The Dodge Viper had four long generations spanning from 1992-2010. There were actually no 2010 models, only extended 2009 models, and 2011 saw zero production Vipers at all. Dodge is planning on picking up the Viper once again in 2012 with a fresh look and feel.
The Viper came in two different trims: the SRT10 and the ACR. The 8.4L V10 powered Viper delivered 600 HP and 560 lb-ft of torque, and was mated to a six-speed manual transmission. The 0-60mph sprint was done in fewer than four seconds, while the quarter mile came in at 11 seconds. Careful with this one though, it doesn’t come with electronic stability control.
If Dodge CEO Ralph Gilles has his way, the Dodge Viper will live on, maybe not as a road car, but as a race car - at least until a redesign gets underway. Gilles hinted as much in this video, which was recorded just this week at Michigan’s Gingerman Raceway.
According to Gilles, Dodge is looking at the possibility of continuing to build race versions of the Viper, similar to what has been done to the current-generation ACR-X, just to ensure that the Viper name remains afloat until after a new design for a road car gets drawn up. Then again, seeing as the future of the Viper line remains up in the air, there’s no telling when - or even if - that’s going to happen now or anytime soon.
Ever the optimist, Gilles remains hopeful that a a new Viper road car could still find its way into production, hinting that it just might happen somewhere down the road, although not anytime soon. "Racing is a great way to keep the car out front and people appreciating what the car is capable of," he said. "When it’s time to do a successor to the car, hopefully there will be a great fanbase for it."
We’re not arguing your point, Mr. Gilles. When it comes to the Viper, there will always be a great fanbase for it.
Chrysler announced today that the last special edition Dodge Viper, the SRT10 ACR-X will make its on-track debut in July 2010 in a newly developed spec series called the Dodge Viper Cup, which will be sanctioned by the existing Viper Racing League. The race series will begin at Virginia International Raceway (VIR) in Alton, Va and will finish on Oct. 22-24 at Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch, in Pahrump, NV.
The winners will be awarded more than $200,000 and Mopar vouchers. Additionally, the 2010 champion will win $25,000, second-place will receive $10,000 and third-place will pay $5,000.
The Dodge Viper ACR-X is powered by SRT-developed 8.4L V10 engine producing 640hp and 605lb.-ft. of torque. It also weighs about 160lbs less to the standard production model. The suspension on this racing beast has also been tuned and aerodynamic upgrades have been added to improve its performance and stability on the track. The ACR-X also features a factory-designed and installed fuel cell, race seat, and factory-designed roll cage. The Dodge Viper SRT 10 ACR-X will also be the only model involved in the new racing series, the Dodge Viper Cup.
"The Dodge Viper ACR-X is simply incredible,” said Gilles. “Owners are going to be blown away by the power and acceleration, and even more surprised at how the ACR-X navigates even the most challenging road courses and how friendly it is to drive at the limit. This is a great package for someone coming out of grassroots racing with a desire to step up to GT level competition.” This should make for an interesting series.
Of course a replica would never be as close to the real thing as one would like it to be, but it could still tame the aches from longing for the real thing. Lucky for those people experiencing this pain, James List has an Exelero replica currently listed and priced at $687,335. It is based off a Dodge Viper sports car and is powered by a 8.3L V10 engine with 800 hp (and not 700HP V12 like the original). Both the interior and exterior can be fully customized to any customer’s wishes.
After the jump: Exelero featured in Jay-Z - Lost One video.
There’s been a long-standing battle between cars and helicopters to see who can outdo whom (remember the Corvette/Apachee comparison a couple of months ago?). Well, this battle has taken a new twist and, somewhere along the line, you should have known that Top Gear would end up having something to do with it.
Well, your partly right on that one. While Top Gear was in fact responsible for pitting this Dodge Viper against a Cobra attack helicopter, it’s not the original version of Top Gear we’re talking about, but the recently re-launched Top Gear USA.
The show was once again caught taping, this time at the Griffin Spalding County Airport in Georgia, where hosts Tanner Foust and Rutledge Wood were accompanied by what looks to be two Viper ACRs and a Cobra attack helicopter. While it’s too presumptious to say that the Viper was able to "out-slither" the Cobra to the finish line, the video taken by a curious spectator seems to suggest so.
Guess we’ll just have to keep tabs on Top Gear USA to find out.
Lately, it seems that the only thing coming out of our mouths is Sergio Marchionne. This man seems to be making a lot of announcements to either defend the brand or bring out a new model. The news we bring you now is the vehicular kind. It seems that Dodge has decided that the Viper is a car with an important history and it will continue to be offered in their lineup even after the Viper SRT10 Final Edition has been produced. During a press conference, Fiat-Chrysler boss Sergio Marchionne announced that under Fiat guidance, Dodge will be bolstered internationally as an "American performance" brand — and its linchpins will be the Viper, Challenger and Charger. Pretty good picks if we can say so ourselves.
And to go even further with the speculation it seems that Fiat’s drive for cost and platform synergies will see the next-generation Viper end up as a quasi-Ferrari. The Challenger and Charger’s platforms will not be touched, but will be borrowed for some interesting future Lancias, Alfas, or Maseratis. Fiat is definitely shaking things up and we can only hope that the consolidation of ideas that they have expressed will pay off in the end. Marchionne seems to be one of the few with a positive outlook and we hope his vision proves to be a valid one.
