need some feed back on vipers

[canuck]

Concidering adding a viper to the stable
Options are a 2009 or 2010 or even possibly and ACR.
How does the ACR ride is on street set up and how does the srt 10 also ride compared to a Ford Gt?

 

[timcantwell]

I have two ACR's (a 2008 and 2009) and a 2008 SRT10 Roadster. I much prefer the suspension on the ACR's (no difference in 08 and 09). The ride is very adjustable in the ACR, no ability to adjust in the stock car. In terms of comparing with a Ford GT, there is little to no comparison. It rides and feels very different, very raw. I like it however. The FGT is much more stable feeling with power delivery like an electric motor. The Viper and GT are VERY different.

 

[canuck]

Do you find the ride in the ACR punishing or is it quite tolerable for a not so perfect road ? Have you actually ever adjusted the suspension to a softer setting for the road?

 

[Joe Dozzo]

I also have both... Or should i say HAD both... I still own my 96 GTS and recently sold my 08 GTS (non-ACR though I did add Moton's and Eibachs). As Tim said these are two very different cars!

Even with the Moton's, the Viper alwas felt just a little "bouncy", not rock-solid like the GT. I spent a fair bit of time tuning the suspension with the Moton's and never got the Viper to feel like the GT and in the end sold it out of disappointment. To be sure, the Viper is a very respectable car!!! I just think the GT is that much better.

All that said, I have some money holding a spot for the new 2012 (or 2013... or 2014...) Viper!

 

[HeritageBruce]

To me, most of the bounciness in the car was actually from the seat!!! Before I had any mods in my '08 ACR, the ride was so bouncy, I got bounced off the seat and hit the headliner many times. I then went to Moton shocks, 500/800# springs and that did improve things a little but the most significant mod that dialed out the bounciness was swapping out the stock seat. The ride of the car is very tolerable now but still can't be compared to the FGT which is much smoother but the FGT doesn't have 1000 lb. of downforce, nor the 1100 lb. rear springs to deal with either. I would caution going to 800# springs if you plan on taking the car much beyond 150MPH. I've had the car close to 150MPH on 800# springs with no issues personally though. Overall, this is probably one of the best track car (I'm referring to the ACR) for the money, and is probably faster than a comparable powered FGT on most circuits, at least when I compare my 550 RWHP ACR to my 730 RHWP Heritage.

 

[robt777]

All Vipers ride like buckboards compared to the FGT's. But I still like the two of mine.

 

[GTdrummer]

I would get the ACR. I have a 2010 Final Edition coupe. Only 32 FEs stayed in the US and only about 6 were ACRS and I could not get one. The 5th gear is different in the 2010 Viper and it has a higher top end. Also some fat a$$ stripes on the stripe cars (ugh)

Vipers and GTs are day and night--both good in different ways. I had 7 Vipers before my first GT. First time I drove a GT I thought "where has this been all my life?" Much smoother/better handling. My 92 is bit of a "thrill" to drive in a crude sort of way.

 

[MK2_GT]

SRT 10 Vipers are great , striking in apperance and I personally love the unrefined muscle aspect of the car. A Ford GT is refined smooth power in a good way and the Viper is not smooth unrefined power....in a good way.

 

[timcantwell]

To me, most of the bounciness in the car was actually from the seat!!! .

I also noted the same observation in a post a couple years back. I fittted a Momo solid shell race seat in my Red/Black ACR (Many of you saw it at V.I.R.) it made a huge difference. I modified the stock seat in my snake skin green ACR with a solid base and got rid of the seat's wire and spring suspension base, again, a night and day difference. I actually bounced my helmet off the roof of the car in my first track outing with the three point harnesses. The six-points and race seat make you much more connected with car and road underneath.

 

[canuck]

Voodoo acr or the final edition acr?

 

[FrankBarba]

If your interested i have an 08 ACR Hardcore. Orange & Black for sale. New still in plastic, delivery miles only.

 

[canuck]

More into the 2010 cause of gearing.

 

[GTdrummer]

I had an 09 and now a 10--not sure you will notice much difference in gearing. I imagine there are ridiculous deals on 08s and09s.

 

[FBA]

More into the 2010 cause of gearing.

Only 5th gear has the shorter ratio...and only by a few tenths...nothing you'd notice unless you were doing the standing mile, certainly nothing you'd feel in the streets. Your best deal will be on the 08/09's. While there are still plenty of 10's left on the floor, dealers aren't yet desperate enough to drop pricing to a reasonable level. Previous years can be had cheap and between the 08-10, there's nothing different except as noted above. I had a 2010 Roadster ordered and when it came in, I refused delivery -- they dropped pricing to 93k from 98, which had a 5K factory rebate in it...but for a car that will be worth 25K less the day you buy it, it isn't worth the buy. I had planned to keep both the '10 and my '08, but realized that what I should have ordered was an ACRX instead. It's still sitting there since June - and now another FE sitting beside it since August. They just don't sell...mostly because no one wants them. They're gorgeous, but most have been totalled or smashed badly since they hit the scene in 92...scary cars if not handled with care.

 

[fastzilla]

GT - comfortable, capable road car.
Viper ACR - American Club Racer

2 different cars, 2 different purposes. Don't tangle with an ACR on the track in a GT.....Don't tangle with a GT on the open road in an ACR.

...clear as mud.

On the 5th gear ration:
Unless you regularily exceed 145mph and need hard(er) acceleration in 5th - aka: straight away on a large track, TX mile, etc. - it's a moot point. Take the better deal on the `08-`09 & find one in a color you like. That will make you happier than having a 2010 in some color you didn't prefer just because you wanted a `10 ACR.

Nice pair to have though....

 

[Fast Freddy]

on my 01' ACR i went with 600 lb springs in the front and 900 in the rear. i lowered the car and adjusted the compression and rebound settings on my shox accordingly. i run 1.5 degrees of negative camber in the front and 1.0 degrees of negative camber in the rear. i am towed out an 1/8 in the front and towed in a 1/8 in the rear. i have corner weighted and balanced my car too. turns at 180 mph and dips at 120 mph......been there and done that :biggrin