VIPER EUROTOUR IDEA? MAD OR SAD?
Discussion
Just been in the bath reading about the original GTS press launch in Europe and come up with a rather mad plan, but if we pull it off it would go down in VIPER FOLK LAW.
Well....my thinkig is this.....when we go on tour we may got to Rhiems for a photo shoot?...and someone is bound to have a sat nav so we can,t get lost?.....well how about we attempt something outrageous......we head for Paris....(some of you may by now worked out where this is heading!
)..then we do the unthinkable...we line up three abreast for a photo shoot "press launch style" down the "Champs Elysees"......now that would make one dame fine photo for the VCA Mag?I guess early in the morning would be the best time, but what do you guys think?Is this is stupid idea?
My names down...Venom500 (front row)
Well....my thinkig is this.....when we go on tour we may got to Rhiems for a photo shoot?...and someone is bound to have a sat nav so we can,t get lost?.....well how about we attempt something outrageous......we head for Paris....(some of you may by now worked out where this is heading!
)..then we do the unthinkable...we line up three abreast for a photo shoot "press launch style" down the "Champs Elysees"......now that would make one dame fine photo for the VCA Mag?I guess early in the morning would be the best time, but what do you guys think?Is this is stupid idea?My names down...Venom500 (front row)
PARIS �Traffic has ground to the usual standstill around the Arc de Triomphe. But suddenly, unexpectedly, the phalanx of frustrated French drivers parts, as if driven by Moses approaching the Red Sea.
With a deep-throated roar, a procession of 18 cars enters the traffic circle. One, two loops, before they spill out onto the Champs Elysees. From the sidewalk, a pedestrian approaches one of the drivers as he waits at a stoplight. Speaking first in French and then in broken English, he pleads, "What are you driving?"
There aren't many cars that can provoke such a reaction in staid Paris. But the Dodge Viper isn't your typical car. Certainly not the new Viper GTS coupe, painted brash blue with two not-so-subtly white racing stripes running from head to toe. It's the second-generation remake of the original Viper roadster, the crudely addictive sports car that joined the Dodge lineup nearly four years ago.
The family resemblance is obvious, but with a hardtop, the GTS coupe takes on an entirely new style and manner. It is curvaceous in the manner of Mae West, sleek, sexy, yet somehow exaggerated.
To preview the GTS, Chrysler took a group of reporters on a road rally through Europe a few weeks back. The event mixed back roads and autobahns, as well as a few laps on some of the continent's most famous race tracks, perhaps the only place where it's possible to reach the performance limits of Viper's massive V-10 engine.
"We started out wanting to just put a top on the roadster, but then the vehicle began to evolve," explains Viper Project Manager Roy Sjoberg.
Indeed, the new coupe represents far more than just a cosmetic
change. The body and chassis are stiffer, translating into a smoother, more controllable ride. And the car was put on a strict diet.
"We shot for 200 pounds for the overall reduction so that we could bring in the coupe at a lower weight than the roadster," says Design Supervisor Charles Brown III.
To reach that goal, Viper engineers had to pay plenty of attention to the smallest of details. They redesigned the seats, used computer design programs to reduce unnecessary metal from the frame. They even changed some of the bolts on the engine, a move that shaved off 4.5 pounds.
And in the process, they found even more power. The Viper GTS coupe now turns out 450 horsepower, 50 more than the original Viper engine.
Flat out on the back straight at Germany's legendary Nurburgring race track, that translated into speeds topping 164 miles per hour.
Speed isn't everything, though plenty of Viper aficionados might beg to differ on that point. But the coupe is clearly more refined than the roadster. It comes with air conditioning, for one thing, as well as dual airbags.
The original concept behind the Viper was to recreate the sort of
brute-muscle sports car defined by the legendary Shelby Cobra.
Chrysler banished gimmicks and gadgets, like turbocharging, ABS
brakes and electronic shock absorbers, that have come to define the modern sports car. The same philosophy holds true for the GTS coupe�with a couple of exceptions.
Instead of door handles, the GTS uses a discreetly mounted electronic push-button entry system. Press it, and the door pops open. The other trick is a new system that allows the pedals to move forward or back up to 4 inches.
"We had smaller drivers who complained they couldn't reach the
pedals," points out Viper Engineer Sandy Emerling.
Though the concept is found on a number of race cars, Viper is the only production car to offer an adjustable pedal system. Chrysler is studying the use of the concept on other models in the future.
Chrysler spent approximately $70 million to develop the new coupe and to make changes to the older roadster. That's barely what it would cost to redesign the instrument panel on the Dodge Neon. But then again, Chrysler will sell perhaps 200,000 or more Neons this year, 100 times more than the entire Viper run.
"We aren't going to make a great deal of money," admits Sjoberg, "though we do break even."
But there's another payoff in the form of image and publicity. Everywhere the Vipers went, the crowds were sure to follow. The students in one French schoolyard spent their entire lunch hour pressed against a chain-link fence watching the 18 Vipers streak past.
In the United States, there are already more orders than Chrysler can handle for the next year. The first GTS coupes were delivered late last month, with the average price topping $70,000, including taxes, delivery costs and the few options available. Among the first to take delivery was comedian Jay Leno, who also had purchased one of the first Viperroadsters
With a deep-throated roar, a procession of 18 cars enters the traffic circle. One, two loops, before they spill out onto the Champs Elysees. From the sidewalk, a pedestrian approaches one of the drivers as he waits at a stoplight. Speaking first in French and then in broken English, he pleads, "What are you driving?"
There aren't many cars that can provoke such a reaction in staid Paris. But the Dodge Viper isn't your typical car. Certainly not the new Viper GTS coupe, painted brash blue with two not-so-subtly white racing stripes running from head to toe. It's the second-generation remake of the original Viper roadster, the crudely addictive sports car that joined the Dodge lineup nearly four years ago.
The family resemblance is obvious, but with a hardtop, the GTS coupe takes on an entirely new style and manner. It is curvaceous in the manner of Mae West, sleek, sexy, yet somehow exaggerated.
To preview the GTS, Chrysler took a group of reporters on a road rally through Europe a few weeks back. The event mixed back roads and autobahns, as well as a few laps on some of the continent's most famous race tracks, perhaps the only place where it's possible to reach the performance limits of Viper's massive V-10 engine.
"We started out wanting to just put a top on the roadster, but then the vehicle began to evolve," explains Viper Project Manager Roy Sjoberg.
Indeed, the new coupe represents far more than just a cosmetic
change. The body and chassis are stiffer, translating into a smoother, more controllable ride. And the car was put on a strict diet.
"We shot for 200 pounds for the overall reduction so that we could bring in the coupe at a lower weight than the roadster," says Design Supervisor Charles Brown III.
To reach that goal, Viper engineers had to pay plenty of attention to the smallest of details. They redesigned the seats, used computer design programs to reduce unnecessary metal from the frame. They even changed some of the bolts on the engine, a move that shaved off 4.5 pounds.
And in the process, they found even more power. The Viper GTS coupe now turns out 450 horsepower, 50 more than the original Viper engine.
Flat out on the back straight at Germany's legendary Nurburgring race track, that translated into speeds topping 164 miles per hour.
Speed isn't everything, though plenty of Viper aficionados might beg to differ on that point. But the coupe is clearly more refined than the roadster. It comes with air conditioning, for one thing, as well as dual airbags.
The original concept behind the Viper was to recreate the sort of
brute-muscle sports car defined by the legendary Shelby Cobra.
Chrysler banished gimmicks and gadgets, like turbocharging, ABS
brakes and electronic shock absorbers, that have come to define the modern sports car. The same philosophy holds true for the GTS coupe�with a couple of exceptions.
Instead of door handles, the GTS uses a discreetly mounted electronic push-button entry system. Press it, and the door pops open. The other trick is a new system that allows the pedals to move forward or back up to 4 inches.
"We had smaller drivers who complained they couldn't reach the
pedals," points out Viper Engineer Sandy Emerling.
Though the concept is found on a number of race cars, Viper is the only production car to offer an adjustable pedal system. Chrysler is studying the use of the concept on other models in the future.
Chrysler spent approximately $70 million to develop the new coupe and to make changes to the older roadster. That's barely what it would cost to redesign the instrument panel on the Dodge Neon. But then again, Chrysler will sell perhaps 200,000 or more Neons this year, 100 times more than the entire Viper run.
"We aren't going to make a great deal of money," admits Sjoberg, "though we do break even."
But there's another payoff in the form of image and publicity. Everywhere the Vipers went, the crowds were sure to follow. The students in one French schoolyard spent their entire lunch hour pressed against a chain-link fence watching the 18 Vipers streak past.
In the United States, there are already more orders than Chrysler can handle for the next year. The first GTS coupes were delivered late last month, with the average price topping $70,000, including taxes, delivery costs and the few options available. Among the first to take delivery was comedian Jay Leno, who also had purchased one of the first Viperroadsters
VPRMAN said:
Is that a Vauxhall Manaro? 
thats right Colin, its a VAUXHALLMonarohave you seen the latest version Spud ?
http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default.asp?storyI...
Edited by Viper on Thursday 12th February 13:13
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
have you seen the latest version Spud ?
http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default.asp?storyI...
Viper said:
VPRMAN said:
Is that a Vauxhall Manaro?
thats right Colin, its a VAUXHALL Monarohave you seen the latest version Spud ?
http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default.asp?storyI...
In fact maybe I could put them on now and leave the motor standard 
I was only 17 though VENOM500 said:
Just been in the bath reading about the original GTS press launch in Europe and come up with a rather mad plan, but if we pull it off it would go down in VIPER FOLK LAW.
Well....my thinkig is this.....when we go on tour we may got to Rhiems for a photo shoot?...and someone is bound to have a sat nav so we can,t get lost?.....well how about we attempt something outrageous......we head for Paris....(some of you may by now worked out where this is heading!)..then we do the unthinkable...we line up three abreast for a photo shoot "press launch style" down the "Champs Elysees"......now that would make one dame fine photo for the VCA Mag?I guess early in the morning would be the best time, but what do you guys think?Is this is stupid idea?
My names down...Venom500 (front row)
Hoping to go to Le Mans this year and want to go via Paris just for that reason! Are there any other Viper Club members heading over for the weekend too? Well....my thinkig is this.....when we go on tour we may got to Rhiems for a photo shoot?...and someone is bound to have a sat nav so we can,t get lost?.....well how about we attempt something outrageous......we head for Paris....(some of you may by now worked out where this is heading!
)..then we do the unthinkable...we line up three abreast for a photo shoot "press launch style" down the "Champs Elysees"......now that would make one dame fine photo for the VCA Mag?I guess early in the morning would be the best time, but what do you guys think?Is this is stupid idea?My names down...Venom500 (front row)
Has the French Viper Club not done a similar copy cat parade down the C.E. before?
Name the date.
Gassing Station | Vipers | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff