JBH

I sold my M Coupe and I have been looking at Vipers. They make a huge amount of horsepower, I found one with some nice suspension work, it has harnesses, roll bars and less than 18K miles - why shouldn't I buy it?

I'll keep the 964Turbo for now, but I' afraid I'll like the power and looks of the Viper too much and the Porsche will be neglected. Help!

ljugete

I have a neighbor with a silver Viper. Very sharp and big but fast car. I still prefer my Porsche 993 and he's always drooling over it when we meet. There is no substitute!

BTW, with a 964 Turbo you should have plenty of power. You should consider trading up to a 993 TT! For me, my C2 cab. with racing chip and supercharging --> 340 HP is fast enough!

Geoffrey

The viper is like an overgrown Corvette that doesn't stop very well. Fast, cool looking, but typical American design and quality...

OldGuy

NO NO NO!!!!. I have driven the GTS. Look on the market there are a TON of vipers with 1500 miles on em or less. WHY?? Its like the bimbo in college you always wanted to pork, you wouldnt marry her though. Disclaimer1- I like women. "Bimbo" was used to express a point, not a broad (pardon the pun) description of all women .Disclaimer 2- Pork was used to describe an action, this is not a degredation of the pork business nor did I claim this was a Kosher discussion.
Its not a sophisticated car. I felt it was heavy. It did not handle as well as I thought is should. The pedals are all screwed up. And most of all it was quite abit slower than a 993 Twin Turbo. So if I was you and you want something in the 400-500hp range I would buy a Corvette if your budget is less the 50K and wait for the Z06 or I would get a 993 or 996 TT based on wether you want classic 911 or prefer the modern GT type 996 and could put up with a water pumper. The 996TT are coming down in price, easily found in the 80K range(2001), the 993TT is going up. 96's are in the high 60's to mid 70's I have even seen a couple in the 80K range. The 97's are in the 70s and now 80s for some reason. The 993TT is the last of the air cooled as we all know and that might be the reason for the last 6 months of price rising, coupled with the release of the 997 with slight similarities in looks. there were 1300 96TT produces and 650 aprox 97's produced. There were more 2001's Turbos made than all of the 993 TT's for North America. That might be the reason for the decline in prices. Plus its the only 911 that looks like it does. But that is my demented thinking.

SandyI

The sooner you go out and buy the Viper, the sooner you'll purge the urge from your system. Then you'll sell the Viper and get back to driving your Porsche.

ericdee

Gee I don't know.... their pretttttty bad ***. I have a soft spot for a GTS as well, just can't beat that power. Here's a good forum:

http://www.viperalley.com/

Drewster67

Go to the Viper Board and see what's up?.

http://www.viperalley.com/ubbthreads.php

Ive heard mixed reviews -

Great Power and TRQ
****ty Build Quality (?) Hear Say?
Expensive To own - Insurance/Gas/Tires ............

I personally like them but then again I'm a HP ***** - Anything that goes fast .......................

EZRider

I have to agree with the nay sayers. I can tell most people are attracted to Viper's muscle car charms. However it is made by Chrysler. A product noted for shoddy workmanship. So my point is about quality, integrity and class. You can try the Viper but as OldGuy said it will just end up as a one night stand.

Mike Buck

Jeff,
Have you actually sat in and tried to drive a Viper yet? If you haven't, do it. It will change your whole perspective.

My good friend from college bought a '98 GTS(his dream car) not 3 months ago. 5k miles, think he paid about $--,--- for it. NICE looking, FAST as ***** car . . . but some things about it really annoy me.

First, it is awful to try and get in and out of. The whole A-pilar, windshield, door hinge alignment is freaky. It's 1000% times easier to get into my 944 racecar, and I have a full-cage with NASCAR door bars. I'm a limber 6' 2"

Once you're in the drivers seat, you'll notice two things. First, the windshield and A-pilar are about 3" from your nose. Or at least that's how it feels. The cars look big on the outside, but are smaller than a Miata inside. With a rollbar or cage in there, how one sits with a helmet on is beyond me.

And, as OldGuy said, the pedals are all offset about a foot to the left. Where the clutch is on your Porsche, that is the brake on a Viper. The other stuff I may be able to get over if I owned one, but this would be the toughest.

If can live with the above and have the $$ to feed a Viper tires and gas, there are few cars with as much sheer thrust . . . or that turn as many heads

JBH

I appreciate the viewpoints and I have to say I am having second thoughts. The problem is where I live there are no Vipers to test drive. Next time I get close to Seattle or Portland maybe I can try to at least sit in one. The issues with driver position and pedal layout are the most troubling. I'm 6'4 and I don't like feeling squeezed.

Greg D.

3 laps at a track event: brakes on fire.... End of story !

JBH

This car is a Hennessey Venom 600 set up for track/race: lots of suspension and brake work, roll cage, seats, and belts installed. Less than 5K miles. So it's definately not stock.

The other problerm is I'm not sure I want that kind of attention.

volpenyc

I drove my friends Viper back from Baltimore to NYC. It was alot of fun but I did notice the following:
1) the interior build quality was somewhat shoddy for a car of that price;
2) If felt somewhat claustrophopic in the driver's seat (and I'm under 6 feet tall...)
3) the heat from the exhaust (side pipes) was very disconcerting
4) definitely a head-turner but felt like I was driving a high powered speed boat..point it in one direction and step on the gas kind of thing, not something that inspired nimble handling, like my 993.
I would definitely drive it before buying. No other car gives you as visceral a ride as a 993. IMHO

mpesik

Ok in my experience , Vipers are obviously a huge responsibility. Whether it's in the garage or out in public be prepared to answere a lot of questions that people will have . Read up on the strange misgivings it may offer. And of course when you take it out ,DO-NOT get overly confident for it can bite you back. Some people will be intimidated while others very interested. Depending on what species it is ,you will require a special license most of them are now endangered! Mike . Edmonton valley Zoo.

kmhemi

A good friend of mine has one. I like it alot. then again I am only 5'9 where some of you guys are over 6ft. I can see how you would feel uncomfortable. I do like the power and the attention. Overall, I give it a thums up. I like them. The best advice I can give you is to drive one. You will either love it or hate it right away.