Say Good Bye To The 20 Year Old Dodge Viper

The 20 year old Dodge Viper will soon go out of production this summer. The 511 cubic inches of V-10 and rear-wheel drive without electronic traction control and ABS, which makes it a real monster on the road.

A Viper race car is nothing new to the racing industry, the car has competed in profressional racing since the mid 1990s and has been on the podiums of both Le Mans and Daytona; the top-rung Competition Coupe currently battles in many GT classes around the world. But the X is different because of its more direct ties to the ACR street car, and how clearly it demonstrates the potency of a civilian Viper configured solely for the track.

As with all 2010 Vipers, the X is powered by an 8.4-liter V-10 that spins the rear wheels via a six-speed manual gearbox. The X's engine, however, has been uncorked by way of headers and a low-restriction exhaust system, which add 40 additional ponies for a total of 640. Torque is up 45 lb-ft to 605. The suspension is fully adjustable and sports higher spring rates, which allow the chassis to maximize grip from the special 18-inch front and 19-inch rear Michelin slicks. Various aero tweaks, such as additional dive planes on the front fascia, provide up to 1100 pounds of downforce at 150 mph, or about 100 more than the regular ACR.

Chrysler claims to have also reduced the X's curb weight by 120 pounds compared to the roadgoing ACR's weight . The new total—about 3200 pounds—was mostly realized by thoroughly gutting the interior. The dash and center console remain and an eight-point, SCCA-certified roll cage and fuel cell have been fitted, but the cabin is definitely sparse with no side windows to roll down, a single racing seat and harness, and a removable Momo steering wheel. Other racing add-ons include a fire-suppression system, transmission and differential coolers, and larger front brake rotors fed by ducting that is more efficient than the street car's autel maxisys ms906.

The X's improved power-to-weight ratio should be good for taking a tenth or two off the ACR's 3.4-second 0-to-60-mph time and 11.8-second quarter-mile pass at 126 mph. The slicks also will help the race car obliterate the street car's 1.08 g of skidpad grip, but, thanks to the extreme drag of all that downforce-generating aero, expect the top speed to stand fast at about 185 mph.

Chrysler wisely chose to warm us up to the new car by having us work through the Viper ranks on the track autel maxisys pro ms908p, from SRT10 roadster, to the ACR coupe, and then finally to the ACR-X; although the race track is a controlled environment, these cars require your full respect and concentration. While the ACR's considerable downforce and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup tires plant you to the road and quell much of the nervousness of the base car, it's not until after you drive the X that you realize how much has been improved upon.

Inside, you sit much lower than in the street car and it feels much less cramped overall, particularly with the small, airbag-less racing wheel offering a clear view of the gauges. The regular car's slightly offset driving position is less noticeable, as well. Once the sticky Michelins get some heat in them and you get used to the raw, odd-firing bellow of the V-10, a transformation occurs as the car seemingly shrinks around you the harder you push it. Gone is the feeling of potential peril, replaced by the confidence that can only come from a set of grippy, race-spec gumballs. Sure, careless prods of the throttle will have you exiting corners tail first, but the chassis responds so quickly to inputs that you can catch all but the most serious twitches with little fuss.

Once comfortable enough to charge the car through corners, we were able to brake later, turn in harder, and power through kinks that we second-guessed in the ACR. Braking hard from speed feels like it might damage internal organs, and with so much torque on hand—along with less weight and more grip—shifting was more of an option than a necessity. Even on the relatively tight GingerMan circuit, which has only a couple fast bends and moderate straights, the stability from all the external aero appendages inspired great confidence, provided you had the courage to corner fast enough for them to work.

We, however, didn't have the stones to push the ACR-X all the way to its screaming limits, which is why Dodge brought along Kuno Wittmer, an SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge driver who regularly runs a Viper Competition Coupe. Being comfortable with racing Vipers and the speeds they're capable of, he quickly humbled us with his pace. At the end of the day, Wittmer's lap times around GingerMan's 1.9-mile short configuration dropped to 1 minute, 22.7 seconds in the ACR-X, some four seconds quicker than his time in the ACR.

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