When will the 2013 SRT Viper head to the Green Hell?
The 2010 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR currently holds the
production car record at the Nürburgring Nordschleife with a lap time of just 7
minutes and 12.13 seconds but there have been 5 vehicles that have turned
better times than the Viper. That group
includes the Radical SR8 and Radical SR8 LM, the Gumpert Apollo Sport, the
race-only Pagani Zonda R and the race-only Ferrari 599XX. The Radical models are technically street legal
in some places but they are clearly race cars squeezed into the legal
restrictions of some areas. The Gumpert
Apollo Sport is a street legal, limited production vehicle with a price tag
upwards up a half million dollars and the Pagani and Ferrari simply are not
street legal. Other than those five
cars, no vehicle has officially lapped the famed Nurburg Germany track that has
become known as the Green Hell.
The Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR allows the folks at Chrysler,
Dodge and SRT major bragging rights but realistically, wouldn’t it be nicer if
the boys at Chrysler’s Street and Racing Technology division could boast of
being the outright fastest car to ever lap the Ring? In a recent video staring Viper drivetrain engineer
Dick Winkles, Mr. Winkles commented that the Viper still had more left in it
after that 7:12.13 lap. The Gumpert
Apollo Sport ran a 7:11.57 so the 2010 Viper ACR is just over a half second
behind the half-million dollar German hypercar – a time that could presumably
be beaten with some tuning efforts to the 2010 Viper ACR that set the
production car record. However, besting
the pair of Radical race cars, the Pagani and the Ferrari – all of which ran in
the high 6 minute range – could take more than the 2010 Viper ACR has to offer.
Some would speculate that it would take the Viper more
power, better aerodynamics and better handling dynamics to break the American
supercar into the 6 minute range around the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Luckily, the 2013 SRT Viper GTS packs more
power, offers improved aerodynamics and features a new, advanced suspension
system that could allow the new Viper to break into the 6 minute range at the
Green Hell.
The 2010 Dodge Viper ACR packed 600 horsepower and 560lb-ft
of torque where the 2013 Viper GTS offers 640 horsepower and 600lb-ft of torque
although the 2013 GTS weighs a bit over a hundred pounds more than the 2010
Viper ACR. The 2013 SRT Viper GTS is
designed to be more aerodynamic than the previous generation but with the
additional aero goodies applied to the ACR (like the front splitter and the
massive rear wing), the ACR might have the downforce advantage for those high
speed situations. Most importantly, the
2013 SRT Viper GTS features a new adjustable suspension system featuring
stability and traction control with a variety of modes. The Viper has never benefitted from the
enhancements of electronic stability or traction control systems – features
included in many of the other fastest cars on the Nürburgring lap time list
(like the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1).
Adding this high tech suspension system to the revised suspension system
of the 2013 SRT Viper could allow this new street-legal supercar to hit the Ring
and maintain its production car record but its hard to say whether this alone
will put it into the 6 minute range.
Hopefully, the folks from SRT will be quick to take the 2013
Viper GTS (and presumably the race-only GTS-R) to the Nürburgring Nordschleife
to see how much of an improvement the company has made with the 2013 SRT Viper. It may take another automaker breaking the
current record to motivate the SRT group to head back to Germany but if the new
Viper is as incredible as many of us suspect – the Viper could continue to set
record lap times at the Nürburgring and other tracks around the world.
How long do you think SRT will wait before publically
testing the 2013 SRT on the Nürburgring Nordschleife? Click here to head into the DodgeForum brand
news section and tell us what you think?
