2006 Dodge Viper SRT10 Coupe review: classic MOTOR

Think of Chrysler’s new Dodge Viper Coupe as the automotive equivalent of a rottweiler; you know damn well that if you stroke it, there’s a more than likely chance it’s going to bite you in the arse.

This feature was first published in MOTOR’s February 2006 issue.

Drive it hard, using all 380kW from the V10 nuclear powerplant lurking up front, and the car will give you a nice little parting gesture as you step out – a third-degree leg burn from a door sill that’s been super-heated by the side-exiting exhaust.

It has the car chugging like an oiled-up two-stroke, and you looking a complete prat to the passenger in the seat beside you. Driver-friendly it’s not.

Then there’s the simple act of gazing at this new Viper hardtop which is guaranteed to strike fear into small children and give you an instant knee-trembler. From the never-ending bonnet with its reptilian gills, to the snake eyes head-lights and the 345mm-wide rear rubber, the car just oozes testosterone. This is a car that thinks and acts just like a dominatrix with a wardrobe full of whips, chains and leather G-strings.

It’s taken Chrysler two years to transform the third-generation SRT10 roadster into the real snake, The Coupe, which is a massive 30 percent stiffer than the drop-top. Aerodynamically more efficient, too. And a shed load more visually appealing.

For the roof, Chrysler grafted on a Zagato-style double-bubble panel to add a touch of retro cool and, perhaps more important, to offer extra headroom and indeed space for a race helmet. The top itself flows seamlessly into a glass rear hatch and ends with a neat but effective rear spoiler that adds an extra 68 or so kegs of downforce on the tail at 240km/h-plus.

All the bodily changes add just 18 kilos to the all-up weight of the roadster (now 1568kg) and keep performance levels pretty much identical. While the new roofline lowers the Cd from 0.40 to 0.39 (still terrible by supercar standards), top speed remains unchanged at 319km/h.

For around town driving you can’t help but be blown away by the Viper’s Rambo-esque muscle. Leave the stubby shifter in fourth and let 714Nm do all the work.

Slam open the throttle and the big Dodge feels like a Chuck Norris round-house kick to the stomach. The engine doesn’t build revs, it simply explodes in a cacophony of hissing, rasping, and serious heavy-breathing through side-exiting exhausts the size of storm water drains. And jeez does it feel quick.

Light the wick and stand well back, you’re squeezed hard into the seatback and the scenery begins to blur like you’ve just hit Ludicrous Speed. Against the clock, the car is good for 0-100km/h drags in 4.0secs, and 0-160 in around 8.5 (that’s as quick as a Lamborghini Murciélago). Cruising at 240 kays in the long-legged sixth gear is like driving anything else at about 100km/h.

Mirror to mirror it measures over 1830mm, and on roads narrower than airport runways, it feels every inch of it. Find yourself a twisty piece of blacktop and the Viper delivers its biggest surprise. Scream up to a bend, brush the stoppers, notch down a gear – nah, actually, don’t bother with the gearchange – balance the power through the apex, and pour it on as you exit. Awesome.

Back in the Viper days of old, summoning-up 380kW without full and focused attention would be rewarded with snap-oversteer and armfuls of opposite lock as the short wheelbase struggled to deal with the cornering forces and power delivery. But after three generations, the reptile is able to thumb its nose at the laws of physics.

The car steers like a dream though. Yes, that salami-thick wheel needs plenty of muscle to turn it at parking speed, but on fast twisties it feels nicely-weighted, surgically-precise and a fine communicator of what’s going on with those huge 275/35 ZR18 Michelins up front.

But run-flat rubber the width of oil drums don’t make for a silky-smooth ride. Over anything but glass-smooth asphalt, the Viper shivers like a wet spaniel.

If you do need to brush off speed though, the massive four-piston Brembo calipers clamping 355mm vented rotors, bite hard and fast. These are the kind of brakes that are able to stop time let alone a 1568kg supercar.

Inside, the coupe’s interior gets a healthy increase in space courtesy of its new roof. And raise the tailgate and there’s now three times the luggage space compared to the roadster. Enough for a couple of decent-sized squashy bags. And the new double-bubble lid also improves headroom considerably.

Driving seats don’t come much better than this. They’re leather-clad with a central suede insert for trouser-gripping, and the pronounced side bolstering at shoulder level keeps you firmly anchored during enthusiastic cornering. Viper interiors have come a long way quality-wise since the original 1990 snake.

Don’t expect to see officially-imported Viper Coupes prowling the Bondi beachfront any time soon. But you can bet a few will be converted to Aussie spec before too long. Start raiding the kids’ piggy-banks now.

FAST FACTS Dodge Viper SRT10 Coupe

BODY: two-door coupe DRIVE: rear-wheel ENGINE: front-mounted 8.3-litre 20-valve pushrod V10 POWER: 380kW @ 5600rpm TORQUE: 714Nm @ 4200rpm COMPRESSION RATIO: 9.6:1 BORE X STROKE: 102.4mm x 100.6mm WEIGHT: 1568kg WEIGHT/POWER: 4.13kg/kW SPECIFIC POWER: 45.8kW/litre TRANSMISSION: six-speed manual SUSPENSION: double wishbones, coil springs, anti-roll bar (f & r) L/W/H: 4460/1910/1234mm WHEELBASE: 2509mm TRACK: 1565mm (f); 1547mm (r) BRAKES: 355mm ventilated discs, four-piston calipers (f & r), ABS WHEELS: 18 x 10-inch (f); 19 x 13-inch (r), alloy TYRES: Michelin Pilot Sport ZP; 275/35 ZR18 (f); 345/30ZR19 (r) PRICE: USD83,145