MotorTrend's Review

[phavyarden]

Nothing really new about it(numbers).
But it has another video hitting the track
Hope you enjoy
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupes/1211_2013_srt_viper_track_drive/

 

[SADVIPER]

nice thx

 

[v10enomous]

Still no real numbers... How can that possibly be at this point

 

[bcmarly]

Kind of disappointed that the seats were described as uncomfortable. As a passenger in one of the mule cars I too noticed that the seats were lacking in padding and not very comfortable. I had assumed it was a pre production characteristic.

 

[ViperSmith]

Aren't these still mules they were testing?

 

[bcmarly]

I'm not sure it changes anything.

 

[swexlin]

This is the most scathing review I've read yet. "Still a knuckle-dragger"? Wow...an insult to the previous Gens and this one.

 

[SnakeBitten]

Wow. His perspective of the GTS makes you wonder if its worth someone spending upwards of 120k+ for a GTS if its just as uncomfortable and a knuckle-dragger [lol] as the old Viper and the Gen V SRT model. I think we know where the Viper will rate in comparison test with MT after reading this. The more things change the more they stay the same with some of the automotive press in regards Vipers. World class leather interior, electronic nannies and suspension, modern infotainment and its a knuckle dragger? I hope people [conquest customers] give the car a try and don't let articles like this make their decision for them.

 

[bushido]

Where's Randy Pobst?

 

[ViperSmith]

Wow. His perspective of the GTS makes you wonder if its worth someone spending upwards of 120k+ for a GTS if its just as uncomfortable and a knuckle-dragger [lol] as the old Viper and the Gen V SRT model. I think we know where the Viper will rate in comparison test with MT after reading this. The more things change the more they stay the same with some of the automotive press in regards Vipers. World class leather interior, electronic nannies and suspension, modern infotainment and its a knuckle dragger? I hope people [conquest customers] give the car a try and don't let articles like this make their decision for them.

Of all the reviews, this seems to be the only one that calls it a "knuckle dragger" or anything close. Most seem to say the comfort is outstanding for being a 2 door sports car.

Couldn't expect all the reviews to be outstanding I guess.

 

[v10enomous]

News flash... In a world with 1 liter cars, 3 cylinder cars, and Hybrids and electrics EV's having 8.4 liters that comprises 10 big knuckles is a good thing. He's probably a Nissan/Toyota fanboy.

 

[v10enomous]

Here he is...

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[RoyV101621]

Do I see a dolphin hanging on the rearview?

 

[JAY]

I'll wait and form my own opinion , for all I know his main vehicle could be a Mini-Van

 

[Chelseasnake]

he just has a bus pass

 

[Coloviper]

He looks like he is constipated! Maybe he should have had a big dump first before getting in the Viper because I am sure it scared the S^&T out of him. I would say those seats were uncomfortable too if I fill my diaper while driving it. Guy looks and writes like a punk. How do these guys actually get and stay employeed? I mean really?

 

[SnakeBitten]

Of all the reviews, this seems to be the only one that calls it a "knuckle dragger" or anything close. Most seem to say the comfort is outstanding for being a 2 door sports car.

Couldn't expect all the reviews to be outstanding I guess.

You are right. I fully expected some sub par reviews but what I didn't expect after all the comfort improvements of the GTS and the initial journalist raves about the interiors livability, soft surfaces etc, was a comment with knuckle-dragger in it. Well I guess his choice of words got the result he wanted.

A common complaint in these reviews as a whole seems to be the dead pedal placement and the skin shredding seat adjust button location though.

 

[ViperSmith]

You are right. I fully expected some sub par reviews but what I didn't expect after all the comfort improvements of the GTS and the initial journalist raves about the interiors livability, soft surfaces etc, was a comment with knuckle-dragger in it. Well I guess his choice of words got the result he wanted.

A common complaint in these reviews as a whole seems to be the dead pedal placement and the skin shredding seat adjust button location though.

Only need to set the seat adjustment once, I mean who else is driving it

 

[Bobpantax]

He says the following:

While the car may last, I'm curious how long a driver will go. For as controllable as it now is, the speeds it travels and the gs it generates mean managing the Viper takes much physical and mental effort. After muscling it around, you get out breathing hard, heart pumping. Part of it is the work, yes, but also the surprise that something once so terrifying is instead malleable. It's a once feared bogeyman offering a bear hug.Crucially though, the new Viper inspires its driver. Not on the road, mind you. But the Viper is now a car you want to spend more time in it, learn its behavior, and master. This is its strongest success: That it's transitioned from a car reserved for the masochistic few to a car that you'd want to explore on the track.It is, dare I say it, rewarding.

Sounds good to me.

 

[v10enomous]

He says the following:

While the car may last, I'm curious how long a driver will go. For as controllable as it now is, the speeds it travels and the gs it generates mean managing the Viper takes much physical and mental effort. After muscling it around, you get out breathing hard, heart pumping. Part of it is the work, yes, but also the surprise that something once so terrifying is instead malleable. It's a once feared bogeyman offering a bear hug.Crucially though, the new Viper inspires its driver. Not on the road, mind you. But the Viper is now a car you want to spend more time in it, learn its behavior, and master. This is its strongest success: That it's transitioned from a car reserved for the masochistic few to a car that you'd want to explore on the track.It is, dare I say it, rewarding.

Sounds good to me.

Oh that feeling

 

[bcmarly]

While there's no doubt that he praises the car for its immense track capabilities, he makes it sound like it's one dimensional: a car not fit for every day driving. Ah the press....I've got a few problems with them and their ability to report anything without it being filtered though an agenda driven lense. I believe it was the August issue of MT where the lamborghini aventador placed last in a comparison test where the subaru brz placed ahead of it and the mclaren 12c. This was a "best drivers' " car review. All of this not withstanding, Ferrari with its sabelt sourced seats, has been critisized for the same reasons.
PS carlos lago was the reviewer as well and which car do you think won the test.......surprize, surprize, the porsche 911

He says the following:

While the car may last, I'm curious how long a driver will go. For as controllable as it now is, the speeds it travels and the gs it generates mean managing the Viper takes much physical and mental effort. After muscling it around, you get out breathing hard, heart pumping. Part of it is the work, yes, but also the surprise that something once so terrifying is instead malleable. It's a once feared bogeyman offering a bear hug.Crucially though, the new Viper inspires its driver. Not on the road, mind you. But the Viper is now a car you want to spend more time in it, learn its behavior, and master. This is its strongest success: That it's transitioned from a car reserved for the masochistic few to a car that you'd want to explore on the track.It is, dare I say it, rewarding.

Sounds good to me.

 

[madninjaskillz]

While there's no doubt that he praises the car for its immense track capabilities, he makes it sound like it's one dimensional: a car not fit for every day driving. Ah the press....I've got a few problems with them and their ability to report anything without it being filtered though an agenda driven lense. I believe it was the August issue of MT where the lamborghini aventador placed last in a comparison test where the subaru brz placed ahead of it and the mclaren 12c. This was a "best drivers' " car review. All of this not withstanding, Ferrari with its sabelt sourced seats, has been critisized for the same reasons.
PS carlos lago was the reviewer as well and which car do you think won the test.......surprize, surprize, the porsche 911

He's driven too many 5 Series and S8s and thinks that this is how all cars should be for the road. I have liked a lot of his reviews in the past but this review gives you the impression that he doesn't understand the Viper well at all. He is the typical reporter of yore that refused to give the GenIV proper respect despite that it handed every other "better" handling and more expensively adorned car its lunch even after it was out of production for 2 years. Sad really.

 

[Solid Red 98]

The whole concept of comparing sport sedans and sport cars is flawed in my opinion. I don't drive a Viper to haul anyone around in comfort. I didn't buy to car the drive from San Francisco to New York. I don't drive the car because I want and easy, tame, detached, practical, experience while sipping on a latte, rocking Mozart on the 50 speaker sound system. I drive the Viper because the experience is almost all about the car. It is an endeavor that requires concentration, and and being open to the operational nuances of a unique mechanical creation. I want to hear the machine, communicate with it, and attempt to know it, all the while piloting the craft down the unpredictable and inconsistent patch of asphalt of my choice.

I am so tired of people talking up plush and comfortable sedans in the same breath as the somewhat derivative intent of a sports car-- a driver's car. The truth is, any company can make a super quick brick; just add plenty of ponies, a full compliment of nannies, giant brakes, a rigid body, so on , and so forth. Only a few vehicles come along that offer a truly unique (in a good way) driving experience, where looks, performance, pedigree, and "pure driving excitement" come together. Yes, my aging GTS is loud and not overly sophisticated, it is what it is--a sports car that never fails to deliver a broad smile on my face every time I drive it. It will still mash most of the cars out there, and with its brilliantly reliable design philosophy, I can mash on it again and again without much fear of breaking something. Did I mention that the Dodge Viper is a sports car through and through?

I am pleased that the gen 5 can drop the pretenses and be a knuckle dragging sports car; that might be a challenge for a BMW or Mercedes. A fast sedan is...a fast sedan--a cool daily. A fast and shapely sports car / grand tourer is something all together different in my book. These Motor Trend and Road and Track guys almost always have an anti-domestic agenda and a tiresome lack of perspective. Alas, they are entitles to an opinion, I suppose....I don't seem to have a problem forming my own.... (mild rant over)

 

[VYPR BYT 94]

After muscling it around, you get out breathing hard, heart pumping...

He says this like it's a bad thing?

 

[ViperTony]

He says this like it's a bad thing?

This is what happens to a generation of drivers growing up on nanny-tech and cup holders. When he says "You will lose skin from your fingers when you adjust the seats" it reaffirms that the pussification of the driver is nearly complete.

 

[ViperSmith]

Want your kid to not text and drive?

Buy them a manual!

 

[bcmarly]

it reaffirms that the pussification of the driver is nearly complete.

haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

ViperSmith,

Great comment.............want your kid not to text and drive, buy them a manual !!! That is a keeper, thanks!

 

[bcmarly]

The feminization starts in grade school. lol

 

[Bobpantax]

I think that some of us are being too ******* the writer. Overall he seems to have really enjoyed the car but due to what appears to be a mild case of twerp disorder he just can't say that and keep the whiny little comments regarding things that no real car person cares about to himself. The slogan of the National Association of Hermaphrodites probably is an appropriate response to those comments. It is: ***.

This is what happens to a generation of drivers growing up on nanny-tech and cup holders. When he says "You will lose skin from your fingers when you adjust the seats" it reaffirms that the pussification of the driver is nearly complete.