A Special Thank You To Sampognaro Automotive.

[Brian E]

I picked up my 04 Black SRT10 from Sampognaro Automotive yesterday. ( Park forest IL. )
I had Bill install my Unitrax 3.55 gears. ( thanks Jon B. )
I also had him check out a few other items that I was concerned about. ( no problems found, all is well )
I drove the car 100 miles there and 100 miles back to have him do the work. It was well worth the drive!!!
I am VERY impressed with his level of professionalism and dedication to our hobby!
Bill treated my Viper like it was his own.
We always hear about the guys who take advantage of us, so I just wanted to take the time and thank Bill and his crew for a job well done.

Ps. If you own a SRT10, it is an absolute must to have these gears installed.
I put another 75 miles on the SRT10 today and I was grinning from ear to ear the whole time.

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

Never heard anything but good things about Bill and his work! Congrats and keep it under 170mph ,Brian.

 

[kaval]

please excuse my ignorance...
what is the difference these gears make on the srt-10...
I mean why does everyone say they are better?
and do you have Sampognaro's phone number...
Just picked up my new 04 last week and need somewhere to take it

thanx.

 

[Viperfreak2]

OK, I'm almost convinced to do the gear swap. Heard too many stories like above to ignore it anymore!~

 

[GraphiteGTS]

I don't get all this thanking dealers. Did you get the service free? Shouldn't dealers be thanking us for paying for their houses, food, and kid's college.
The thanks to my dealer comes in the form of prompt payment.

 

[Brian E]

A job well done, especially on my toys, always gets a thank you!
Bills number is 708-481-9560.

 

[ViperRay]

Congrats Brian.
Do you feel that the SRT is more in need of gears than the GTS?

 

[Brian E]

ViperRay, the SRT10 is a different car with the 3.55 gears. I am not one to jump on a band wagon and do something just because everybody else is. This car really need the gear change.
I left the 3.07 gear set in my last GTS and was pefectly happy with it. ( well maybe not perfectly happy ) I do want to mention that I talked to a couple very well respected members of the Viper community who alsmost had me convinced to go with the 3.73 gear set. After a couple hundred miles of driving with the 3.55's, I can see where the 3.73 might have been a better choice.
I do LOVE this car! It lacks the gawk factor that the Yellow/Black Stripe GTS had, but it is far superior in every other way.

Ps. Forced induction IS in this cars future!

 

[ViperRay]

Brian,
Are you using 6th gear on a highway cruise with this gear ratio or is 3.73 needed to make that a confortable gear at 80mph?

 

[Skip White]

Yike's with the 3.73, if you upgrade the car this will be a bit much, I done gears in cars of the past, and I think i'ts a bit high. Your 6th gear, would be somewhere between overdrive and 5th. I would think, this would be terrible on fuel mileage, and the engine would hold temp, as it has a noticable drop when the r's are below 1300

But Brian has had a setup with 373,s in it and liked it. I haven't so I can't really say. I think the fun with that is that you will have good accel. in any gear at most speeds, no hunting for that right gear. Don't have to be at that optimal speed for a sprint with a 3.73

Skip

 

[SNAKEPILOT]

With 3.55 gears:
70 MPH = 1500 RPM
80 MPH = 1750 RPM
I use 6th comfortably while cruising at anything above 65 MPH.

 

[Brian E]

With the gear swap, 6th gear @ 70mph actually dropped 100 rpm, from 1600 to 1500.
With my driving style, first gear and fourth gear are where I have noticed the biggest difference.
With the 3.07 rear gear, 4th gear @60 mph= 2200 rpm.
With the 3.55 rear gear, 4th gear @60 mph= 2650 rpm.
I couldnt care less about mileage.
I have yet to see a gage temperature over 200 deg, no matter how spirited I drive.
With the old GTS, I saw 210-215 pretty regularly.

 

[ViperRay]

I agree with you about the gas mileage, Brian. With the Corsa exhaust, when I'm at 80 mph "or so" I feel like going into 6th to decrease drone but don't want the car lugging too much...the 3.55 will probably get me comfortable there.

The other thing I noticed about the SRT compared to the GTS is that, I guess because the power comes on so smoothly in the SRT, I don't feel the same rush of acceleration as I do in my GTS. My GTS is lightly modded from a power standpoint and makes 441 RWHP/492 RWT (has stock rear) which should be similar to my SRT...yet the GTS feels more powerful by "SOTP".
It also seems like the accelerator pedal has more travel in the SRT (probably in my head) which makes it seem like the car is slower because I have to push the pedal further (maybe I should move my seat up ).

That last part probably doesn't make sense but the net effect on my psyche is that my SRT in my experience is not as responsive as my GTS and I'm hoping a gear swap might help this.

 

[Skip White]

Brian E. I was refering to the 3.73 gear that Viper Ray was asking about, not the 3.55

The harboring of engine temp I mentioned was not trying to keep the car at 200 but 185 thats what the last two SRT's I've had run when you keep the r's at 1300 or so, but this goes to 205 when the r's rise. This would be impossible with a 3.73 in sixth gear unless one plans on running 55 or so on the freeway. I'm in Texas and hate how the 100-105 degree summer heat keeps my car roasting.

And the gas mileage comment I made was for having a 3.73 and paying $2.16 a gallon, getting horrible mileage and driving the car frequently. I'ts just the thought of it I guess, it really wouldn't bother me to much, but I do shake my head a time or two when filling up every two days or so.

Skip

 

[Casey]

Brian, Bill and Tracy are some of the VCA's best!!

Might have to have them do my brakes when I get my car back!