1. Engine problems, due to oiling issues. Make sure you have all the tricks for good oiling, trap doors, modified windage tray, ACR filter adapter, Accusump.
2. I don't think so, ask your Viper tech. I had them tighten everything that could be tightened.
3. Power steering cap, tighten frequently. P.S. fluid on the exhaust can ignite your car in seconds. Change to DOT4. Redline resists foaming.
4. Reccomend using Mobil 1 15-50, Motul DOT4 brake fluid, bleed calipers about every event to remove burnt fluid. Brakeman 3 pads worked well for me. You need to cool your brakes, get at least the Porsche deflectors, better yet, get some air duct from NAPA or simular, and make your own brake cooling ducts. You can cable tie them to direct air to the center of the rotors. The bottom lip of the front fascia is a high pressure area, I've seen people make cut outs for the inlet, or even the fog light recesses, but this alters the looks of the car negatively, imo. Drain your tranny and rear axle often. Be aware thaty if you track it, it will either wear out or break. I mean, hey, even dedicated racing cars break, and they were designed for the track, so its no surprise if a street car breaks from hard tracking.
The repair cost for hitting a wall averages like $30,000, or some astronomical figure like that. I've seen a few local track rats total their GTS's on track, and thats a sad day indeed. I decided that I wasn't going to track my Viper anymore, and have been looking for lower cost options, such as DSR/CSR racers, used Trans-Am racers, kit cars, (don't laugh, some of them can turn 28's at Willow), and I finally decided to get a used C5 ZO6.
1. If I hit a wall, the repair cost is only a fraction of what it would be on the Viper, because Chevy built so many of them, there are a ton of parts out there, and the economies of scale provide reasonable prices. Hell, even if I total it, I'm only out like $28,000, less than the cost of the average Viper repair. Can't lose with those numbers.
2. I don't need a trailer to get it to the track, as you would with a spec racer, I can just drive it there.
3. Don't need a special place to park the trailer or store the car. I can just park it on the street.
4. Being a "lowly" ZO6, I wouldn't have to worry about it so much, wouldn't have to worry about scratching it, trading paint with some yahoo from Pacoima in his souped up Civic with something to prove. I wouldn't even think about the cost of the car when braking late for a high speed turn. This would give me more confidence. Plus, the track sand blasts your paint, and your windshield. After a few years on public roads, your car will get trashed anyway, but, Sticky tires that people run at the track throw up more pebbles and sand, and this accelerates the sand blasting effect.
5. I can keep the GTS in a nice condition. There aren't too many of them left, with an initial production of about 6000, and after an attrition rate of like 30%, there must not be more than 5000 of them in existence. Thats not exactly a car you want to trash on the track.
Have you ever noticed that a lot of racers are quite wealthy? In Speed World Challenge GT, Wiens is a banker, Woodhouse owns dealerships, Giolatti sells car parts, etc, etc. PMUM was also very well off, and had a stable of sports cars, not just one like me. Well, I don't have unlimited funds to spend, so I think about the costs, and this subtracts from the all-out desire to push the car to its limits. All these factors is what has led me to look for a lower cost option, and eventually led me to beleive that a used ZO6 would be just the ticket.
