Vipers Prices Gen 3

[willworkforvipers]

Hey everyone, just a random thought but it seems like Gen 3 vipers are always priced lower than they should be. Unlike corvettes they are limited number and are not broken up into models from v6 to a v8 supercharged. I paid 41k for my 2003 convertible clean title, according to the carfax it had light front pillar damage, and It was fixed by a certified dealership. I still think I paid a fair price and that viper owners should have more pride and ask more for a vehicle that is pretty rare and exotic. You don't see one driving down the road everyday. Anyway that's just my 2 cents maybe someone else has a word or two.

 

[pony23]

Be quiet!!!!!!! I'm in the market for one right now.

 

[2006red/whitecoupe]

Hey everyone, just a random thought but it seems like Gen 3 vipers are always priced lower than they should be. Unlike corvettes they are limited number and are not broken up into models from v6 to a v8 supercharged. I paid 41k for my 2003 convertible clean title, according to the carfax it had light front pillar damage, and It was fixed by a certified dealership. I still think I paid a fair price and that viper owners should have more pride and ask more for a vehicle that is pretty rare and exotic. You don't see one driving down the road everyday. Anyway that's just my 2 cents maybe someone else has a word or two.

Price is determined by supply and demand ....back in Feb of 1976 I looked at a 427 Cobra Red [427 side oiler with 2 4's].... in Scottsdale AZ ..2 owner car bought new in San Francisco and he was asking $20,000. There was no one there stepping up to the plate because market value on that vehicle had yet to reach that level.

 

[willworkforvipers]

Haha we'll I hope you find a good one, there are some nice ones for sale out there. Yea the supply for sports cars is for sure down and especially the viper but I guarantee in 20+ years they will be worth something. At least what they are now if not more. I hope they at least hold their value in the 40k range.

 

[Nine Ball]

$41K isn't bad. A 2003 Corvette in the same condition would be lucky to get half of that value. Even clean 2002-2004 Z06 Corvettes which were $50K new only cost about $19-21K now.

 

[wikkid]

Sold my 04 yesterday for 48500. Then again it was a 4300 mile car that was perfect with 7k dollars worth of exhaust and wheels. Both parties were happy. It all depends on the car. They definately hold there value more then any corvette. Sad to see it go, the next few years i will just sit back and watch the madness. C7, new Viper, there will be a ton of options in a couple years and being my final sports car buy will be all about the hunt......

 

[ScrewDrvr]

worth is determined by buyers, not sellers.

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

2003-2005 Vipers are the C4 Corvette. They will never bring in the high dollar unless never driven. Those years will be the entry level market of new buyers.

 

[1bad540]

All yrs will be entry level eventually. For tye money hard to get anything better

 

[CaptainDavid]

2003-2005 Vipers are the C4 Corvette. They will never bring in the high dollar unless never driven. Those years will be the entry level market of new buyers.

C-5 Corvette, recently sold my 08 Corvette fully loaded new car clean for low low 30's

 

[willworkforvipers]

Entry level or not they should still stay worth more than 40k over the time as long as there below 35k miles. Either way I bought mine to drive and for the amount it is the best feeling riding down the road for miles and miles not seeing another one. Unlike corvettes where you see 40 of them in 10 city blocks. The feeling of just driving one is worth every penny.

 

[Junkie]

Its only worth what someone will pay, regardless of what you think?

Personally, I know I'll catch a bunch of **** for this...but its still just an expensive Dodge. Cool cars yes, but nothing all that special about them.

Yes I've owned 2 BTW, just not big on brand loyalty and what not. I drive what I can get a deal on thats fun and puts a smile on my face, don't really care what badge is on it.

 

[ACRucrazy]

2003-2005 Vipers are the C4 Corvette.

I just passed a C4 Corvette last month for $4k.

 

[MoparMap]

Entry level or not they should still stay worth more than 40k over the time as long as there below 35k miles. Either way I bought mine to drive and for the amount it is the best feeling riding down the road for miles and miles not seeing another one. Unlike corvettes where you see 40 of them in 10 city blocks. The feeling of just driving one is worth every penny.

The miles thing always gets me. I bought mine with 43k on the clock at the beginning of the year and just ticked 55k pulling into the garage Saturday evening. I've been under the car several times and have had all sorts of panels and pieces off and you can't tell this car has the miles. The thing is hardly even that dirty compared to lots of other cars I've been under and I drive it in all conditions. It's weird having a car that doesn't leak, even after all those miles. The engine bay and pan are still shiny aluminum, no oil buildup. These things just don't wear and are made to last.

 

[agentf1]

I agree with wwfv 100%. Unfortunately I think the same thing is happening with houses in our area. With the economy being how it has been for so long people are losing confidence and pricing things too low. Luckily I am not looking to get rid of my Gen II anytime soon but if I did I would without a doubt ask top dollar for it and could care less how long it sits. Unfortunately with anything you got to have the right person that is looking for what you have.

Funny story, I was trying to sell my friends Cobra for him and had it on autotrader for many months priced anywhere from 26 and dropped down as low as 23 at one point with not much luck at all. He decides he does not want to sell it right away (long story) so instead of removing the add I bump the price up to $28999. It sold within 2 weeks of doing this for asking price. Just goes to show it is not always the price but more so the timing.

 

[MoparMap]

... Just goes to show it is not always the price but more so the timing.

This is very true. I'd be in the same boat with my car at the current time. Somone would have to offer me crazy money to get rid of it because I don't need to sell it and if I did I'd want enough to replace it with something just as fun. Unfortunately (for some people at least), they just have to get rid of their cars and price them to sell because of whatever financial situation they might be in. It ***** to be on the selling end if that happens to you, but it can make for a good deal for the guy on the other side.

 

[ViperSmith]

The miles thing always gets me. I bought mine with 43k on the clock at the beginning of the year and just ticked 55k pulling into the garage Saturday evening. I've been under the car several times and have had all sorts of panels and pieces off and you can't tell this car has the miles. The thing is hardly even that dirty compared to lots of other cars I've been under and I drive it in all conditions. It's weird having a car that doesn't leak, even after all those miles. The engine bay and pan are still shiny aluminum, no oil buildup. These things just don't wear and are made to last.

Driving it and enjoying it, you may get a few grand less than you would never putting mileage on it.

Which, all in all, is crazy. You will be losing money on the car no matter what in the long run - so why not lose a few grand more and enjoy the hell out of it.

 

[MoparMap]

Bingo. I don't really plan to sell the car any time soon anyway. I bought the car to drive and enjoy it, but I also do my best to take care of it. I looked at one with 75k on the odometer and the interior was a little rough. The rubberized coating was starting to peel off the interior and there was just general wear and tear. I've noticed the suede on my driver seat bottom is starting to ball up a little bit, but otherwise the interior is holding together pretty good.

 

[slowfrc]

So OP your point, if I understand it correctly is that sellers are pricing too low and if they raise their asking prices buyers will magically pay for them? That's not how economies work. For my gen 2 GTS I was willing to pay what gen 3s go for. Having said that I wouldn't pay 30k for a clean gen 3 vert if it was offered to me. They're the black sheep of the viper world for many people. Some like then, many like other models more. The gen 3 coupe market is a different game.

 

[ACRucrazy]

So OP your point, if I understand it correctly is that sellers are pricing too low and if they raise their asking prices buyers will magically pay for them? That's not how economies work. For my gen 2 GTS I was willing to pay what gen 3s go for. Having said that I wouldn't pay 30k for a clean gen 3 vert if it was offered to me. They're the black sheep of the viper world for many people. Some like then, many like other models more. The gen 3 coupe market is a different game.

 

[Torquemonster06]

So OP your point, if I understand it correctly is that sellers are pricing too low and if they raise their asking prices buyers will magically pay for them? That's not how economies work. For my gen 2 GTS I was willing to pay what gen 3s go for. Having said that I wouldn't pay 30k for a clean gen 3 vert if it was offered to me. They're the black sheep of the viper world for many people. Some like then, many like other models more. The gen 3 coupe market is a different game.

You wouldn't pay 30k for a clean Im guessing low mile gen 3 vert. Hmmm. And they are the black sheep because..........

 

[MoparMap]

That's news to me. I know the gen 3 had its growing pains with stuff like the diff and a few wrinkles to iron out, but the cars are pretty similar. I know there was a suspension upgrade with the gen 4, but I wonder if more of the advance was the move away from run flats than the change in shocks. I like my stump pulling gen 3 torque and horsepower curve as well. Not that it's a huge difference, but I remember seeing a dyno graph with all the gens on top of each other. The gen 4 definitely exhibits the "VTECH" style spike around 4k when the cam in cam really kicks in, but it's a little softer on the low end. I like my nice consistent power delivery, less to surprise you. And I have a lot of tuning capability if I ever decide to go crazy one of these days.

I think the bigger problem with prices is that you either see showroom cars with no miles or cars with tons of mods that the owners are trying to get a lot of their money back out of. Hard to find a regular driver car like mine that's mostly stock and up there in miles a bit.

 

[Flexx91]

So OP your point, if I understand it correctly is that sellers are pricing too low and if they raise their asking prices buyers will magically pay for them? That's not how economies work..

I don't think that's what he meant. He was only referencing to a single personal experience. And in ecomonic terms, it can work that way if the demand is high and the supply is low (or the price elasticity of demand).

 

[swexlin]

You wouldn't pay 30k for a clean Im guessing low mile gen 3 vert. Hmmm. And they are the black sheep because..........

As the owner of a 2003, I guess I'm a bit sensitive about this, so I was wondering the same thing?

 

[swexlin]

That's news to me. I know the gen 3 had its growing pains with stuff like the diff and a few wrinkles to iron out, but the cars are pretty similar. I know there was a suspension upgrade with the gen 4, but I wonder if more of the advance was the move away from run flats than the change in shocks. I like my stump pulling gen 3 torque and horsepower curve as well. Not that it's a huge difference, but I remember seeing a dyno graph with all the gens on top of each other. The gen 4 definitely exhibits the "VTECH" style spike around 4k when the cam in cam really kicks in, but it's a little softer on the low end. I like my nice consistent power delivery, less to surprise you. And I have a lot of tuning capability if I ever decide to go crazy one of these days.

I think the bigger problem with prices is that you either see showroom cars with no miles or cars with tons of mods that the owners are trying to get a lot of their money back out of. Hard to find a regular driver car like mine that's mostly stock and up there in miles a bit.

Agree. I have almost 31,000 miles on my 03 (bought it April 2010 with 23,000), and I'm enjoying every mile!

 

[Able1]

I have a Gen 2 and have been looking at Gen 3 and Gen 4 convertibles. The Gen 3's seem to have issues with oiling, and now the rear control arm, which hurts the value of the car. I would rather pay $15,000 more and purchase a Gen 4 than buy a Gen3 and put $5,000 in it to fix the problems it seem to have and never get my money out of the car. I buy my cars to drive them, so when I sell, I know the car will not bring top dollar, but with a Gen 3 I think it will be a much harder sale.

 

[dester243]

Show me a clean gen 3 with low miles (20k or so) with no problems/issues/salvage for 30k and I'll have 2 vipers in the garage. That's just crazy talk.

Some of the comments on this website humor me. As far as mileage. I picked mine up with 22,500. It's only been 3 months and the odometer is at 27,5XX last time I checked. To me you buy a car to drive and enjoy it. You aren't buying it as an investment as everyone will tell you there is very little investment benefits to buying cars. To me the viper is regarded as a toy, not an investment.

Plenty of other things to buy and sell for a profit out there.... Cars are not one of them.

OP. To me it seems like gen 3 viper prices have hover a little over the last 2-3 years. They were all about in the 40k range for a 20k mile one. Some asked more. Some got more, but for those that seeked a deal, in the last couple years about 40k was the magical $. Now that the gen 5 is out, people seem to be dropping the prices down some as you see more and more dipping into the high 30s but with a little more mileage. I don't think it's bad. A car that was about 85k new commands half it's value 10 years later. Not a lot of vehicles can really command that resale % off the top of my head.

 

[MoparMap]

I have a Gen 2 and have been looking at Gen 3 and Gen 4 convertibles. The Gen 3's seem to have issues with oiling, and now the rear control arm, which hurts the value of the car. I would rather pay $15,000 more and purchase a Gen 4 than buy a Gen3 and put $5,000 in it to fix the problems it seem to have and never get my money out of the car. I buy my cars to drive them, so when I sell, I know the car will not bring top dollar, but with a Gen 3 I think it will be a much harder sale.

I had forgotten about the oil issue as well, but I think that's only really an issue for those who race their cars. Even then I think you typically need race tires to really push the limits of the oil pickup issue. As for the control arm thing, I assume you mean the rear knuckle and the toe link breaking off? It's the exact same part on a gen 4, I just don't think the issue has come up becuase there are less gen 4's on the road (not that the issue has come up much to begin with). There are several thousand Vipers made with that knuckle and probably less than 10 that have broken that link without a significant impact. It's kind of like the airbag recall going on, I'm not really worried that my knuckle is going to let go just driving around.

 

[swexlin]

I had forgotten about the oil issue as well, but I think that's only really an issue for those who race their cars. Even then I think you typically need race tires to really push the limits of the oil pickup issue. As for the control arm thing, I assume you mean the rear knuckle and the toe link breaking off? It's the exact same part on a gen 4, I just don't think the issue has come up becuase there are less gen 4's on the road (not that the issue has come up much to begin with). There are several thousand Vipers made with that knuckle and probably less than 10 that have broken that link without a significant impact. It's kind of like the airbag recall going on, I'm not really worried that my knuckle is going to let go just driving around.

Once again, Mopar Map is the voice of reason. What he just said is spot-on!

 

[jmbaileyniu]

I've never had a problem with my 03. I use 0w40 instead of the factory fill, but I'm not sure of the oil pickup issue you're talking about. Taken it to the track a few times and was only limited by my lack of experience. Good deals are out there. In July 2010, I bought my silver 03 for $36k with 27,500 miles on it from FL. Clean carfax/title with only a replacement blower motor installed under warranty by the dealer when it was 2 years old. Awesome deal. I've driven it 15,000 miles and have only done oil changes and a few mods. Great car and I would buy one again without hesitation. I like gen 4 vipers, but not worth the extra $$$ for me personally right now.