Tuesday, December 24, 2024
Dodge

Why the 2016 Dodge Viper ACR Kicks Butt

Image Credit: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
Image Credit: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

SCCA Says 2016 Viper ACR Holds More Track Records

SCCA has certified that the new 2016 Dodge Viper ACR holds more track records than any other production car in the world according to Tim Kuniskis, Head of Passenger Car Brands – Dodge, SRT, Chrysler and FIAT, FCA – North America. And you could pretty much just stop right there, right? From the factory, right out of the box, with nothing needed to add-on, the Viper ACR turns the quickest lap times on record at places like Laguna Seca, Road Atlanta, and Virginia International Raceway for a production car. But the real kick-butt is that it’s still street legal.

Ultimate Aerodynamics

The 2016 Dodge Viper ACR sports a standard front splitter, dive planes and a 1,776 mm-wide adjustable, dual element rear wing which provides 1,101 pounds of downforce at 150mph and 1,533 pounds of downforce at 177 mph top speed. Also available is what Dodge calls the “Extreme Aero Package”, which produces the highest aerodynamic downforce of any production car. During on-track testing, this upgrade produced downforce numbers in excess of 1,200 pounds at 150 mph and 1,700 at 177 mph top speed.

The Extreme Aero Package includes a huge (1,876-mm wide) adjustable dual-element rear wing, unique SRT hood with removable louvers, detachable extension for the front splitter and four dive planes. The Extreme Aero rear wing, specifically designed for airflow around the Viper’s body, stands taller, sits further rearward and features unique end-plates and gurney lip to produce maximum downforce while minimizing straight line drag. The Extreme Aero Package delivers more than three times the downforce of the Viper TA 2.0 Package.

645HP and More Torque Than Any Naturally Aspirated Production Car Engine

Under the hood of the 2016 Dodge Viper ACR is the handcrafted, all-aluminum 8.4-liter V-10 overhead-valve engine, rated at 645 horsepower and 600 lb.-ft. of torque – the most torque of any naturally aspirated sports-car engine in the world. Special exhaust tips have been added to the side-mounted exhaust pipes to provide reduced exhaust pressure. Power reaches the pavement through the standard Tremec TR6060 six-speed manual transmission.

All of that power is translated tot he pavement through Kumho® Ecsta V720 high-performance tires designed specifically for the Viper ACR with unique tread pattern and compounds for front and rear. In testing, the new tires produce lap times that are 1.5 seconds faster than off-road-only race tires. Low-profile front tires measure 295/25/19 and are mounted on 11-inch wide wheels and when combined with the 355/30/19 rear tires provide the largest combined tire patch available on any production car. On the sidewall of the new tires is a unique raised ACR logo to top things off.

The Viper ACR’s ABS and five-mode Electronic Stability Control system (Full-on, Sport, Track, Rain, Full-off modes) are specifically tuned for the car to take into account the extra grip offered by the extreme aerodynamic and tire package. Aluminum bodied, double-adjustable coil-over Bilstein race shocks are designed specifically for the Viper ACR and work in conjunction with ride height adjustment for optimal control of weight transfer and handling performance. The suspension package also provides more than 3 inches of ride height adjustment. With unique race alignment and 1.4 degrees more negative camber than the entry SRT model, the 2016 Dodge Viper ACR is capable of sustaining more than 1.5 g on high-speed turns.

What do you think of the new Viper ACR? Drop us a comment below and tell us what you think.

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Speedmeister

I'm one of those guys that "talks about cars too much", the history, design and engineering, I can go on forever. I finally decided blogging might be a better outlet for my obsession than dinner dates. I enjoy learning, sharing and, of course, driving!

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