My Viper Pics

[xjrguy]

My 2005 Viper prior to the wreck.

[xjrguy]

After the wreck

[Brakelate]

Damn. Sorry to see that.

I was over in Valencia looking at the two Vipers they had in the latest generation. Pretty neat. Fat ass tires. Pricey. I just could not appreciate the Butterscotch Pudding colored leather interiors. It was... well, Meh, OK in the Red, but in the Blue with White Racing stripes unit, it was horrible !

[xjrguy]

I traded that car in on my SVT Raptor.

Two days later the dealer sales guy wrecked it. (I told everyone there that the Viper did not drive like a Mustang)

Guess they didn't listen.

I picked up a new GT500 the same day those wreck pics were taken.

[Brakelate]

Lol. Sweet. I've heard that the Viper is THE most crashed sports car model based on some insurance report. Some mind blowing number, like 98% of them are wrecked to some degree or another. I would think that is idiot drivers trying to come to terms with a raw, real deal sport platform with a lot of torque. But, those numbers surely must suggest that something else is going on there. New owner ego and show off attempts that get out of hand or something that makes them difficult, if not impossible to recover if they get out of shape. But, on paper, it seems they aren't any different than any other "specialty" car.

Did you get any spooky feelings with yours?

Sort of like the first generation fox body 5.0 Mustangs, with the short, narrow wheelbase, nose heavy weight bias and shitty little tires. I think every original owner of a late '80s to early '90s Stang spun it in the rain or on a wet on ramp or intersection. Some will admit it. Most won't. I eventually put my beloved '91 Notch 5.0 with a 5-speed into a tree up on the Angeles Forest Hwy. Had a hard time finding that car with the color / motor / trans package I wanted. A shame to see it 10 feet up in a Pine tree on a cliff. Especially with me trying to get out of it.

[xjrguy]

Lol. Sweet. I've heard that the Viper is THE most crashed sports car model based on some insurance report. Some mind blowing number, like 98% of them are wrecked to some degree or another. I would think that is idiot drivers trying to come to terms with a raw, real deal sport platform with a lot of torque. But, those numbers surely must suggest that something else is going on there. New owner ego and show off attempts that get out of hand or something that makes them difficult, if not impossible to recover if they get out of shape. But, on paper, it seems they aren't any different than any other "specialty" car.

Did you get any spooky feelings with yours?

Sort of like the first generation fox body 5.0 Mustangs, with the short, narrow wheelbase, nose heavy weight bias and shitty little tires. I think every original owner of a late '80s to early '90s Stang spun it in the rain or on a wet on ramp or intersection. Some will admit it. Most won't. I eventually put my beloved '91 Notch 5.0 with a 5-speed into a tree up on the Angeles Forest Hwy. Had a hard time finding that car with the color / motor / trans package I wanted. A shame to see it 10 feet up in a Pine tree on a cliff. Especially with me trying to get out of it.

I never had a problem with mine. I treated it like you would treat the throttle on a litrebike.

With that V10 is was pretty easy to slide those very wide rear tires out even at part throttle when the tires were cold.

It was a great car. Amazing to drive, scared Ferrari drivers and felt like a rock star when people took camera phone pics of it. I had it and my 2004 Cobra at the same time (and my Volvo as a DD). For me at the time it was a dream garage but I get bored quickly with vehicles and traded both for the Raptor and a GT500.

Don't own those two anymore either and now I have Jeeps (WK2 and JKU that I AEV'd) and I think I am finally happy with the vehicles I have. If I keep both of them more than two years that will be a big deal.

I had two 5.0s....a 1989 GT and a 1992 "Feature" limited edition convertible.

Spun the GT out a couple 360 degrees on black ice up in NY one winter when I drove to Canada for the hell of it. Was not fun, and it was at night.

Loved those cars.

[Brakelate]

Amazing your taste in vehicles is almost identical to mine.

Since you've got my 4x4 juices flowing again, I have been daydreaming about a Jeep. Actually been looking at them for years, even back when I picked up my Ram 1500 back in '07. The Rubicon Unlimited is the obvious tease, especially with the new V-6. The locker and swaybar disconnect are great, and the interior is improved, imho. In my dreams, I would like a leather interior, and other than the Brown that isn't very appealing to me, you can only get the Red leather seating in the 10th Anniversary Edition. Now, I don't like all the flash and wouldn't pay that much for the badging, but it seems you can get the leftover '13's for the same price as a lower optioned Rubicon. I would try to get the 4.10 option and Nav and go with the Auto and dual top group. Black looks best, but you know that story. They have one locally in "Anvil" which looks sorta neat.

I DO need a good sized rear seat and more towing capacity though, with a 13 year old son that is already almost 6' tall! I love the looks, image, reputation and goodies. So I went and test drove one, and the one thing that killed it was the rear seat. It was very upright, like sitting on a wooden bus bench.

I then flipped and started looking at the 2500 Power Wagons. Now, for about the same price, you get the 3/4 ton truck, locking front AND rear diffs, swaybar disconnects, a crew cab, the 5.7 Hemi AND a factory 25k winch and BFG A/Ts. Option it up with the Nav, sunroof and stereo and it is very sweet. Tows a bunch and I think it looks good (not too gawdy with all the stickers) when you get a darker color. It is just a little more pricy than a Rubi Unlimited. But, it is huge for tight off road trails and in town parking, fuel mileage will suck and the closest you can get to open aired driving is a optional sunroof.

Then, I bumped into the left over '13 Grand Cherokee in the Trailhawk package. I tell you what, if you blindfolded yourself and climbed in for a drive, it would be tops all the way around. Air adj. suspension, Hemi V-8, KILLER interior with leather and all the bells and whistles. It handles well on the road and still has enough clearance, traction and skid plates to get a good driver anywhere they would want to go. Did I mention the interior is incredible? Better fuel mileage, great towing capacity, and a price right there with the other two... they are knocking the price of the Trailhawk upgrade package ($7k+) off the ones remaining on the lots.

The only real concerns are all the electronic aids, transfer case modes and air ride and the looks. Even all spiffied up with the trailhawk badging , red hooks, stitching, hood black out and dark wheels, it still looks like a very bland soccer mommy crossover jellybean. But to drive it, it clearly is a wolf in sheeps clothing. They have a Black one with a sunroof and they are really trying to move it. So, then if I can ignore the looks (I actually think it would be fun to trail it - sort of an off road "sleeper') but the 2013's with quadra trak and quadra drive II don't have "real" mechanical lockers and the front is basically an open diff with brake electronic traction aids. Ughh

But, I will admit I am tempted. Interior and on road sporty performance, awesome interior that hauls like a station wagon, tows like a truck, gets reasonable mpg with the cylinder deactivation and has enough bells and whistles to keep me entertained and enough "trail rated" gear to keep it from getting totally destroyed with skid plates , rock rails and decent tires and ground clearance.

What has been your experience? I hit all the forums and all I get is the typical "purist" Jeep owners hating on it as a Fiat phony not worthy of a Trail Rating, let alone a Jeep badge on the fender. But I bet 80 % of those guys have never yet needed to use 4-low legitimately.

Thoughts?

[xjrguy]

I've got a good reply I need to write but I'm 3 hours ahead and have a competition tomorrow morning at 7am (IPDA match)

The backseat of the JKU can be fixed with washers (LOL it's true)

The Trailhawk is an awesome jeep.

I'll get back with a more in depth response tomorrow.

[Brakelate]

The backseat of the JKU can be fixed with washers (LOL it's true)

You know, I actually thought of that!!! I was standing there looking at it, and it seems the leg room is fine, the padding and texture are OK, it's just the damn upright angle of the seat back. Lol.

Another thought, was a Wrangler Unlimited in the MOAB edition. They have one in Valencia for a bargain, in white and black. I actually like the Moab wrap around bumpers and rock rails better than the 10th Anniversary Rubi models, though the removable ends on the front bumper is cool. What you gain in the Moab is the nicer leather interior (IMHO) and a lower price, plus the few other differences which really are more like preferences; The taller transfer case gears, the all terrain tires rather than mudders, and again the graphics and bumpers. Now, the real differences under the skin, other than the internal T-Case gears, is the use of the Dana 30 front and a Dana 40 rear, rather than the HD Dana 40 Axles front and rear on the Rubi. Plus, the killer rear locker and electronic swaybar disconnect on the Rubi. What was VERY cool about this particular Moab, was that it was equipped with the rear locker (odd, but bitchen option on this more street friendly model) plus it had the tow package. I had considered just getting a fun base Wrangler in the "Rock Lobster" for the wifey, leaving the base interior, soft top and stereo to save cash and just leave the top off, then put the funds towards replacing the little steelies and street tires with a tire wheel package of my choosing and adding Loc-Rights or Electric Switchable lockers in both axles on my own. I think the Dana 30's would hold up fine if driven smartly. But, this particular Moab was a neat combination, with a sweet price that just happened to be in the White over Black with the hard to find Black interior. Hmmmm, $15 in washers for the front seat rail mounts and I might be in business. But, damn, that interior is nice in the WK and you still cant beat the ability of clicking the Tow/Haul button, opening up that 5.7 v-8 in the Dunes or for towing the boat around.

Sorry for the rant. Funny that I had just been kicking all these option / combos around in my mind lately. I would LOVE to hear your full length opinion when you get the time. Have fun, do good and let us know how the event goes down. Good luck!

Hell, we need to do dinner sometime. I also like dogs, long walks on the beach and we could kill a bottle of wine going over the different angles on this Hidden Treasure Adventure!

[xbacksideslider]

But . . . . . what about depreciation and stuff coming off lease instead . . . . . ?