1996 Viper GTS

I just worked on this '96 Viper GTS today and figured I'd post some pics. This thing is awesome. There's only 1800 miles on it. I added six more.



Check out the tube-frame chassis. Built like a race car.

Manly powertrain!

Big meats!

That's awesome! Stuff like that makes me actually want to go into the field, but I've always worried about getting burned out on being a mechanic and hating working on my own stuff and my family's stuff. The searing back pain doesn't help either. But only 6 miles? What was it in for?

Just an inspection and oil change. I put more miles on this car today than the owner did all year.

That's my favorite looking version of the Viper by far, color too!

No sidepipes???

No the sidepipes got axed for a bit due to alot of bad press about owners and mainly testers that would wear shorts in hot weather would burn their legs getting out of it so Dodge went to rear exit for a bit but from what I remember reading about is that a A$$ load of Viper owners were rather upset about it and thats when Dodge switched back.

And Tux all the Ferd Fteenthousand drivers said that for those picks you just grew another ball!

Me gusta mucho Viper del año mil novecientos noventa y seis! I uh, just had to practice some Español right there.

I like the '96 and '97 GTS; they were some good looking cars and undoubtedly designed completely around that drivetrain. Thank you for the pictures.

Tux, mechanic question for you: My uncle had one of those in his shop pre-2000. He told me the front bumper cover alone was the better part of $1000. Is that piece still about a grand or has the cost gone up/down?

Avanti 63r1025 wrote:Me gusta mucho Viper del año mil novecientos noventa y seis! I uh, just had to practice some Español right there.

I like the '96 and '97 GTS; they were some good looking cars and undoubtedly designed completely around that drivetrain. Thank you for the pictures.

Tux, mechanic question for you: My uncle had one of those in his shop pre-2000. He told me the front bumper cover alone was the better part of $1000. Is that piece still about a grand or has the cost gone up/down?

http://moparonlineparts.com/repair-parts/dodge/viper/1996/front-bumper/bumper-components/bumper-cover/

MSRP $2030 for the cover, but you can buy it for only $1748!

That's not the "Official" Mopar site, rather a dealer's, but it should be accurate enough. Perhaps Tux can share the actual link to the Mopar Parts store. I cannot remember it. It's not the eStore, it's seperate, but I haven't used it in a while...

Sim, you're right on the money. I just checked with the parts dept. and it's $2030 primered. So, you still need to have it painted and installed. The parts catalogue that we use is protected by Chrysler. So, you need an active SID and password to use it. Sorry, I can't share as it's proprietary.

TuxTshirt wrote:Sim, you're right on the money. I just checked with the parts dept. and it's $2030 primered. So, you still need to have it painted and installed. The parts catalogue that we use is protected by Chrysler. So, you need an active SID and password to use it. Sorry, I can't share as it's proprietary.

Right, I didn't mean that one. Sorry. There is a Mopars site that anyone can access that has factory parts and collision parts. It's not the eStore, but it was a Mopar run site - I wasn't the accessory site either. I used it to get the parts to add the ITBC (Integrated Trailer Brake Controller) to my 2010 Ram. I think they have a kit now, but they didn't then...

Ah, figured it out... It was parts.Mopar.com, but now it redirects to the eStore.

Ex US Squid wrote:No the sidepipes got axed for a bit due to alot of bad press about owners and mainly testers that would wear shorts in hot weather would burn their legs getting out of it so Dodge went to rear exit for a bit but from what I remember reading about is that a A$$ load of Viper owners were rather upset about it and thats when Dodge switched back.

And Tux all the Ferd Fteenthousand drivers said that for those picks you just grew another ball!

Pretty sure you can still burn the crap out of yourself with this model. As you can see from the pics the pipes still run in nearly the same location in the side skirts. If I remember right i drove one almost identical to the one pictured and burned my leg getting out of it... in my defense it was my first time in a viper.

Yes, Sorta is correct. The exhaust still runs behind the side sills, but it turns inboard behind the driver and exits out the back. And, yes, it is HOT in the car. I had my leg against the side getting out, but I had my starchy work pants on, so it was only a little warm on my skin. If I was wearing shorts, I may have been burned. My hand touched the side when I was setting it up on the lift and it was still pretty hot.