Look at this folks - supercharged V10's arriving at Chrysler...for the Viper perhaps...maybe!

http://horsepowerkings.com/reports-a...update-coming/

I stated many times before, I am a car guy first! I know the Viper is not for everyone and I know this is a C63 AMG forum, but I figured...WTH, why not share.

While ALL cars have flaws, I appreciate the Viper for what it is

Why do you "Car Guys" think about this possibility?

I dig it. Love the viper. Not for me in owning one because I'd need an incredible indy shop on speed dial as a prerequisite.

Thr one thing that always put me off were the flaming door sills on Top Gear.

The thing is a monster of monsters. Raw! I've known a few brave souls that bought one, got bit and sold out of fear. Not for the faint of heart and very little, if any, forgiveness if you don't respect it.

One nitpick. "Hellcat" is the internal code name of the motor. It was so cool, it had legs and they put it on the car. So a supercharged Viper isn't a Hellcat Viper unless it has the 6.2 S/C in it (which it can't fit, motor is too tall).

Just like the Mustang 5.0's motor is "Coyote", the 6.4 in the SRT cars are "Apache".

A supercharged V10 would be called something else.


ANYWAY, the LAST thing the Viper needs is more power. It's trapping 127-129 in the 1/4 mile. It NEEDS a refined chassis and updated suspension and (GASP) that 8 speed AUTO to get more buyers who are scared of the stick.

Now, if they are giving up on making it faster around corners and just want a giant HP number, then yeah, throw a blower on it. Viper V10's love forced induction.

This is turning into an Oprah episode..

YOU get a Hellcat, and YOU get a Hellcat...

In other words, Dodge is saving money by putting the same engine in all their high end cars this way people can go out and buy the cheapest one and say "Welp, I've got a hellcat sooo"

No. Like I said above, they can't fit the 6.2 S/C in the Viper. They're talking about supercharging the V10.

If they move forward with this, I'm sure they will improve on grip/handling and the so on.

Vipers are not for noobies, if you're skilled driver, it will reward you with great lap times.

I've been to many track events and witness some Vipers under skilled drivers just flat out get it.

The Viper is a raw smack on the face car - hardcore Viper owners like that about the Viper, but the mass consumer wants a little more civility with more power of course.

I would love to see an automatic Viper with great cross country driving comfort (civility) and 800HP, but then again - it wouldn't be a Viper

Spot on. I'm a big Mopar fan. Love the Vipers from '06 on. I had an '02 Viper that was basically a kit car. I bought an '06, and loved it, after I added a Borla exhaust!

I bought an '09 Viper that was even better than the '06, with increased hp/tq, as you would know...

I like the Viper for what it is: No frills, unique, big block & normally aspirated V10. The only downsides are the high side sills (difficult ingress & egress), heat in the cockpit, and the numerous stares this car generates. Outside of this, the car rocks.

Of particular note, the Viper has less torque down low (seat of the pant feel) than my former Z06 Corvettes with a smaller V8. I understand the newer Vipers are geared similar to the old ones, with the torque push coming on slowly until you get into the tach...) The stock gearing in the Viper sucks, allowing the Viper to increase their EPA ratings...

I suppose I'm a sucker for Mopar, due to their former marriage with MB.

I have the urge to purchase a new left over '14 Viper; however, the '15 Viper is expected to get some updates... I'll wait, lol...

Cheers/B

I'm a Mopar guy, too (see my sig).

If you haven't: GO DRIVE A '13 VIPER! I drove one at an invite only SRT event and was blown away. It's just on a different level from the previous gens.

The gearing is so quirky in those cars. The 1st gear going to 60mph is awesome. I loved the instructor telling us "put it in first when you're in traffic or you're stall it. I KNOW you'll want to put it in 2nd, but don't.". Just another one of those "Viper" things that makes the car different.

I'll have a Viper one day. Nearly got a Gen II GTS instead of the C63.

As for the '15, I'm hearing nobody is excited about the updates, so don't be surprised if they're nearly identical to the '14.

^^^ Didn't even notice the sig... Yep, indeed you are, lol...

I'm just afraid that if I test drive one, I'll need to buy one, lol.

Believe me when I tell you that I never test drove my '02, '06 or '09 Vipers. I bought them over the Internet, in different states. Their charm is enough for me, lol!

Quick story: Back in '06 or '07, a black Neon SRT prompted me on... I downshifted to fourth gear in my '06 Viper, but I could not keep up with him. That Neon had to have run some serious boost!!! Props to the Neon SRT!

I'm still a member of the Viperforum and I'm on it from time to time.

What a fun car the Viper is! I'll def get another one!

Cheers/BB

I'd get in line for a Hellcat Jeep. Although I dont know how I would feel when my "winter SUV" would be able to smoke my C63 "Fun Weekend Car"

My SRT-4 was never terribly fast, but I have 3 friends local with 10 second Neons. Amazing aftermarket for a car only made from '03-'05.

Funny story on my end, I met a gentleman with the screen name SeeYa because we both had SRT-4's. He moved onto a C32 AMG and founded LET Performance with a guy named Jerry (who tuned my SRT-6 when I got it)......LET eventually became Eurocharged, and Jerry is....well...Jerry.

To stay alive, the Viper really needs the automatic transmission from the Hellcat more than anything. I love how it has stayed true to the brute power, in your face, driver's car with only a manual transmission for so long, but the truth is that not enough people want that anymore. More power is great, but that alone can't save the Viper.

^^^ Agreed 100% ...even more so, now that the luxury Viper GTSs can ring the cash register in excess of $135,000 plus. The new Gen VI Viper is not the old Gen IV or Gen V Vipers anymore. A higher content/build quality led to higher pricing, which led to a different/more sophisticated buyer who no longer wants to row their own gears.

Cheers/BB

So true...

More and more, the manual trans is losing it's grip in the automotive market.

Take for exmaple Porsche. When they decided to offer the new GT3 RS with PDK as the ONLY transmission option, many of the P-cars aficionados cried and cried...many swore to never come back to Porsche.

Most of them later realized that: a) the trans helps you drive the car easier and faster around the track and the streets and b) it made the car a much more civil when driving on public roads and with better MPG to boot.

I am a big fan of manual trans, but I love my paddle shifters as well. If I jump into the new C7 Z06, you best to believe it will be the 8sp auto.

First time I saw a Dodge Neon SRT-4 I thought, "isn't that sweet, a cute little race car for teenage girls". Then I heard the sound of a pissed off rattle snake on roids, followed by the dimming view of tail lights becoming a dot on the horizon.

Them little basterds is fasssssst!

Whoever came up with that concept can be on my team any day.

Less than 600 Vipers were sold in 2013, so this is a pointless move if it is actually true. There's another 500+ new vipers still for sale out there, so I really don't them making room for a "performance" model that would eat into the sales they already can't make...but anything's possible.

Totally agree that the car needs an automatic option.

My nitpick. Not once did that article say this Viper would be a "Hellcat"

I was referring to the title of the thread, obviously.