SO WHATS THE BIG DEAL ABOUT A DODGE VIPER - 3 THINGS - JMHO

[WANTED]

LOOKS LOOKS LOOKS

I was thinking about it today while driving down the road. Wondering to myself
whats the big deal about a VIPER. When I decided to buy my first one the first
thing that got my attention to the car was purely the LOOKS. I pretty much could
have purchased something that cost more and was considered to be more exotic but
no other car really caught my eye the way the VIPER did. When ever I picture a
VIPER its the RT/10 that reminds me of the TRUE DODGE VIPER. The GTS is of course
a very beautiful car but to me it was like the start of the second gen as far as
looks go. Did the GTS improve the looks, to some yes and others no but it definitely
did not hurt the looks. The RT/10 and GTS are without a doubt the most
BEAUTIFUL CARS EVER BUILT. I think the big problem with
gen III VIPERS dodge improved the performance but lost that sock and ah that the
original VIPER had. I like all 3 gen's and have owned 2 rt/10's and 2 srt's. With
that being said the gen III guys can't flame me for my opinion's here. What
I hope is that dodge comes back to the SOCK AND AH appearance as the #1 fix with
more HP being the #2 fix. ( FLAME SUIT IS ON ) Many of us were asking
for more HP but I don't remember alot asking for a drastic change in looks. The
new coupe looks much better then the srt vert and is a start back in the right
direction. If dodge doesn't get back to the SOCK and AH looks I don't see the VIPER
being around to much longer as sales speak volumes and I for one will not
buy a AUTOMATIC FIREPOWER to replace my VIPER.

Tom

 

[Paul Hawker]

Tom.
Everything I have heard is that Viper is going back into the Shock and Awh mode. The kinder gentler SRT Vert sold very well, but they figured that the more sophisticated look would appeal to a broader market. Made lots more of them in anticipation. Did not exactly work out that way, so I would expect the next generation to be more on the dramatic side. (But no more clown shoes).

Probably see a freshened Gen III to meet new pedestrian impact regulations and then a next generation down the road. Might see some more hp/torque if new emissions friendly V-10 makes it through durability/noise/smog/mileage/costs/requirements.

Car is fast as hell now, and great fun to drive. No reason to wait for a next generation that might not appeal to you. Marketplace is now crowded with 4 second cars. Not as easy to be the dominate player as it was in 1992.

 

[Knight Viper]

I concur Tom, no other car on earth looks like the GenI and II Viper. I test drove a used 03 and loved the way it felt but when it came to putting the money down it was the looks of the Gen II that stole my heart. I must confess I have been bitten!

 

[Warfang]

Where did "SOCK and Ah" come from? Too much time in clown shoes, I suppose.

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I agree with the looks dept. Make it as outrageous and cartoony-bad@$$ as possible. I want something that captures the imagination of little kids, not marketing idiots and focus groups.

 

[Yellow32]

"pedestrian impact regulations"

I thought that was for Europe not for the USA...since Vipers are primarily sold in USA I did not think "pedestrian impact regulations" would apply to Vipers...

-J

 

[RedEnuf93]

I agree, one of the best looking car anywhere!

I was driving down from Scranton to Lancaster a week ago. My buddy drove my black Lexus SC 400 with 18" chrome wheels in front of me.

A school bus (15-16 year old kids) passed us, while next to the Viper, the bus looked like it would tip over!!! All the kids were on the side of Viper and cheering!!!

My buddy in front of me got the finger.

 

[PDCjonny]

I have to agree with the sock n awe factor...

 

[ArlyDude]

I concur Tom, no other car on earth looks like the GenI and II Viper. I test drove a used 03 and loved the way it felt but when it came to putting the money down it was the looks of the Gen II that stole my heart. I must confess I have been bitten!

Actually, I always hated how a Mazda Miata resembled our viper. Basturds!

 

[V10SpeedLuvr]

I remember a couple years back I read a magazine article (Car & Driver or either Road & Track) comparing a Viper to a Vette. They said they took the cars to lunch and happened to pick a restaurant that had a bunch of high school cheerleaders coming out (after cheering at a game). They said the Viper was swarmed and not a single cheerleader even acted like she noticed there was a Vette parked right beside the Viper.

 

[DanAuito]

I baught the 98 RT/10 for exactly these reasons along with a few others! Gen III's to me appear generic and too streamlined, almost like they gave it a personality vasectomy.

Gen II's are thr cream on the crop in my book!

 

[06 VIPER]

Glad to see we all have our opinions intact. That said, Gen III's handle better and bottom line a superior car. Not to mention there a little bit more practicle in today's driving climent. Of course that's my opinion.

 

[rcdice]

The fact that kids and young adults (and even not so young adults) do drool over Gen I & II Vipers is exactly why they will be very collectable someday. IMHO. I truly hope the next gen Viper is even more outrageous and as said, cartoonish, than the original. I just hope that DCX makes it different, not a re-creation of the original.

Believe me, I fully understand the thirst for performance and dominating performance at that. However, as time marches on, a combination of performance and looks is what attracts people to older cars. Look at the prices of 60's/early 70's muscle cars today. Prime examples well into the six figures. Most of those cars were lucky to run the 1/4 mile in 14 sec. There will always be something newer and faster out there. ANY car can be made fast. But when you start looking for the total package along with rarity, the choices get fewer. Gen III's, Z06, 911 Turbo... blistering performance. Looks? Well, that's subjective. Long live the original!

 

[thebigsnake]

Well said.

 

[slaughterj]

"pedestrian impact regulations"

I thought that was for Europe not for the USA...since Vipers are primarily sold in USA I did not think "pedestrian impact regulations" would apply to Vipers...

-J

There are some new US frontal impact regulations coming out next year, thus necessitating some redesign on the part of the Viper and affecting other vehicles as well (i.e., the initial reason for the Ford GT only being a few years car).

 

[red98RT10]

Glad to see we all have our opinions intact. That said, Gen III's handle better and bottom line a superior car. Not to mention there a little bit more practicle in today's driving climent. Of course that's my opinion.

and of course we all bought our vipers because they are so practical!

 

[V10SpeedLuvr]

Gen 1 & 2's impracticality are why I love them

 

[DEADEYE]

I think part of what makes a car desireable is its reputation. All those muscle cars going for top dollar now had a reputation for being the bad ass of their time.

 

[ViperGTS]

1) Everything American
2) Nothing German
3) Nothing South African

;-)

 

[Andrew/USPWR]

I agree, you can’t beat the “Shock & Awe” of the Gen I & II Vipers, but how does lighting strike twice. That a tall order to fill.
In hide sight if they just kept improving on the Gen II “much like Porsche does with the 911” each year could be better than the next, but I don’t think they can go back now. With that in mind, could the Gen III concept fill the order? I’m not sure. Yes it’s bad ass, but not sure it’s GTS bad ass.
The coupe looks good, but needs to be lowered and I’m not sure the nod to the GTS with the new back end was the right move.
I do think the FirePower is a great looking car and if it came with the Viper motor and a stick, I know it would take some sales from Vipers. IMO

2005 Silver SRT/10
2000 Steel Gray GTS (sold)

 

[DanAuito]

Front looks GREAT, interior appears on the gaudy side and the back end IMHO is terrible. What can I say, I just love everything about the Gen II's. Owning one probably makes me somewhat biased as well.

 

[M. ROD]

Some cool stories/quotes:



“It pulled up next to me at a light, and I actually let out a moan. ‘Whooaagh,’ I said from my diaphragm. My first encounter with a Dodge Viper RT/10. I was taken with that Viper. Waiting at the light, I studied it, running my eyes over its smooth lines and voluptuous curves. I wondered about the guy behind the wheel: What is it like to be him, to drive such an outrageous road machine? How does it feel to have schleps like me trundling around town in our blue Tempos, staring at your car with lustful envy?…It’s a drug, I almost say out loud. This car is a drug.” AMERICAN WAY, 1994




“The Viper’s 488-cube thunderbox is the most mammoth passenger car powerplant in production. Big torque exists at any engine revolution. Every time we’d show up in a small town(Lotus Esprit S4S, Dodge Viper RT/10, Ferrari F355, Acura NSX, and Porsche 911 Turbo) the locals clumped around one car and one car only : the one built in Detroit. Its shape evokes involuntary seizures among onlookers.” CAR AND DRIVER, 1995




“Is that a car? asked a young lad as the Viper rumbled slowly past. look at one of those, Dad! squawked another across the street. The Viper stole the show instantaneously. The first nipper can be forgiven for spouting such an obvious question. It doesn’t matter whether you’re nine or 90, the first time you see a Viper on the road… you’re likely to lose control of your faculties. Words can be uttered over which your brain has absolutely no control.” TOP GEAR, 1995



“Why the Viper?… When I came down to the [hotel] lobby, the place was empty -- the entire staff was on the sidewalk, trying to figure out what the car was and whether it would bite if approached too closely. In fairness, I took a big step back myself: This muscly, low-slung, swoopy rocket was unlike anything else I’d seen on the street. I slid into the luscious black leather wraparound driver’s seat, turned the key, and smiled at the deep-throated sound of all ten cylinders growling to life.

At first, tooling around town, I was distracted by the Viper’s long-traveling clutch, serious white-on-black instrumentation, and hulking presence. I was also distracted because people stared, hitchhiked, drag-raced, and, in one man’s case, video-taped the Viper--while he was driving. It was time to find empty, snaking roads.

Turning off the CD player so I could better focus on the James Earl Jones bass of the engine, I dropped into first gear and floored it. The Viper whiplashed me into the seatback and shot into a sweeping corner--powerful, graceful, game for anything. To its credit, it has the smoothness of a grand touring car, but its soul is a wild thing, arrogant and assured in every move, barely tamed by my puny attempts at control.

I had fallen in love--not a tender, sweet love, but the searing, blood-pounding kind. This is a car for people who live by extremes and never choose the middle road. I’ll be calling a dealer shortly. As I headed to the hotel, a crazed pit bull hanging out the back of a station wagon caught sight of the Viper and began barking hysterically. It takes one to know one.” .” Sue Zesinger, FORTUNE, 1996



"If you’ve never experienced it, try this: Arrange to have a date with a supermodel who knows karate; then rent a convertible, paint it fuchsia; and ask your date to ride next to you ******* through a college town just after a home game lets out. You’ll (A) get a lot attention and thumbs-up signs, (B) feel like some kind of super stud yourself, ( C ) instantly draw a crowd of young men anywhere you stop for gas, asking questions like, ’Is she yours? How fast is she?’ and ‘can I have a spin?’ (D) no doubt find a challenge or two from the crowd, knowing full well you and your supermodel date could whup the drunk guy and his sorority girlfriend, and (E) eventually get tired of the attention and be forced to speed away to find serenity and an open road to enjoy the moment for yourself. Such is the case driving a Dodge Viper. But, hey, someone’s gotta do it, right?” MOTOR TREND, 1999




"When it comes to wow power, nothing outdraws Dodge’s snakelike sports car. Example: We were hovering in a parking lot behind a restaurant one afternoon, and a few of the waitresses were checking us out(no, not us us, the cars). Our yellow ZO6 and red Cobra R might as well have been beige econoboxes from a rental fleet for all they cared. No, it was the Viper that got rubbed and purred over. Parked at the A&W one night, it was all but the same deal; a few of the younger crowd knew the SVT-ized Mustang was something special, and they liked the Vette well enough. But they spoke in hushed tones as they eyed the big bad Dodge. Sittin’ low in that leather seat, with all 8.0 liters of booming V-10 just ahead, you’re bad, and everybody knows it.” MOTOR TREND, 2000

 

[V10SpeedLuvr]

"As I headed to the hotel, a crazed pit bull hanging out the back of a station wagon caught sight of the Viper and began barking hysterically. It takes one to know one."

 

[06 VIPER]

well said!

 

[SLViper]

Great Post M Rod! Reminds me why I LOVE Gen I & II and so far only LIKE the Gen III !

 

[JUCD VPR]

Some cool stories/quotes:



“It pulled up next to me at a light, and I actually let out a moan. ‘Whooaagh,’ I said from my diaphragm. My first encounter with a Dodge Viper RT/10. I was taken with that Viper. Waiting at the light, I studied it, running my eyes over its smooth lines and voluptuous curves. I wondered about the guy behind the wheel: What is it like to be him, to drive such an outrageous road machine? How does it feel to have schleps like me trundling around town in our blue Tempos, staring at your car with lustful envy?…It’s a drug, I almost say out loud. This car is a drug.” AMERICAN WAY, 1994




“The Viper’s 488-cube thunderbox is the most mammoth passenger car powerplant in production. Big torque exists at any engine revolution. Every time we’d show up in a small town(Lotus Esprit S4S, Dodge Viper RT/10, Ferrari F355, Acura NSX, and Porsche 911 Turbo) the locals clumped around one car and one car only : the one built in Detroit. Its shape evokes involuntary seizures among onlookers.” CAR AND DRIVER, 1995




“Is that a car? asked a young lad as the Viper rumbled slowly past. look at one of those, Dad! squawked another across the street. The Viper stole the show instantaneously. The first nipper can be forgiven for spouting such an obvious question. It doesn’t matter whether you’re nine or 90, the first time you see a Viper on the road… you’re likely to lose control of your faculties. Words can be uttered over which your brain has absolutely no control.” TOP GEAR, 1995



“Why the Viper?… When I came down to the [hotel] lobby, the place was empty -- the entire staff was on the sidewalk, trying to figure out what the car was and whether it would bite if approached too closely. In fairness, I took a big step back myself: This muscly, low-slung, swoopy rocket was unlike anything else I’d seen on the street. I slid into the luscious black leather wraparound driver’s seat, turned the key, and smiled at the deep-throated sound of all ten cylinders growling to life.

At first, tooling around town, I was distracted by the Viper’s long-traveling clutch, serious white-on-black instrumentation, and hulking presence. I was also distracted because people stared, hitchhiked, drag-raced, and, in one man’s case, video-taped the Viper--while he was driving. It was time to find empty, snaking roads.

Turning off the CD player so I could better focus on the James Earl Jones bass of the engine, I dropped into first gear and floored it. The Viper whiplashed me into the seatback and shot into a sweeping corner--powerful, graceful, game for anything. To its credit, it has the smoothness of a grand touring car, but its soul is a wild thing, arrogant and assured in every move, barely tamed by my puny attempts at control.

I had fallen in love--not a tender, sweet love, but the searing, blood-pounding kind. This is a car for people who live by extremes and never choose the middle road. I’ll be calling a dealer shortly. As I headed to the hotel, a crazed pit bull hanging out the back of a station wagon caught sight of the Viper and began barking hysterically. It takes one to know one.” .” Sue Zesinger, FORTUNE, 1996



"If you’ve never experienced it, try this: Arrange to have a date with a supermodel who knows karate; then rent a convertible, paint it fuchsia; and ask your date to ride next to you ******* through a college town just after a home game lets out. You’ll (A) get a lot attention and thumbs-up signs, (B) feel like some kind of super stud yourself, ( C ) instantly draw a crowd of young men anywhere you stop for gas, asking questions like, ’Is she yours? How fast is she?’ and ‘can I have a spin?’ (D) no doubt find a challenge or two from the crowd, knowing full well you and your supermodel date could whup the drunk guy and his sorority girlfriend, and (E) eventually get tired of the attention and be forced to speed away to find serenity and an open road to enjoy the moment for yourself. Such is the case driving a Dodge Viper. But, hey, someone’s gotta do it, right?” MOTOR TREND, 1999




"When it comes to wow power, nothing outdraws Dodge’s snakelike sports car. Example: We were hovering in a parking lot behind a restaurant one afternoon, and a few of the waitresses were checking us out(no, not us us, the cars). Our yellow ZO6 and red Cobra R might as well have been beige econoboxes from a rental fleet for all they cared. No, it was the Viper that got rubbed and purred over. Parked at the A&W one night, it was all but the same deal; a few of the younger crowd knew the SVT-ized Mustang was something special, and they liked the Vette well enough. But they spoke in hushed tones as they eyed the big bad Dodge. Sittin’ low in that leather seat, with all 8.0 liters of booming V-10 just ahead, you’re bad, and everybody knows it.” MOTOR TREND, 2000

THOSE are some reasons why its so hard to be away from my baby! Awesome stories!!

 

[ViperJohn]

SOCK AND AH....that's why I bought my Viper.

 

[kpham]

Couldn't agree more! But I have to admit that the SRT-10 vert's look is growing on me. I've seen one in silver with huge rims a few times on street -- sooooo beautiful!

 

[InjectTheVenom]

Very, very good stories I love them, they explain so good what Viper is all about

@WANTED and everyone else: I just finished reading a very deep going in-depth book I got off Ebay for under 20 bucks, that explains the Viper's origins in way bigger detail than any other book around. It goes back to as far as 1940 with the Chrysler Thunderbolt and slowly, very slowly builds up to the point of Viper. When reading it you will understand these kind of stories even more. Now that I have finished reading it the WOW factor got way bigger for me because I have an absolute and total understanding of everything. You and all other Viper owners will definately like it too
It's called: VIPER Pure Performance By Dodge (by the auto editors of consumer guide), ISBN 0-7853-0109-7. It has a copyright date of 1993 so that makes it even more special IMO to be released only 1 year after production started, but it also makes me think that it is out of print Looking at the book itself you could argue that it looks exactly like a Viper, because the outside is very plain with only the title, publishing company and writers on the outside, and a picture of a red RT/10 on it. Book color is red also.

 

[hatda02GTS01]

Are you guys serious? I bought mine to compensate for my short comings....

 

[NHL2133]

Are you guys serious? I bought mine to compensate for my short comings....

Well at least someone is honest! LOL