Mecum: First Generation Vipers Still Have Quite a Bite

04/14/2012

by Bill Stephens

The Dodge Viper burst onto the automotive scene in 1992, shortly after its initial introduction to the public at the 1989 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The reaction to the Viper and its elemental approach to a raw, unrefined, no-frills sports car—based on the Shelby Cobra of the 1960’s—was sensational to say the least.

It took Chrysler barely any time at all, at least in automotive industry terms, to bring the Viper to market and it was soon on the leading edge of a New Generation horsepower glut which was to revitalize the high-performance marketplace. An all-aluminum 8-liter, 400 horsepower V10 gave the Viper the capability to dust just about anything else on the road with 0-60 times of 4-seconds and a top speed of 165 MPH. And at a sticker price of around $50,000, compared to the various big-dollar foreign-built exotics it competed with, such as the Lamborghini Diablo, Ferrari F40, or even the Chevrolet Corvette, the Viper was a genuine bargain.

Eight liters, 400 horsepower, and all the torque anyone could ever use. The engine in this First Generation Viper can push this reptile to 165 MPH.

The First Generation Vipers were true to their Cobra genetics. No power accessories, no ABS, no automatic transmission, side-curtains, and side-mounted exhausts were the order of the day in early Vipers. Over time, more sophistication and refinement were worked into the recipe and a GTS coupe debuted in 1996, which received a 50-horsepower increase while resembling the lines and bearing of the 1965 World GT Championship-winning Cobra Daytona Coupe. The 1996 model Viper, although very similar in appearance to its predecessors, signaled the Second Generation due to many mechanical and structural changes that took place beneath its menacing snakeskin.

The interior in this 1995 Viper roadster reflects the gradual efforts to civilize Dodge’s sucessor to the Cobra after its primordial debut.

In 2003, the Viper got a new body, another 50 horsepower bringing the V10’s output to 500, and a Mamba Edition with just a tad more spunk. The next generation arrived in 2008 with 600 horsepower, added features and upgrades, and little of the rough-hewn, mega-macho image with which the Viper had been born. The Viper was still a serious, hard-hitting sports car which took real skills to control, but now it had learned a few manners.

Of course, all manner of competition versions of the Viper were created either by Chrysler or a long lineup of out-of-house boutique race shops throughout its lifespan and the racing resume of Dodge’s muscular two-seater documents numerous victories both here and overseas.

After briefly considering ending the Viper’s production, Chrysler reversed its field and this year, the most powerful Viper ever built—640 horsepower—was unveiled at the New York Auto Show and is slated for a 2013 coming out party. The latest Viper has also undergone a comprehensive triple-digit weight reduction program which will give it the best power-to-weight ratio in its history and is promised to be the fastest and most intimidating automobile ever to come from the Big Three.

For the collector, 1992 to 2002 Vipers have become very attractive investment opportunities, not to mention cars which can still rip the asphalt right off Main St. When it comes to world-class sports car performance, a deadly countenance that can’t be mistaken for any other car from half a mile away, and a well-earned reputation as a reptile without a conscience, the Viper is in a class by itself. Despite the fact that the production numbers of the Viper fall well below those of most of its domestic peers, low-mileage First Generation Vipers can be bought for under $40,000.

In my travels with the Mecum Muscle Car Auctions, I’ve seen clean and unmodified Vipers from between 1993 and 2002 sell for as little as $30,000 and rarely do they bid beyond $40K. That, in my opinion makes those early Vipers a no-brainer for anyone who wants the maximum for the minimum.

But don’t wait too long. The market has a habit of catching up with itself.

Watch this 1995 Dodge Viper roadster cross the Mecum Auction block in Houston Friday and Saturday on Velocity. Prediction? It will sell for under $40,000. Check our listings for our live Mecum broadcasts!

 

Comments

[Deborah Brown]

Steven is my husband he has always been interested in paint and body work he does what ever he can to pay the bills ,my girls would tell u the same p,ease call 615-944-4257 2840 Mosley ferry road ashlandcity Tennessee 37015 the car is at his mom s just down the road from us she would help me help you all with the car it belonged to her parents ,it ment a lot to his neeny and grand daddy they raised him ,so please pick us ,I wrote back in 2010 I think it was the interior needs a lot of work and the motor is a 350 of corse it needs work .the whole car needs the chip Foose and his teams touch ! Please help thank you for. Just putting up with my emails I'm not very good at it so please forgive me and god bless you all and all you do! Deborah Brown mothers address 245 Houston fielder rd Clarksville ,Tennessee 615-945-4420 !!!!!!!!!!

[Deborah Brown]

I wrote to overhauling last night about my husband Steven and his 1978 Malibu that belonged to his grandparent s they have passed on ,we paid all we had to have this car painted ,3000.00 dollars and now it just sets he has taken care of my children sence 1995 and now he is laid off .i am not ingood health my daughter and her 3children live with us andshehasoneon the way in a month,her finance died chrismas ,doctors miss diagonalsed he was 27 years old Steven takes care of all ,I am sorry I not very good with the computer ,I can make sure he is not home if he is lucky enough to be picked by mr chip goose and his team, also we watch all the time so he knows the show if u can not reach me by email please feel free to call. 615-944-4257 -2840 Mosley ferry road Ashland city Tennessee 37015 . I could write a book so to tell you all in person would make more sence.my kids father died at 30years old of massive heartache please call or visit please

[Bill Stephens]

BTW, here's an excellent explanation of what I'm talking about which was recently posted by veteran NHRA Stock Eliminator racer and President of the Tri-State Stock/Super Stock Association, Mike Carr, on Bobby Bennett's Competition Plus website. I thought it would further clarify what I posted earlier. Bob is referring to the recent controvery surrounding new factory-built performance cars such as the New Generation Cobra Jet Mustangs and Hemi Challengers competing against older, vintage Muscle Cars head to head in Stock Eliminator.

"The new Challengers and Mustangs have created an uproar in the Class Racing community not seen in quite a long time. The factories building combinations with, shall we say, a conservative HP rating, is nothing new—it’s been going on for years. The 1968 Hemi Barracudas and Darts were factory rated at 425. NHRA rates them at 500 now, and they have been at that rating for almost 40 years. The most recent examples are the 1993-2002 F-body Camaros and Firebirds. The LT-1 in the ’93-’98 cars were factory rated at 275, and debuted in 1995 as an H./S or H/SA (H/Stock or H/Stock Automatic). As of late 2010, they are rated at 346 hp, and fall into D/SA. The LS-1 was rated 305 by the factory, and debuted in F/SA. They now are NHRA-rated at 372 and fit into B/SA. The 1977 Pontiac Firebird 400 motor is up to 283 hp NHRA, from a 180 factory rating. There are probably many other examples I could cite as well.

Already planned to debut is the V-10 Viper engine in a Challenger, and a smaller 302 efi motored Mustang. Both with seemingly low factory horsepower ratings. And it seems likely that there will be more combinations in the future. IHRA still has the EFI classes for late model cars, to keep the playing field level. Maybe NHRA needs to do something too. They need to learn from their past mistakes from the last 40+ years. Or, pretty soon, it’s possible the un-level playing field won’t have too many players left on it."

[Bill Stephens]

Hi Bob: Thanks for your comments. We always appreciate feedback from viewers.

Let me attempt to address your suppositions that we do not understand the rated horsepower accuracy pertaining to various manufacturers. We have mentioned on the air with regular occasion how the method to determine published horsepower ratings changed in 1972. We certainly cannot mention that fact every time the conversation turns to horsepower ratings. However, there has abeen a long tradition among Detroit manufacturers to publish lower horsepower ratings than their engines actually produce, especially during the "Muscle Car Wars". There were two reasons.

One was how the insurance industry was beginning to either raise their premiums on owners of performance cars, and in some cases, refusing to insure certain cars which had unusually high horsepower ratings. Secondly, the manufacturers were competing in various racing series in which their cars were classified according to advertised horsepower. Obviously, they could gain an advantage if they publicly rated an engine's power lower than it was actually producing.

For 15 years, I worked for the NHRA--and still am closely associated with that organization. People like Bob Glidden, Warren Johnson, the late Bill "Grumpy Jenkins", David Reher of Reher-Morrison, and numerous other professional drag racers and engine builders have been good friends of mine since 1994. We have discussed the way manufacturers have published the horsepower ratings of their engines and how there remains a great deal of discrepancy between rated power and actual power.

When you say there is no documented evidence that some engines such as the V10 in the Viper are under-rated, I respectfully disagree. The NHRA still factors certain engines when classifying them for Stock Eliminator competition to compensate for the artificially low ratings the manufacturers publish. History has shown that factoring these engines levels the playing field and keeps the competition equitable.

The whole topic of horsepower ratings, how they are determined, how accurate they are, how the manufacturers use them to their advantage when going racing, and which engines have been the most under-rated throughout their production run is a subject which has been debated and argued for many, many years. Records show that in the early 1900's, there were protests lodged by some teams competing in the Paris to London Race as to whether the engines in their opponents' cars had been modified beyond the rules.

In the final analysis, our Velocity crew doesn't know eveything about every car, every engine, and every specification, no more than our viewers, but we try very hard to be informative, accurate, and pass along the facts and figures we think will be most interesting and relevant to a wide audience which has a very diverse range of knowledge and appreciation for the vehicles crossing the block. Thanks again for you input, Bob, and we hope you'll keep watching.

[Bob A.]

Yesterday on the air the broadcast team suggested this this car was "under-rated" at 400 HP.

Where are the facts to back this statement and why does the Mecum auction crew continue to pursue the "under-rated" theme?

Such claims require actual evidence.

CAR AND DRIVER was among the first magazine to run a complete road test of a '92 Viper, which remained essentially unchanged through the '95 model year.

They recorded a quarter mile ET of 13.2 seconds, with a trap speed of 108 MPH. Test weight (driver and complete car with fluids) was roughly 3,600 pounds.

Patrick Hale's Trap speed formula (also used in the Moroso speed-power calculator) tells us:

Peak Flywheel HP = (Trap speed/234)^ * race weight

Hence, in this case:

Peak Flywheel HP = (108/234)^3 * 3,600 pounds = 354 HP

Some ran a little faster, some a little slower and Hale's trap speed formula represents a "very good approximation." (It is more accurate than formulas that rely on ET, because trap speed is far less effective by gear ratio and traction variables.

There is NO DOCUMENTED EVIDENCE that any production line stock '92 - '95 Viper was "under-rated" by any measure.

Most LS1 Corvettes (beginning with the '97 model year) could equal that Vipers trap speed, even though the LS1 was (honestly) rated at 350 HP and the 'Vette's curb weight was nearly identical to the Viper's.

If you have any questions, you're welcome to contact Patrick Hale, who owns and operates RSA Racing:

http://quarterjr.com/about.htm

I think your staff should research actual engine outputs prior to on-air claims regarding "under-rated" engines. This is even more true for the pre-1972 American cars, which were "rated" under the old Gross HP rating and were little more than advertising fiction.