ZR1 beats SRT Viper
 

New Viper Loses to Corvette ZR1 in MT Test, SRT Boss Tweets His Frustration
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2012

The current, sixth-generation Corvette is about to be replaced as its all-new successor is just around the corner, being already teased by GM itself and due to break cover at the upcoming Detroit Motor Show next month. It’s about time, too, as the C6 has been around since 2005.
As it’s getting ready to exit the stage, though, another player comes charging in. In fact, it’s the only other car from Detroit that can lay claim to be an American supercar: the all-new SRT Viper.

It would be unfair to the ‘Vette to even think about pitting them against each other, wouldn’t you agree?

Motor Trend apparently doesn’t. It has put the Viper GTS against the Corvette ZR1, its reasoning being that the two cars are very evenly matched, at least on paper.

Let’s see: they both have big-capacity engines with 2 valves per cylinder and a single overhead cam per cylinder bank up front powering the rear wheels via six-speed manual transmissions. The ZR1 is two cylinders short of the Viper’s 10, but it makes up for it thanks to an Eaton supercharger with Behr intercoolers.

The two are separated by just 2HP and 4 lb-ft of torque: the ZR1 makes 638HP and 604 lb-ft and the Viper 640HP and 600 lb-ft. They have an identical weight-to-power ratio of 5.2 pounds per HP and, according to MT’s test data, even post identical 0-60 and 0-100 mph (0-96 and 0-160 km/h) times of 3.4 and 7.3 seconds respectively.

Jonny Lieberman, along with the rest of the MT crew, found out that the Corvette ZR1 trumped the all-new Viper in every respect, including the interior! Despite all the fuss about the Viper being reborn as a much tamer animal, it’s still an animal even with the added traction and stability control, according to the magazine.

Professional race driver and two-time Daytona 24 winner Randy Pobst took the two cars to post some quick lap times around the Laguna Seca circuit.

One way to look at the Viper’s 1:35.77 lap time is that it’s faster than some serious competition like the Ferrari 458 Italia, the Lexus LFA, the Audi R8 GT, the Porsche 911 GT3 RS and the Nissan GT-R.

In the context of the comparison test, though, it’s 2.1 seconds per lap slower...than the outgoing Corvette ZR1. Game, set and match to the Corvette, then.

The story, however, doesn’t end here. SRT boss Ralph Gilles took issue with Motor Trend’s results and vented out his frustration to the social media.

“We’ve tested both cars at several tracks and never seen a gap like that”, he tweeted, adding that “many drivers needlessly fear the Viper”, “there’s a lot more left in the car, Randy has always struggled with the Viper” and “raise your game and you’ll find the last 10 percent”.

In other words, he disputed the lap time and, practically, stopped one tweet short of calling Pobst, Lieberman and the rest not brave enough to drive the Viper as it is meant to be driven.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x0-aK4_5UF...R013_132VP.jpg

Screw Vettes! Vipers for life!!

i would still rather have a viper

ZR-1 is way better styled imo.

The Viper is waay more interesting to look at. Yeah, the ZR1 has a see through hood...but it really doesn't look that different than a Z06...or even a regular C6.

I own a Vette, and they're fantastic cars, but a Viper would be more fun, and are more interesting to look at.

Corvette looks better, Viper just looks bloated.

Atleast until the next generation ZR1, the new viper is simply better, the interior especially. http://stwot.motortrend.com/files/20...e-1024x640.jpg

ZR-1 is still a Vette...you see Vettes everywhere on the road. Viper on the other hand, not as many as Vette.

quoted from the article: "Jonny Lieberman, along with the rest of the MT crew, found out that the Corvette ZR1 trumped the all-new Viper in every respect, including the interior!" :fulloffuck: :derp: .................. :fuckthatshit:

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I remember reading from motortrend that the new viper doesn't have any cup holders. Maybe thats why they dislike the interior lol.

they are comparing a base viper to a top of the line vette... :derp:


now if they compared an ACR viper or GTS-R Viper to a ZR1, pretty sure it'll be a more fair of a match.

base viper would slaughter a base Vette w/ handling pkg

the 'Ring is the only lap times that matter, as per usual, let the company's best test drivers go out there and get the best lap time, then watch as other companies with competing rival cars go out there and try to beat that with their best test drivers. It's the way of teh automotive world

Everything else is irrelevant really because of issues like bias, and certain guys not knowing how to drive certain cars

Acr beat the zr1 on the ring no?
Posted via RS Mobile

I believe you are correct sir.

Nordschleife lap records - FastestLaps.com

The SRT boss is just completely missing the point here -- with practically identical specs on paper, why was Randy Pobst able to drive the ZR1 so much faster? Instead of calling Randy a wuss behind the Viper's wheel, he and his team should really be thinking about why their Viper is not giving Randy the confidence he needs to push the car to its absolute max.

If Randy is willing to take risks in the Viper and get some faster lap times, he can just as easily start taking the same risks in the ZR1 and end up with a faster lap time yet. And then the Corvette would still be ahead.

Could have to do with final build quality, which you can't always judge from a picture.

He might have been referring to the ergonomics and layout of everything. Personally, an interior can be made from egg cartons and razer blades, but if everything is where you expect them to be and are easy to operate, I could care less.

Having driven both a 2006 Viper (I know, not the new, "more refinded" Viper), and a ZR-1 (on street, not track), it is hard to decide which one I would want. The Vette was much much much nicer to drive on the street. Very civilized. The Viper on the other hand needed every drop of concentration I had to drive that beast. It just doesn't want to be tamed.

ZR1 over Viper anyday. The previous generation Viper is definitely a beast, probably one of the last easily accessible purist cars out there.

Viper is probably last of the cars out there that would try to kill you once you hop into it..

MT is a bunch of fools. The fact that they called the interior of the ZR1 "better" than the new Viper is just hilarious.

Look at those slabs of crap in the ZR1 that GM calls seats. It uses the exact same seats the base model Corvette uses. Zero support anywhere. In a 600hp+ car costing upwards of $100k I expect a significantly better interior than that.

they should've hired a meat eater to drive the manly Viper :troll:

yeah ZR-1's interior is piece of shit.

I think it was MotorTrend, when they said that the interior quality of ZR-1 is pretty much the same as Cobalt.