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I took delivery of a new ACR-Extreme Aero on the 16th. Two of my friends drove it from Viper Exchange in Texas to me in OC. 1700 miles.
Track day 18th, Track day on 29th. I now have 2350 miles on the car.
quick bullet points since some people have ADHD
Torque is amazing
Ride Quality is 'average' on road
Track Performance- just as fast as my P1
budget concerns- this car cost 130k. best performance per dollar of any car ever made.
I've owned a dozen porsches, and a half dozen other exotics. In the mclaren forum someone asked me how the 675 compared to the other cars I've owned/tracked/raced etc. so i shared this list a few weeks ago:
1) 675LT
2) 997 Gt3RS 4.0/3.8RS/3.6RS
3) BAC Mono
4) 1993 NSX w supercharger, suspension etc
5) Carrera GT
6) 599 ( mine was 6spd manual)
7) 650S LeMans
8) 993/ 993 TT (I had andial 3.8L)
9) 991 GT3RS
10) huracan
Those are the 10 best cars I'd ever driven in my life and other than the 991RS and 599 I've driven all of those on track. I've got a total of about 100k miles in the drivers seat for the above cars. Before we get any further I can't place the 991RS in the top 5 because of the numb steering and the rear steering which totally saps the dramatic feeling from the car. regardless of paddles or no paddles the new RS is just not as fun/scary/raw as previous gens.
The list for me is just to rank what is the most visceral, most sophisticated, most approachable limits, best driving position, performance envelope etc. I am excluding the Veyron Vitesse Super Sports, 918 and P1 from this because if you can afford one of those you probably have all of these already so (congrats) go get everything and take pics!
I absolutely LOVE this car. It's the polar opposite of the BAC Mono or 675LT which is to say when you drive it you don't get the "wow this thing is really light" sensation- it's more like the GT3RS where you feel the weight of the car working for it- allowing the front to turn in, allowing the outside tires to hold their edges and dig in for more grip in the turn...you do not flick the viper. you yank it around and wrestle it. It's more like the 996GT3 for those of you with cross experience. It's brutally raw but incredibly communicative. Like that uncle who everyone is scared to introduce your friends to...
The ACR just totally obliterates every other car on the track. You can get up to speed immediately as long as you're a stick shifter. Sorry paddlers there is no option for you to right foot only this big dog. Rev matching is really not that hard because the pedals are really a little too close together in anything besides smaller vans style shoes or racing shoes. It does have electrically adjustable pedals but if you like to wear big huge nike air max shoes or something this is not your car. If you like to slink around and not be noticed- THIS IS NOT FOR YOU.
the ACR draws more attention than any car I have ever driven except for the P1- and unlike that car- right away people know it's a viper. they know all about it- it's like a corvette but with a bigger engine right? didn't this thing set the track record a few weeks ago? etc etc.
This car's entire purpose is to be wrung out on the track- and the tires show that directly. 295 in the front, 355 in the rear. This is the low-speed grip answer to the question nobody was asking- how can I pull 1.5+G in city traffic?
Track impressions- driving once with the "regular" ACR aero set and once with the "full extreme aero" I can say that noticeably the car is more stable and less twitchy on power through corners- there is a mechanical grip window in the GT3 style cars that goes from 50-100mph and this car is very similar but instead of needing to trail the brake in so you can get a little rotation in a GT3 (like the top of Omega corner at Willow) you just chuck the car into the corner and keep maintenance throttle on, after a little bit of constant radius and constant throttle it starts to rotate/rear steer a bit (65mph minimum speed at Omega) and has a really fun little power oversteer as the rear gets light. It just does whatever you want it to do and like the older girl you wish you dated in high school, it makes it simple by showing you the inputs that yield the highest rewards.
The tires are fantastic but my fronts are toasted already. apparently the "fix" is to trailer and just run Hoosier R7s. I don't have a truck with me here in SoCal so I'll be mounting a second set and thrashing those. Khumo Tires are 1450 a set or something preposterous. Problem is they're pretty much sold out everywhere. Biggest issue on track is not the lack of tire life- but the seat. The car comes pre-set for harnesses but mine is still in the mail. I need it to show up ASAP. This is why people get the LWB seats if they track- because just a little bit of hip support goes a long way. At Fontana and Willow with huge cornering speeds and loads over 1.5G (up to 1.7G so far) I'm having to brace against the damn door. It's really funny but I'm sore as hell when I'm done.
Big positives- you can install the entire Extreme Aero kit with a 5/16th ratchet and a 10mm socket wrench, a larger (15?mm) ratchet/breaker bar and a small Allen Wrench. I did it all myself without a lift, just those little ramps and a floor jack. Took me about 2 hours with no directions. With directions and proper tools it would take about 40 mins.
What is this car for?
1)the guy who got the PTS GT3RS but won't track it and loves manual transmissions
2)the guy who realizes that P1 brake pads are 12k installed and realizes that this car goes just as fast
3)viper dudes everywhere
4) the guy who missed an allocation of the GT3, GT3RS and GT4 and is mad at the world. SHOW EM ALL WHO IS THE BOSS NOW!
How Much?
130k or so. You can do a 1 of 1 custom option (I've wasted 3 hours on the configurator already) which adds about 10k worth of paint and stripe options. So, basically the same price as a 991 GTS.
How Rare?
only a few hundred ACR will be made. Even less with Extreme Aero.
They didn't tell me but I'll tell you:
No GoPros, Mountain Dew or RedBull is included with Extreme Aero Pack.
new list of of best cars I've ever driven on the track in no order :
675LT Viper Extreme Aero BAC Mono 997GT3RS
track day #1 at Fontana aka FonTucky with FastToys
MEAN. without the extended chin spoiler (put that on for the second track day)
I have done the texas to OC drive several times, but not in something so fun, lucky friends
interesting feedback on 991RS... still curious to hear how you would rank 991 RS vs. 997 RS vs. Huracan, for pure driving enjoyment. To me, those are the three to have in the ~$200-250k range for a new or pristine example.
Sounds like even though the viper is a bargain, very few will get the chance to purchase
I have done the texas to OC drive several times, but not in something so fun, lucky friends
interesting feedback on 991RS... still curious to hear how you would rank 991 RS vs. 997 RS vs. Huracan, for pure driving enjoyment. To me, those are the three to have in the ~$200-250k range for a new or pristine example.
Sounds like even though the viper is a bargain, very few will get the chance to purchase
I think the 997RS is more enjoyable but the lambo is the fastest. I have a 4.0RS and a 3.6RS- sold my 3.8RS to get the 4.0.
the 991RS looks better to me than either 997 or the huracan and if I could get one at sticker I'd really feel safe driving it and putting miles on it...but for the amount of markup that some people are paying- you can get a 991GT3!!
so, if someone forced me to spend 325k on car purchases right now:
I would not personally go anywhere near a 991RS for 300k. 200k?? I'm all over it. I think 240k would be my ceiling based on the fact that the car is just not as fun to drive as the previous Generation...
What a fun review. Thanks and I am looking forward to mine for one of the reasons you stated, although I think I have it instead of a GT3 RS no matter what
Completely uninitiated in dodge world. Is a purchase as simple as raising your hand (with a check in it), or are these extreme aero cars difficult to come by? I looked at Dodge site for 10 mins and lost interest as they showed old version.
Completely uninitiated in dodge world. Is a purchase as simple as raising your hand (with a check in it), or are these extreme aero cars difficult to come by? I looked at Dodge site for 10 mins and lost interest as they showed old version.
I don't know what site you were looking at, but this one has the configurator for the current Viper, including the extreme aero Www.Drivesrt.com
Completely uninitiated in dodge world. Is a purchase as simple as raising your hand (with a check in it), or are these extreme aero cars difficult to come by? I looked at Dodge site for 10 mins and lost interest as they showed old version.
I will PM you. VERY easy. did entire transaction via text/email with GM of Viper Exchange
Completely uninitiated in dodge world. Is a purchase as simple as raising your hand (with a check in it), or are these extreme aero cars difficult to come by? I looked at Dodge site for 10 mins and lost interest as they showed old version.
I think unlike Porsche, they will build if you come (with a check/wire/suitcase of cash).
I think the 997RS is more enjoyable but the lambo is the fastest. I have a 4.0RS and a 3.6RS- sold my 3.8RS to get the 4.0.
the 991RS looks better to me than either 997 or the huracan and if I could get one at sticker I'd really feel safe driving it and putting miles on it...but for the amount of markup that some people are paying- you can get a 991GT3!!
so, if someone forced me to spend 325k on car purchases right now:
I would not personally go anywhere near a 991RS for 300k. 200k?? I'm all over it. I think 240k would be my ceiling based on the fact that the car is just not as fun to drive as the previous Generation...
let me make it harder
991 RS (assume at sticker or close to it +$25k)
997 RS 3.8 1k miles
Huracan 1k miles
All these sitting between $200-240k or so
Not about raw speed of course. But interesting to me that the Huracan has quietly come on the scene as the fastest naturally aspirated production car below $1mm that I am aware of... its running 1/4 mile in the 10s. Unbelievable. None of us are here to find a dragster, just saying that your commentary about speed is consistent with my one-time drive in one, and the reviews.
991 RS (assume at sticker or close to it +$25k)
997 RS 3.8 1k miles
Huracan 1k miles
All these sitting between $200-240k or so
Not about raw speed of course. But interesting to me that the Huracan has quietly come on the scene as the fastest naturally aspirated production car below $1mm that I am aware of... its running 1/4 mile in the 10s. Unbelievable. None of us are here to find a dragster, just saying that your commentary about speed is consistent with my one-time drive in one, and the reviews.
you and I are the minority of lambo huracan fans on the board!! I loved it- WAY WAY better than 458. Only issue is that 95% of lambo owners are new money a-hole types. I hate guys that just sit and rev their engine in the parking lot for 20 mins waiting for flames to shoot out. total posers.
11-29-2015, 10:56 PM
OT: My full Review of the 2016 Viper ACR
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