Somebody explain this "unrefined" bad rap that the Viper has

[Alexarz]

Before I bought a Viper, I had the impression that it was a beautiful car but built like junk. "Crude, unrefined, raw, primitive" were all used to describe the car in almost every magazine that wrote about it. I also noticed that many owners here describe them in such a way. Before I bought my new '06 in Dec '06, I was intent on buying a Z06. However, when I checked out both cars, it was the Viper that seemed to be of much higher quality and the corvette was lifeless by comparison. Not that it looked like junk but the interior was especially lacking compared to the Gen 3 Viper. Before I bought the GTS, I expected the interior to be really crappy but although it is not fancy by any means, it is not crappy, either. The fit of the panels is very good and it is a very comfortable car. One of the Road & Track magazines of the day went as far as to say that the seating position places the driver at an angle as though he is half way looking out the side window. *** were they talking about?

Yesterday, I took the '06 out for a ride and when I sat in it, I thought to myself, "damn, this is a nice interior". The exterior is very nice quality as well, with an excellent paint job and fit and finish. Now, don't tell me about the euro cars and so forth. They don't do a thing for me and I find them effeminate, both in their exterior design as well as their interior design with the exception of the Murcielago.

Can anybody explain why the Viper has such a god awful rap as being built like a primitive pile of junk that happens to be fast?

 

[2MANYTOYS]

Before I bought a Viper, I had the impression that it was a beautiful car but built like junk. "Crude, unrefined, raw, primitive" were all used to describe the car in almost every magazine that wrote about it. I also noticed that many owners here describe them in such a way. Before I bought my new '06 in Dec '06, I was intent on buying a Z06. However, when I checked out both cars, it was the Viper that seemed to be of much higher quality and the corvette was lifeless by comparison. Not that it looked like junk but the interior was especially lacking compared to the Gen 3 Viper. Before I bought the GTS, I expected the interior to be really crappy but although it is not fancy by any means, it is not crappy, either. The fit of the panels is very good and it is a very comfortable car. One of the Road & Track magazines of the day went as far as to say that the seating position places the driver at an angle as though he is half way looking out the side window. *** were they talking about?

Yesterday, I took the '06 out for a ride and when I sat in it, I thought to myself, "damn, this is a nice interior". The exterior is very nice quality as well, with an excellent paint job and fit and finish. Now, don't tell me about the euro cars and so forth. They don't do a thing for me and I find them effeminate, both in their exterior design as well as their interior design with the exception of the Murcielago.

Can anybody explain why the Viper has such a god awful rap as being built like a primitive pile of junk that happens to be fast?

I've never understood it myself. I have always thought my viper was as comfortable and as nice or nicer than the two Z06's I've owned.

 

[Canyon707]

Let me explain this it's rather simple. They don't own one.

 

[FLATOUT]

I love my Viper, best car I have ever owned, but I would be kidding myself if said that the interior was on par with anything from BMW, Benz, Ferrari, or Lambo.

I don't expect it to be though it's a different kind of car, and price bracket. It certainly wouldn't hurt to see some of the plastic wrapped in leather thats all I am saying

But at the end of the day it's a Viper and Viper has never been about leather, suede, or fake carbon dress up parts. You get incredible exterior style, and ton of power, and a car that snaps heads where ever it goes. I can live with the plastic bits without complaint but the interior on the Vette and Viper are not at the top of my list of favorites.

Just my opinion.

Andy

 

[Russ M]

Same ignorant people that say Vipers cant handle.

Be nice and wave to them every time you lap them.

 

[JonB]

.....Can anybody explain why the Viper has such a god awful rap as being built like a primitive pile of junk that happens to be fast?......

The evil that men do lives after them......the good is buried with their bones.

If you had a primitive 92-93-94 era Gen 1, with the styrofoam dash and rattly, heavy-handed suspension and no A/C and no windows, you might feel differently. But a Gen -1 owner might say "Ain't it GREAT ?!? " The mag-heads will likely not own a Viper....{Automobile was an exception} and bashing is more entertaining. They cannot get the 'cartoonish' Gen 1 -2 out of their 'first-drive' editing pits.

[[[There are still folks here that think K+N filters dont fit Gen 1, due to a complaint thread in 1997! Ditto for our SRT HF cats, with 5 problems of 280 pairs!.......... Complaining and scouring up dirt is just more fun.......]]]

 

[AbsolutHank]

Look...I am in freaking love with my Viper. However, to say the interior is amazing is a bit of a stretch. As far as I'm concerned, the interior is the least important part of the car, and the amount of design and materials used reflect that...and thats perfectly fine!

As far as the car being raw, it is raw...compared to the SL600 the journalists just hopped out of. Again, like stated earlier, if they actually drove and lived with one for a week, they'd feel much differently.

 

[georgethedog]

The only thing that matters is if the owner likes the car. Nothing else matters. Heck, I wish I still had my 1988 Chrysler Conquest TSi (otherwise known as the Mistubishi Starion) or get my hands on a mint condition one now. That car was way ahead of its time in looks, power, handling, comfort and gadgets. It had to be one of the most underrated cars of all-time. I used to beat the crap out of about anything on the autocrosses with that car.

I also drove a Vette tonight (C6 convertible) and thought that it was a great car. Fit and finish was real good, and it has a lot of fun gadgets the Viper does not. It is comparable in speed to the Gen 1 I used to have, but it handles better and is much more comfortable. It was also better than my Gen 2 in those areas except the Gen 2 would kill it in a race. So, to wrap up... Drive what makes you happy whether it's a Viper, Vette, or even an old Conquest TSi...

 

[jdeft1]

The early vipers are very unrefined cars... basic and brutal. The legend lives on!!!

 

[georgethedog]

The early vipers are very unrefined cars... basic and brutal. The legend lives on!!!

Well put.

 

[adg44]

Well, it is 'unrefined' compared to other sports cars at the same $100k price range. The interior is relatively cheap, there are no electrical goodies like traction control, auto climate control, heated seats, etc. The engine sill has a cable throttle rather than drive-by-wire, and the power delivery is rather brutal. Oh, and if you get out of the car on a hot day it may burn your skin if you're wearing shorts.

But, it's a blast to drive and it looks amazing. Compare it to a Porsche or something and you'll see a total difference.

- Anthony

 

[Nine Ball]

I feel that the interior is what most people are talking about when saying unrefined. The Viper interior is all-business, which is what we owners want. To the casual onlooker though, all they see is barren open areas with a 2003 Dodge Ram radio, a center console made of vinyl wrapped cardboard (it is, lol) and simple door panels. It isn't flashy by any means. I dig it though. I feel the C6 Corvette interior is sucky too, but it is a little more styled and electronic-gizmo filled by comparison.

Other than that, I think the Viper body is far more ****.

 

[slysnake]

The legend lives on!!!

Exactly! Basicly these guys never had an original thought in their heads. They just take some old review and rehash it.

 

[Chrissss]

As others have said, I too love my Viper. The interior however is not exactly "amazing". It's a bit dated and the quality of materials are not what I would expect in a 90k car. The fit leaves a little to be desired. With that being said, the Viper is an icon of American muscle and I love mine and will always have one. I just understand its limitations.

 

[oufan2929]

As others have said, I too love my Viper. The interior however is not exactly "amazing". It's bit dated and the quality of materials are not what I would expect in a 90k car. The fit leaves a little to be desired. With that being said, the Viper is an icon of American muscle and I love mine and will always have one. I just understand its limitations.

There's nothing better than an Italian's interior imo. But there's no other car I can think of that can take a beating over and over again like a viper. That's why I got out of the vette game and into the vipers. And I was in a parking lot w/a bunch of rustangs and vettes and a few other odds and ends and the only car anyone saw was mine. That also makes it fun for me...a lotta bang for the buck!

 

[ACRsnake]

I love my viper , its a monster of a car.

Its a very sinister car , my wife tells me she feels tense when riding in it .

 

[RTTTTed]

I love my viper , its a monster of a car.

Its a very sinister car , my wife tells me she feels tense when riding in it .

Ditto for my wife. 'Course we did head-on a semi with my 98 GTS. Built so safely we didn't even get a bruise although the Tractor trailer driver did break his wrist when we tore his tire and springs off his truck. Amazingly built car that can head-on a Semi and win(?).

As far as cardboard console ... 9ball ... you mean they changed from vinyl wrapped high tech foam shaped console (over steel) in the Gen 2 to cardboard in the Gen 3?

Ted

 

[Alexarz]

Italian cars are all about flash. I would not want a leather dash like a Murci has. Sure, it looks nice but it adds weight and hasn't anything to do with performance.

I might be in the minority but I love the Viper interiors. The Gen 3,4 interior has great ergos for me and the GTS is very comfortable as well. As far as the vette gizmos go, each one is merely one more potential problem and we all know that vettes have always had reliability issues.

Since when did simplicity mean "crude" or "unrefined"? One of the aspects that I like most about the Viper is its simplicity. The fact that it can kick the hell out of any other production car makes it all the more rewarding and confirms that the philosophy behind the car is the right one.

 

[SlateEd]

The interior is comfortable enough for a passenger to be fine while I'm grinning from ear to ear - that's enough for me !
As for comparisons, a friend of mine has a Lexus SC 430 with the power convertible top that looks like something out of a transformers movie when he raises/lowers it.. very cool looking and I'm sure a magazine writer would love it. But if we get unexpected rain, I can jump out of the Viper, pull the trunk, pull the top, and we're covered in 7 seconds... all he can do is push the button and wait, and wait, and wait. So like everything else on the Viper, the "primitive" manual top is functional and fast.

 

[FastZilla]

I think the bad wrap stems from the very beginning 1992 where Dodge failed to install the latest and greatest device to ever adorn the interior of an automobile.....the cup holder. Since those early days Dodge has installed a dual purpose device - the cup holder/ash tray holder. I think until Dodge puts the minimum allotment of cup holders (1 per occupant) the Viper will never transgress beyond "crude", "raw", "unrefined" etc.

 

[ViperGeorge]

I've driven my Vipers a fair amount including driving my 03 from Las Vegas VOI to Boston, MA with my wife. Car was very comfortable, no problems. And it always got way more attention than any Porsche, Vette, or anything else I encountered along the way. By the way it got 27 MPG on the highway.

See that's the problem with a Vette or a Porsche. You could spend over $130K for a twin turbo 997 and folks would say "nice 911". They wouldn't know it was something special. Ditto for a ZR1 - "nice Vette". You drive up in a Viper and everyone is going "wow, cool, I want one!" They know its something special and you know they never, never are critical of the interior. What they want is to see the engine, to know how fast it is, to go "holy crap, look at those rear tires".

I had an Aston Martin 2003 DB7 GT once. Simply a beautiful car with a fabulous interior. People knew that it was something special too when they saw it. Paid $160K for that car and sold it 3 years later to get a second Viper. Got less than 50% of what I paid for it. Too high mileage people said. 16K miles in three years so now I've put about that same mileage on my 06 Viper in half the time and its worth way more than 50% of what I paid for it.

So I'm happy driving a Viper that doesn't have an interior as nice as an Aston, or a Ferrari, or a Lambo because I paid half as much and it will be worth something when I want to trade it on my next Viper.

 

[V10SpeedLuvr]

I cannot think of a single time a passenger said "your interior *****". One comment I do hear from at least 50% of 1st time passengers is "its a lot more comfortable than I expected".

 

[Brake Dust]

All the trim and extra interior moldings padding sound defining ect ect are to mask the defects.
Do you really think that wood grain, strips of plastic chrome, coffee cup holders make a sport
or performance car faster. If I what to look at that crap I will open the children's toy box.

Vipers are no nonsense cars. Don't over rev BANG the next gear if you have the fill in the gaps.

 

[georgethedog]

Just an interesting observation from this and other similar threads... It seems to be very important to many (not all) Viper owners that they please other people and that they are the center of attention. Making up for shortfalls in other areas???

By the way, I will be buying another Viper someday because I like the rush I get from driving it... The attention I got was usually embarrasing for me. I did not relish that part that much. But, I have to wait until prices go back up because thats how I always buy everything (including stocks) buy high... sell low...

 

[Darbgnik]

I may be delusional, but I see it the other way. I've never thought of the Gen 3 interior as cheap feeling. Everything feels very solid, without any rattles. I do think that there is just too much black plastic in the regular interior. Anyone who thinks the Vette has a nicer interior just likes colors. Touch half of the plastic panels in a new Vette and they move in and squeak. I am not bashing the Vette, just a simple observation on what I perceive as quality.

The dash pad in the Viper is far from luxury leather, but it is at least soft-touch wrapped. Far better than a lot of hard plastic dashes found in cars in 2003. American cars as a whole have come a long way in the interior department in the last few years, but in 2003 when the Gen 3 came out the dash was a good one. Now all the bezels also being black, that seems a bit much to most people. Most cars have plastic bezels, but seems that if they have a different color, or if they're painted, they're perceived as higher quality.

I also feel the metal door pulls are a nice touch.

JMHO

 

[eucharistos]

....By the way, I will be buying another Viper someday

that was my prediction all along gtd

....But, I have to wait until prices go back up because thats how I always buy everything (including stocks) buy high... sell low...

sounds familiar


peace

 

[Newport Viper]

To me the gen3 seats are lackin compared to gen1. I miss my pump up lumbar bladder! I have been in Europe all summer and I am so ready to drive it again! Enough of these 200mph trains!

 

[JonB]

I cannot think of a single time a passenger said "your interior *****". One comment I do hear from at least 50% of 1st time passengers is "its a lot more comfortable than I expected".

\

Good Point!

I have taken over 1600 pace car riders since 1993..... and not ONE of them ever mentioned my interior!!! I have had 99% big-smiley-wide grins.... and ONE puked......but was smiling at the time.

It must be about the handling and performance?

 

[gofastr]

I like it unrefined, raw, and crude,

 

[NorthernSnake]

I know exactly what your saying (and i have a GTS). and i think you were talking about the whole car, not just the interior.

I too read all sorts of reviews describing the Viper as (unliveable, rough, raw, crazy , out of control, etc) and dont find them to be anything like that. No the build quality is German...lol but its not as bad as some make it seem. I like the interior of my GTS a lot...i actually prefer it to the Gen 3...and how anyone reviewing the GTS back in the day could prefer the interior of a 2002 C5Z06 to a GTS is beyond me. Plus the ride is well dampened, the power very controlable (for anyone who doesnt suffer from premature ***********), the seats are comfy, it has great visability and once you add exhaust it sounds good/illiminates any trace of cockpit heat some complain about.

Its a great car that also happens to provide more smiles per mile that just about anything else i can think of.