I have some Viper questions.
- Thread starter cbj5259
- Start date
IM'd paintless302 since he knows a thing or two about Vipers.
From a reliability standpoint, these cars are rock solid. They are the lowest maintenance and easiest to service exotic you can buy, period. A lot of the "silly parts" are platform shared, and you will be happy they are when you go to pay for them at the checkout counter. Deciding whether to buy a GEN 3 or GEN 4 is really a matter of what you're going to do with the car. If you're going to FI the car at some point, buy a gen 3. You will not be able to do anything with the Gen 4 ECU to bring in FI or nitrous without spending some serious coin (stand alone), wheres the gen 3 is easily plug n play tune-able on SCT or the like. This has been changing as of late with the Gen 4/5s with some beta hptuners implementation but it is still FAR from an oem quality solution, with many tables un-accessible to the end user, and really limit you to just bolt ons. Some people have done it on gen 4s, few have done it well. Most every big power Gen 4/5 build is running a standalone (aem, motec, etc). My goal was RELIABLE power, and something I could road course, autox, and take to the strip occasionally. I achieved everything I set out to do with a mild bolt on gen 4. 600whp/600wtq on pump 93 SAE with catted longtubes, gen 5 intake manifold, and an oem canned tune (acr-x ecu). At 3300lbs, the car runs low to mid 10s @ 134-135mph on 19s with suspension from an ACR (1000lb/in spring rates). No catless smell, completely oem driving experience, and dead ass reliable after 20k miles of street and track driving. I honestly couldn't be happier with the car.
I started with a gen 3 coupe, and then moved to a gen 4. If i knew what i know now, I would have saved my money for a Gen 4. It is night and day. Here is what I wrote when I bought my 4...
All gen 3/4s have piss poor window regulator design that loves to fail. Good news is that now a cheap fix is in place by swapping in the regulator from the gen 5s, plug n play. Gen 3s had some production runs with some bad tolerances on the crank, these cars love to spin main bearings, and when not repaired properly (crank mic'd and machined), they will continue to do so. Gen 3/4s love to have leaky oil cooler lines at the fittings (check em before you buy). All gen 3/4s make some diff noise at full lock low speed cornering due to aggressive clutch packs in the diff.
'03-'06 is Gen 3
'03-'05 is convertible only
'06 is the only year gen 3 where a coupe was offered
'03s have forged pistons
'04s did some weirdness with the crank pulley bolts, and they love to come loose (easy fix, torque em if you buy one)
'05s and '06s largely vetted any issues with '03-'04s (which were really non existent to begin with)
'08-'10 is Gen 4
'08s have PITA non removable stub axle clips in the diff (if you decide to swap gears, swap the whole rear, or get a real shop to do it)
'09-'10s have different exterior and interior color combo options (two tone, red/black/ grey/black, blue/black, tan/black)
Coupes tend to bring a 8-10k premium over convertibles (due to aesthetics, and out of the gate qualification for most racing leagues). Gen 3 coupes tend also to have higher residuals due to their identical looks to a gen 4, but with the benefit of being easily modified for boost out of the gate.
I will close by saying with all the positives to the ownership experience the car is not a lexus, it is not quiet, it is not comfortable for extended trips, and it is an "event" every single time you drive it. I would never daily drive mine, but honestly cant think of a single other car I would ever buy for the money, other than another Viper, and I have had the privilege of driving most everything under the half million dollar range. A lot of people convince themselves that they want a viper because its sexy, and the stigma of "im a good driver" that comes along with ownership. They realize quickly that its not really what they wanted, what they wanted was to just cruise around and make noise (and there are much better cars for that). Find an owner who will take you for a drive and see if it is something you are genuinely interested in. If you are, and its "your type" of car, I promise you it'll be one of the most rewarding vehicles you'll ever drive. It will improve you as a driver, and provide some good old fashioned analog fun in this digital world.
I started with a gen 3 coupe, and then moved to a gen 4. If i knew what i know now, I would have saved my money for a Gen 4. It is night and day. Here is what I wrote when I bought my 4...
All gen 3/4s have piss poor window regulator design that loves to fail. Good news is that now a cheap fix is in place by swapping in the regulator from the gen 5s, plug n play. Gen 3s had some production runs with some bad tolerances on the crank, these cars love to spin main bearings, and when not repaired properly (crank mic'd and machined), they will continue to do so. Gen 3/4s love to have leaky oil cooler lines at the fittings (check em before you buy). All gen 3/4s make some diff noise at full lock low speed cornering due to aggressive clutch packs in the diff.
'03-'06 is Gen 3
'03-'05 is convertible only
'06 is the only year gen 3 where a coupe was offered
'03s have forged pistons
'04s did some weirdness with the crank pulley bolts, and they love to come loose (easy fix, torque em if you buy one)
'05s and '06s largely vetted any issues with '03-'04s (which were really non existent to begin with)
'08-'10 is Gen 4
'08s have PITA non removable stub axle clips in the diff (if you decide to swap gears, swap the whole rear, or get a real shop to do it)
'09-'10s have different exterior and interior color combo options (two tone, red/black/ grey/black, blue/black, tan/black)
Coupes tend to bring a 8-10k premium over convertibles (due to aesthetics, and out of the gate qualification for most racing leagues). Gen 3 coupes tend also to have higher residuals due to their identical looks to a gen 4, but with the benefit of being easily modified for boost out of the gate.
I will close by saying with all the positives to the ownership experience the car is not a lexus, it is not quiet, it is not comfortable for extended trips, and it is an "event" every single time you drive it. I would never daily drive mine, but honestly cant think of a single other car I would ever buy for the money, other than another Viper, and I have had the privilege of driving most everything under the half million dollar range. A lot of people convince themselves that they want a viper because its sexy, and the stigma of "im a good driver" that comes along with ownership. They realize quickly that its not really what they wanted, what they wanted was to just cruise around and make noise (and there are much better cars for that). Find an owner who will take you for a drive and see if it is something you are genuinely interested in. If you are, and its "your type" of car, I promise you it'll be one of the most rewarding vehicles you'll ever drive. It will improve you as a driver, and provide some good old fashioned analog fun in this digital world.
Ah I wish I would've known that haha I just replaced my driver side about a month ago.
That makes me want a viper lol
Paintless302 hit it perfectly
This has been my exact feelings since my first drive in my Viper. It is an experience like nothing else.
Just starting it will give you the biggest grin. I equate it to jabbing a sleeping bear with a sharp stick. The car gives a wonderful violent shake, a delightful angry 'roar' for lack of a better word, then settles down into its rough, lopey purr. (My car is running a very open exhaust, your experience may differ)
I say this in any thread I get the chance. You can't lose either way, they are amazing cars. Do it and don't look back, you will be happy you did.
EDIT: This is making me REALLY want to wake her up and go for a drive now.
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You'll know for the next one LOL. Gen 5 regulators only cost like $250ish when the older ones were like almost a grand from what i remember.
Ah. Well maybe I got a new one. It was $323.
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This has been my exact feelings since my first drive in my Viper. It is an experience like nothing else.
Just starting it will give you the biggest grin. I equate it to jabbing a sleeping bear with a sharp stick. The car gives a wonderful violent shake, a delightful angry 'roar' for lack of a better word, then settles down into its rough, lopey purr. (My car is running a very open exhaust, your experience may differ)
I say this in any thread I get the chance. You can't lose either way, they are amazing cars. Do it and don't look back, you will be happy you did.
EDIT: This is making me REALLY want to wake her up and go for a drive now.
:beer:
Slowhatch? (Aspiring Viper owner/lurker from the Viper boards here)
Love your YT videos, man.. :rockon:
Yup, that's me. Thanks bud :beer:
Love the info in here. I hate to ask but will anyways. Any info for the G2's like what was posted for the G3/4's?
I'm still a year out until I can get one (debt free again minus the mortgage). I've never ridden in or driven a viper but I've always wanted one since the day I first saw one when I was in middle school. My preferred car is the 96-98 blue with white stripe GTS or any G2 that is grey or red. Haven't dismissed a G3/4 all together but I don't think my budget will allow for that new of a car ($40K).
I'm still a year out until I can get one (debt free again minus the mortgage). I've never ridden in or driven a viper but I've always wanted one since the day I first saw one when I was in middle school. My preferred car is the 96-98 blue with white stripe GTS or any G2 that is grey or red. Haven't dismissed a G3/4 all together but I don't think my budget will allow for that new of a car ($40K).
I can't provide a detailed breakdown on the Gen 2 like Paintless did with the 3 to 4. But I was actually shopping for a Gen 2 when my Gen 3 was presented to me at a price I couldn't pass up.
I will tell you though, there is a Blue and White tax on Gen 2s. They are the most desirable color, and you will pay more for a blue and white with identical miles and condition to a a Gen 2 in any other color. That said, you should be able to find a clean driver blue and white (30-40k miles) for your budget. Lower miles all day long if you don't HAVE to have a blue and white.
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Christ. Now I want a Viper.
Well thanks for the advice fellas. After much deliberation and weighing pros and cons and most importantly prices and condition. I went with the 2006 SRT10. 15,200 miles and clean carfax. I absolutely love the car. Took a friend who has the same generation viper and he looked it over and gave it his thumbs up. It is definitely a different animal from my Mustang. I'm surprised at how much engine noise comes through to the cockpit. I was slightly concerned because I can hear what sounds to be like lifters ticking, but my friend and the mechanic who looked it over said nothing to worry about as its pretty common in those engines (he said his is louder). This was an itch I had to scratch. Always wanted a viper. Who knows? In a year I may decide gen 4 is the way to go or I may have it out of my system altogether...but right now I love the car.
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Congrats on the purchase, she's beautiful, and a rare bird to boot. Copperhead coupes are very rare, and that one looks absolutely virgin! Looks like someone did take the liberty of putting the gen 4 h-spokes on there, hopefully that means they also came with non runflat Michelin PSSs.
Don't worry at all about the engine noise, its absolutely normal and a question every single gen 3 owner asks. Its just the fast bleed lifters making a racket, completely normal. A lot of guys switch to 15w50 for track work and that quiets things down a lot at warm-up (but the racket returns at operating temps when the oil thins out).
My recommendation is two fold. One, check the DOTs on the tires to make sure they aren't as old as the car; and two, do all the fluids. Regardless of what the previous owner said he did or didnt do. Do oil & filter, transmission, clutch, brakes, and rear differential. Its very cheap insurance on these cars, and will make a world of a difference if they are tired. Do factory fluids on everything, trust me. Also, if the car is anything but silky idle at cold starts, buy a new oem IAC valve, they tend to get carbon build up over time and cause a rough idle at cold starts.
Don't worry at all about the engine noise, its absolutely normal and a question every single gen 3 owner asks. Its just the fast bleed lifters making a racket, completely normal. A lot of guys switch to 15w50 for track work and that quiets things down a lot at warm-up (but the racket returns at operating temps when the oil thins out).
My recommendation is two fold. One, check the DOTs on the tires to make sure they aren't as old as the car; and two, do all the fluids. Regardless of what the previous owner said he did or didnt do. Do oil & filter, transmission, clutch, brakes, and rear differential. Its very cheap insurance on these cars, and will make a world of a difference if they are tired. Do factory fluids on everything, trust me. Also, if the car is anything but silky idle at cold starts, buy a new oem IAC valve, they tend to get carbon build up over time and cause a rough idle at cold starts.
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Thanks for the advice. Yeah I'm going to get to changing everything in the next two weeks when I can get the car up on a rack. I honestly didn't look at the DOTS on the tires. Was mostly looking at condition and tread and they looked real good, but I will check now. Car idles very smooth on start, so no issue there.
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