Venomous Bite: Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR-X #blogpost

Introduction

Hello people of CarThrottle! I hope you have had a great December day! Once again it is quite chilly here in the United States. Sadly for me there will be no snow coming soon, which is quite the shame. Got some a few weeks ago, but only an inch or two.

Anyway, if you don’t already know, I love the Dodge Viper; actually, it is my favorite car of all time. And I am sure everyone is familiar with the current Dodge Viper ACR; the one that currently holds an astounding thirteen track records.

But, sadly in 2016, the current generation of the Dodge Viper officially was said to end production. Nevertheless, it has not gone quietly, that is for sure. With five final editions of America’s hand-crafted sports car.

So, what if I told you that, about six years ago - in 2010 - the “last” Dodge Viper editions were rolling off of the line. One of them was a special edition of the ACR: known as the “ACR-X.”

American Club Racer-X

The Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR-X was the “improved and ultimate” edition of the fourth generation Viper ACR.

The ACR-X became official on December 10, 2009, and would go into production in the summer of 2010 as a special edition, non-street legal track car.

Dodge decided to give the ACR-X a unique touch: its own racecar paint job.

The project came with true passion; Ralph Gilles, the President and CEO of Dodge, said it himself.

This project is a result of many years of performance engineering expertise from our SRT team, combined with the passion and dedication of Viper Nation…

The so-called performance said by Mr. Gilles included safety equipment coming from the championship-winning Viper Competition Coupé, such as a factory-designed roll cage, fuel cell, and race seat.

With slight tweaks to the stock ACR aero package, the ACR-X provides up to 1,100 pounds of downforce at 150 miles per hour.

The aero package helps the ACR-X achieve incredible amounts of grip at high speeds, with help from special eighteen-inch-front and nineteen-inch-rear Michelin slicks.

Under the hood contains a 8.4L V10 engine developed by SRT, producing an astonishing 640 horsepower and 605 LB-FT.

The ACR-X’s suspension is both tuned and upgraded specifically for track use, with an additional weight reduction of 160 pounds, cutting the weight from 3,350 to 3,190 pounds.

The cockpit, like any other track-ready racecar, is limited only to a simple cabin, with a single racing seat and harness, no side windows, and a removable Momo steering wheel.

A Snake’s “Farewell”

As you may know, the Dodge Viper has already “died.” Twice actually.

In 2010 in fact, the last so-called Viper rolled off of the production line. Of course, the Viper was reborn just a few years ago - in 2013 known as the SRT Viper GTS - only to stop production in 2016.

The SRT10 ACR-X was not only an improved version of the regular SRT10 Viper ACR, but it was also one of the last Viper models produced.

So with all consideration, the SRT10 ACR-X was quite the way of sending off the Viper name.

Carrying the ACR name, it went on to competing in a special racing series labeled as the Dodge Viper Cup, racing at tracks like Virginia International and Pocono Raceway.

Feedback

The ACR-X was produced with only one goal: to make the ultimate, track-destroying Viper. And it can easily be argued that indeed, the ACR-X succeeded at its goal, with positive reviews.

One of these positive reviews comes from Kuno Wittmer, a SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge driver at the time (he only just recently raced for SRT Viper’s GTLM racing team).

The Dodge Viper ACR-X is incredible… After a short warm up I was running lap times as quick as exotic GT race cars. I was blown away by the power and acceleration, and even more surprised at how the ACR-X navigated the challenging Laguna Seca corners and how friendly it was to drive at the limit.

Wittmer was impressed by the ACR-X’s driving ability. Wittmer continued saying his thoughts on the ACR-X, adding:

All aspects of the car work together perfectly to plant all that horsepower and torque without issue.

Conclusion

The Dodge Viper is often known as one of the greatest American sports cars of all time, with five generations over a course of twenty-five years.

It has been known as many model names; the GTS, GTS-R, TA, GT. But probably the most known is the ACR. After all, the current ACR has a total of thirteen held track records. But the ACR-X is probably the most notable of the lot.

It had the components consisting of racing equipment, with the additional ACR but improved package. The Dodge helped carry the Viper name and legacy to tracks around the globe, by showing the world that the Viper would not go out without a bang.

Thank you for reading this, it is greatly appreciated! Tell me your ideas on this blog. What are your thoughts on the SRT10 ACR-X? What is your favorite Viper? Tell me in the comments!

This is KPS Lucky signing out. Peace.