How did you get your Viper?

[illegalspeeds]

People always thought I was a Ford man, I owned 3 Mustang Cobras and 2 Lightnings over the last 6 years. My close friends knew better...they said I was a car mercenary. Whatever happened to get me from point A to point B the fastest, the coolest, and the cheapest was what I wanted. I decided I wanted a Viper long ago, so I sold my Lightning, bought a $10K sport utility vehicle for every day driving, sold my motorcycle, and used that money as a down payment on a $40,000 Gen 2 Viper. I financed about 30K, for a payment of about 500/month...equal to what I was paying on my Lightning.
By the way, I am one of those "regular guys" who have a Viper. I am single, I am an E-7 in the Navy, and I have one other car, and no other debt. I don't make 6 figures, and I don't have a fleet of exotics. I just really LOVE performance cars, and Vipers above all.

Matt

 

[NOTV8]

Told my wife that I just saw my dream car on my way home. She said if you wanted it get it. I end up trading my 2500 Heavy Duty Silverado that I just bought six months earlier.

 

[EA6BPilot]

I found mine on Traderonline.com at a dealer in Vegas. The deal was too hard to pass up, so I called them, left a credit card deposit of $2k, flew out, test drove, signed papers (financed through Wells Fargo.....%5 on a 7 year old car wasn't bad), and had them ship it home to me.

As for affording it, I spent a total of 13 months in the middle east, where my pay was tax free. There is really no other way I could have done it. I guess Uncle Sam hooks us up when we get shot at!

 

[ViperInBlack]

Joe:

My stock playing motto has always been: "buy high", "sell low."

And, I am quite good at it.

It will be the year 2114 before I have finished writing off losses.

 

[Epro]

Good stories so far, keep em coming

 

[Scorch]

Sorry for the long post! Interesting topic. Like others have stated, I too fell in love with the Viper at the 1989 Detroit Auto Show. The car on display was red with gray interior. It was on a pedestal about five or six feet off the floor, on an angle so you could see the interior. It was truly love at first site.

Like most at the show, I never dreamed of actually owning a Viper. I "settled" for driving Mustang GT's for many years while completing my education and working my way into management at Ford. Finally in 2002 (14 years after first seeing the Viper) the bug bite me hard. I had to have something more substantial than the Mustang.

It started with Corvette's. I drove a C3, C4, and C5. Quite honestly they felt like nothing more than glorified Mustangs, especially the C3. It was then I realized only a Viper would do. It was going to cost more than the Corvette, but why had I worked so hard all these years?

I was still in love the GEN 1 cars and the finances weren’t going to be a problem, thus the search (and frustration) began. It took almost nine months and four states to find a car in good enough condition to purchase. The saddest thing about the experience was that people think nothing of bold face lying about their cars. It was only through this board that I became intelligent enough to make a wise purchase.

We finally found the car we purchased in Naples, FL. It's a one owner 1994 RT/10, fully documented from day one. A thumb’s up from the third party inspection was all it took to seal the deal. Had the car brought to MI by Exotic Transport and it's been heaven ever since. I consider myself extremely blessed to own a Viper and will never take that for granted.

For those of you still looking to make that first purchase, do your homework, and get someone who knows Viper’s to go with you to inspect the car. It’s way too easy to screwed buying one of these cars. Best of luck and don’t give up on the dream.

 

[andrew8896]

Lots of luck..

Started with mustangs, then a couple vettes, then a Viper!!

I was lucky enough to find pretty fair deals... clean them up and bring them to the best condition I could (big or small, I cant stand for anything to be wrong with my cars, my cars have always been in better condition when I sold then than when I bought them).. then sell for as close to I could for what I paid for them... you always lose a little money though, but slowly I moved up to something nicer..

 

[Epro]

Sorry for the long post! Interesting topic. Like others have stated, I too fell in love with the Viper at the 1989 Detroit Auto Show. The car on display was red with gray interior. It was on a pedestal about five or six feet off the floor, on an angle so you could see the interior. It was truly love at first site.

Like most at the show, I never dreamed of actually owning a Viper. I "settled" for driving Mustang GT's for many years while completing my education and working my way into management at Ford. Finally in 2002 (14 years after first seeing the Viper) the bug bite me hard. I had to have something more substantial than the Mustang.

It started with Corvette's. I drove a C3, C4, and C5. Quite honestly they felt like nothing more than glorified Mustangs, especially the C3. It was then I realized only a Viper would do. It was going to cost more than the Corvette, but why had I worked so hard all these years?

I was still in love the GEN 1 cars and the finances weren’t going to be a problem, thus the search (and frustration) began. It took almost nine months and four states to find a car in good enough condition to purchase. The saddest thing about the experience was that people think nothing of bold face lying about their cars. It was only through this board that I became intelligent enough to make a wise purchase.

We finally found the car we purchased in Naples, FL. It's a one owner 1994 RT/10, fully documented from day one. A thumb’s up from the third party inspection was all it took to seal the deal. Had the car brought to MI by Exotic Transport and it's been heaven ever since. I consider myself extremely blessed to own a Viper and will never take that for granted.

For those of you still looking to make that first purchase, do your homework, and get someone who knows Viper’s to go with you to inspect the car. It’s way too easy to screwed buying one of these cars. Best of luck and don’t give up on the dream.

My story will be similar... Except I'll start with a Trans Am!

 

[Bandit3]

On vacation in San Diego--picked up an auto trader-- since the picture was b/w, and light colored, had to be the yellow I had been searching for. Took 1 1/2 years to find it. Told the salesman I wanted red--but I'd look at it anyway. Informed my wife and son about putting on a poker face. Bought it on the spot and had the dealer arrange shipping. Took a month to get here-- couldn;t wait. That was five years ago. I love this car, gives me a chubby. John, romancing the car.

 

[jeffdai]

I sold my yellow c4 corvette to buy a a house, so i was sportscarless for about 3 months, so when i sold a waterfront piece of land i had, i started looking for a viper. Had one i was supposed to buy, but apparently the dealer didnt really own it, so ended up buying this one while i was on a cruise (sure is nice having internet in middle of the ocean!!) on ebay with 4700 miles on it. When i got back from the cruise went and picked the car up, everything went nice and smooth, and loved the car ever since!!

 

[STUGOTS]

How did you get your Viper?

Stole it

 

[2002_Viper_GTS_ACR]

I sold crack to AB, and you can tell by his posts, he smokes entirely too much of it, thereby affording me the luxury of owning a Nice new Viper that I bought off the show room floor in 2002.


Honestly, I am in IT, and I work for this little mom and pop Shop, who's STOCK used to be the $hit, and was the highest market capitilisation stock in 2000, before the tech crash.. WHICH MEANS... Sadly.. I had to use my salary to buy the car..

Now, if that Stock would pick back up... I would have enough $$$ to buy AB a new life.. including plastic surgery (very expensive, have you seen his most recent photo post).


Life is to short, not to enjoy it !! Dont blow all your money, but dont save it so strictly that at the end, you have tons of money, and a life wasted..

Jon

 

[richc222]

... did construction work in trade for down from a big hearted Viper owner looking to use the car to complete a construction investment, financed a small amount with a bank whose loan officer had to wipe the drool off after a short ride. Absolooooooootely the most fantastic vehicle for grunt power, beauty, and the 'roadster' experience..... should be a write off for it's therapeutic value. Well worth the effort to obtain..

 

[Ulysses]

My wife said, "Over my dead body!".

Rest In Peace.

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

Everyone always assumes I have had a Viper for long time,but truth be told I was driving Mustang Cobras,and autocrossing them with a bit of success.Had done the slalom two step with Firebirds ,Miatas, and many others before that,but was having a blast with the Ford, as no one seemed to expect it to do well. The worst part was wandering up to watch "Big *****" at Road America and a bunch of SCCA Solo II folks I knew were running a driving school on Sunday. I kept expressing my interest and they kinda gave me blank stares.That evening we were in Siebkins Bar at Elkhart Lake and I met Skip Thomas. I mentioned I had a little Snake ( Cobra ) and boy it sure would be fun to run with the Vipers. He looked me straight in the eyes and said , "Well sign up and run with us tommorrow." I was floored and thought about the SCCA friends who never thought to do the same thing (wondered later how they kept the school going as I was a fish already hooked and just waiting to be reeled in ). Got out on the track, and found I had a little knack for this thing and I couldn't stand watching all these beautiful beasts rip around the track. I fried a set of brake pads, but made it home somehow, and it was only weeks before the next used Snake became available. The poison was more powerful this time, and the Cobra was sent to it's den. We showed up at the next Viper Days with a bright red 1998 and spent three great years ripping around tracks all over the US.
Since then we ( heh, my loverly bride doesn't object ) have had 3, with a purchase last week getting us to 4. Parked in the garage is a 1996 , one owner, GTS , with 151 original miles, and .............no ...........it won't be going to the track. It is a venomous bite that is incurable, but I like being sick!!!

 

[Randy]

I always got my acceleration jollies via motorcycles, and settled on less spectactularly-powered yet still fun cars to own; primarily RX-7s for the previous 10 years.

However, my girlfriend's uncle loaned me his 1994 RT/10 one day back in 1996, and I was hooked. Started investigating how to fit one into my finances. Figured insurance would kill the whole idea right off, so called my insurance agent, and was surprised that a Viper would only raise my rates about $200/year (clean record).

After around a year of constantly thinking about it, came across a used 1995 RT/10 with low miles in October of 1997 at a local exotic used car dealership - asking $60k. Spent 6 hours haggling them down to $52k out-the-door, then drove away with it, financing $45k over 7 years (at $841/mo). Refinanced it twice, got the payments down to $498/mo.

Not too exciting, perhaps, but it was definitely an itch that had to eventually get scratched.

Since then, I've gotten rid of it in favor of a 2000 RT/10.

 

[Magicboy2]

Fell in love with the car when I first laid eyes on it in 1992. Went to school and got my degree in IT. Was lucky to get a job with a good company when I graduated. Worked my ass off. Stayed till 9 PM when everyone else went home at 5 PM. First things first, bought an engagement ring for my now wife and small house when I was 22.

As soon as I was back on my feet a year later, began looking for a snake. Gen I only, due to finances, but that was fine by me; I loved the sidepipes and the smooth hood. Mr Pemberton had a Gen I available that was in my price range, albiet at the upper end. Made a deposit and shortly thereafter, it arrived. Not sure if I can say it was the best day of my life, but damn if it isn't securely in the top five.

Two years of payments down, two more to go. To those who say "don't buy it till you can pay cash," I can't say that I agree. This was, and is still, the only car I ever wanted, and the enjoyment it has brought can't be expressed in dollars.

 

[Cobraken]

Was in the process of getting a divorce & trying to be a good guy was helping my stepson find a car (used Mustang Cobra). Found a brand new (47 miles) graphite w/ silver stripes ACR sitting on the show room of our local dealer. Sticker was $99,899. Paid cash $64,000 as the car had been there for 2 years. Most beautiful car! My lawyer wanted me committed. Ex wanted more money (she knew I had bought the car w/in a half hour....women must have spies everywhere). But I'm happy.

 

[Epro]

Man... these stories are putting tears to me eyes

 

[Anaconda]

I sold Crack and my blood and ***** to buy my Viper.

 

[jacksonian]

I am fortunate enough to live in Omaha and quite close to Woodhouse. I owned a 911 for a few years and went to Woodhouse "just to look" at the vipers. Bill P. showed me a 2002 GTS with 17 miles on it and he was slashing prices as the 04 models were rolling in. This vehicle was supposed to be switched to a right seat driver in Australia but it never made the switch and got sent back to the states. After talking to Bill I HAD to have it and drove her home the next day. The 911 went bye bye. I hadn't owned an American car since 1985 (when I graduated high school). Since getting the viper I have picked up a grand caravan for my wife and will order my 300C this week.

Darin

 

[2001 Sapphire Blue]

Saved for about 4 years to buy a used one...took a drive to Woodhouse and saw about 20 new ones....bought a new one a week later. Thanks Bill Pemberton.

 

[scottgf]

Ok, Here's my deal....
Always been a MOPAR guy (68, 71 73 74 Road Runners)and watched the Dodge Dealer across the street from my work (Nissan Dealer) unload (Reliable) the first RT/10 for a dealer in California. And was blown away.
I had allready been reading all the press on the Viper as well as seing the "show car" at the L.A. car show.
Move forward to 1999....
Decided it was time to get my "Dream Car"...
Sold my "Viper Red" (LRN) 80 El Camino, scraped together $7000.00 for a down...Got financing from my credit union for 6 years, payment was $605.00 and found my Red 94 RT/10 on Autotrader.com
Bought it...luckly it turned out to be a nice car, since I didnt even know of this website before I bought it and could have bought a piece of crap...It was the first Viper I had ever driven and only the second one I had ever touched.
That was Christmas Eve 1999.
And the rest is history.....
You will always be able to come up with reasons why you shouldnt buy one, and when you are old and grey you will be kicking yourself for never getting one.
GO BUY ONE NOW!!!

Cheers,

 

[Epro]

Ok, Here's my deal....
Always been a MOPAR guy (68, 71 73 74 Road Runners)and watched the Dodge Dealer across the street from my work (Nissan Dealer) unload (Reliable) the first RT/10 for a dealer in California. And was blown away.
I had allready been reading all the press on the Viper as well as seing the "show car" at the L.A. car show.
Move forward to 1999....
Decided it was time to get my "Dream Car"...
Sold my "Viper Red" (LRN) 80 El Camino, scraped together $7000.00 for a down...Got financing from my credit union for 6 years, payment was $605.00 and found my Red 94 RT/10 on Autotrader.com
Bought it...luckly it turned out to be a nice car, since I didnt even know of this website before I bought it and could have bought a piece of crap...It was the first Viper I had ever driven and only the second one I had ever touched.
And the rest is history.....
You will always be able to come up with reasons why you shouldnt by one, and when you are old and grey you will be kicking yourself for never getting one.
GO BUY ONE NOW!!!

Cheers,

By my mid twenties, I'll own one dammit!

 

[S-JC]

I fell in love with the Viper when the GTS first came out. So I finished college, got a master's in engineering, and saved up until my wife and I could afford a $15K down payment. We financed the rest over many years. Found the car in the VCA classifieds.

All I can say is BUY IT and BUY IT NOW! You will never regret it. I love every day of Viper ownership. If finances take a nasty turn, you can always sell it.

 

[97 B/W GTS]

A long one…

T-giving, November 2004. All of us guys were talking cars after dinner. After that, I began searching for a production car that did 0-60 in under 5 sec. But, I wanted something different. Here in Cali, Porsches, Vette’s, Ferrari’s are a dime a dozen. I wanted a Viper.

For Xmas, I asked for one thing…a book to teach me about the history and different models of the Viper. Got the book. Now I was hooked. Problem was money. We had gone just through 10 months without a paycheck (own my own business). Our house had more roof leaks than I could count (and of coarse this is the 2nd rainiest season So Cal has ever had). The wife wasn’t to happy with all my Viper talk as our roof leaked onto our stove (and the rest of the house) during the rains.

I loved the GTS. She didn’t really like the GTS looks; she preferred the roadsters. But it didn’t matter cause we were NOT getting one.

I couldn’t help myself from looking in the ads for a ’97 BL-WT GTS (THE perfect car). Was only looking for a Calif car cause of the 7500 mile thing. Well, guess what pops up 60 miles from us? Called the guy and asked if we could just come “look” at it…we had NO intention of buying. I wanted my wife to see the GTS in person so she could get a better appreciation of it. He said yes, and more importantly my wife agreed to go “for something to do”. We are absolutely NOT buying a Viper.

We met the guy at a gas station near his house. As soon as it drove up, I got all tingly. The car was in perfect condition. He graciously offered us rides. My wife was not about to get in a car with a stranger. So I went. When we got back, she said she had only seen that look on my face two times before…the first time we **** and when I proposed to her. She had to have a ride now. When she got back, she had the same look. We thanked the guy and as he began to drive off my wife said, “well, when you’re ready to get one, I’m in”. I said “how bout now…let’s just do it…life is short…this is the perfect car…” She said OK, let’s do it. I chased the guy down… and here it sits happily at my house. She absolutely loves the car.

BTW, used the kid’s college money and home equity for the cash. My kids are young; I have plenty of time to replace it. It wasn’t doing any good just sitting in the bank anyway. Now it’s getting plenty of use.

Another BTW, (and you all will love this…) the guy was selling the car cause he was “downgrading” to a new Vette…his wife was afraid to drive the Viper!!!!!

 

[Viperfreak2]

Short story: I worked at a Porsche dealership for 7 years. Within a year of leaving that job I bought a Ferrari, drove it for a year, saw a Viper parked on the street while on vacation in Key West. I told my friend I wanted one, he said "yeah rrriiiggghhtt" so I bought my first Viper within two weeks in Atlanta and the second and third from Woodhouse.

 

[tarfungo]

I sold my Mitsubishi 3000GT VR4 and a ton of vintage musical instruments I had collected over the years, promised the wifey to “make the beast with two backs” with her as many time a day as she desired (or demanded ) and tossed in a bunch of saved bones…. In all, a good deal, a fabulous car, a happy wfiey and no bank note!

 

[Epro]

A long one…

T-giving, November 2004. All of us guys were talking cars after dinner. After that, I began searching for a production car that did 0-60 in under 5 sec. But, I wanted something different. Here in Cali, Porsches, Vette’s, Ferrari’s are a dime a dozen. I wanted a Viper.

For Xmas, I asked for one thing…a book to teach me about the history and different models of the Viper. Got the book. Now I was hooked. Problem was money. We had gone just through 10 months without a paycheck (own my own business). Our house had more roof leaks than I could count (and of coarse this is the 2nd rainiest season So Cal has ever had). The wife wasn’t to happy with all my Viper talk as our roof leaked onto our stove (and the rest of the house) during the rains.

I loved the GTS. She didn’t really like the GTS looks; she preferred the roadsters. But it didn’t matter cause we were NOT getting one.

I couldn’t help myself from looking in the ads for a ’97 BL-WT GTS (THE perfect car). Was only looking for a Calif car cause of the 7500 mile thing. Well, guess what pops up 60 miles from us? Called the guy and asked if we could just come “look” at it…we had NO intention of buying. I wanted my wife to see the GTS in person so she could get a better appreciation of it. He said yes, and more importantly my wife agreed to go “for something to do”. We are absolutely NOT buying a Viper.

We met the guy at a gas station near his house. As soon as it drove up, I got all tingly. The car was in perfect condition. He graciously offered us rides. My wife was not about to get in a car with a stranger. So I went. When we got back, she said she had only seen that look on my face two times before…the first time we **** and when I proposed to her. She had to have a ride now. When she got back, she had the same look. We thanked the guy and as he began to drive off my wife said, “well, when you’re ready to get one, I’m in”. I said “how bout now…let’s just do it…life is short…this is the perfect car…” She said OK, let’s do it. I chased the guy down… and here it sits happily at my house. She absolutely loves the car.

BTW, used the kid’s college money and home equity for the cash. My kids are young; I have plenty of time to replace it. It wasn’t doing any good just sitting in the bank anyway. Now it’s getting plenty of use.

Another BTW, (and you all will love this…) the guy was selling the car cause he was “downgrading” to a new Vette…his wife was afraid to drive the Viper!!!!!

Excellent story. I love the "the guy was selling the car cause he was “downgrading” to a new Vette…his wife was afraid to drive the Viper!!!!!"

 

[IEATVETS]

I worked for my uncle for 10 years and bought the business from him in 1998. Stockpiled some money and bought a 1966 Mustang Convertible a year later.(always wanted one) Started looking at Vipers early 2001. Always loved the way the first generation Vipers looked. So mean and **** looking. Spent at least 5 months e-mailing and calling people and finally found "the one" at Roanoke Motors in Illinois. Drove down on a Saturday and test drove it. Fell in love! What a car. I knew right then and there I had to buy it. I Had the car delivered Tuesday. Wife does not like the car at all, says its to loud. I still love her anyways. Now, I have an "Eleanor" GT500E being built. Wife can't understand why I need 3 cars but as some of you know, you can never have enough toys!