Showing posts with label SRT Viper. Show all posts
Showing posts with label SRT Viper. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series Smokes SRT Viper in MT Test, But Also Costs 3X As Much…


The latest comparison test put together by Motor Trend, between the Mercedes-BenzSLS AMG Black Series (priced from $275,000) and the much cheaper at $102,000 SRT Viper, perfectly illustrates that smooth is much faster around a racetrack.

You see, while the American sports car may be lighter and more powerful, it can’t match the German car’s planted chassis feel, smoothness and virtually-instant gear changes. This makes sense on the road, because you can drive quickly, consistently and safely in the SLS, whereas the Viper just looks a lot more tail-happy and violent.

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Thursday, June 20, 2013

SRT Presents the Viper GT3-R Customer Race Car, Could Be Yours for $459,000


This weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans is a special one for U.S. fans, as it marks the Viper’s return to the world’s most famous endurance race. In 1998, 1999 and 2000, the Viper GTS-R won its class at Le Mans, so the bar is set at the highest possible point for the its return to the French classic. Read more »

Monday, June 17, 2013

SRT Launches First Promo Video for New Viper, Aims for Emotion


Buying an SRT Viper definitely makes sense, for any number of reasons. The fact of the matter is that latest one is the brand’s highest technical achievement, using the latest of technologies to make it a viable alternative to the mainstream performance brands.

It looks good, it’s reportedly more comfortable than before (though all of the video reviewers got bounced around during their shoots, so we have our reserves about that) and the V10 engine pushes out 640hp, which is impressive and makes for blistering performance.

Read more »

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

One-Off 2013 SRT Viper GTS Reportedly Built for Marchionne Goes to Auction


SRT has built a one-off 2013 Viper GTS that will be sold at an auction benefiting the Sons of Italy Foundation. Unveiled at a gala organized by the foundation that represents men and women of Italian descent, the car features a special pearl white paint, black vapor chrome wheels and custom interior enhancements that “pay tribute to Italian heritage”, according to SRT’s description of the video posted on YouTube. Read more »

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

My Selection of the Most Promising Crop of Current Models from Detroit's Big Three


The US automotive industry used to represent so much more than just the Big Three, which are no longer automakers in the romantic sense, but multinational corporations that make cars. In my view, the American automotive industry sector was at its peak in the 1930s, and then it slowly faded into a mentality of bigger is better in the 1970s. By the year 2008, the remaining three major forces admitted defeat and it was only thanks to Obama's controversial bailout scheme that they are still here today.

Now, while in the 1990s, and even up until 2008, many American cars were for the most part mediocre when compared to the standard set by the Japanese and Europeans, they now seem to be making a worthy comeback, with models which would appeal to any potential car buyer in the world as genuinely enticing propositions. However, don't mistake this for a buying guide, because it's not – it is my selection of promising American cars.

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Wednesday, March 27, 2013

SRT Debuts New 2014 Viper TA in New York – Releases Track Video


Aiming to satisfy track enthusiasts with deep pockets, the Chrysler Group and its SRT arm formally presented the new limited edition 2014 Viper TA (for Time Attack) in Manhattan today.

Only 33 examples of the TA will be built and sold from the third quarter this year, all finished in the special “TA Orange” exterior paint color developed exclusively for this model that is based on the entry-level Viper adding a bevy of performance goods to better its handling.

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Monday, March 18, 2013

SRT Bites Back with New 2014 SRT Viper TA, Beats ZR1's Lap Time in MT Test [w/Video]


Just when we thought that, Chrysler was done for the time being with its flagship SRT Viper sports car, the Pentastar surprised us today with the release of a new special edition model named the TA, for "Time Attack", of which only 33 units will be built, solely in a Crusher Orange shade, beginning in third quarter of 2013.

We don't know if SRT's New York Auto Show-bound 2014 Viper TA model was created in response to the Viper GTS' fallout during a comparison test with the soon-to-be replaced Corvette ZR1 by Motor Trend magazine, but SRT boss Ralph Gilles was more than unhappy with the results.

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Thursday, February 14, 2013

We Drive the 2014 Corvette Stingray and Pit it Against the ZR-1, Z06 and a Few Vipers on GT5


The new Corvette Stingray is the car everyone and his or her mother wants to get their hands on. As we were discussing our frustration for not seeing the Detroit Motor Show’s most anticipated new model driven by someone else aside from the company’s people, we had an epiphany.

The Corvette Stingray is already available for us to drive whenever we feel like it, for as long as we like and on any track in the world. True, it’s not in the metal, but in virtual form via the free DLC (that's downloadable content to the uninitiated) on the Gran Turismo 5 (GT5) Playstation video game.

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Wednesday, February 13, 2013

SRT Boss Confirms New Viper Roadster, Says Interior on Par with Porsches and Astons


Every single previous generation of the Viper was first shown as a roadster, with the coupe models entering the lineup at a later stage. With the new 2013 Viper that dropped the Dodge nameplate and adopted the SRT badge, Chrysler turned the tables around by launching the fixed-top coupe.

Does that mean we will not see a roadster of the new generation model? When Wards Auto popped that question to SRT boss Ralph Gilles at the Chicago Auto Show, he confirmed the development of a brand-new Viper Roadster.

Read more »

Friday, February 8, 2013

Viper’s Nest: 2013 GTS Snake Goes Against Heavily-Tuned 1997 Predecessor


Mad, bad and dangerous to know and drive: it’s a description that fits the Dodge Viper to a tee. Until the 2013 brand-new SRT model, that is, which has gained all kinds of bells and whistles and is supposedly a more user-friendly kind of supercar.

The latter term is relative, of course, as all who have driven the 2013 SRT Viper agree that it is more civilized than its wild predecessors but still remains an animal when you push it to the limit.

Read more »

Monday, February 4, 2013

SRT Announces Return to Le Mans 24-Hour Race with New Viper GTS-R [w/Video]


Even SRT boss Ralph Gilles has admitted that the previous Vipers had an “axe-murderer” kind of demeanor but, despite that, the “snake” has had been quite successful in racing, competing against the best production-based rivals in the world and beating them not only in America but across the globe, too.

One of its greatest triumphs has been finishing in the first two places in its class for three years in a row, from 1998 to 2000, in the most prestigious endurance race in the world: the 24 Hours or Le Mans.

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Wednesday, January 30, 2013

SRT Boss Does 5,000 Miles in a Viper GTS to Get to Jay Leno’s Garage


Jay Leno loves two things: jean shirts and cars. Being an American, he has a soft spot for homemade models, especially those with a powerful engine under their hood.

One of them is the Viper. Leno already owns two of Chrysler's flagship sports cars, having brought the original way back in 1992 and then, since he wanted a coupe, a GTS as well.

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Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Poll: Which is the Sexiest American Sports Car, the New Corvette Stingray or the SRT Viper?


It’s like the Super Bowl for Detroit-made sports cars: the brand-new Corvette Stingray, which just made its world premiere in Detroit this week, versus Chrysler’s third-generation SRT Viper.

Granted, in their current forms, the two cars are separated by tens of thousands of dollars and nearly 200hp, with the base Vette’s 450hp 6.2L V8 looking puny compared to the Viper’s massive 8.4L V10 with 640-ponies. Conducting a fair twin-test won’t be possible until Chevrolet rolls out the next Corvette Stingray ZR1.

Read more »

Friday, January 11, 2013

First SRT Viper Rolls Off the Assembly Line, Owner Paid $300,000 for it [w/Video]


Thursday, January 10, was a historic day for Chrysler as the first SRT Viper rolled off the production line at the Conner Avenue Assembly plant and was handed over to his owner, Scot Thomas, by Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne.

Thomas was the winning bidder for the #001 Viper at last year’s Barrett-Jackson auction. The 40-year old, who lives in Oklahoma, is the president of the APMEX precious metals company and paid US$300,000 for the car, the proceeds going to the Austin Hatcher Foundation for pediatric cancer research.

Read more »

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Listen Up and Vote: New SRT Viper vs Lamborghini Aventador vs Lexus LFA


Three very different schools of automotive thought came together at a Cars and Coffee meeting in Irvine, California, a couple of weeks ago, for a mechanical symphony comprised of 32 cylinders, 19.7-liters and a whopping 1,884-horses.

Thankfully, the revving competition between the Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4, 2013 SRT Viper and the Lexus LFA was captured on film by several visitors for our enjoyment.

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Monday, January 7, 2013

New SRT Viper GTS Dyno Tested by Edmunds: Does it Deliver on its Promises?


The Dodge Viper, in its two previous incarnations, was a love it or hate it kind of sports car; which is probably what Bob Lutz, Chrysler’s president at the time, intended when he green-lighted the project in 1989.

Lutz intended for the first Viper to be a modern-day Shelby Cobra. When the car became available in 1992, it was clear that the “Team Viper” had achieved its objective.

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Wednesday, December 26, 2012

MT Tests the 2013 SRT Viper GTS to Find Out How Sharp its Fangs Are


When the third-generation Viper was launched back in April at the New York Auto Show, SRT boss Ralph Gilles had said that the company “simply would not let the performance icon of the Chrysler Group die.”

Love it or hate it, the Viper is undoubtedly an icon. Its two previous incarnations followed the same recipe: aggressive styling, a big-displacement V10 up front with huge torque driving the rear wheels and…that’s about it.

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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

New Viper Loses to Corvette ZR1 in MT Test, SRT Boss Tweets His Frustration


The current, sixth-generation Corvette is about to be replaced as its all-new successor is just around the corner, being already teased by GM itself and due to break cover at the upcoming Detroit Motor Show next month. It’s about time, too, as the C6 has been around since 2005.

As it’s getting ready to exit the stage, though, another player comes charging in. In fact, it’s the only other car from Detroit that can lay claim to be an American supercar: the all-new SRT Viper.

It would be unfair to the ‘Vette to even think about pitting them against each other, wouldn’t you agree?

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Friday, December 14, 2012

Does the Ferrari F150's Front End Remind You of the SRT Viper?


Yes, yes, we know that we haven't seen the new Ferrari F150 (that's Maranello's official code-name) in its entirety and that depending on your point of view, you can probably find similarities between each and every passenger car, but for the sake of conversation, we'd like to pass on a question, which came up from one of our readers.

No, we are not talking about the "Whale shark?" remark on our post with the first official teasers of the F150, but "The Italian Viper?" comment that followed.

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Monday, November 26, 2012

Fresh Footage of New 2013 SRT Viper V10 and 2013 Dodge Charger Daytona


The Chrysler Group has released a new video of its pride and joy, the new 2013 SRT Viper that just recently went on sale in the States, as well as of the upcoming 2013 Dodge Charger Daytona R/T, which was revealed today ahead of its world premiere at the LA Auto Show on Wednesday, November 28. Read more »

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