My business partner and racing enthusiast (the one to whom I lent my XKR a couple weeks back to race at Willow Springs) bought a brand new 2014 Viper GTS last night. According to him, the car had a sticker price of approximately $130,000 with all of the options, dealer markups, etc...He bought it for $100,000 including all taxes, registration fees, everything out the door. This represents a purchase price minus the taxes and registrations of a little over $86,000.00! More than $40 grand below the dealer's listed price.

And by the way, this was a brand, new car.

And we thought we had it bad.

 

Dodge lowered the sticker price on all remaining 2013 and 2014's last month by $15,000 for all models, so the reduction is actually $15k less than you would think. Dealers goofed by ordering way too many loaded GTS models, got stuck with them, and are selling them at firesale prices to move them. Complete screw up. Other models aren't being discounted nearly as much. They are definitely an excellent value for those looking for an exotic and rare high performance car.

 

Nissan GT-R, MY14, have been a manufacture cash back discount of $10,000 on top of other dealer incentives to clear the My14s. A new premium GT-R can be bought for $79K-$82. The MY16s will be hitting the dealerships. Nissan GT-Rs are not flying of the dealer lots anymore. I really don't think we have it that bad if we bought smart.

 

I would love a new Viper! So much sexier than a C7 but probably doesn't drive anywhere near as well.

 

On his 80 mile trip home from the dealership in Riverside, CA to the San Fernando Valley, he stopped at my house a few blocks from his to show me the car. His first comment was "it rides like a Mack truck!" But he's only going to be using it for the track and an occasional special outing, so I suppose he can put up with it.

 

Awwwww indeed the XKR drives like a dream . Best car I ever had!

 

He sounds like a great friend who just didn't want you to feel envious...and it worked. He'll put up with it alright, wearing a huge grin on his face all the way! Try not to feel too sorry for him.


Mine's not much stiffer that the XKR in sport mode, a very reasonable and expected tradeoff for the huge difference in performance. It proved to be a comfortable grand tourer on a 10 day long distance road trip with my wife.

 

Viper GTS drives as well as the Stingray on the road, and it's a better track car. But it should be, for the extra cost. Also, with the GTS packaging, you'll also enjoy upgraded interior treatments that rival those in true exotics; the Gen V Vipers are much different than previous generations in these respects.

C7 Stingrays do drive well, on both road and track. I'm very impressed with the technology (and its utility) on these cars, with features like optional rev-matching in manual transmission cars (even though I say it's a crutch). I'm not so sold on the electronic LSD rear diff. On the track, head to head comparing the C6 ZR1 to the C7 Stingray, the ZR1 is preferable -- and not just because of its power advantage.

I think the C7 Z06 will be a great car, and a true competitor to the Viper TA. We live in a golden age, my friends!


Rich

 

As I cannot afford either of these cars, I will have to take your word for it!

 

Rich,
I am not much of a Viper kind of guy, and previous generations made the lackluster interiors of Corvettes look absolutely beautiful in comparison. The Vipers looked like kit cars. However, the new ones are beautifully detailed inside with seats that would shame Ferrari, quite surprising.

The new Corvette's interior and seats are also far better than any previous generation's have been.

Within the next couple of weeks, I'll probably get to drive both of them, maybe on the track. I did pull the Viper into my friend's garage (his wife who drove it home from the clear bra service was afraid to pull in), and one thing I noticed is that the clutch does not engage until approximately the last 1/2" at the top, which I found rather annoying; you let the pedal out more and more and more, and nothing happens till the very end. (As opposed to the Porsche GT3 that I drove a couple of weeks ago in which the clutch engages in the first 1/2" of pedal travel.

But, I do agree, there are lots of great sports car choices out there right now.