New viper owner, with pics

[black pearl]

what up, heres my story. ive had a 2002 Camaro SS that i slowly built into a turbo car. it took years to do and i finally pretty much finished it. but now i will be starting medical school next year and i wont have time to keep working on it all the time. so i figured instead of buying a new clutch, trans, and engine later on i could jsut put the money towards a viper which i wont have to work on and will do everything i need it to. (look cool be cool etc.) plus it has always been my favorite car.

so after about 6 months of searching i finally found one. i wanted a 98-99 for the forged motor but i couldnt find one that was also 2 other things: in an accident and much cheaper, low miles for lots of nitrous.

but i finally found this monster. a 2001 with 10,300 miles AND HRE 540s

i love the car, the seating position, driving position, handling butttt i think the tires are dryrotting and no good because the tires screetch like crazy with every turn. i did a make-shift toe alignment in my garage, but it didnt fix it. so after i get new front tires it will be smooth sailing.

(yes i know the hood doesnt line up. im gonna try and fix it over some weekends)

ALSO I WOULD LIKE TO GET RID OF THESE 19" RIMS, I WANT 18s SO I CAN RUN RADIALS. OR WOULD TRADE JUST THE REARS FOR 18" HRE 540S. LET ME KNOW IF YOU HAVE SOME

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THE OLD CAR

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[01 RT SNAKE]

Nice looking ride there! Funny, I also went from a 2000 Camaro SS to a 2001 Viper....

Mike
2001 RT/10

 

[bluesrt]

put some bigger front tires on that car

 

[black pearl]

put some bigger front tires on that car

which car? the viper has 275/30/19

 

[WILDASP]

i love the car, the seating position, driving position, handling butttt i think the tires are dryrotting and no good because the tires screetch like crazy with every turn. i did a make-shift toe alignment in my garage, but it didnt fix it. so after i get new front tires it will be smooth sailing.

Welcome! Now, given what you said about the tires, CHANGE ALL FOUR OF THEM, NOW! And be very careful until you do; old and/or mismatched tires on a Viper are a disaster waiting to happen!. You can use the appropriate sizes for your rims, but make sure all four tires are the same brand and type. Tires are critical on a Viper.

Also, even though you are used to big power, be careful with sudden inputs, especially with the throttle. Be extra careful in cooler temps or on cold tires. Get too adventurous too quickly with your right foot in those circumstances on the street, and a Viper can swap ends faster than you can blink; many before you have learned this the hard way, so believe it.

There are a lot of Gen II Viper drivers here who will be happy to answer any questions you have, or that may come up. Welcome to the Viper Nation; be safe, and enjoy!

 

[RobZilla]

I like the new car better than the old.

 

[black pearl]

Welcome! Now, given what you said about the tires, CHANGE ALL FOUR OF THEM, NOW! And be very careful until you do; old and/or mismatched tires on a Viper are a disaster waiting to happen!. You can use the appropriate sizes for your rims, but make sure all four tires are the same brand and type. Tires are critical on a Viper.

Also, even though you are used to big power, be careful with sudden inputs, especially with the throttle. Be extra careful in cooler temps or on cold tires. Get too adventurous too quickly with your right foot in those circumstances on the street, and a Viper can swap ends faster than you can blink; many before you have learned this the hard way, so believe it.

There are a lot of Gen II Viper drivers here who will be happy to answer any questions you have, or that may come up. Welcome to the Viper Nation; be safe, and enjoy!

thanks for the tips. hows driving these cars with a street tire/drag radial mix? i plan to run street tires on the front and ride around with hoosier or MT on the back. (this isnt a daily, mostly for racing) im used to traction with my 28" drags on my camaro and i want that traction back!

 

[2001-V10 Power Nut]

very, very, very nice, good choice

 

[WILDASP]

thanks for the tips. hows driving these cars with a street tire/drag radial mix? i plan to run street tires on the front and ride around with hoosier or MT on the back. (this isnt a daily, mostly for racing) im used to traction with my 28" drags on my camaro and i want that traction back!

You should be OK with the DRs, provided (1) you watch it if you do get caught in the wet, and (1) you don't do any adventurous cornering (not a good idea on the street anyway). You've driven on them before, so you know the drill about being careful on them, especially in low-traction conditions. Just be aware that with a shorter wheelbase than you're used to, if it does got loose, it will come around a lot quicker. If this is going to be primarily a drag racer, you'll likely need/want DRs to get it to hook up, especially if you add power (which it sounds like you plan to do). I'd change those old rears when you change the fronts, either way, as it sounds like they are old and hard, and that IS very dangerous in a Viper.

I'd suggest you talk to some of the drag racers here on what to do/not do with forced induction setups/nitrous with that engine. I run NA myself, but I'm more of a road course/autocross type, which is a different game entirely.

 

[VIPER BAZ UK]

Good choice ............
Wheels look great... Have two sets..

 

[KNG SNKE]

Congrats on purchasing the greatest color ever made for the viper. Please join me and the other 47 members of the Yellow Fever social group. Your invite has been sent.

 

[JonB]

Congrats on the BumbleBee aquisition. You wont likley miss the Camaro, despite fond memories.

I agree 100% with WILDASP your fellow Bumble-Bee'er.

The Viper can dramatically out-corner the cars you are trained on and used to. If you add sticky rear drag tires (which corner like CRAPP) to understeering old (or new) fronts, you are gonna be sending a future email from your cell phone in a ditch somewhere. Or Worse.

Traction-Traction-Traction...........whether Cornering, stopping, or accelerating. Dont sacrifice Cornering for launch. Matched lateral Gs and decleration traction is critical. Or the ditch awaits.

http://forums.viperclub.org/general-viper-discussion/630445-keeping-new-viper-owners-safe-how.html

 

[KNG SNKE]

The man speaks from wisdom, and I agree from experience . Good "Fresh" tires are a must.!!

Congrats on the BumbleBee aquisition. You wont likley miss the Camaro, despite fond memories.

I agree 100% with WILDASP your fellow Bumble-Bee'er.

The Viper can dramatically out-corner the cars you are trained on and used to. If you add sticky rear drag tires (which corner like CRAPP) to understeering old (or new) fronts, you are gonna be sending a future email from your cell phone in a ditch somewhere.

Traction-Traction-Traction...........whether turning, stopping, or accelerating. Dont sacrifice turning for launch. Or the ditch awaits.

http://forums.viperclub.org/general-viper-discussion/630445-keeping-new-viper-owners-safe-how.html

 

[WILDASP]

Jon,
I gathered from his comments that he intended to use the car primarily for drag racing, with only limited street use. Can you suggest something in a 19" rear tire (with a matching 18' front), that would give him the traction he's looking for at the strip and a bigger safety margin on the street? Otherwise, he's going to need to be EXTREMELY careful with DR's on the street, (even if, as he says, it's not a daily driver.) You know better than I do what the drag racers in Vipers are doing as to tires.

 

[vipzilla]

a viper and a yellow one damm you made out big congrats!!

 

[black pearl]

Jon,
I gathered from his comments that he intended to use the car primarily for drag racing, with only limited street use. Can you suggest something in a 19" rear tire (with a matching 18' front), that would give him the traction he's looking for at the strip and a bigger safety margin on the street? Otherwise, he's going to need to be EXTREMELY careful with DR's on the street, (even if, as he says, it's not a daily driver.) You know better than I do what the drag racers in Vipers are doing as to tires.

the car is 19" all around and the only tire i can find trackable is the hoosier A6 which is huge bucks for a tire that wont last 3000 miles. thast why i want to trade for some 18s out back, or 18s all around.

and im very used to driving with radials. my camaro as u can see has 165s (3.5" rim) up front and radials in the back and makes about 600 wheel. with no sway bar up front and a antiroll bar out back, haha

 

[black pearl]

Congrats on purchasing the greatest color ever made for the viper. Please join me and the other 47 members of the Yellow Fever social group. Your invite has been sent.

thanks for the invite. i wasnt sure about the color at first but now its the only one i would ever want!

 

[RTTTTed]

PS2s have nearly double the tracion of the original PS1s and run-craps (19"ZP Michellins) even caused me to head on a Semi. PS2s will amaze you with traction. I now have 20,000miles on my PS2s. These new Michelins are excellent in the rain as well.

Camaro? You don't like road racing because a Camaro is better for parking at a road course. Viper on a road course should change your mind about drag racing. I'm an old drag racer and you'll find that once you supercharge or Nitrous your car it needs SFI approved everything and a roll bar as well as a huge pile of money for rules that should only be needed for your Camaro. Viper doesn't need all that safety junk as it's made to go fast and all the parts are premium parts - that's why it's expensive. You can go road racing and can do it without all the junk SFI parts that aren't any better than stock Dodge parts anyway. I'm an old drag racer myself and normally ran a 10-12 sec DD.

Once you figure that you can handle the GTS, I recommend you go with 14" lightweight brakes on the front of your car as a hug improvment in stopping distance. Supercharger is the best way to go fast. Nearly all the 10 sec cars on this site are forced Induction like mine.

Congrats for moving up. It doesn't get any better than this.

Ted

 

[black pearl]

PS2s have nearly double the tracion of the original PS1s and run-craps (19"ZP Michellins) even caused me to head on a Semi. PS2s will amaze you with traction. I now have 20,000miles on my PS2s. These new Michelins are excellent in the rain as well.

Camaro? You don't like road racing because a Camaro is better for parking at a road course. Viper on a road course should change your mind about drag racing. I'm an old drag racer and you'll find that once you supercharge or Nitrous your car it needs SFI approved everything and a roll bar as well as a huge pile of money for rules that should only be needed for your Camaro. Viper doesn't need all that safety junk as it's made to go fast and all the parts are premium parts - that's why it's expensive. You can go road racing and can do it without all the junk SFI parts that aren't any better than stock Dodge parts anyway. I'm an old drag racer myself and normally ran a 10-12 sec DD.

Once you figure that you can handle the GTS, I recommend you go with 14" lightweight brakes on the front of your car as a hug improvment in stopping distance. Supercharger is the best way to go fast. Nearly all the 10 sec cars on this site are forced Induction like mine.

Congrats for moving up. It doesn't get any better than this.

Ted

ya im looking foward to hitting up the road course with this monster

 

[RTTTTed]

If you've got a stock Viper it'll probably go 12s with ps2s. Gen 2s are historically around 415rwhp, but 430rwtq or so. Stock the PS2s are designed for the 550rwhp Gen 4s and should be plenty for your stocker.

Mostly the PS2s are probably the safest tires you can run on a street viper.

JonB is the man for tires and a site sponsor. Since Michelin calls JonB and asks his opinion on their tires I'd say that you need to talk to Jon for the best advice. I did. He also worked out to be the cheapest by far.

Ted

 

[plumcrazy]

PS2's work fine on my car at 800rwhp + but i dont "drag" race it.

 

[GBS]

Great color combo! I like the wheels.

 

[JonB]

Pearl obviously knows how to drag 1/4 miles.......those slicks-skinnies on the Camaro would scare me on the street drive to the strip. My advice is pointed specifically on equipping a street or track car with tires intended for drag racing. They are mutually-exclusive and unsafe when it comes to cornering on the street. And we all know of dozens and dozens of 'newbee' stories -including me in '93- that ASSUmed they were talented drivers right up to the moment they were sliding sideways, ditch-bound..... [I missed the ditch and went back to school]

His quest to swap 19 for 18 is right-minded.....the smaller the wheel, the faster the car. (F1 runs 14") And 18" gives a TON of cheaper-priced sticky tires...... he could even go 17" on OE G2 brakes....and there are some 16" setups too.... P.S. Your HALF-SHAFTS are a WEAK LINK...

 

[Mopar Boy]

First, Welcome and nice color choice. Yellow is the best and dont listen to what red owners say. They are Coo coo.

As for your car, do be careful. Even though you had more HP in the Camaro, the Viper will bite you in ways the camaro never could! Do be VERY careful. Best advice would be go to a driving school that knows Vipers. There have been many people on these boards that came from various other cars and wrecked their Viper as they did not know it would do what it did. Unlike most cars, Vipers dont give warning when they loose grip. Most cars (you will know this feeling from the chev) when they get to the breaking/spin out point, you will feel it getting there. Vipers are like a light switch. On and off. Thats it. Traction and ditch. Not much in between.

As for tires, I am also from drag racing background. Get a set of PS2's. You will be amazed! If you dont like them, you can always get a second drag pair for the rear.

Have fun and welcome to the Viper Nation!

 

[2001 GTS]

PS2's work great on my car with 600rwhp...but the MT ET Streets don't do too bad as well

 

[mike & juli]

Congratulations on your beautiful Bumblebee~! We also had a 2000 SS Camaro/fully loaded. THAT was an excellent drag car, STOCK...so I can only imagine what yours was like turbo'd. Remember the Viper is NOT a Camaro...YOU control every aspect of the driving experience! Enjoy~!
BTW: Private Message your VIN# to the administrators to UPGRADE you to VIPER OWNER (lee00blacksilvergts, kcobean, citysnake)...thinking of joining the VCA? Call 1-800-998-1110...join for the rest of this year PLUS next year as well~! You got great advice, which I'm sure you expected nothing less on this awesome site! WELCOME!
~juli

 

[black pearl]

Pearl obviously knows how to drag 1/4 miles.......those slicks-skinnies on the Camaro would scare me on the street drive to the strip. My advice is pointed specifically on equipping a street or track car with tires intended for drag racing. They are mutually-exclusive and unsafe when it comes to cornering on the street. And we all know of dozens and dozens of 'newbee' stories -including me in '93- that ASSUmed they were talented drivers right up to the moment they were sliding sideways, ditch-bound..... [I missed the ditch and went back to school]

His quest to swap 19 for 18 is right-minded.....the smaller the wheel, the faster the car. (F1 runs 14") And 18" gives a TON of cheaper-priced sticky tires...... he could even go 17" on OE G2 brakes....and there are some 16" setups too.... P.S. Your HALF-SHAFTS are a WEAK LINK...

ya the tire choices for 17s and 18s are ridiculous compared the prices and choices for 19s. thanks for the tip on the half shafts i wanted to know what would go first.

ya that camaro is a hell of a car to drive. no turns even slightly hard haha

also are the turning radius's in these cars really this bad???? the u-turn out side my house, my suburban can make easily and the viper comes close to the grass everytime! is it my car? or are they all like that????