Putin and VCA

When Putin resigned, he did so only after appointing someone from his circle who in turn made sure to appoint him as the prime minister. 

What does that have to do with Viper Club of America?  The current president of VCA who just resigned, did so only after hand picking his replacement.  Now, there is a little scam that VCA continues to support, called Viper Parts of America that sells Viper parts to VCA members after getting them heavily discounted or even free from Chrysler.  Apparently VCA is non profit and VPA is not associated but only time will tell if IRS buys off on this claim.  It just happens the outgoing president Lee Stubberfield and his family run VPA at the same time.  Hopefully IRS will deal with this fraudulent activity by the Viper "enthusiasts".

Dodge SRT 10 Viper audio upgrades

Are they possible?  Yes, they are and they can be very effective, putting the new SRT Viper high end system to complete shame.  The catch:  you have to spend your time learning the audio subject and practicing building skills instead of BS'ing on VCA or +Viper Alley  forums.  Yes, the time can be spend constructively.

http://snakepit.freeforums.net/thread/34/srt-10-viper-audio-upgrades

2013 SRT Viper Quality Control and Fit and Finish

This picture needs no explanation, a brand new 2013 Viper GTS and the fit of the interior trim makes old Yugo look like a Bentley.  What gives here exactly?  There are considerably more problems that are being noticed, including poor door alignment, paint issues and plenty of electronic gremlins.  Seeing this kind of issues on a 130k car that cannot even go faster than the predecessor should make anyone intelligent start looking for buying alternative.  Shame on you +Ralph Gilles  and SRT team.

Dumb and Dangerous-Forgeline and DV8 Motorsports present fake centerlock rims

What a 2fer: both ghetto and dangerous to boot.  Apparently neither the geniuses at +Forgeline Motorsports  and the tool peddling their stuff, Anthony Whatley and his LOL outfit, +DV8 Motorsports Inc were firmly MIA during their high school physics courses and lack even the basic understanding of mechanical engineering.

Here is the deal:  centerlock wheel make sense only in one scenario: endurance racing where tire wear is an issue and time needed to change the wheels counts toward the outcome of the race. 

From the engineering point, even the true centerlocks are unsound, the cyclic load is applied over an area considerably smaller than one created by conventional lug nuts or lug bolts.  What is the result?  Due to concentrated load, the area surrounding the center bore develops CRACKS over time, resulting in wheel failure.  And yes, wheel studs can fail too but when they fail, it is a cheap failure, not expensive wheels.  Also, if even a small amount of freeplay develops in the pin area, the wheels will start walking, resulting in another form of failure, sheering off.

Now, what did Forgeline come up with and what is that idiot Whatley selling?  Well, nothing less than FAKE centerlock wheel mounting system.  What is wrong with this idea?   In real centerlock, the hub is already set up for the center bore mounting.  What Forgeline did is a hub adapter, one that mounts to the original hub using their own lugnuts that function as drivepins and in effect add dead weight to this idiotic set up.  There is more dead ROTATING WEIGHT from the adapters themselves and then more deadweight from the cheesy looking nut and locking cap which incidentally, is meant to CROSSTHREAD due to pitch being finer than the one on threaded center of the adapter.  This whole thing is just outright STUPID but not only stupid and ghetto rigged, it is also dangerous since the new rims mount using a single center point now, instead of safer multi lug design. 

Should be interesting to see if anyone gets hurt and sues Forgeline and this DV8 Motorsports idiot, nothing beats learning the hardway, apparently.

Here is the fake centerlock set up:

 

 

Here are the adapters with holes drilled and drivepins aka lug nuts in place

 

 

And here is Whatley's own ghetto rigged and outright unsafe install.  On the bright side, this idiot is doing it to himself first, LOL.

 

 

 

 

Generation 5 SRT Viper inherits design flaw causing oversteer

The old saying about not changing good thing certainly does not apply to the new Viper.  +Ralph Gilles  and the rest of the Viper team apparently are too lazy to change anything at all, including CHEAP changes that could greatly benefit the new car.

All previous Vipers have been plagued with severe OVERSTEER under hard throttle.  What causes it?  The excessive overhang is the major contributor.  However, there is a small detail that heavily accentuates this main cause:  the rear mounted battery, mounted on the DRIVER's side. 

The rear mounted battery is a great idea, helping a lot with weight distribution but... there are a few factors that have to be understood before taking this approach.  Sir Isaac Newton is the person to talk to before designing any car.  Apparently Gilles and the rest of the SRT team must have been heavily sedated in high school when laws of physics had been taught to them.

Here is the deal:  ideally, a rear mounted battery should be mounted either over or as close as possible to the rear axle, preferably BEFORE the axle.  Explanation how loading axle to improve traction is a trivial one but... Gilles refuses to acknowledge this part and the battery in the new Viper is located exactly where it was in the previous generations.  Granted, the fuel tank is in the way, however, the battery still could be closer to it instead of residing next to the rear bumper. 

The other problem, a very simple one to correct is that all Vipers continue to have this battery on the wrong side of the car, the battery should be on the PASSENGER side, not driver, to offset the weight of the driver and to some extend minimize the momentum its presence creates.

Now, combine the excessive rear overhang resulting from the short wheelbase and this extra weight hanging behind the driver and aft the rear axle and there it is, an explanation why Viper is plagued by this very dangerous oversteer.  Now Ralph, any particular reason why you could not at least put the battery on the passenger side?  Pretty obvious the more things change, the more they stay the same.

VCA, Viperclub forum, Steve Prescott aka Vipair and fraud-anything in common?

Yes, apparently Steve Prescott hiding behind Vipair Performance scam donated 48k dollars to VCA which bought him immunity from angry customers whom he continues to steal money from, with me being one of them.  As soon as I stated my concerns on that fine forum, I got banned.  Now of course, I cannot post any further complaints and have to use legal ways to hopefully collect my parts and money from that thief.

If this guy steals money from people and VCA knows about it and still takes his money, this is not any different than VCA stealing themselves from Vipair customers themselves.  Can there be more corruption at that fine Viper club?  No doubt there can be.

How fitting-2013 SRT Viper on Top Gear USA

A truly awful TV car show testing a failure of a car, LOL.  Come to think about it, Top Gear USA is a lot like new Viper-a real knock off of the original show, disguised behind new faces and surrounding and showing painfully why rehashing a decent thing is very likely to result in a failure.

Personally, I cannot stomach this US knock off show for more than 5 minutes and this was not exception.  However, these five minutes were enough to conclude that the show is still as awful as ever and new Viper is just as awful. 

What is very ironic: putting the turdy SRT Viper on the track along with McLaren and Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Super Trofeo Stradale  and McLaren 12C Spider.  What separates Viper from these two?  TECHNOLOGY.    Compared to these two, Viper is an equivalent of hopped up steam locomotive competing with maglev train.  Sure you can dress it up to disguise its shortcomings but as soon as you open the hood, it becomes painfully obvious this is still the same original Viper that started out in the early 90's while the other two are true mid engine sports cars utilizing carbon fiber tubs instead of this truly archaic steel frame new Viper has (it is identical to Generation 4).. 

Nevertheless, a failed car belongs on a failed TV show.  The highlight of the show: MOBILE COFFIN moniker for Viper-pretty good one although not sure how many months took these three geniuses to come up with it.

http://www.history.com/shows/top-gear/videos/top-gear-coast-to-coast

Disclaimer: although this is a link to the show, I do not assume responsibility for nausea watching this show may induce.

What SRT missed on new Viper to make it a good car?

Let me itemize here:

1. A real space frame with rear cradle and roof, cowl and windshield bracing, using light metals.

2.  Longer wheelbase to eliminate rear overhang and improve interior comfort.

3. Torque tube drivetrain to improve weight distribution, structural rigidity, crash safety and handling.  Not to mention stop providing security to engine mount supplier.

4.  Variable flow rear exiting exhaust system instead of this archaic and dysfunctional side exiting disaster.

Never mind interior bling and carbon fiber body and trim pieces, this is what this car really needs to move up to modern car world.

Ralph Gilles, are you listening?  Beats listening to the clueless VCA squad and typical Viper buyers who happened to be shrinking in numbers...

What is wrong with Viper's structural design?

The biggest problem is of course the frame.  It is ancient, mildly put and it is deficient in providing bending and torsional rigidity.  This frame belongs on a home made kit car, not on a car that is being advertised as world class performer.  I was looking for the front posts to create a brace through dashboard reinforcement and windshield frame but I could not find any.  Am I blind here?  Oh and where did the rear cradle go?  It was missing on the previous generation and it is still missing on the new car. 

If GM got this part, why cannot Fiat and Gilles get this through their skulls?  Still looking for those improvements on the new Viper.  If anyone knows, I would like to hear about it.

What really puzzles me here is the fact the new Viper starts out as a coupe, is Fiat really that cheap and Gilles that dumb to create at least interior cage, using a roof structure?  Light alloys are available and for the money Viper costs, it really should have one, just like it should have a better front cradle and rear cradle actually there.

So how much did new Viper really improved? Frame comparison

OK, we already realized that the new Viper has less horsepower than the previous generation.  How about those handling and structural improvements Ralph Gilles keeps bragging about?

Well... let us take a look...

Here is Generation 3/4 frame

And here is the frame of the brand new Viper... See any changes?  Besides what I think are openings for subwoofers in the rear bulkhead support, I see nothing that actually could contribute to structural rigidity of the new Viper.  Or maybe the different color of paint makes all the difference?  Great job Ralph, as usual.  LOL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2013 SRT Viper vs. 2009 Dodge Viper dyno runs--what SRT doess not want buyers to know

In case anyone wondered why Generation 5 Viper produces such weak performance figures, barely edging new Corvette that is 180 hp short and is over hundred pounds heavier than new Viper... Well, there is a very logical explanation:  new Viper has LESS hp than the previous generation and significantly so.  Not only that but also this hp is achieved at higher RPMs.  The same goes for torque, except the new Viper runs out of steam here at LOWER RPM than Generation 4.

This lie can be witnessed in Edmunds dyno runs for both cars. 

2009 Dodge Viper results:  581 hp @ 6100 RPM, 551 ft-lb @ 5150 RPM
2013 SRT Viper results:     558 hp @6150 RPM, 528 ft-lb @ 5100 RPM

Using the same drivetrain losses that SRT apparently applied to new Viper, Generation 4 Viper was severely underrated, with real horsepower rating at the flywheel right around 680 hp. 

Pretty obvious here that both +Fiat  and +Ralph Gilles  are lying here.  Should be interesting to see what kind of discounts will be offered to push these disasters off the lots.  The morale of the story:

DO NOT BELIEVE CORPORATE LIES!!!  The sad reality is however, that the ignorant buyers of Vipers tend to lag behind in the intelligence department.   This may be not nice but to see these fools buying these disasters and then bragging about it is fun to watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXcA6Q0M80w

http://www.edmunds.com/car-videos/dyno-tests/2009-dodge-viper-srt-10-dyno-test-video.html

However, for those who are fully brain dead, stupidity coming from clowns like these two should suit them better. 

http://motorhed.com/xf/threads/video-2013-srt-viper-vs-2008-acr-viper.6032/

When faced with facts, idiots like this 9 ball aka Tony Whatley look even dumber-and this is quite an accomplishment, LOL.

VCA claims a partial responsibility for Generation 5 SRT Viper disaster-Dumb and Dumber

Apparently VCA is fighting with Gilles and Fiat to claim this dubious honor, at least according the recently disclosed correspondence.  Wow, just when I thought some people are really dumb, they just prove to be considerably dumber.   And all of this over a vendor going by JonB on Viper morgues while peddling his merchandise and attitude on Partsrack website.

March 10, 2013


Mr. Sergio Marchionne

Chrysler Group LLC

CIMS 484-14-16

1000 Chrysler Drive

Auburn Hills, MI 48326

*RE: Chrysler's lost sales due to Ralph Gilles personal agenda

Dear Mr. Marchionne,

I write at this time to address what I consider to be serious issues
regarding the future of Viper and SRT in general, and I greatly appreciate
your consideration and attention to my concerns. ****

Let me start by saying that I have been a long-time customer of Dodge,
Chrysler, and SRT, and I have owned numerous products from each, including
several Vipers. Additionally, I have been a member of the Viper Club of
America for many years, and have also been a member of the VCA's national
board of directors for several years. During that time, I have worked
closely, and became good friends, with many dozens of individuals who were
very devoted to SRT and the Viper, and who excitedly promoted SRT
products-resulting in many thousands of car/truck sales. ****

Over the years, the VCA has enjoyed a mutually-beneficial relationship
with the manufacturer and various members of its management. Dodge, then
SRT, has supported the VCA, provided cars for our events, allowed the VCA
access to manufacturing facilities, invited input from our members,
sponsored banquets, and much more. In return, the VCA has been far and away
the biggest supporter, and customer, of Dodge and now SRT. By way of merely
one example, one of our members, after owning his first Viper, bought
16,000 Dodge trucks for his companies. The number of SRT and other related
vehicles that have been purchased by VCA members is impossible to
calculate, but would certainly number in the tens of thousands. Bottom
line, the VCA is immensely valuable to your organization as well. Indeed,
the VCA is without question the core of SRT's customer base and, arguably,
essential to the very survival of SRT.

As with any organization with thousands of members, the VCA is not without
its internal and political issues. Historically, however, the VCA leaders
have made it a point to not trouble our manufacturer/partner with our
internal issues, just as the manufacturer does not bring its internal
issues to the VCA. Unfortunately, Mr. Ralph Gilles, CEO of SRT, has
recently not only injected himself into VCA business, but has conducted a
number of meetings and phone calls with VCA leaders through which he has
made numerous "demands" and serious threats which have largely centered
around his insistence that the VCA modify a suspension of one of its former
members.

Without troubling you with the history of what led to the suspension,
suffice it to say that the member at issue was suspended, following many
years of problems, by a unanimous vote of the national board of directors
in January of 2012. That suspension was extended by a majority vote of the
same board this past quarter. As it turns out, the suspended member is a
personal friend of Mr. Gilles and his wife.

After the vote to extend the suspension, Mr. Gilles took it upon himself
to demand a meeting with the national officers of the VCA. That meeting
occurred in his office on January 16, 2013. At that time Mr. Gilles made
numerous demands and threats to withdraw (SRT and Mopar's) advertising from
Viper Magazine (published by the VCA), to stop offering free first-year VCA
memberships to new Viper owners (something Chrysler has not provided anyway
for the past four years), and to pull all support from the VCA. He also
proclaimed that the VCA's ownership of Viper Parts of America (a for-profit
organization) is "illegal." In fact, VPA was set up as a wholly-owned
subsidiary of the VCA by an Am-Law 100 law firm. Nevertheless, Mr. Gilles
demanded to see the financials of VPA-something he has no right to.

After the meeting, Mr. Gilles sent a written message (which, presumably,
he could provide you if asked) to the VCA officers demanding, among other
things, that the suspended member not only be reinstated, but that he be
placed in an "honorary" position (Mr. Gilles's written words). On January
18, 2013, the newly-appointed national board of directors of the VCA, met
to discuss how to respond to Mr. Gilles's "demands". The board (which I am
a part of), voted-unanimously-to continue the suspension of the member at
issue, despite Mr. Gilles's demands. While I cannot speak for every member
of that fifteen-person board, I can tell you that many were very taken
aback by Mr. Gilles's behavior, demands, and intrusion into VCA business.
While every person expressed respect and concern for the VCA's relationship
with the manufacturer, the entire group ultimately concluded that
succumbing to Mr. Gilles's expressed demands was simply unacceptable.
On January 22, 2013, Mr. Gilles's participated in a multi-hour telephone
conference with the national officers concerning his demands and the VCA's
response thereto. While I was not involved in that call, it is my
understanding that Mr. Gilles's demands continued. At one point Mr. Gilles
was asked what happens if the suspended member was allowed back in, there
were additional problems, and the VCA had to explain that the member was
allowed back because Ralph Gilles demanded it. In response, Mr. Gilles
excitedly proclaimed that could never happen and neither he nor SRT could
be associated with this issue in any way-despite the fact that the only
reason SRT is involved at all is because Ralph is choosing to inject
himself. Nevertheless, Ralph insisted that he could not be associated with
this if there were problems later. Why he chooses to involve himself, and
threaten the leaders of SRT's core customer base, is simply baffling.

While I greatly appreciate the role Mr. Gilles played in creating the new
Viper (which looks to be an amazing car), I am extremely frustrated with
his recent intrusion into VCA business and the threats he has made against
the national officers and VCA membership in general. During the meeting on
January 22, 2013, I am told that Mr. Gilles at one point made a comment to
the effect of "I have managed 'the NASCAR issues' I have recently dealt
with, no little car club is a problem for me." He seems to think he is
invincible and needs no one-including SRT's customers.

After witnessing what Mr. Gilles's has done in the past few months, I have
decided that I am not going to place the orders for a new truck and Viper
as I had originally planned. I am not alone in this respect, and have heard
similar responses from several other members of the club. I know for a fact
that you have already lost several dozen new car orders. I am positive that
this will become far more widespread if news of this situation becomes
public.

While I most certainly hope these issues can be resolved and that the VCA
and SRT can regain the tremendous relationship they have both enjoyed for
many years, if they are not, and Mr. Gilles ultimately carries through on
his threats, the VCA will have no choice but to explain his and SRT's
withdrawal from Viper Magazine and VCA events to the entire club. The VCA
will, of course, be entirely honest about everything that has occurred
here. However, the truth will not be positive for the perception of the
vast majority of the VCA's thousands of members.

My letter to you is written in the hopes that you can assist in preventing
this from ending as I fear it otherwise will. Toward that end, if there is
anything I can do to address these issues further, I will be happy to
respond as you may request. My contact information can be found at the
bottom of this letter. On the other hand, if Mr. Gilles is allowed to
follow through on his threats, I will have to make it known to the entire
VCA membership that I sought assistance with this issue, but was
unsuccessful in acquiring it.

I strongly encourage you to advise Mr. Gilles to avoid involvement in VCA
business and politics, cease making demands and threats to VCA leadership,
and continue to support SRT's largest and most important customer base. In
return, the VCA will continue to be the biggest cheerleader of SRT, as it
always has been.

Thank you again for your consideration of this issue which I hope you
recognize is potentially very serious not only to the VCA, but for SRT's
future business.

Best regards,

Tim Wollesen

And just when I was fully convinced Ralph Gilles was the person responsible for this disaster, VCA is the one that caused this fiasco?  I still think Gilles is the main fall guy but I understand even more now why the VCA and other Viper internet morgues get so defensive should anyone point out shortcomings of these cars.  Oh and just clarify, I do own one and was deeply disappointed to see how little progress the next generation made.
.
Seems like Gilles and VCA are the new cast of Dumb and Dumber remake, LOL.