a hard top could be affordable (less than <$5,000 option) especially seeing as there are much cheaper vehicle's that have this done.

Only time will tell

 

[SilveRT8]

Hope they make it a hardtop, but I'll order a new Vert anyway it comes

 

[xRUSTYx]

Hope they make it a hardtop, but I'll order a new Vert anyway it comes

I'll likely end up going coupe if the rear end is different. If they keep the rear the same in a soft top, I'll go that route.

Hard Top + Coupe Rear = Sex On Wheels

 

[05Commemorative]

I'll likely end up going coupe if the rear end is different. If they keep the rear the same in a soft top, I'll go that route.

Hard Top + Coupe Rear = Sex On Wheels

+1. no need to have a revised rear when you finally have a really good looking one. Only reason to have a different rear can't because they have always have done it that way...

 

[Paul Hawker]

The current Vert is already almost a hard top.

The roof area is solid, but covered with a fabric. (Knock on it and you will see)
The rear window is also solid glass.

Only about 20-30% of the current top is fabric to allow for it to fold into a small space and not take up too much trunk.

This top is weather tight, and is not much noisier than the coupe.

Since we have the coupe for ultimate track use, it perhaps frees up engineers to make a slightly heavier, totally carbon fiber roof that might even be manually operated.

 

[SkyBob]

The problem with an inexpensive light weight hard top is that it doesn't perform well. I have read that on the Miata it not only weighs more, but it also makes the interior more noisy. A soft top absorbs sound, whereas the hard top amplifies it. In a heavy luxury car a retractable hard top works.

I have a Miata with a retractable hard top. It does not make the interior more noisy.

 

[BigDawg]

I would like to see them revise the RT/10.

Bruce

This. Don't alienate the 50% who prefer the other rear. Stick to the Viper formula as much as possible. The original Viper was the RT/10. The GTS came later. Doing the same rear as the GTS would be a great disservice to the Viper heritage. Offer a targa top with a coupe rear for the coupe-rear-only crowd.

 

[ScrewDrvr]

a targa top coupe would look awesome. Anyone up for the photoshop?

 

[SylvanSRT]

HT conv if the weight penalty isnt too high and that the trunck is still functional