Tag: Viper

Last week, I had a chance to visit Chrysler’s Conner Avenue Assembly Plant where every new Dodge Viper is built.

Perhaps the two most important numbers associated with the Dodge Viper are those that make up its horsepower and torque ratings: 645 and 600, respectively. However, those aren’t the only meaningful figures attached to America’s V10-powered exotic car.

Here’s the thing. The Dodge Viper is one of my most favorite cars on the planet. It was my first bedroom wall poster, and continues to impress me all those years later. After finally driving one for the first time this year, there wasn’t ever the thought in my mind that what this car needed was more power.

Titled “DNA of a Supercar,” Dodge’s new Viper documentary chronicles every aspect of the car’s production, from the forming of the custom carbon fiber body work, to the assembly of the aluminum 8.4L V10 power plant.

From the bottom to the top of this car, if you could call it that, is all custom. Custom rear-end, custom fenders, custom roll cage, custom rear differential, custom is a word used so much on this car, it’s hard to call it a Ghia.

The Dodge Viper TA is a beast of a car, as we found out earlier this year.

When Clarkson proclaimed that the Ascari A10’s exhaust was like Brunellian Hellfire, he had never stepped into a Viper TA. The Viper TA is a raw nerve, completely exposed to the elements. It’s twitchy. It’s rough. It’s absolutely fantastic.