Almost there!!!

[Magicboy2]

Well, I've got both feet on the diving board, have taken my running start, and am all set to take the plunge.

Found (what appears to be) a nice '94 RT/10, bone stock except for a custom paint job giving it Gen II style silver stripes (thick and all the way down the fascia). New battery, wires, AC overhaul/recharge, and four new pilots , all within the last few months. Carfax and DC service inquiry both came back clean. 30k miles. Spoke to Steve from Elite Motorsports, a very helpful gentleman, who said that he had seen the car about six months ago, and it seemed mechanically sound. Seller and I agreed on a price.

Now, the only hurdle is, the car is in Tampa, and I'm in Philly. So, I'm gonna book a flight down ASAP to give the car the final once-over and complete the deal.

My plan was to take the Auto Train home from FL to the DC area to save the 1000 or so miles. That will run $350 or so... cheaper than trailering it seems. Anyone else ever try this?

Then my next purchase will be a warranty... car hasn't had head gasket replaced... aah! Hee hee. I haven't inquired with DC directly, but I found a website www.nextcarwarranty.com that offers 3 yr/36k mile for $1250... sounds too good to be true? They specifically mention that head gaskets are covered. I know warranties have been discussed quite a bit before, but still, any tips/advice/experiences would be greatly appreciated.

So, providing no major surprises upon seeing the car in person, I should be joining the ranks of Owners sometime soon!

Thanks to everyone who's helped me out along the way... I hope I can return the kindness in the future.

 

[46hemi]

Good luck, its an awesome car. Better than you can imagine.

 

[XS TORQ]

I do not believe that you can purchase a Chrysler contract for the car (I am pretty sure you had to purchase for a 94 car by end of 2002, and the car currently had to be under warranty). An aftermarket (non-Chrysler) warranty will likely give you piece of mind, but I would talk to the dealer that will be doing the work to see if they have any issues w/ doing warranty work under the contract that you are purchasing. Call "Viper Wizard". He is very knowledgeable about all things Viper.
I paid about that much to extend the extended warranty on my 94, but that was in 2001.

 

[Tiepilot]

Make sure the aftermarket warranty will cover a Viper. I tried several and all gave the thumbs down on a Viper. Ended up going through Chuck Tator @ Tator's Dodge (914-763-3136) for my DC warranty and I suggest you call him for the straight scoop on DC extended warranties.

 

[Magicboy2]

Yeah, so far every aftermarket warranty I've called (well, both of them) have said no Vipers. The search continues.

 

[Vipermed 97.01]

Hi Magic boy,when you come down or even before you are more than welcome to bring the car over here and but it up on one of our lifts and check out,we offer this service to all Viper owners or potential owners free of charge,good luck let me know if i can help......Scott(not steve )

 

[Ryan]

MAGIC, congrats on finding a car.
But, I think that I'm going to have to play the spoiler...
Call Amtrak and get the min and max dimensions for the vehicles that they transport, mainly ground clearance, and possibly tire width, overall width you should be ok from my memory, overall height will not be a problem at that is somthing like 68" from my memory.
I had issues using them with a lowered minitruck. I believe that you will have the same problem that the car will not clear their ramps without bottoming. I ended up lifting the truck back to stock height in the parking lot first thing in the morning at amtrak.
Good luck, and I do mean congrats on the car. I just don't want to see you stuck in Sanford, with tickets for the train that you can't get your car onto.

 

[Magicboy2]

Scott- Sorry about messing up your name... despite having spoken to you on the phone the other day, I guess the excitement has just clouded my head.

Ryan- Yeah, I'm a little suspicious about the Auto Train's ability to load up the Viper. I actually called Amtrak to specifically ask... the guy said "so long as the car has four inches of ground clearance, we'll take it." I said, "what if it has a very long front fascia that scrapes on even narrow inclines?" He came back with "look, four inches is what it says, and four inches it what they'll take."

I then specifically asked if there was a list of any sort of cars that they know wouldn't work. He said he didn't know of such a list. So before I book, I'll definately get their policy in writing of how the refund would work if they couldn't load the car. The AutoTrain price sure was nice compared to some of the quotes I've seen for trailers though.

 

[Magicboy2]

... and back to square one. Seller says he got a better offer, and it's more than I'm willing to pay for a '94 with 30k miles and a less-than-perfect paint job. So, back to the drawing board.

 

[FRANK]

What are you looking to pay? I have a 94 RT/10 black with 9,000 miles and new head gaskets...hardtop, softtop, side windows, etc. etc. and I'm right across the Walt Whitman Bridge...

 

[Magicboy2]

Frank, you've got mail