New Gen 3 Owner with questions...Wheel Hop or something bad?

[nautoncall]

I have an 03 Stock Viper. Today I was out driving and and really wanted to test the car. I had read so much about how people had a hard time hooking up and were spinning their rears all the time. Well I have not done that but once and that was on an uneven surface pulling out on an incline. I thought I''m going to really get on it from a stand still and see what happens. I stopped and floored it in first, when I got up to 6k rpms to change, I heard this God awful noise and felt this wierd feeling that I thought was coming from my right rear tire. I actualy thought I had a blow out or something. Of course I immediately got off the throttle and shifted to second. It shifted fine but seemed to be wanting to pull to that side and just didnt seem like it wanted to ride quite the same. I came straight home and will take it to the shop tomorrow. I can't put my finger on it, but something happened. I was afraid to get on it again.

I know it's a wierd question but was this wheel hop and why is it not spinning out? My tires are pretty worn and I actually need new rears. They are not slicks but close to it. Also, what do you all think happened? Do you think I broke something?



Also, I noticed that my brake calipers don't have the words Viper on them. It looks like it has worn off? Is there a way to replace them?

If I want more accleration, what would you recommend? Change gearing? Is it going to make that much difference? I have a ZX11 and love accleration more than high speed.

Thank you and what a great site.

 

[Allan]

The gen III diff *****. .......don't ask how I know. You need an upgraded diff and 3.55 gears or something like that. Then you need to learn that bad things can happen real quick with a Viper when you least expect it. ....don't ask how I know. The car in stock form may seem disappointing to some, like it should have more, or whatever. But make no mistake that thing is not safe. If you mod the car for more go, you will really need to be careful and respect it,....or you will be sorry later. ...don't ask how I know.

 

[nautoncall]

Well locker in the rear end is stripped. I guess I need a new rearend. I guess I should change gears too???

 

[Allan]

Get a gen IV diff, at the least. Or upgrade to a Quaife, Wave Trac, or something like that. Then you can run whatever gears you want. Most popular seems to be the 3.55.

 

[Paul Hawker]

nautoncall

Sorry about your diff. Yours is not the first.

There are lots of solutions and stronger units you can upgrade to.

With slick tires, you may have had some severe wheel hop that did the damage. Lots of shock to the driveline.

Please let us know where you are located as maybe a solution is near to you.

If you wish to enhance the performance feel of your Viper, many would suggest a change in gear ratio's at the same time as your fix.

There are many suppliers that can either swap out your rear pumpkin, taking your broken unit as a core, or ship the upgraded unit to the shop of your choice.

Many also have done this swap as a DIY project, but it is pretty involved.

When you have this repaired, please have all the bolts in your rear chassis torqued down. Sometimes this is what causes the wheel hop.

If you are still running run flat tires, you can experience a remarkable improvement in ride and handling by upgrading to more recent tire technology. For street use, the new Pilot Super sports are a great choice.

 

[nautoncall]

My mechanic said he can get an Auburn gear pro series from Summit. Anyone heard of this?? Then change the gears and get a bearing kit.

Also I have super sports on the front and plan on changing the rears.

Great advice. This is an awesome site.

If that's not a good option where do we need to purchase from??

 

[Allan]

You need to upgrade the locker as well. The gen III diff kinda ***** for driving full-blast. You need to talk with some of the vendors that sponsor this site, as they will really 'know what's up'. Summit Racing is for guys with regular cars that are modded for the point of bench racing and impressing their friends. I haven't seen much Viper support from their parts catalog, but whatever. I think they are kind of similar to Wal-Mart. The Viper specific parts suppliers will help you more effectively.

 

[nautoncall]

Well said.

 

[Dom426h]

Summit Racing is for guys with regular cars that are modded for the point of bench racing and impressing their friends.

Allan, i agree with the rest of your post, but the above statement is not true of everyone who shops at sumitt. Why are you a hater of something you apparently know so little about?

Heck, i estimate that more than half of all viper owners are posers that modify their cars to look at them sitting in parkinglots. Would it be fair of me to say what you said about Sumitt but direct it towards; Viper Specialty, or ROE Racing just because i know some Viper posers who buy alot of stuff from them?

I dont think so

 

[Dom426h]

The first time you decided to floor it in 1st gear was "on an uneven surface pulling out on an incline".

Does anyone else find that... well... ....interesting?

Goodluck fixing your diff. If this is a common problem then someone should be able to point you towards some previous threads on the subject. Or you could try searching the Gen3 section specifically for "differential" and see what comes up. Also, any of the three vendors i listed above should be able to get you on the right track.

 

[mjorgensen Woodhouse]

As stated before, wheel hop can break stuff in an instant and is never a good thing. There are threads describing some options you can use to eliminate the hop, some of them should be done before you change to a lower gear ratio or your situation will be even worse. If you wish to PM me we can discuss.

I have an 03 Stock Viper. Today I was out driving and and really wanted to test the car. I had read so much about how people had a hard time hooking up and were spinning their rears all the time. Well I have not done that but once and that was on an uneven surface pulling out on an incline. I thought I''m going to really get on it from a stand still and see what happens. I stopped and floored it in first, when I got up to 6k rpms to change, I heard this God awful noise and felt this wierd feeling that I thought was coming from my right rear tire. I actualy thought I had a blow out or something. Of course I immediately got off the throttle and shifted to second. It shifted fine but seemed to be wanting to pull to that side and just didnt seem like it wanted to ride quite the same. I came straight home and will take it to the shop tomorrow. I can't put my finger on it, but something happened. I was afraid to get on it again.

I know it's a wierd question but was this wheel hop and why is it not spinning out? My tires are pretty worn and I actually need new rears. They are not slicks but close to it. Also, what do you all think happened? Do you think I broke something?



Also, I noticed that my brake calipers don't have the words Viper on them. It looks like it has worn off? Is there a way to replace them?

If I want more accleration, what would you recommend? Change gearing? Is it going to make that much difference? I have a ZX11 and love accleration more than high speed.

Thank you and what a great site.

 

[ViperGTS]

no one said it......different tires front and rear is not good either newbie

 

[nautoncall]

No.. I was not on an uneven surface. I was on a flat straight away.

Well what diff should I change to??

 

[mjorgensen Woodhouse]

The new Wavetrac is a very good piece that works well for the street/track and has a lifetime warranty even if used for racing. It is similar to the Quaife and a little cheaper with the plus that you do not have to machine the housing to use it. For a mostly track car I still think the O.S. Giken is the best choice.

No.. I was not on an uneven surface. I was on a flat straight away.

Well what diff should I change to??

 

[nautoncall]

Mark do you sell all of those??

 

[mjorgensen Woodhouse]

Yes, answering your PM now ;-)

Mark do you sell all of those??

 

[nautoncall]

Anyone upgraded to Gen 4 rear end.... May be more economical

 

[JoelW]

Nautoncall

I would certainly trust Mark's advice. I got a Unitrax upgrade (not from Mark - but he gave me great advice and I have bought parts from him) with a Gen IV diff and 3.55 gears. I like it a lot. I would trust Mark to do the same upgrade for you with either the parts he recommends or Gen IV parts. You will love the 3.55 gears and the change makes 5th and 6th gear useable on the interstate. But apparently Gen III's have some weak parts. In any case, standing on the go pedal in 1st gear can break parts or other bad scenarios. Lots of torque and parts that don't always keep up with the traction you get with huge tires. Just invest in good parts and don't cut corners now or you'll be doing the same thing again.

 

[slysnake]

Are you saying you released the clutch at 6k rpms? Sorry to hear of the damage but i guess it could have been worse.

Also, I noticed that my brake calipers don't have the words Viper on them. It looks like it has worn off? Is there a way to replace them?

Let me know if you find any that work because I would like to replace mine as well. Unfortunately, I have only been able to find the "old" style lettering.

 

[SRT101969]

The new Wavetrac is a very good piece that works well for the street/track and has a lifetime warranty even if used for racing. It is similar to the Quaife and a little cheaper with the plus that you do not have to machine the housing to use it. For a mostly track car I still think the O.S. Giken is the best choice.

I am in that process right now, own a Gen III upgradede with Arrow Racing heads and stuff. Ready to go with new Wavetrac's Diff. Woodhouse, Sean (Roe Racing) as Snake Oyl have great knowledge, experience as willing to help. LISTEN TO THEM.
Stock Diff is garbage, you should replace it ASAP.

Woodhouse: " track car I still think the O.S. Giken is the best choice" much diference vs. new Wavetracs? I am doing track and need more control when exiting curves.

 

[nautoncall]

I wanted to give a "shout out" and special thanks to Mark Jorgensen (Woodhouse) and Devin with Unitrax. They hooked me up with a Gen IV diff with Devin doing the gear swap to 3.55. Great guys with tons of knowledge. Thanks Devin and Mark.

Also, I have just gotten a Mallett CTS -V with the CR5 427 that will give my Viper a pretty close run.

Thanks again everyone for all the great advice.