Dodge News: Rumorpile: Supercharged V10 For The Viper

[William Maley]

Currently, the Challenger and Charger Hellcats are basking in the performance spotlight at Chrysler. But before these two models arrived, the model that had the spotlight was the Viper with its 640 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque. But the Viper wants the spotlight back.

Allpart has gotten two reports of supercharged V10 engines being delivered to Chrysler. Allpar speculates the supercharger will allow the Viper to sit above the 707 horsepower from the Hellcat V8 and possibly get 800. But it comes down to whether or not the current internals of the Viper can handle all of that power. Allpar notes that current transmission, the Tremec TR-6060 can handle up to 650 pound-feet of torque. There is a transmission from Tremec, the “Magnum XL” which can handel 700 pound-feet. But to get that into the Viper, it would require some changes to the vehicle.

We'll be keeping a close eye and ear to this story.

Source: Allpar

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster

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[Drew Dowdell]

The last thing the viper needs is more power... Maybe a chassis that can put the power on the ground in a non-psychotic way would be a good start...

[aurora97]

The Viper needs to stay relevant or it will eventually be retired.

 

Since it is part of Fiat, that means that it needs to justify its niche among Maserati and Ferrari.

 

Since it goes head-to-head with the Corvette, it needs to compete with the ZO6.

 

A Supercharged V-10 is a good quick-fix.  But let us see if there is a long-term plan for the Viper.

[smk4565]

You have to wonder about the reliability of these cars.  Dodge isn't exactly great to begin with, are these transmissions and chassis really going to stand up to this much power.  With the Viper they can put even more power in, but the wheels are just going to spin and it is still going to have loads of oversteer and wild handling.

 

It is easy for the people in the marketing department to sell horsepower though, doesn't matter if the car is awful or not, if it has 700 hp it makes for a nice commercial and whoever buys it has bragging rights.

[balthazar]

Just read a Hot Rod review of the new Viper, and they were very positive on the handling, stating the 'wildness' of past generations is not a prime characteristic anymore.

 

That said, we just need a pic in here of the awesomeness that is the Viper :

 

 

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Since it is part of Fiat, that means that it needs to justify its niche among Maserati and Ferrari.

As the above share nothing, it's hard to see why any justification relative to ferrari and the poorly-selling (ferrari-engined) maserati is in order.

[A Horse With No Name]

Viper is a misunderstood vehicle. The more time you spend with one, the more you will like it.

[Drew Dowdell]

The Corvette can be a relaxed friend you just go out for a calm cruise with on a cool fall day or take to the track for some hard-core racing and winning.

The Viper needs constant, elevated attention by the driver just to keep things from going bad.

This is my impression from driving the stingray and viper back to back.

[A Horse With No Name]

Different strokes for different folks...which is why we have both the Verano and the ATS. Some people prefer the more high strung nature of the Viper.

[aurora97]

Maserati sales were up 315.6% for the month of July.  Just wait until the Alfieri hits the market.

 

I want the Viper around for the long-term.

 

But between government regulations and corporate bean counting, it will be a challenge to keep it on the market.

[Drew Dowdell]

Different strokes for different folks...which is why we have both the Verano and the ATS. Some people prefer the more high strung nature of the Viper.

 

It wasn't a judgement call as to which is better... but I think that if the Viper is going to get more power, it needs to be more successful at putting it on the pavement in a way that doesn't include a high probability of killing the driver.

[G. David Felt]

SuperCharged Viper would be cool though! I stick with my Corvette based SS Trailblazer.

[A Horse With No Name]

 

Different strokes for different folks...which is why we have both the Verano and the ATS. Some people prefer the more high strung nature of the Viper.

 

It wasn't a judgement call as to which is better... but I think that if the Viper is going to get more power, it needs to be more successful at putting it on the pavement in a way that doesn't include a high probability of killing the driver.

 

 

 

...and this is an excellent point.  Even a Focus ST or GTI is powerful enough to kill the driver given a little inattention.  In my SCCA flagging days, I saw many a Viper off track when I was a corner worker.  Money cannot buy common sense!