viperdrummer
Enthusiast
Just came out of a C6 and into an SRT Comm Ed. from Woodhouse. I have seen various comparisons, but frankly there is little to compare. They are way different cars. I had a C5 and the C6 was light yrs beyond the C5. I had a 95 RT10 and have an 00 GTS .The SRT is light yrs above the RT, and less so above the GTS. My very initial impressions of the SRT are as follows:
1. It has the superior fit and finish of my other Vipers. The paint is extraordinary. Vettes have serious orange peel issues.
2.I do not find the SRT sigificantly more "civilized" than the GTS. It is fairly rough and still darty, but nothing like the amusement park rides of the old RT days. Vipers remain a bull in a china shop, I don't care what anyone says, but that is fine . It feels the way a race car is supposed to without a million comfort features. My C6 drove softer than my Cadillac did. My Vipers drive more like Nextel Cup cars (which I have driven) and that's a good thing.
3.Brakes are much better than anything I have driven.(if you like slowing down)
4.Clutch is great on SRT. The C6 was very snappy and a real pain.
5.You don't have to put the SRT into reverse when shutting down. If you don't do this with the Vette, the battery runs down--very weird.
6.Believe it or not, the SRT stereo is better than the "high end" Bose on the Vette which is awful.6 CD changer is also better than the 5 on the C6.
7.The stock polished wheels on the SRT are so much nicer than the polished option I paid $1200 on for the Vette . The Vette wheels are milky and ********** many buyers.I am told they will go with chrome in 06.
8.The interior of the Vette was the best ever for Vettes, and the color combos are better than what Dodge offers. I had a blue Vette with cashmere interior and nothing Viper offers to me looks as nice. The Vette allows for 2 golf bags, but I digress since that is not but so important when looking at sports cars.
9.Gawk factor--THIS IS VERY INTERESTING--I have read for some time about the decreased gawk factor in the SRT. In the interest of penance, I must admit I was one of the "it looks like a Honda S2000 " crowd. In 3 short days of ownership I have been amazed at the attention which seems on a par with my GTS. I had one of the first C6s in town way back in the Fall of 04, and I can count on one hand the number of comments/thumbs up I got in 10 months/ I have had more in 3 days with the SRT. Of course the stripes help.
10. Best benefit-Viper techs. As I said before, when the Vette goes in it's a crap shoot. I can get the 40 yr old guy who knows Vettes or the 17 yr old who just did the Lumina oil change.
Do I miss the C6--yes for the following:
1. HUD-heads op display is addictive . Gives great easy to read info including fun stuff like Gs.
2.True keyless- The Vette reads your key fob and you don't need to reach for a key--just hit the button. Great for lazy people like me.
3. Low key effect--I never worried about parking the Vette at Best Buy etc. I won't do this with the Vipers, and frankly for this and other reasons the Vette is a much better daily driver. But then again so is my wife's Honda Odyessey.
Do I wish I had kept the Vette? Hell no! Can't put a price on a good time, and Viper is a clear example.
1. It has the superior fit and finish of my other Vipers. The paint is extraordinary. Vettes have serious orange peel issues.
2.I do not find the SRT sigificantly more "civilized" than the GTS. It is fairly rough and still darty, but nothing like the amusement park rides of the old RT days. Vipers remain a bull in a china shop, I don't care what anyone says, but that is fine . It feels the way a race car is supposed to without a million comfort features. My C6 drove softer than my Cadillac did. My Vipers drive more like Nextel Cup cars (which I have driven) and that's a good thing.
3.Brakes are much better than anything I have driven.(if you like slowing down)
4.Clutch is great on SRT. The C6 was very snappy and a real pain.
5.You don't have to put the SRT into reverse when shutting down. If you don't do this with the Vette, the battery runs down--very weird.
6.Believe it or not, the SRT stereo is better than the "high end" Bose on the Vette which is awful.6 CD changer is also better than the 5 on the C6.
7.The stock polished wheels on the SRT are so much nicer than the polished option I paid $1200 on for the Vette . The Vette wheels are milky and ********** many buyers.I am told they will go with chrome in 06.
8.The interior of the Vette was the best ever for Vettes, and the color combos are better than what Dodge offers. I had a blue Vette with cashmere interior and nothing Viper offers to me looks as nice. The Vette allows for 2 golf bags, but I digress since that is not but so important when looking at sports cars.
9.Gawk factor--THIS IS VERY INTERESTING--I have read for some time about the decreased gawk factor in the SRT. In the interest of penance, I must admit I was one of the "it looks like a Honda S2000 " crowd. In 3 short days of ownership I have been amazed at the attention which seems on a par with my GTS. I had one of the first C6s in town way back in the Fall of 04, and I can count on one hand the number of comments/thumbs up I got in 10 months/ I have had more in 3 days with the SRT. Of course the stripes help.
10. Best benefit-Viper techs. As I said before, when the Vette goes in it's a crap shoot. I can get the 40 yr old guy who knows Vettes or the 17 yr old who just did the Lumina oil change.
Do I miss the C6--yes for the following:
1. HUD-heads op display is addictive . Gives great easy to read info including fun stuff like Gs.
2.True keyless- The Vette reads your key fob and you don't need to reach for a key--just hit the button. Great for lazy people like me.
3. Low key effect--I never worried about parking the Vette at Best Buy etc. I won't do this with the Vipers, and frankly for this and other reasons the Vette is a much better daily driver. But then again so is my wife's Honda Odyessey.
Do I wish I had kept the Vette? Hell no! Can't put a price on a good time, and Viper is a clear example.
And as a fellow Pemberton guy I'm sure he told you to hook up with the VCA. Check the regions info on the front page for our events here in Virginia Maryland and Delaware and DC. PM me or Ron Hickey our Pres if your membership goes through slowly, an officer can sometimes speed it up. I'ts not the dealers fault or Dodge or the agency who manages the VCA, sometimes the memberships are "bunched" by the company that forwards them, or so I am told. Dodge has bought you your first year, so just show up at the next event, you don't have to wait for the paperwork.
