Well, I've been silently saving up for a viper for a while, and the deal of a lifetime came up and as soon as I saw the ad and price, I called the guy and worked something out for same day. The car wasn't far from me, and a friend who owns a shop and trailer said, "If you get it, I'll go pick it up." He showed up at midnight and uhhhhhh. Yeah I'm pretty stoked.
The pros: It's a viper
The cons: Most of the stuff on a first gen viper like the clutch switch is going poo poo, the top is pretty crapped out, and yeah. It needs love. The paint isn't perfect, definitely needs correction (which I can do no problem). It also appears to have a shift light that you'd expect to see at oreiley's because I don't know why. I'll fix that.
BUT, the title is clean, the car has never been wrecked, it runs great, and just needs a little love. Will probably update the electronics to some fun new microcontroller stuff that's better than the dodge minivan electronics, fix it up, and enjoy me something fun and fast while I keep working on the Jalpa.
Dude! Way to go. I don't care how crappy it is, you own a Viper! I passed on a Viper years ago that I could have afforded. It was a project for sure, but running and driving. You went for it and got it. Good on you!. Now get it running enough to wear some tires out. All else can wait.
Im jealous! First gen viper is truly a bare chested sports car, and the prettiest of them all.
Congratulations!
Sweet! I went to Kettering (formerly General Motors Institute) and when I was a student in the mid 90's they brought a street and a race version of the Gen 1 Viper to campus. That image is seared into the brain. Cool car, congrats on the score.
NYN
Super cool, Merry early Christmas to you!
Congrats! a 1996 Viper GTS has been my dream car since the iconic blue w/ white stripes model on the cover of the ps one gran turismo.
Incredibly awesome cars. Definitely redefines no replacement for displacement at over 8 liters. lol
Congrats, got lots of seat time and wrench time with them. Following if you need any help.
Dude. YES. That is posters-on-the-wall dream car material right there.
Cooter
UberDork
12/17/20 9:14 a.m.
Some would say you need to be a masochist to drive any first gen Viper.
But that is also what is so wonderful about them. They certainly weren't made for comfort, and demand respect, especially from the driver.
Nighttime photos of it coming out of the trailer tell me how excited you are, and that it will be well loved for what it is.
Good stuff. I have a friend with a first gen that he thoroughly uses. There seems to be some good support and community out there. It is an interesting mix of sports car and .... sledgehammer I guess. Let us follow along with the project.
Very very cool. Can't wait to hear your further impressions.
Do you have track plans for it? Autocross? Making yourself unpopular with the neighbors?
Nice score. These are definitely on my bucket list. I love them. I look forward to seeing it progress.
Am jealous! Love vipers. If I ever owned any domestic Iron, that would be top of the list!
only thing I would change is the cartoony oem 3 spoke plastic look wheels and get some GTS wheels
I want a blue with white stripe 97 GTS or a 2017 Snakeskin green with black hood vents
viper alley is a trip though !
NOHOME
MegaDork
12/17/20 10:01 a.m.
Been in one just once as a passenger. My lasting impression is that this is not a car that just anyone can drive. It requires an aceptance of the ergonimics and a grasp of the laws of physics such that you do not die due to a misunderstanding.
Dibs when you are ready to sell it! Man, I love that car.
Work is crazy busy today but later on during lunch i'll snag some daytime pics for y'all.
I'm pretty amped.
Awesome- I have always wanted to make a thread called "year of the snake" where I try to daily drive a first generation Viper for a year, snow and ice and all, but since I doubt I'll ever own one I think you should do that. 
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ said:
Awesome- I have always wanted to make a thread called "year of the snake" where I try to daily drive a first generation Viper for a year, snow and ice and all, but since I doubt I'll ever own one I think you should do that.
My worker in St Louis daily drove his Viper (94 model) in snow and all. I also drove my Elise DD with him similarly in all sorts of weather. Of course he had a lot more power. Last I checked, he has over 200K miles on his Viper (its his only car - he has owned it since new)
looks like a fun project. Definitely on the "cars I'd like to own" list, the opposite extreme from my classic mini.
Congrats! One thing about Vipers is that everyone turns and looks, gives a thumbs and smiles. People love them. A guy at work has one and his wife won't even ride in it without makeup. People stop and take it's picture all the time, and a few weeks ago a mother and her son stopped him the parking lot. For the kid's birthday he wanted to just stop and look at it. Of course Gary let him sit in it and started it up, etc. Vipers are basically awesomeness with wheels.
ugh. I want one so bad. Such a childhood lust car for me. I still remember my first car show I ever went to was put on by a combo Viper and NSX owners group. I'll never forget that day.
Congrats man, that's amazing.
Awesome. I never could get into them, they sound horrible to me. But they are beastly for sure.
Agree with the previous post... "awesomeness on wheels"
Nice score!
