Viper vs C6 (Fifth Gear)

[Matra et Alpine]

No, I will not make a list.
I like the Viper's performance, I just don't like the car.

But nodbody has a clue of what you like

"Performance" has many facets.........

[Matra et Alpine]

What makes the Viper great is its lack of Technology. A drivers car that doesn't need traction control, etc.. It’s a pure driving experience.That is incredibly fast around a track and in a straight line. I am willing to bet there are very few European cars that can keep up for under $100,000 (the SRT-10 is around $85,000 US)

Can guarantee you, bring it to Knockhill circuit and a $10,000 Stryker can beat it

"around a track" doesnt' talk abtou what kind of track

Kaims track in Ayrshire and you woudl need to do a 3 point turn in a Viper to get round the hairpin !!!!

[Matra et Alpine]

Theres an answer to this : Tvr.

Russian muscle hmmmmmmmmm

[UCR]

Russian muscle hmmmmmmmmm

Russian cos he did some stitch work on the carpets?

[Coventrysucks]

Damn.......you piss me off sometimes with the "league of American teenagers on the internet who spring to its defense without ever having driven it?" comments. Why? Because you forget that A) as I mentioned, LOTS of journalists over here love the Viper on the track, and B) they are such generalizations, that that part alone is annoying.

I have seen no end of threads from numerous "American" boards calling all British people "fags" because of Top Gear reviews.

These are the "league" of numbskulls I was referring to.

Can some one please find me one of these reviews which raves about the Viper.

I've seen one, and they proclaimed that the Viper was "best" because it got the best numbers I seem to recall that subjectively they weren't exstatic.

[Coventrysucks]

Russian muscle hmmmmmmmmm

Peter Wheeler was Russian?

[CdocZ]

I have seen no end of threads from numerous "American" boards calling all British people "fags" because of Top Gear reviews.

These are the "league" of numbskulls I was referring to.

Can some one please find me one of these reviews which raves about the Viper.

I've seen one, and they proclaimed that the Viper was "best" because it got the best numbers I seem to recall that subjectively they weren't exstatic.

I think you missed half of my point. You, if anything, have pissed me off MORE with this post. First, you include me in that "league", then you call them a "league of generalizing numbskulls because they think all Brits are fags because they disagree with Top Gear".

ee why I resent the way you argue sometimes? That was the major point I wanted to make in my post. Now, seriously, you are now just pissing me the hell off with your incredible generalizations (it is either that, or you are not putting your full thought process into writing here), and here: Road and Track said that if you wanted a track day car, it was definitely the best choice, but as for an everday car, was not the right car to buy. But they were VERY enthusiastic in favor of it's abilities. (That test Road and Track did for the best sportscar).

Happy now? I found you an article (actually, didn't "find" it, I remembered it right off the top of my head) that was very enthusiastic in favor of the Viper's track abilities.

Now, before you respond to ANYthing else, please respond to how you have managed in two posts, to call me a "teenage numbskull who thinks all Brits are fags because Top Gear said an American car was bad". So far, what has happened, is you said I was part of a bunch of these "foolish teenagers", that was annoying, but not all THAT annoying: But what you added to your description HERE was VERY ANNOYING

[Coventrysucks]

I did not say that you were included with these people.

If you think I did you are reading it wrongly.

"These are the 'league' of numbskulls I was referring to".

So unless you have been calling Brits a bunch of fags because of Top Gear reviews, I wasn't referring to you.

[CdocZ]

Who am I going to believe? The opinions of six or seven proffessional drivers and automotive journalists, or the league of American teenagers on the internet who spring to its defense without ever having driven it?

Well.......considering that you are talking to me, it leads people to believe that you are implying that they are part of this "league".

EDIT: So basically, since I love England more then America, Top Gear more then the Speed Channel, your beer better then American piss, and your cars better then Chevy Cobalt's, I would say that makes me not in this league.

I think what happened is you didn't really see how that would be seen by the reader, and then when you went on.....etc.

Don't worry, I am a forgiving man.

[Coventrysucks]

Well.......considering that you are talking to me, it leads people to believe that you are implying that they are part of this "league".

It still doesn't directly imply that I was referring specifically to you, although I admit that it could have been phrased differently.

Apologies for any offense caused.

Car and Driver:

On Michigan's ruined roads, the SRT-10 rides like a Nathan's hot-dog cart. It bangs and crashes as if jumping curbs. Some of the fiercer impacts cause your voice to quaver, suggesting an unsteady passage through puberty. Bumps cause the car to talk. First the dash croaks out its name, then the convertible top, then the center console, then the bulkhead behind your back. Middle-aged men with unsightly deposits of personal suet will notice their breasts jiggling like turkey wattles. Not that we know any middle-aged men like that. Gross.

The steering's weight and accuracy are appropriate to the Viper's hunter-killer mission, but the front tires aren't to be trusted when they first introduce themselves to ruts, grooves, crowns, and corrugations. Like teenage NBA groupies, they'll follow any tall transient that happens along. Do not drive this car without both hands on the wheel, especially at night, when authorities abaft will surmise you're an Everclear addict."

"The Viper's shifter remains a fairly high-effort, industrial device — visualize, here, a small oil-drilling rig — and its metal stalk becomes approximately as hot as ex-congressman Traficant in circuit court. Abandon first gear prematurely and the skip-shift leads you straight to fourth, sometimes causing the car to buck like a popular barroom diversion at Gilley's. Finding reverse is no more difficult than finding a kimberlite pipe in downtown Akron.

Even TVR have managed to cure the heated gear knobs, and they aren't throwing DaimlerChrysler development budgets about...

Viper loyalists equate this car's brutality — its roar, its ride, its heat, its dearth of amenities — with exclusivity and a kind of back-to-basics purity. Well, fine. Some folks insist that breakfast is more enjoyable when you slaughter your own hogs. And, hey, we celebrate anybody who essentially hand-builds a low-volume sports car that causes even onlooking dogs to smile. But the truth is, a Corvette Z06 — some $33K less costly — is not only miles more comfy but is more effective in real-world A-to-B blasts, simply because it's half as difficult to drive.

All dicussion about the car's handling is summed up in these few words:
On local byways, the SRT-10's grip is so vast that you won't climb out and say, "Well, she understeers." Instead, you'll climb out and say, "I'm not sure I even got the tires to squeal." All we know for sure is that your right foot can create oversteer any time it wants. Inside your garage. On the way to the mailbox. The whole length of Hardee's drive-through.

Really in-depth. Its almost as if I were in the driver's seat...

Motor Trend, hardly glowing with enthusiasm:

It takes less time to get friendly with the GT. We learned the handling limits with ease because there's more clear feedback about what's going on where the rubber meets the road. At the limits of adhesion, we could detect even slight chassis yaw earlier in the Ford than in the Viper and counter-steer corrections into the equation. All said, the Ford enjoys better overall chassis balance and a more progressive, precise, and lighter steering feel.

The previous-generation Viper had a reputation for punishing slow-reacting and inattentive drivers. It had high limits, but they were never reached or communicated to the cockpit in anything resembling a progressive manner. The SRT-10 has much-improved on-limit handling behavior and feedback. But the chassis still feels a tad numb, at least as compared with the mongoose-quick GT. Without an electronic stability-control system to lean on, Viper pilots are well-advised to restrict oversteer tricks to the track, while keeping the cell-phone holstered.

Road and Track, with the opposite opinion of almost every other view I have read:

As you can imagine, a few warm-up laps are required to become accustomed to the Viper’s 500 bhp and 525 lb.-ft. of asphalt-crumpling torque, not to mention its super-quick-ratio steering. The 6-speed manual gearbox is also a bit fickle because of the crowded gates of the shifter — a missed downshift in the Viper can lead to serious consequences.

Its handling character is not unlike that of a race car. One exaggerated input (whether it be throttle, brake or steering) and you’re headed into the guardrail. Understeer is apparent going into tight turns, but the real attention-getter here is oversteer. Sloppy driving, like braking a bit too late or getting on the gas too early, can swing the rear end out like the boom on a sailboat. Lose it through a 100-mph sweeper, and not even a Mario Andretti or Phil Hill can bring it back. Exciting? You bet — it scored a perfect 20 in Driving Excitement — however, “thrilling” or “teeth-clenching” may be a more apt description of driving this 2-seater.

The key here is respect. Respect its power, and it’ll reward you. The chassis is communicative, with the suspension system — upper-and-lower A-arms at both front and rear — providing exceptional mid-turn balance. The massive Michelins stick to the pavement like super glue. Get everything right through a corner, and the Viper will easily be the first one through. It registered an amazing 1.02g around the skidpad.

“The Viper is a very driver-oriented car. It’s well balanced, has very quick steering, excellent seats and great throttle response. You’re often going fast in this car, and it lets you know it. The Viper is extreme in every way. It’s not cheap, it’s not cute, it’s not slow and it’s not for everyone,” said Shaun Bailey, Assistant Road Test Editor.

Evo:

But there's another cliché, the one about power and control, that the Dodge engineers would have done well to remember. As it is they focused all their efforts on making the Viper stunningly quick and heroic at pulling huge cornering G on a smooth skidpan.

That's a real shame because on British roads, and I'm not talking really testing B-roads here, the SRT-10 feels horribly out of its depth. Try to use that 525lb ft and the Viper will spit you off the road in an instant. Half-throttle feels like too much most of the time.

Traction isn't the issue. In the dry the faintly ludicrous 345/30 ZR19 Michelin tyres dig in and simply fire the SRT-10 up the road, but it's as a consequence of very wide and stiff-sidewalled runflat tyres and ultra-stiff double-wishbone suspension that the big Dodge is such a handful. It weaves around under power, sniffing out ruts and cambers in the road and bouncing sharply from one bump to the next. You need to be busy at the wheel just to counter the effects of the road surface on the attitude of the car in a straight line. Then you hit the brakes and the whole car snakes around underneath you. You're working hard before you've even tackled any corners.

They all seem to be saying the same thing to me...

[CdocZ]

Well........I will say this: it still goes fast, and perhaps you would not want to own one, but you can still love the idea that they try to create in your mind of a brutal and aggresive beast. I will always love them: I may not really cherish the idea of owning one, but DAMN I love that 505 ci engine, and how it is basically a modern Shelby Cobra.

[early93viper]

I have seen no end of threads from numerous "American" boards calling all British people "fags" because of Top Gear reviews.

These are the "league" of numbskulls I was referring to.

Can some one please find me one of these reviews which raves about the Viper.

I've seen one, and they proclaimed that the Viper was "best" because it got the best numbers I seem to recall that subjectively they weren't exstatic.

The viper has had some very good reviews by Road and Track, Motortrend, etc. Even the great Jeremy Clarkson said he liked the car.

But you have to drive it to form a real opinion on it. At least no great God of a magazine editor can tell me what to think. So go out drive one and form a real opinion on it.

[pimento]

The viper has had some very good reviews by Road and Track, Motortrend, etc. Even the great Jeremy Clarkson said he liked the car.

But you have to drive it to form a real opinion on it. At least no great God of a magazine editor can tell me what to think. So go out drive one and form a real opinion on it.

Ahh yes, but JC said he likes the car despite its myriad of faults.

You're right though, the final opinion can only be formed by experience, and I've never driven one. I think given the choice before having driven either, I'd get an Ariel Atom 2, the supercharged one. But that's just me.

[Quiggs]

The viper has had some very good reviews by Road and Track, Motortrend, etc. Even the great Jeremy Clarkson said he liked the car.

But you have to drive it to form a real opinion on it. At least no great God of a magazine editor can tell me what to think. So go out drive one and form a real opinion on it.

I'd like to form a real opinion.

[What]

Chances are the reason you (What) hate it is because it was NOT meant to be driven as an everyday car: You got 505 screaming cubic inches in front of you, creating enormous heat, vibration, and noise. You have a car that has no comforts, except that you don't have to turn a key: you push a button. Only ABS brakes in terms of safety technologies, and it behaves like a car that will rip your head off if you force it to slow down.

That's a negative. I don't mine brutal cars. In fact, I LOVE the old Viper. I just don't like this one.