A better car to buy than SRT Viper and it is not a Corvette

As current owner of Generation 4 Viper and C6 Corvette, I see no other car out there to get to make real performance upgrade than Rossion Q1.  This car is superior to both, any version of Corvette or Viper.  The car is considerably lighter, mid engine (real mid engine and not one based on technicality like Corvette) and it performs considerably better than either of the other two choices.   Why this car does not sell better is beyond my comprehension.  I already know why Viper does not and why Corvette can be rented at local Hertz locations though, LOL.

Is Generation 4 Viper a better car than Generation 5? What is going here?

So, I found this old article, testing the Generation 4 car and it is quite eye opening.  The test results achieved on Generation 4 are superior to the current Generation 5 test results, in spite of what Ralph Gilles claims.  What gives here?  Seeing the total defeat of the current car and what Generation 4 could do, it makes no sense at all to buy Generation 5 for those who own Generation 4.  This is not any different than Corvette C6 vs. C7 test results. 

Interestingly enough, acceleration times are the same, ET time and braking distance and skidpad make Generation 4 a better car.  Seems like new Vipers will be a permanent feature on those newly created SRT dealerships showroom floors.  LOL

http://autoresource.internetautoguide.com/09-viper-srt10-vs-ford-gt-1581.html

PIrelli tires on new SRT Viper

Are these tires hindering the performance of the new Viper?  The performance figures like skidpad, ET and braking distance achieved by car press are at best, the same as Generation 4.  Could the tires cause or at least contribute heavily to the ongoing demise and humiliation of the new Viper?

Ralph Gilles, it is not too late to conduct tests using Michelin tires and if there is indeed an improvement, offer free upgrades to the current owners and switching the tires on the cars that have not sold yet and the upcoming new model year.

Wake up Gilles before Viper dies completely.

Breaking news!!! 2013 Viper outruns first generation Gallardo, LOL

Give it to the idiots like the one from +DV8 Motorsports Inc , Anthony Whatley to give the much needed advertisement to the failing venture called SRT Viper to make sure it continues to show its shortcomings.  In this case, this idiot decided to have his wife race against a first generation Gallardo, a 500 hp car short on torque and equaling new Viper in weight.

http://forums.viperclub.org/threads/668117-Video-of-my-wife-beating-a-Lambo-in-her-Gen5-Viper.-LOL!

Well duh Whatley, new Viper better be faster although courtesy of your wife's lack of driving skills, the superiority of the new Viper is not very well noticeable.  Make sure to ask whoever you decide to race next time to ride the brakes a bit more.  LMAO at this tool.

Cannot blame this guy though, he bought one of these disasters and apparently keeps himself busy trying to convince others why he did it.  Sorry bud but this is as weak as your IQ.  You should really stick to peddling fake center lock rims from the back of your white van.

Oh and Whatley, in another breaking news, the sun decided to rise today.  Just make sure not to race this turd against ZR1, limited intelligence and plenty of arrogance would cause a serious nervous breakdown for you.  Come to think about it, avoid the new Vette as well, LMAO.  Seriously doubting +Fiat  or +Ralph Gilles  would be using this manifestation of stupidity for their advertising purposes.

What is the biggest problem with SRT in SRT Viper?

The biggest problem is that SRT as a brand is a failed idea.  The reason: Viper is the single original model this fake brand includes.  The rest are just hopped up versions of mainstream Chrysler cars, including those that car rental companies use. 

Had Fiat kept Viper as the only SRT branded car and then added a couple of others that would be exclusive to SRT (smaller sports cars competing with Miata, lower Porsche and BMW), yes, then this would work.  As it is right now, it is an absolute disaster, killing the Viper even more than what lack of improvements in design and performance already do anyway.

LOL at Chrysler dealers paying 25k for the privilege of pretending they sell an exclusive brand while people cannot tell apart on the lots run of the mill Chrysler cars from their SRT equivalents (minus Viper of course).

Seeing this stupidity, it is pretty obvious that Viper was better off as a Dodge, at least it was a flagship of a big brand, what is it now?  A complete failure all on its own.

Should Fiat relieve Ralph Gilles of his duties as SRT CEO?

The answer is a resounding YES!!!  Seeing the fiasco associated with Generation 5 Viper, lack of progress in design and performance, total humiliation with press reviews and tests and sales that are actually dead, yes, Ralph you should be fired and the sooner it happens, the better it will be for everyone.

Is the new SRT Viper worth anything at all?

Not according to this ad, considering the options like track pack and seat belts.  96k right now and most likely considerably less after next year model comes out and few more tests are done by car magazines.  LMAO at this ultimate failure.  Great job Ralp Gilles and tools who bought this disaster already.  Watch the values plummet faster than the gas in that undersized gas tank.

This is the actual car BTW...

Values of NEW SRT Viper plummet

Up to 20k right now off MSRP on new SRT Vipers BEFORE 2014 cars are even out means the idiots who bought this POS just lost 30k minimum on their already USED cars.  WOW!!!

How does it feel for the geniuses who just had to buy one to be taking it in the shorts on continuous basis?  Good thing their weight is considerably higher than their IQ...

What should Gilles learn from Corvette design?

Two things:

1.  Drivetrain efficiency-it is painfully obvious that old school conventional driveshaft is super inefficient when compared against torque tube set up.  Torque tube prevents energy transfer through the engine mounts on to suspension (twisting).  GM figured this one out back in the 90's, Chrysler and Gilles apparently are not familiar with physics and simple concepts employed in mechanical engineering.  Gilles also fails to understand that in torque tube, the actual driveshaft rotates at the engine speed, regardless of which gear is employed.   Come on Gilles, go back to high school and learn a few things.  Took GM long time to figure this one out but apparently you will never get there.

Oh and better weight distribution is just an icing on the cake.

2.  Longer wheelbase.  Yes, Fiat is as cheap as Chrysler was before, too cheap to bring the Viper frame into 21st century and improve both riding comfort and car handling.  Even Porsche 911 has less rear overhang than Viper and Porsche is a REAR ENGINE car.  Once again Ralph, let me explain to you:  dead weight outside of axles is BAD, laws of physics dictate this part and it continues to show with the rear end of all Vipers having a mind of its own.  And for the money Viper costs, is there a reason why the frame cannot be constructed using aluminum alloys, titanium and carbon fiber?  Kudos for shedding some weight on the new car but this could have been easily a 3100 lbs car which would put it in a league of its own instead of barely edging the BASE Corvette.

Wake up Ralph, pretty clear that the ranks of Viper enthusiasts are idiots, cannot tell them this because they think with their wallets instead of their heads.

Ralph Gilles-you are an absolute disgrace, killing the car that could have been truly great, SHAME ON YOU.

How to ghetto rig a Viper?

Ask Anthony Whatley of DV8 Motoring.  Oh and you will be making it less safe and heavier/

http://snakepit.freeforums.net/thread/6/ghetto-viper-make-slower-less

How much will the discount on 2013 be in a couple of months?

Should be considerably more than 20k.  LOL at the idiots that bought this car already and at the dealers who got greedy, ordered top of the line versions and will be making Christmas ornaments out of them. Gotta decide here is the Viper owners are dumber than Corvette owners?  Tough call.

Once again, lack of development makes Gen 5 Viper a POS

The effects of being cheap and not revising the frame to either shorten the rear of the car or extend the wheelbase catch up with the new Viper in more than one way.

Short wheelbase cause the doors to be short and making access even worse than those sills already do.  Throwing this mass behind the rear wheels around cannot be good for the handling as pointed out in many tests already.  If Gilles continues this path, Viper will be dead in one more year.  For the money Fiat charges, this car should have more horsepower and modern design.

SRT Viper changes for 2014 and 2015

Apparently very little will be happening for 2014 model year outside of updated cam position sensor, new colors, mandatory rear view camera and a couple of new colors and interior trim details.  Does this mean that Ralph Gilles and company are too busy trying to fix the numerous flaws and quality issues that are plaguing the new car or are they too busy picking up the pieces that fall off the new car? 

2015 is more interesting considering that a slight bump in horsepower is planned (670 hp) and new roadster will finally see the daylight.  Unfortunately, very little otherwise will be happening.  Will this be enough to save the Viper?   May not be...

And looking at the new roadster, something got lost in translation here since it looks truly awful, considerably worse than the Generation 4 version.

The aftermath of MT test results

Pretty obvious that Dodge Viper just hit the bottom.  Will Ralph Gilles keep his job as a result of this total humiliation to Fiat, SRT and Viper owners egos?  No doubt there will be plenty of finger pointing and nobody with guts to acknowledge what has been very obvious for a very long time and subsequently assume the responsibility.

The bottom line is that 2013 SRT Viper is a verified POS and SRT itself is a failure.  Maybe these disasters can be rebadged as Lancia, at least then, there would not be anyone surprised.  LOL once again at the idiots who bought this car. 

A note to Ralph Gilles:  stop traveling to Italy, you are already responsible for a car deserving to be Italian, LOL.

Short wheelbase, excessive rear overhang and SRT Viper handling problems

Dodge Viper has 49/51 weight distribution.  On paper, this sounds good, real good.  The problem?
The short wheelbase and excessive overhang in the rear of the car.  Since its conception, Dodge Viper increased its wheelbase from 96.2 to 98.8 while the rear overhang remained consistently excessive. 

At the same time, the front overhang decreased noticeably.  Does this make any sense?   The problem with reducing overhang is that it can interfere with the aerodynamics of the car but... this is usually a problem with the FRONT of the car, not the rear.  All Vipers have real bad Cd, the new car has Cd of 0.37 IN ITS BASE FORM, without aero add ons which make Cd even worse.  So why not extend the wheelbase, increase interior comfort and improve handling characteristics of the car instead? 

Very simple explanation, Fiat is too cheap to bring Viper in the 21st century, keeping this car in the 1980's.  Somehow GM got the hint and improved Corvette in this aspect significantly since C4 and its short wheel base but somehow Fiat and Gilles refuse to spend the money to modernize the car.  This was fine up to Gen 4 but the buck stops here-this is just too archaic and actually dangerous, considering the handling characteristics of this car.  Good for novelty item like Morgan but even Morgan figured this part out already.  Gheez...

So what are the real life results of this archaic design?

"Far and away the Viper's biggest fault, though, was how it communicated with the driver. While the nose was always stapled to the pavement, the rear end liked to do all sorts of funny dances when you lifted off the throttle and went to the brakes. That's disconcerting in a 640-horsepower car, to say the least, but what makes it truly frustrating is the car is lying to you. The back end isn't going anywhere. It's glued down nearly as well as the nose is, but the car is telling you it's about to come loose and fling you off the road. You have to constantly remind yourself the car will stick, and ignore what every sense is telling you"

Now, chances for majority of Viper enthusiasts comprehending this part is beyond slim, they are pretty brainless regarding laws of physics but it seems like there are people out there who understand what is happening.

Oh and gotta love the Fiat BS regarding the short wheel base:

"When it comes to on-track performance, smaller is often smarter. In a world of ballooning supercars that dwarf their predecessors, the SRT^® Viper confidently holds one of the shortest wheelbases in the segment at 98.8 inches. Retaining the important attribute helps to return lightning-fast lap times."

Now, come on Gilles, let me provide the correct translation:  when it comes to being really CHEAP, less progress and technology is always cheaper.  The SRT Viper confidently holds profits ahead of performance improvements and owners safety.

In reality, it is not short wheelbase that matters, it is the overall design of the car that prevents unsprung weight from getting mind of its own, going one way while the rest of the car goes the other. 

Oh and the rest of this BS from SRT:

http://www.drivesrt.com/news/2013/01/size-matters-a-short-wheelbase-enhances-the-srt-vipers-track-capability.html

LOL at that "size matters" notion, yes, it is true but only with regards to the mentality of the dim witted buyers mistaking size of their penis with IQ number...

Come on Gilles, even Russian owners of TVR get this part

Is 2013 SRT Viper a real POS?

Seems like it is... Not sure if this is a review of a cheapo Fiat or 140k self proclaimed super car?

"There were other problems, too. One of the hood vents flew off on the freeway and caromed off the windshield. There was a persistent rattle in the right side of the cabin that was never identified. The Performance Apps froze the infotainment system. The paint on the edges of the rocker panels was being burned by the exhaust.

Finally, the Viper arrived mounted with standard Pirelli P Zeros on the front and P Zero Corsas on the rear.Set aside these issues, and the story is marginally better: Judges had originally placed the Viper in eighth. Many complained about an uncomfortable driving position and narrow footwell with closely spaced pedals that were easy to misapply. The shifter drew ire for needing a very strong shove to get into the next ratio, and the word "earplugs" appeared in many judges' notes."

Vent flying off the hood?  Rocker panel paint blistering from the get go?  These disasters should be pulled back by Fiat until Ralph Gilles can figure out how to slap more lipstick on this pig.  Last generation did not have these issues, what happened here?  LOL

The worn out tires on the press car is just another sign of Ralph Gilles'es incompetence as a leader of that bogus SRT brand from Chrysler. 

New SRT Viper taking a beating from Ford Focus

12 out of 12?

http://www.motortrend.com/features/performance/1311_2013_motor_trend_best_drivers_car/viewall.html

2013 Viper should be flying off the dealers lots now for sure.  Gotta congratulate the idiots who bought it already.  Is this a wake up call for +Ralph Gilles  and the rest of the SRT crew to improve the car for the next year or these cars will be taken off life support in a hurry.  LOL again about Ford Focus owning Dodge Viper.  PATHETIC!!!

Advantages of buying 2013 vs 2014 SRT VIper

Logically, there are none, especially considering this is first year of new AMERICAN car produced in small numbers.

The only time  this makes sense is if next model year already comes out and there are no improvements present.  Due to hefty discounts at that time, this makes sense-as long as there are no issues the come up in the meantime.  

Seeing electronic gremlins popping up on those few that already sold, buy the current year by all means. LOL

Let me fire away here: Why is new SRT10 already a sales failure

Wishing this would not be the case but unfortunately it is.

The main reason:  ECONOMY-still in a tank and not getting better anytime soon.
The second reason: price-not very realistic due to reason above.
The third reason: little change to the car, including the appearance while reason two applies.
The fourth reason: +Ralph Gilles and his lack of vision and complete disconnect from the outside world.
The fifth reason:+Fiat ownership and its lack of funding and conflict with +Ferrari as the top dog of +Fiat  corporate world.  Last thing +Fiat  would want is a fairly crude car costing less while exceeding +Ferrari  high priced jewels.
The sixth reason: super idiotic idea of pretending that SRT is a separate brand and charging dealers for the privilege.  The problem is that these dealers are still the same ones selling generic Chrysler crap and due to that surcharge, they actually attempt to recover their fee through so few cars they try to sell.  Truly, this is as stupid as it gets.

The result:  new +SRT Viper  cars sitting on the lots while delusional dealers kid themselves that someone will pull the trigger on the purchase, hopefully with a healthy markup on MSRP, LOL.

The reality is pretty pathetic, the small group of those who have to have the brand new model and have the means to buy them has depleted the purchaser pool.  Less than 300 have actually seen sales, the initial claims of being sold out included the cars purchased by the dealers, without an actual buyer.

So what happens now?  Well, not much outside of the dealers getting stuck with these cars and paying interest on their loans without hope of actual sales.  The prices are dropping and very fast too, MSRP is a norm now, even from dealers asking 20 or 30k a few weeks ago and more and more of them marking the cars well BELOW MSRP.  Seems like the impatient tools who already bought theirs will be getting screwed and more so, especially since the orders are already being taken for next model year.