Awesome pic of #53 during qualifying from Speedhunters
Monthly Archives: June 2013
SRT Viper GTS-Rs Complete Qualifying at 2013 Le Mans
Both SRT Viper GTS-Rs completed yesterday’s qualifying session successfully and now the starting order for Saturday’s race is confirmed. The cars are competing in the LM GTE Pro class. The No. 53 SRT Viper GTS-R will take the 10th spot on the grid and the No. 93 will take the 11th spot. Go Mopar! More at DriveSRT
SRT Viper GT3-R in France
Here are some pics of the Viper being unloaded from its trans-Atlantic flight, followed by its official unveiling inside the SRT display space at Le Mans. We can’t get enough of this awesome new Mopar! More pics after the jump! Via SRT
Movie Mopar of the Week: 1974 Dodge Monaco from The Blues Brothers
The Challenger from Vanishing Point might be the most famous movie Mopar to Mopar folks, but The Blues Brother’s 1974 Dodge Monaco might just be the most famous movie Mopar ever. And it definitely made the 440 famous! “It’s got a cop motor, a 440-cubic-inch plant. It’s got cop tires, cop suspension, cop shocks. It’s a model made before catalytic converters so it’ll run good on regular gas.” They used a total of 13 cars during the shoot, which has some of the best chase scenes ever. Like the famous mall chase scene after the jump!
Best Sleeper? 1989-1990 Dodge Caravan Turbo
Yahoo Autos recently published a list of “5 Killer Sleeper Cars” and one of them was the 1989 -1990 Dodge Caravan Turbo, which was available with a 2.5-liter turbo four banger and a five-speed manual. With 12 psi of boost, these grocery getters could run a 12 second quarter mile. In fact, I have video of one doing just that after the jump!
Crazy Pro Touring Gremlin at Schwartz Performance
How about a pro touring AMC Gremlin? That’s what the guys at Schwartz Performance in Woodstock, Illinois are building. According to Bangshift, the green Gremlin “will keep AMC power with a gnarly suspension, huge brakes, and a power to weight ratio guaranteed to humiliate lots of more expensive and “cool” stuff.” More pics after the jump and click over to Bangshift to see the full gallery from the shop tour.
SRT Viper GT3-R
SRT unveiled the Viper GT3-R at Le Mans this week. This competition-only package is eligible to compete in FIA GT3, United SportsCar Racing GT Daytona, Pirelli World Challenge GT, NARRA and SCCA/NASA and can be yours for just $459,000. Which is chump change when you consider the fact that the engine, chassis, suspension, electronics and aerodynamics are practically right out of the GTS-R GTE class car in the 2013 24 Hours of Le Mans and the American Le Mans Series. The GT3-R is powered by the Viper V-10 race engine, which puts out 680-horsepower and 640-lb.-ft. of torque, and gears are shifted with a Xtrac 6-speed paddle shift. SRT is taking orders now for a late 2013 delivery. Tons more pics after the jump! Via SRT
Dodge Death Story Won’t Go Away
In the last 24 hours there have been posts on the Dodge death story by both Jalopnik and Autoblog. But they both point back to that same Ward’s article. Funny how the news cycle works, isn’t it? Ok, so if all the minivans go to Chrysler and the Durango and Avenger go away, that still leaves Challenger, Charger, Dart and Journey. I don’t know. To paraphrase Mark Twain, I’d say the reports of Dodge’s death have been greatly exaggerated. Still, at some point someone from Chrysler is going to have to come forward and say something. Ralph?
A Brief History of the Viper at the 24 Hours of Le Mans
The Viper GTS-R made its first appearance at Le Mans back in 1996. Running in the GT1 class, it completed all 24 hours of the race and finished eighth in class and 10th overall. Viper returned in 1997 in the GT2 class. This time it didn’t go so well. Two Vipers crashed and the other two did not finish. But when the Viper team returned again in 1998, they won the GT2 class. And in 1999 they won the GTS class–and also took second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth in class. They won the GTS class again in 2000, which was their last appearance until their return this weekend. More at DriveSRT.com
Sox and Martin Collector Series Hemi ‘Cuda
This photo shoot was done back in 2010 to promote the Sox and Martin Collector Series Hemi Cuda built by Mr. Norm’s Garage in conjunction with Diane Sox, but it is so ridiculously awesome I’m dropping it here. That ’68 S S&M Hemi Barracuda is amazing. More pics after the jump! Via Autoblog
