new member got some issues trying to fix

[sidwin]

just got my hands on a 04 srt/10 with 27k mamba edition. trying to clean up a couple of things hoping you all could help.

i think one of the hid ballast went out. i checked the fuse yesterday.
1. any place to get a stock ballast? any parts that would be usable from another car?
2. that headlight pita to take out any pointers?
3. only got one fob and i ordered another. dealer wants $150 to do programming. anyone has the directions?
4. car is uneasy over bumps. currently has michelin pss. i ordered some nitto invo yesterday. tires are pretty bald. viper tech said rear shock blown. thinking of going bc racing coilovers. i had them on another car and worked. any tips on installation or suggestions overall would be great.
5. looks like oil pan and oil return line is leaking. how hard is it to do both? is the pan FIPG or a real gasket?
6. where do you all get stock parts discounted? i need wipers and i couldn't believe how much the stealership wanted to charge.
7. car only has 27k on it but i want to go ahead and go through and change all the fluid. also looks valve cover gasket could be replaced. guessing plugs and wires too. how hard and how long?

Thanks,
Sid

2004 Dodge Viper SRT/10 Mamba
2007 Porsche 911 Turbo 6 Spd
2011 Ducati Diavel
Yes all modded... first love 95 Toyota Supra

 

[ViperJeff]

Partsrack.com would be one place to look

 

[Sam Goldfarb]

I found these instructions on the internet for programming key fob:

[h=2]2004 Dodge Viper Programming Instructions[/h]
ATTENTION: You MUST HAVE one working remote to add one
more to the system. If you do not have one working remote right
now then these instructions will not work. You will have to have
a Locksmith or dealership use a computer to program the first
remote for you.

1. Turn the ignition switch to the ON/RUN position.

2. Using a previously programmed transmitter, press the
UNLOCK button for 5 to 10 seconds. While the UNLOCK
button is being pressed (after 5 seconds), press the
PANIC button and release both buttons simultaneously.
You will hear a chime sound to signal you that programming
on the transmitter(s) may occur.

3. You may program up to 4 transmitters for your vehicle
within a 30 second time limit. Press and release both
LOCK and UNLOCK buttons of a new transmitter at the
same time; then press and release any of the buttons
once, you will hear a chime when the transmitter has
been successfully programmed. A chime will sound
when the 30 seconds is over, or if you turn the ignition
switch OFF.

4. You must repeat step 3 for all new transmitters that
will be used with this vehicle (up to 4 total).

5. Turn the ignition OFF and remove key.

6. Test Remotes.

 

[MoparMap]

just got my hands on a 04 srt/10 with 27k mamba edition. trying to clean up a couple of things hoping you all could help.

i think one of the hid ballast went out. i checked the fuse yesterday.
1. any place to get a stock ballast? any parts that would be usable from another car?
2. that headlight pita to take out any pointers?
3. only got one fob and i ordered another. dealer wants $150 to do programming. anyone has the directions?
4. car is uneasy over bumps. currently has michelin pss. i ordered some nitto invo yesterday. tires are pretty bald. viper tech said rear shock blown. thinking of going bc racing coilovers. i had them on another car and worked. any tips on installation or suggestions overall would be great.
5. looks like oil pan and oil return line is leaking. how hard is it to do both? is the pan FIPG or a real gasket?
6. where do you all get stock parts discounted? i need wipers and i couldn't believe how much the stealership wanted to charge.
7. car only has 27k on it but i want to go ahead and go through and change all the fluid. also looks valve cover gasket could be replaced. guessing plugs and wires too. how hard and how long?

Thanks,
Sid

2004 Dodge Viper SRT/10 Mamba
2007 Porsche 911 Turbo 6 Spd
2011 Ducati Diavel
Yes all modded... first love 95 Toyota Supra

1. That's usually a tough proposition as often times factory HID systems don't offer individual parts, but whole headlight assemblies. You might check one of the Viper salvage yards like Don Scharf. That would be my first idea assuming you can't find a part number on one to look up.

2. The whole unit itself probably isn't that bad, though getting to the hardware can be a little tough. You mostly have to work through the foglight access panel. You can take out the inner fender to some degree as well, but the front portion is composite that is bonded to the structure.

3. Don't know on this one, but looks like there might be a way based on post above me.

4. I would suspect shocks over tires as well. The PSS tires are a very nice setup (at least when they still have tread on them). My car had some similar wayward responses over bumps and I replaced the shocks with MCS singles and it went away.

5. Don't know on pan, but would imagine it's not a terrible job. Doesn't have steering linkage and stuff under it like old cars, so I think it's pretty good access. Oil cooler lines are a known fault, they have AN style replacements with adapter fittings. Fairly easy to install, access is the biggest gripe. The right combination of extensions and swivels can get you there fairly easily, maybe also some stubby wrenches in large sizes for the AN fittings.

6. You found the *** of gold for Viper parts. The windshield wipers are one of the few exceptions for outrageous costs as they are pretty much a one make only part not used anywhere else to my knowledge. If you can get a part number a Google search is likely your best bet. Amazon and some wholesale places might get you a slightly better deal, but otherwise you just have to **** it up for those. Some members have had some success cutting off the old rubber and gluing on new stuff from a different wiper blade as a more budget friendly option if you want to try it.

7. Valve covers are easy, did them myself a while back after I noticed a small leak. Wires are a little trickier, but not impossible. Coils are located in the valley under the intake. Some have had luck fishing the wires in and out and using long nose pliers to get them on the coil packs, but easier way is probably to just remove the intake. I ended up doing that as I figured they time I would spend trying to work around it would be more than the time to just remove it. One or two intake manifold bolts toward the back can be challenging to access, but I didn't think they were too bad. It lets you route the wires a lot nicer with all the access, so I would recommend just removing the intake. Took me an afternoon all told.

 

[Allan]

Oil pan uses a gasket. Not that common of a leak point. If the pan gasket is leaking, not that hard of a job.
Do the cooler lines first.

I think wiper blades are dealer only, and a little expensive.
-it is what it is.

The INVO's are great street tires. Smooth and quiet.




Watch out for the cops.

 

[Kirkinsb]

Everything you are fixing, I had to do on my 2003 with 20K. I also did 3.55 gears and a Roe Racing SCT Tune. All told, I put about 5k over a year's time getting it back to tip-top running condition. It is my daily driver now. Runs perfect!

 

[sidwin]

guys thanks for all the helpful information.

my favorite part is the build!!

just weird that a car with such low miles has these issues.

top priority is the oil cooler lines. i ordered everything i need to make them today. next thing would be the headlight. man i can't believe there isn't another way. maybe it is just the bulb???

going to try to hit all the fluids for replacement this weekend.

Thanks,
Sid

 

[MoparMap]

guys thanks for all the helpful information.

my favorite part is the build!!

just weird that a car with such low miles has these issues.

top priority is the oil cooler lines. i ordered everything i need to make them today. next thing would be the headlight. man i can't believe there isn't another way. maybe it is just the bulb???

going to try to hit all the fluids for replacement this weekend.

Thanks,
Sid

Miles might not be the issue as much as age. You figure that car is over ten years old with less than 3000 miles a year on average. Sitting around is often harder on a car than lots of miles because seals dry out and maintenance is easier to forget about.

 

[Kirkinsb]

Oh ya,.....motor mounts....Your motor mounts are probably torn or ready to if they the stock originals! I did the BC Racing Coilovers and have been happy with them. Guys like to "hate" on BC, but for me and my daily driving, they were worlds better than the old OEM ones!

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

Age is the issue, oil pan gasket leaks are common, and again age is usually the answer. Unfortunately he oil lines are also a common issue, and you need to replace they are not a truly fixable piece. Would have recommended you get Pirellis or the Michelin Super Sports from PartsRack or TireRack , as both are far superior to the Nittos. Good luck getting stuff handled and don't hesitate to call Mark Jorgensen a Woodhouse Motorsports Division ( on Facebook too ) for advice....1-800-889-1893 . He is out till Monday , but can definitely assist you.

 

[thebigbad]

Hi Everyone,
First post, but I’ve been lurking since I bought my 2004 Viper back in late November. Like the OP, my car had low miles, only 20k when I bought it. I was blinded by my lust for the car and the thought that low miles must mean good condition. Well, I was wrong. As a few have pointed out, it is the age as well that determines the condition. Also, looking over the CarFax report for the car, I am the third or fourth owner and the car had spent the majority of its life so far in Florida. She has sand in every nook and cranny, and it appears she was sitting outside and baking in the sun a lot. The weather stripping and molding is hard and brittle, with a lot of it chipping and breaking and falling off. The black exterior paint is in pretty bad shape due to sun and sand, and no miracle wax or buffing is going to make it look close to new again. Also, the headlights are badly scratched and hazy, probably again due to sand and not being taken care of. The stock chrome wheels are in bad shape, too. No curb rash, but the finish is badly chipped and has hazed.

I took inventory of all my issues and made a list. I’ve been slowly working my way through it, but as anyone who has a Viper knows, everything is expensive. So far, I’ve replaced the oil cooler lines and oil, and working on the other fluids. Four-wheel alignment and replaced two front tires (fronts were ten years old). The windshield wipers didn’t have any rubber on them, so they needed replacing pronto, and that was my first introduction to how expensive a small part can be for these cars. I was shocked. I’ve also replaced the center console cover, as whoever had it before me must have wore a huge watch or bracelet that scratched it to pieces. The taillights and backup/turn signal lights have issues as well. After washing the car for the first time they had water in them and would not dry out. I guess sitting in the sun and the seal breaking down has allowed water in. The plastic trim around the taillights has chipped off and looks like crap, so the whole assembly needs replacing I guess. I can’t figure out how to just separate the lens from the housing to replace only the housing. This weekend I replaced the backup/turn signal assemblies. If anyone has done this before, then you know what a joy it was. And even though one of my first purchases was every shop and service manual I could find, there was no explanation on how to do this. I just had to figure it out.

Finding someone to service the Viper in my area, or even the metro Atlanta area where I live, has been a big challenge as well. I’ve been taking it to one dealer that appears to be the only one around that still even has a Viper tech and sells Vipers. I haven’t been totally happy with them, so I wish I had better options. Finding parts is always an adventure, but I’ve been lucky to find a couple sources online that so far have been decent on price and service.

My list goes on, but I think I’ve rambled on enough. I apologize for the length of this post. And I hope I haven’t hijacked the thread. I just wanted to give my experience so far with my car to the OP. Milage on the car is just one aspect. Age and how the car was treated and maintained are just as important. I wish I had known that, and what the cost of “restoring” a 12 year old Viper was going to be, before I bought mine. I still think I love the car, and hope to have it out on the road as soon as time and weather allows. I’ve put less than 400 miles on her so far, so looking forward to driving more, because when I’m behind the wheel all the issues disappear.
Anthony

 

[ViperJeff]

Outstanding first post

Welcome to the Viper Club

 

[sidwin]

Outstanding first post

Welcome to the Viper Club

i've been having a blast... so far i've done the following:

put new rear tires on
replaced trunk shocks
replaced key fob
replaced hid ballast. i have the part number you can cross reference to get one.. $140 on ebay vs $235 new
replaced ps lines and all fluid.
reset abs light now i just have bad abs bulb.
replaced both down stream o2 sensors. no more CEL YEAH!!!
replaced suspension with BC Racing and sway bar endlinks in the rear with moog. They have serious Quality Control issues.
put new rear tires on
getting front and rear bumpers painted this week.

What i have left to do is plugs/wires/valve cover gaskets. 2 tone vinyl and troubleshoot subwoofer. other than that the car is almost ready to go.

That's a lot of work in 10 days of ownership

Thanks,
Sid

 

[ViperJeff]

Damn....... You've been busy!!!!!

 

[Morketh]

i've been having a blast... so far i've done the following:

put new rear tires on
replaced trunk shocks
replaced key fob
replaced hid ballast. i have the part number you can cross reference to get one.. $140 on ebay vs $235 new
replaced ps lines and all fluid.
reset abs light now i just have bad abs bulb.
replaced both down stream o2 sensors. no more CEL YEAH!!!
replaced suspension with BC Racing and sway bar endlinks in the rear with moog. They have serious Quality Control issues.
put new rear tires on
getting front and rear bumpers painted this week.

What i have left to do is plugs/wires/valve cover gaskets. 2 tone vinyl and troubleshoot subwoofer. other than that the car is almost ready to go.

That's a lot of work in 10 days of ownership

Thanks,
Sid

why did you replace the key fob? Was it not working at all? My key fob is nothing like any other key fob I've ever had and I don't know if it is normal or actually needs to be replaced.
I have to be like 2 feet from the car to unlock the door and sometimes i have to press the door handle in and then unlock with key fob before it will unlock it, seems weird.

 

[MoparMap]

I assume you've tried replacing the battery? If so I wonder if you have a bad antenna on the car or something. Not sure how easy that would be to track down though.

 

[sidwin]

why did you replace the key fob? Was it not working at all? My key fob is nothing like any other key fob I've ever had and I don't know if it is normal or actually needs to be replaced.
I have to be like 2 feet from the car to unlock the door and sometimes i have to press the door handle in and then unlock with key fob before it will unlock it, seems weird.

the dog ate the original fob. one off of ebay was cheap. button sticks a little bit but worth the $25.

 

[MoparMap]

the dog ate the original fob. one off of ebay was cheap. button sticks a little bit but worth the $25.

Haven't you seen the new Gone in 60 Seconds? You just feed the dog laxative and take it for a walk