Let’s be real here, there’s no such thing as a “bad” Viper generation. Back in 1992, if you dropped a cool $52,000 on a new sports car that wasn’t a Corvette, people might raise an eyebrow if they weren’t particularly keen on cars. If you then showed them a V10-powered, bright-red Viper RT/10, they’d probably understand. Such was the impact of the first Viper, a car defined by its exotic lines, spartan features, and utterly unforgiving performance.
Ranking such a car requires one to determine what defines a Viper when compared to other contemporary sports cars. What sort of philosophy did the original design team hold for this beast? The answer rests with none other than Carroll Shelby, a consultant during the earliest concept phases, who partnered with Dodge from 1982-1989. His efforts led to the design archetype of a vehicle which boasted a combination of modern technology in a minimalist implementation, coupled with a large engine mated to a lightweight chassis reminiscent of the Cobra. In a sense, much like the Shelby Cobra, the Viper was simple and raw by design, intended as a rebirth of the true American muscle car following the end of the Malaise Era.
Therefore, this list reflects the adherence to this philosophy which defines the Viper’s character as one of savage, undiluted power in a road car. Power isn’t everything, however, as each model must be usable as an actual regular vehicle as well. So how do each of the generations stack up against each other in this light?
SR I (first generation, 1991-1995)
Ranking the “worst” Viper to own is like ranking the “worst” brick of solid gold.
But the first generation
, as groundbreaking and striking as it is, simply isn’t a very good car and borders on unsafe to drive. True, the thing is essentially simplicity incarnate, with little more than a pair of 335-width rear tires and massive levels of bravery (and/or madness) to keep it pointed down the road under heavy acceleration. An original Viper commands tremendous respect to drive in any spirited manner, a fact well-known to journalists and owners right back to when it first debuted. So if you’re looking for a car that literally hates you, perhaps the only better option might be a
classic turbocharged Porsche
But, if you’re looking for something that can actually be driven around, an original Viper might pose a number of issues. The first and most glaring being that the car doesn’t actually come with window glass. In fact, it comes with rag-top inserts that look like they were cut out of a camping tent, and offers similar levels of visibility. The reason being was that an original Viper doesn’t have any exterior door handles, so you had to reach into the canvas bag of a window to open it up. The low roofline, coupled with the hardtop, did no favors for taller people, either. And, being the earliest model, this Viper was also the least powerful and refined of the bunch, with the 8-liter V10 outputting “just” 400 horsepower, the worst interior ergonomics and quality, and arguably the most difficult to drive. But it’s still a Viper, and therefore incredibly cool despite all that.
ZB I (third generation, 2003-2006)
Overall, this generation represented an earnest, if flawed, attempt to further modernize the Viper. With the original Viper model’s reputation being what it was, Chrysler re-engineered it to be far more road-friendly (but not too much), and finally produced a true convertible without the huge roll hoop. And its hard-statistics only improved this generation as well, now producing 500 horsepower and monstrous levels of acceleration thanks to its sticky 345-width rear tires. This model also featured little in the way of extras, with no cruise control, traction aids, or other assists of any kind apart from airbags and ABS. And it had a tendency to cook the interior with its exhaust. The main issue doesn’t stem from its performance, though, but its styling.
When the third-gen Viper first debuted, it notably lacked that characteristic “punch” of the first and second-generation models. Chrysler lengthened the body by 2.6 inches to accommodate the convertible top and hardened the edges around all of its more prominent features, such as the side vents and bottom grille, along with smoothing out the silhouette’s lines. Coupled with the very distinctive mid-2000s Chrysler interior motif found on many other models, from the PT Cruiser to the Jeep Liberty, and it wasn’t exactly the most visually striking. That said, the extra length, coupled with the wider tires, helped the Viper reign in some of its more notorious characteristics while retaining its ridiculous acceleration (also courtesy of the extra power). Thankfully, most of the changes to the external lines became a thing of the past come 2006 with the debut of the coupe model, which returned the Viper’s classic silhouette.
VX I (fifth-generation, 2013-2017)
This generation marks the
Viper’s final iteration to date
, lasting just five model years and producing the most powerful and refined Viper of all. Its characteristic V10 engine pushed a hearty 640 horsepower, more than a supercharged Corvette ZR-1. However, it lost a lot of the original Viper’s mystique and savagery in achieving this goal. Not to mention, it lost substantial sales numbers as well.
Ultimately, this Viper kind of missed the point. A Viper wasn’t necessarily about outright massive levels of performance, with the original car topping out around 160 miles an hour plus change. Rather, it represented the re-introduction of the unrefined, seat-of-your-pants muscle car, not a full-on supercar. Which is what Chrysler wanted of this generation, marketing it as a high-quality machine marrying world-class performance with premium additions such as traction control, electronic multistage stability control, and a plethora of connectivity extras, among other features.
While this unquestionably improved the Viper’s daily usability, it also meant that a Viper was far less distinguishable on an anatomical level from many other supercars at the time. The main advantages the Viper retained were its (relatively) low price point and raw power figures; neither were enough to convince Chrysler to maintain the model line, nor the public to buy them. The aesthetics certainly marked a high point as well, with the postmodern aggressive lines working fantastically for the Viper’s image. And special models like the ACR and ACR Extreme Aero marked the fastest factory-production Vipers ever, featuring a frankly absurd amount of track-focused capability thanks to advanced aerodynamics and extensive use of lightweight materials. All this simply came at a cost to the Viper’s original design philosophy, for better or worse, depending on who you ask.
ZB II (fourth-gen, 2008-2010)
On the one hand, this is arguably one of the least “Viper-looking” Vipers of any generation, though it did add slick hood vents to make up for the third-gen’s smoothed lines. What really sets this vehicle apart, though, lay under that hood: a re-engineered 8.4L V10 producing a claimed 600 horsepower -– 100 more than the previous year’s initial release. Dodge also modified the exhaust system, eliminating the built-in leg warmer “feature” from the exhaust’s radiant heat. Overall, what defines this generation was Dodge’s commitment to bringing their now-proven track experience into a road car, with marketing focusing heavily on the platform’s outstanding handling and braking characteristics in addition to the extra power. Plus, this marked the introductory year for the ZB-series ACR package, the infamous aerodynamic upgrade which, by some miracle, still manages to be street-legal.
Chrysler introduced this Viper at likely one of the worst timeframes for such a car, skipping three production years: 2007, 2011, and 2012. Chrysler’s financial problems persisted throughout much of the lineup, and they nearly discontinued the Viper because of safety compliance issues, of all things. So, behind the scenes, this marked the lowest point of the Viper’s actual development. Sales also plummeted for this generation as well, going from 8,190 third-gens to just 2,766 fourth-gens finding homes. From 2008 to the end of its production, not a single year witnessed four-digit sales numbers for a Viper again. But that underlies the fact that this generation marked one of the most genuinely outstanding sports cars of the 2000s, period. Just take a look at the utterly obscene capability of the 2010 ACR-X as proof.
SR II (second generation, 1996-2002)
First appearing just before Chrysler merged with Daimler-Benz, this represented the last and ultimate iteration of the original Viper’s body shape and design philosophy. Unlike the first-gen Viper, Chrysler offered this model as a coupe, called the Viper GTS. When someone mentions the name “Viper,” this often remains the first image that comes to mind: the huge hood, two-bubble design, ducktail spoiler, and GTS blue with white stripes. Its successes on-track became legendary, with this generation remaining competitive until the late-2000s. In fact, the racing GTS-R proved so dominant in motorsports and featured so many clever innovations that regulators had to substantially (and controversially) handicap the car through various loopholes and last-minute rule changes.
Basically, while this wasn’t the fastest Viper, it remains the single most pivotal generation of the model line by introducing the world to the Shelby Cobra of the 1990s. Furthermore, it quite literally led regulators to rewrite the rulebook because of its speed. This prestige carried the Viper name off-track as well, with the introduction of the GT2 Championship Edition (commonly called the roadgoing GTS-R) to homologate the car for Le Mans. Naturally, it took class wins at Le Mans as well -– three years in a row.
No other Viper comes close to the international recognition found by the second-gen. Furthermore, this Viper combined the steely, savage performance of the original with the refinement of years of development and racing-inspired tuning, actually making it somewhat competent to drive. As such, this Viper marks the absolute definitive realization of the original vision, coupled with a well-beloved reputation, timeless looks, and the performance to back it all up. While all Vipers are unquestionably outstanding vehicles, this one still remains the best of the best.
