Detroit to Vegas (and back) in a 2016 Viper ACR

"Josh Welton" (watchtheprettylight)
12/01/2015 at 08:10 • Filed to: Road Trip, 2016 Viper ACR, Viper, SRT, Dodge, Josh welton, brown dog welding

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The 2016 Viper ACR is mostly a burnt offering to the Gods of Speed and Violence, with few concessions to mortal man. It’s an iron fist in a carbon fiber glove. Developmental time was spent entirely on the track and in the wind tunnel; not a single second was afforded to street manners. Noise, Vibration,and Harshness are flaunted, badges of honor earned in battle. It’s a monster built to destroy lap times, not devour highway miles.

So of course I wanted to drive it from Detroit to Las Vegas and back.

“Have you ever been loaned a supercar before?”

“No. Um... I did take a rental Sonic !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! earlier this year!”

Dodge was trying to figure out who this kid was, and why he was asking for the keys to their $140k atomic warhead.

I’m a welder and an !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! from Detroit. Since undergoing a series of major arm surgeries the last 3 years, I’ve also been doing some traveling and writing.

Dodge and SRT do an outstanding job of making you believe they’re equal parts antihero and mad scientist, cooking up middle fingers to boring in the forms of burnout machines and track day weapons.

Turns out it’s not an act. They like to party. They have a sense of adventure and appreciate mine.

With this trajectory my hope is to be on Mars piloting a lunar rover by March.

“Whooooeee!!! Sure is a nice car.”

“Thank you, sir.” Possessing a 14 gallon fuel tank and aero designed to push down paired with a V10 built to push through, the ACR falls under the “passes everything but a gas station” header. By Kansas I was just taking ownership of the car unless the conversation went beyond an initial compliment.

“Wut-chall doing with this thing?”

Mike was a through and through Marlboro Man, from the well-worn cowboy hat atop his head, to his pearl snap shirt to the faded Wranglers and the square tip boots on his feet. He and his boy Charlie were enthralled by the winged monster at the gas pump.

“Well, we’re on our way to Las Vegas for the SEMA show.” I explained.

Mike glanced at the Michigan M-plate.

“Why didn’t y’all just fly?”

“I like to drive cross country.”

The quizzical look on his frayed face turned to a smile as he nodded towards his Peterbilt. “Well then there yeah go!”

“Nah, the car is more my style. I’d be up for a little Bandit action though!”

Charlie seemed to have a better idea of what the car is than most folks we’d run across, but instead of asking questions he just soaked it in, happy enough with a close encounter. My co-pilot Ken returned from inside the station with a bounty of sugar in both drink and snack forms; we wrapped up the friendly small talk, shook hands, and parted ways. Slinking into the car I watched Mike, Charlie, and whom I assumed to be their family load into his semi. They must see a bit of everything in their travels.

Wait...did Mike and Charlie just kidnap a lady and her children?

Photo/ Matt Trombley

Road tripping with a friend can be tricky. An extended string of days in close quarters lends itself to a certain amount of stress, of tension. Ken Cox and I have performed the feat a number of times. Talking is easy, it’s knowing when silence is ok, that’s the thing. “Never miss a good chance to shut up,” as Will Rogers would say.

This would be a 5,050 mile trek through the Midwest flatlands, the Rocky Mountains, the Nevada desert. Considering 2 of the last 3 years I’ve run into snow on the trip just added a little “WTF” to the scheme.

“When we were told what you wanted to do I thought ‘he’s crazy’…

…but an awesome idea. Let’s do it.”

That was Jeff Reece, Viper Vehicle Integration Engineer. A fancy title befitting of an important job: he makes sure all the different aspects of the car work in harmony. He’s been with the Viper program since 1995, which includes traveling 5 years in a row to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. I met with Jeff and another engineer, Oscar Mittelstaedt, for an informal walk around the car as I took delivery.

Oscar was the man in charge of NVH for the Viper program, AKA he was bored as hell messing with the ACR. “All I had to do was make sure the exhaust passed noise regulations. It is right on the edge. We hit the number and I said ‘shut ‘er down, we’re good!’”

The Adrenaline Red car with offset black stripes had the Extreme Aero option.

“We put it in ‘street mode’ for you.”

There’s already the front splitter. Then there’s the Extreme front splitter, attached via a handful of fasteners and a couple of aluminum struts, which is designed to be a track-use consumable. As is the prodigious rear diffuser with its six carbon fiber strakes; in and out of turns both ends rub the asphalt. For my trip the extra front piece was gone. The rear strakes were there, but shorter versions. Dual dive planes per side, and brake louvers in place. The infamous X-wing was set to its least downforce-y position. Double adjustable Bilsteins, with 10 settings each for rebound (red) and bounce (blue), were set at 1/1 in the front and 1/2 in the rear, or as soft as possible. Basically, you know…Cadillac Mode.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

Harnessing a fire-breathing dragon to fly around town would have drawn less attention than piloting the ACR in all its winged glory through rainy rush hour traffic. No sooner I’d driven 30 miles than the local Mopar Facebook page was posting pics of me sitting at a light.

Before our departure Thursday night I headed down to Detroit’s Eastern Market to snag a few pics (and a pizza pie from Supino’s). A bit of a romantic, I learned my trade in the city and was not going to not cruise the only Detroit-built supercar around Detroit. Backing up to cool wall done by Luke Chueh, I was immediately surrounded.

A handful of kids from Nashville (there to scope out the street art) were drawn to the ACR, dogs to a bone. Non “car people” who had zero idea what they were checking out but understanding that it was something special. They asked if they could take pictures of the car…of course! They asked if I could take pictures of them looking like gangsters in front of the car…sure, why not.

Kenny’s roommate Matt Trombley is another friend, and he’s done this journey with me before. His buddy Patrick Hoey heard I’d commandeered the ACR, and himself gained access to the notorious ’15 Viper GT that Roadkill “destroyed.” Turns out they’re pretty hard to kill. Matt and Patrick headed out with us from Detroit on Thursday night.

A few mates who’d tracked the ACR warned me about the noise. Maybe it was my tinnitus, but the 8.4L V10’s “on the edge of legal” exhaust drone was never a bother. To be fair, there is that helium sucking tornado siren hardwired to my brain, courtesy almost 2 decades of factory life. Lightweight carpet, no sound deadening, an already obstreperous machine even less refined…Probably yes, it was my tinnitus. Sterling Archer has nothing on me.

It was almost midnight when we stopped at Anthony Busack’s place just outside of Indianapolis. Anthony is a gearhead and all around good guy; Matt and Kenny met him on this year’s Hot Rod Power Tour where he was rocking his 500rwhp LSX-powered first gen Camaro.

Anthony and his wife Kristy didn’t just leave the lights on for us, they broke out the booze and Funyuns. After several hours of snacking and drinking and debating things like GT350 versus Camaro SS and how Dostoevsky’s worldview in the late 19th century is relevant to our contemporary society, we wandered to various corners of the house for a few hours of sleep.

Morning came and Mr. Busack wanted to roll with us for a bit, so we followed his Camaro to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. As the fellas were composing their shots, I tried to steer clear of their lenses, bumbling around until I struck up a conversation with a gentleman there to visit the Speedway’smuseum. Turns out we’d both worked for General Dynamics, he in munitions and myself in Land System’s prototype shop. Dude was a fan of the ACR, and familiar with the SEMA show.

“You’re going to SEMA...don’t most guys trailer their cars?”

“It’s not in the show. I’m a sculptor; I’ll have work displayed in the art exhibit. So I asked Dodge if I could drive it to the show.”

(Looks at ACR, pauses.)“You must be a hell of a sculptor.”

Photographs captured for posterity, we bid farewell to Anthony and hit the road hard, traveling westward on I-70.

“Are you going to track it?” Negative, ghostrider. Everything you’ve read about the ACR up until now has been a road course review. Nobody, save Road & Track for their PCOTY contest, was allowed to street it. But in front of me was the open highway, the mountains, the desert.

I didn’t need the track.

Some joked about the car’s harshness, that I’d be pissing blood and needing a week in traction for spinal repairs upon return. Others postured that the car requires too much attention; the brain drain alone would put a damper on such a trip in such a car.

You’re all soft.

The asymmetrical KumhoV720 ACRs were specifically designed for this car, for it’s aggressive camber, for the massive downforce. Staggered 295/25/19s and 355/30/19s provide the largest contact patch of any production car. Despite their 200(cough-cough) treadwear rating, Jeff cautioned me sticky compounds like these don’t play by ordinary tire rules (“Below 45* they could harden and get slick. Below freezing they might crack.“). And the wider the tires, the more likely they turn into water skis (“It’ll handle rain, but any standing water and you’ll hydroplane.”). Snow is a no-go. These are, for all intents and purposes, race tires.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

By Friday afternoon the clouds had properly let loose. 5th gen Vipers have a “Rain” ESC mode, and it is outstanding. The GT took the lead as water coming off the X-wing destroyed the visibility of everything in its wake. After picking through Kansas City traffic we bulldozed the storm until halting somewhere in western Kansas for the night.

Preceded by so much Boring, USA, that first glimpse of the mountains always stirs my soul. “Awesome” stops being an overused adjective and starts becoming an appropriate baseline statement. With the Rockies in site, our duo headed southwest off I-70. We dipped and dived through one stoplight towns and eventually Colorado Springs before hooking up with US Route 50 West.

Weather was finally decent, mid-60s and dry. Roads were unraveling into the hills. I was able to hit the go pedal and have fun with the thing that, on the track, can easily sustain 1.5 Gs in turns.

The Saturday afternoon cruisers ahead weren’t going ruin it for me. I may or may not have passed one or two or four of them in a single shot, screaming around bend after bend until realizing I’d put a bit of distance on our traveling party. I slid onto a dirt pull-off above the oddly placed Arkansas River.

When Patrick and Matt showed up a minute later, Patrick wasn’t super thrilled. “Well, now I can’t use that GoPro footage because you just [insert the description of the things I did when I took off that may or may not have been “technically illegal” here].”

“You realize you flew by a DNR officer, yeah?”

Thinking in terms of right and wrong is insufficient. This car is the Übermensch, everything else is “something to surpass.” It sits squarely outside the arbitrary rules and regulations of man. You will never come close to touching the ACR’s upper limits outside of a track. “Caution, 45MPH Curve” lit up on yellow signs seemed like odd suggestions. No Passing Zones failed to compute. Nietzsche would have been first in line to place an order with a One of One dash plaque reading “God is Dead.” Because he had, you know…a sense of humor.

A dirt covered off-road and zombie apocalypse ready F150 owned by the DNR pulled in behind us.

Zach was the District Wildlife Manager for the area, and Mopar nut. Needless to say he was stoked.

“How fast did you get it up to right there?”

“Uh…you mean hypothetically?”

I gave him the number. He grinned.

My man was loaded for bear. And “by bear” means an impending invasion by a foreign military. 1911 pistol on his side, an AR-15 in the truck and everything between within reach.

Our crew chatted with him a bit about the trip overall and our plans for the day. The big yellow thing was dropping. As fate would have it Zach could escort us to an out of the way plateau where the photogs could grab some spectacular Viper still life at sunset.

Photo/ Matt Trombley

He also gave me some hand scratched directions for a few “fun” roads on our way west, but it was dusk and I needed to be in Vegas the next night. While the other two looked for another photo-op, Kenny and I jetted on.

The ACR is an extension of your reflexes. Things happen almost before you’re conscious of them. It’s like a Kaij fighting Jaeger-bot, where the machine is tapped into your brain and reacts based on your thoughts as well as your actions.

Deer. BRAKES. I stared a doe eyeball to eyeball that night as it stood no farther than two inches in front of the Viper’s front splitter. We took a second to acknowledge each other with the unspoken bond that comes from worshiping at the altar of the 1500mm worth of carbon ceramic brakes sitting between us. And then we parted ways.

Growing up in West Michigan, close encounters of the wildlife kind was a routine occurrence. Hell, I once killed an eight-point buck with a’94 Z28. The surge of adrenaline that always follows those incidents and near misses was strangely absent this time. Despite being on top of us before I saw it, there was no drama. Just apply brakes and stop.

This was my 5th year attending SEMA, 4th as an invited artist. 7 of us made up the show’s Art Walk: Max Grundy, Jeff Allison, Ed Tillrock, Bomonster, James Owens, Tom Fritz...and me. A brilliant bunch of which I was honored to be a part.

From the outside looking in, you only get a glimpse at the obscene, the shit built to be that shiny thing that draws cameras to their corner of the show. The reality is, no matter the automotive niche you favor, there will be something for you. Monster trucks to mini trucks, drift cars to lowriders, kustoms to hot rods. Exotics, Top Fuel dragsters, TV famous street racers, rock crawlers, tuners, resto-mods, pro-streeters, and numbers matching restorations. OEM skunkwerk projects, the big name shops’ latest and greatest and garage built beauties. Every aftermarket company is represented from go fast goodies to off-road gear. Tool manufacturers, 3D printers, fabrication and paint equipment suppliers, they’re all there. 90% of anyone who is anyone in the automotive world gets to Vegas for at least a day of SEMA.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

At Mopar’s presser on Wednesday Dodge/SRT CEO Tim Kuniskis announced that, on the track, the ACR had made a clean sweep. 13 tracks, 13 production car records, the latest of which being Laguna Seca where it had just days before annihilated Porsche’s 918 lap by 11 car lengths. The actual car, still filthy from it’s conquest, was in their display. On it was 13 stickers representing the 13 tracks. Standing next to Mark Trostle, head of design for Dodge and SRT, during the reveal, I nudged him: “You guys should probably add a sticker of I-70.”

It was kinda fun knowing my daily driver for the week had just run roughshod over a million dollar, 900hp hypercar and all else in its wake at every track where it turned a wheel in anger. (“Did I just see the ACR in general parking on my way in?” “Uh, yeah. Where else would it be?”)

Friday post show there was a parade of everything that ran under its own power. They left the Las Vegas Convention Center and ended up either cruising the Strip, loading into a trailer, or in a giant parking lot where there was an after party called SEMA Ignited. The latter was neat, if not a little Fast and Furious-ish. Organizers parked the imports together, the exotics together, the off-road trucks with each other, the muscle cars in a group, and so on and so forth. There was a drift exhibition, a handful of front engine dragsters that lit up, food trucks, and multiple stages with music acts.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

At some point a RX-7 showed off its flame shooting skills. That led a few guys to fire up their rides and, without allowing their engines to warm, they just revved the hell out of them (“Why do you hate your engine??” new friend Adamo was screaming at a dude pegging his M3). It was a weird contagious thing that spread like syphilis through barracks. A row of Mustangs got in on the clown act and pushed their cold cars to redline. Then, burnouts. A hot rod with line lock spewed smoke and rubber every which way. One of the Mustangs followed suit. Considering the gathering horde it was a small coup nobody died.

The next morning Kenny and I left Sin City and pointed the needle back towards Detroit. Weather was going to be a bit of a factor; Flagstaff, part of the (typically) safer southern route, had just gotten dumped on with snow. A cursory look at the forecast showed the I-15 to I-70 course was our best bet.

Photo/ Ken Cox

We were in Utah, sifting through some light weekend traffic, when it became congested due a panic over a police car sighting. The SUV in front of me slammed on his brakes as we went by the cop. A glance in the review mirror and… Charger pulls out. I was already slowing down and getting over by the time the blue and red flashed.

“Can I see your license and papers? Where are you guys heading?”

“Detroit. Can I ask why you pulled me over?”

“You were tailgating.”

“Well, Yeah. The guy slammed on his brakes when he saw you!”

“The Escalade? Yeah, he did. Actually—- I was looking for you.”

“Uh…oh…”

“I’m not here to argue with you, the tailgating just gave me a reason for the stop. An off-duty officer called ahead and…”

“Ooooh”

“Like I said, I’m not going to argue with you. The off-duty officer said he was pacing you at well over [redacted] miles an hour.”

“Understood.”

“I’m sure it’s hard not to go fast in a car like this. And I’m sure you’ll open it up again between here and Detroit….Be safe.”

And that was it. A two-minute stop, new record for me.

I think about death every now and then. Everyone dies, but it’s what you do up to that final breath that defines you. I’ve always hoped to achieve a sort of immortality—-to leave a worth while legacy, through my words, my work, my art.

The Dodge Viper might die in 2017, although I’ve been around the industry long enough to know nothing is ever written in stone. I was asked about the Viper’s future a bunch on this trip. Here’s the thing: What does a potential production stop in two years have to do with this car? Whether or not there’s another generation, this car is a thing that Dodge, and Detroit, can be proud of sharing with the world. I didn’t have a blast driving a 2018 Dodge Viper ACR 5k miles across 10 states and back, I had a blast driving a 2016 Dodge Viper ACR 5k miles across 10 states and back.

We humanize cars, talk about them as living, breathing things. But they’re steel, aluminum, carbon fiber. They don’t leave a legacy. They ARE the legacy. The ‘16 ACR, what it is, what it has accomplished, what it will accomplish, is part of a tangible nuts and bolts benefaction from car guys like Ralph Gilles, Tim Kuniskis, Mark Trostle, and Jeff Reece. How cool is it that we live in an age where hot rod guys get to build hot rods at an OEM level? The Ford GT, the Focus RS, the GT350R, the Z/28, the Z07, the Hellcat, the ACR; Detroit is crafting their legacy right now.

Four Thousand Revolutions Per Minute. Dump clutch. Wide Open Throttle. Hold on. Rear kicks out just enough to keep things interesting. Get angry and pull the shifter into 2 nd POP POP POP! Those 10 cylinders echo in your bones. Curse and slam it into 3 rd POP POP POP! Objects in rear view mirror, X-wing excluded, appear smaller.

Smile.

DISCUSSION (100)

JKER > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 08:30

Much like a Ferrari will attract women, a Dodge Viper ACR attracts DNR officers with big guns. That’s my takeaway.

bob and john > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 08:33

I’m not really that much of an american car guy. I much prefer the precision of the japanese and the elegance and engineering of the europeans.

that said. i want this. this is ULTIMATE of brash, in your faces, GTFO of my way, and absolute power.

AND I FUCKING ADORE IT. WING OF GOD AND ALL

f86sabre > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 08:40

Thank you for sharing that. You’ve pretty much described what many here try to do, or aspire to do, as much as possible. Fun car, fun friends, fun roads and fun destinations.

It is amazing how close they kept the ACR to the race cars. I think Dodge understands how important what they did at Le Mans and in the ALMS was. It’s cool that they brought as much of that as they could to the street.

Kinja'd!!!

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 08:41

Haha. You got so lucky with the cops. Sounds like an epic trip though.

vondon302 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 08:47

Great write up. I wondered what happened to you. Read about your start then didn’t see anything. Guess I should follow you on twitter. I met you once at auto rama (michigan guy too) and yes you are one hell of sculpter and welder.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 08:51

Fantastic article. If I won the lottery, I’d go buy an ACR right away, just based on your stories.

I grew up in a GM household, my dad is as diehard as they come, and while I’ve owned several makes, I still consider myself a GM guy. But back in 1992, when I was 8, my dad took me to a local Dodge dealer to see the first Viper in our area. It was roped off in the center of the show room, but even if it wasn’t, I knew it was something special. One of the salemen actually opened the velvet rope and let me sit in it. Ever since that I’ve had a special spot in my heart for the Viper.

Josh Welton > f86sabre
12/01/2015 at 08:51

Yes! We all just want to have some fun behind the wheel.

#noboringcars

Josh Welton > vondon302
12/01/2015 at 08:53

Haha thanks!

Josh Welton > Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
12/01/2015 at 08:56

When I posted that on Instagram the location (Beaver, UT) popped up. I immediately had a half dozen people that said speeding through Beaver is a no-no. Definitely lucked out.

Josh Welton > Snuze: Needs another Swede
12/01/2015 at 08:59

We need more people who are keen to let the kids explore the machines.

TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts. > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 09:09

Thank you for sharing this, reading this made a rainy day less dreary.

I love the ACR, something about the ludicrously of the car makes you just want to do burnouts while blasting pantera.

Josh Welton > TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts.
12/01/2015 at 09:15

Yes!

450X_FTW > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 09:17

This is art. Needs to be SRT’s homepage

Kinja'd!!!

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 09:27

Agreed. A little rivalry is fun, but all the fan boy pissing contests are a waste of time. There are so many interesting, fun, cool, and quirky rides out there, why limit yourself to just one make?

Josh Welton > Snuze: Needs another Swede
12/01/2015 at 09:31

My thoughts exactly.

TractorPillow > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 09:37

Thanks for writing this up. I was worried you never would after reading your teaser. I love all things Viper and am excited for how much fun it looks like you had fun. I too had a cop pull me over just to be nice when I was going a [redacted] speed as well in my much older Viper.

Hopefully you can get your hand on some more cars. Enjoyed the write up.

Josh Welton > TractorPillow
12/01/2015 at 09:42

Thanks for taking the time to read it!

StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 09:58

Kinja'd!!!

God you took some great pictures. Desktop worthy.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 10:11

Another amazing article !

What you lack for in quantity you make up for 10 fold in quality. I could read these all day!

I starred it before reading it since I had no doubt in my mind it would be worthy.

There is very few things in life that make me jealous. Vipers & and people that can tig weld like a boss would be two of those things.

MonkeePuzzle > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 10:18

that was a great read, you write as well as you weld :D

Kinja'd!!!

TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts. > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 10:19

It’s like listening to Beethoven’s 5th symphony preformed by an orchestra of heavy machinery...

gin-san - shitpost specialist > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 10:26

This is a really cool trip, thanks for your article! The pics that were taken were very nice, too. A trip like this is something I really want to do in the future, even if it’s with a car that has a fraction of the speed/power, although it seems like the car got you out of trouble with police rather than into it.

Out of curiosity I had to look up the Kumho tire you mentioned and I see what you mean about hitting standing water - it'd be like running at a body of water with a surfboard. It's pretty crazy and really cool at the same time, that such a tire is road legal.

Josh Welton > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
12/01/2015 at 10:31

Thank you, most definitely appreciate the kind words.

Hopefully this will open doors to do more!

Josh Welton > gin-san - shitpost specialist
12/01/2015 at 10:34

They performed above what I anticipated for the conditions we ran into. Dodge actually replaced them half way through (better safe than sorry), but the tech said they sill looked good.

FCA was extremely concerned about the sub freezing temps I experienced, but the rubber stayed soft throughout.

StingrayJake > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 10:46

You mean the Z06? (In next to last paragraph.)

Just kidding, man. Great read. Loved it. Wish Viper was still racing.

StoneColdSteveErkel > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 11:42

Kinja'd!!!

Yes it is!

Xyl0c41n3 > bob and john
12/01/2015 at 11:44

I’m not really that much of an american...

That’s because you’re Canadian! :P

Raymundo > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 11:56

A whimsical read with great photography. Thank you for sharing this adventure with us. Now to go back through it all and revisit the photos. :)

mtdrift > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:00

Great stuff, Welton. I’ve never really seen the appeal of Vipers - I respect them, but they’ve always failed to get my blood boiling.

This story, however, makes me proud to be an American. Viva los Vipers!

LeasedCVT > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:01

Great writing, thanks.

SlowerTrafficKeepRight > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:01

Awesome.

shieldsdb > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:02

It was kinda fun knowing my daily driver for the week had just run roughshod over a million dollar, 900hp hypercar and all else in its wake at every track where it turned a wheel in anger.

Why America is so fucking awesome!

cazzyodo > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:03

Every time, man.

Every. Damn. Time.

Kinja'd!!!

Love your write-ups and pics.

SlowerTrafficKeepRight > MonkeePuzzle
12/01/2015 at 12:04

whoa

plainnottoasted > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:05

“Why do you hate your engine??” new friend Adamo was screaming at a dude pegging his M3.

Jesus. Last year there was fancy looking E46 that had the teenager treatment dead on the street for 3 days across from my work during a week where temps hadn’t gotten above freezing. On the 4th day I saw him getting a jump, and when it fired, I watched in horror as he bounced it off the rev limiter every 10 seconds for as long as it took me to walk from the corner the block into my office.

I was surprised the thing didn’t just die.

Peptide > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:06

Thanks for for writing this, Josh...it was a great read. These things are just pure fun...

MoparMap > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:09

This car still gives me shivers whenever I look at them. I’ll don my flak jacket and fire suit, but even though I like the looks of the gen 4 version more, the utterly insane performance you get in the gen 5 ACR is awe inspiring. I love my lowly little gen 3 and don’t think I could ever give it up, even for a new ACR. It’s my daily driver and my favorite because it’s mine. I just need the money and parking space for both, lol.

Cory Stansbury > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:14

What was the wear like at half distance? I understand the insurance policy mentality of replacing (shockingly cheap for that size) tires vs. you/Viper ACR after a wreck, but if you were just driving around town for a summer, how much more life do you think they had?

BTW, incredible article. No way I could stop reading once I started.

Bill Cool > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:16

Kinja'd!!!

Illegal Machine > 450X_FTW
12/01/2015 at 12:18

It’s a nice shot, but the steering wheel needs to be turned the other way, so we see the face of the rim, and not as much tire tread.

Mark Jacob > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:19

Josh, on the off chance you are ever in Wilmington, NC - PLEASE let me buy you a beer. Your articles are always amazing, as is your art, and I would love to just take a few minutes and shoot the shit with you.

Mark Jacob > Luc - The Acadian Oppo
12/01/2015 at 12:20

Seconded. All of it.

450X_FTW > Illegal Machine
12/01/2015 at 12:21

why you gotta be hating on the tread bro?

450X_FTW > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:21

dat 11....

Zoom > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:25

And .....

Repeat after me, boys and girls.

‘No. Fucking. Heatsoak.

No intercooler pump gremlins or bleeding issues.

Just one badass Dodge.’

I can wait for the ‘Ring to cut this baby loose.

Nice right up, sir.

Illegal Machine > 450X_FTW
12/01/2015 at 12:27

Not hate. Just basic rules of auto photography.

StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:28

Awesome article, I’ve been waiting for this as you know!

Actually went to Connor yesterday for a tour. There were ACR’s everywhere, I believe they said 2/3’s of Vipers being built right now are ACR’s. Doesn’t take much to know why that is.

Josh Welton > StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8
12/01/2015 at 12:32

Such an incredible facility. No matter what happens, can see it being shuttered anytime soon. Not that crazier shit hasn't happened...

Josh Welton > Illegal Machine
12/01/2015 at 12:33

Rules are made to be broken.

Also. Yeah, I know.

Josh Welton > Cory Stansbury
12/01/2015 at 12:37

They looked fine to me, and still performed at 2,500 miles. Beyond that it’s hard to for me to predict, such an odd pattern (and shallow too) and soft compound. I’d imagine you could get a summer from them if you didn’t track it much?

Josh Welton > MonkeePuzzle
12/01/2015 at 12:38

Ha! Thanks :)

Josh Welton > mtdrift
12/01/2015 at 12:39

Love to hear this.

472CID > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:39

I would guess a ‘regular’ Viper would be nicer to cross country compared to the aero drag stiff suspensioned ACR. Well done article all the same.

Josh Welton > Peptide
12/01/2015 at 12:40

Thank you for taking the time to read it!

Josh Welton > shieldsdb
12/01/2015 at 12:40

“America, Fuck Yeah!”

Autojunkie > Peptide
12/01/2015 at 12:41

You need to follow him on IG too. It was pretty cool following the trip as it was unfolding.

Josh Welton > plainnottoasted
12/01/2015 at 12:41

It really is incredible how much abuse a motor can take...but Jesus.

Chariotoflove > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:42

Thanks for sharing this cool story!

Josh Welton > MoparMap
12/01/2015 at 12:42

I think I'll have a gen 2 in the next year or so.

Illegal Machine > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:43

Wasn’t trying to be a dick, it’s a great photo. “this needs to be on SRT’s home page” is probably a little much, was all I was saying.

SRT’s got plenty of amazing photos of their cars.

DerW220 > StingrayJake
12/01/2015 at 12:45

Z06 with the Z07 package.

Josh Welton > 472CID
12/01/2015 at 12:46

Haha yeah. I mean, a lot of things would be “nicer.” But more awesome?

Roody > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 12:47

Josh— this is fucking fantastic. Well written to the point that I felt like I experienced it (or part of it, at least) myself. You’ve hit the nail on the head here; this is what road trips, enjoying a car, and automotive enthusiasm are all about. I appreciate the existential part too...no point in living if you don’t do it your way. And it goes without saying that I’d have done anything to be behind the wheel of that ACR, screaming across the country...

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > MonkeePuzzle
12/01/2015 at 12:57

pure weld porn!

PassionRedXC60RD > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:01

Epic paragraph. Well written, and I definitely hope you come back through KS again! I-70W is boring as hell, but goes by “quickly” at speed.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:01

I agree! I think the Gen 2 is still the best looking of the bunch.

Kinja'd!!!

TulsaMtnBiker (OkieRising) > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:01

Kinja'd!!!

Want.

Peptide > Autojunkie
12/01/2015 at 13:03

Thanks for telling me post facto amigo...

StingrayJake > DerW220
12/01/2015 at 13:08

Most of the cars he listed are performance versions of a base model. They’re not packages. The car is the Z06. The Z07 package is some aero bits.

XYZABCXYZ > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:17

Sculptor, Welder, Auto Journalist. You are something similar to, yet much cooler and more awesome, a renaissance man.

Big Block I-4 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:17

Kinja'd!!!

Did not realize this, that is just fantastic to know. 13 tracks, 13 records, awesome stuff.

Voice of C. Montgomery Burns > StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8
12/01/2015 at 13:18

All of the pictures were very nice. Especially the driver-side mirror POV one later in the article.

Big Block I-4 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:19

Kinja'd!!!

You got pulled over becasue an off duty paced you? cough, bullshit, cough. You better not have gotten a ticket, that is hearsay as fuck.

Big Block I-4 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:21

That is also hearsay, I don’t think you can get a speeding ticket for that.

wzzkll > Illegal Machine
12/01/2015 at 13:36

Honestly for all the controversy and debate it’s caused (Is it 200 or 20 TW? Is it really better than a slick? Is it cheating? Will you die if you drive it on the street?), the tread is probably a more interesting thing to photograph than the rim.

valis86 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:37

EXTREMELY well written, Josh, and I generally don’t use that term lightly. Kudos on the writing, and hitting my old stomping grounds, Colorado Springs. Great article and great pics.

Illegal Machine > wzzkll
12/01/2015 at 13:38

Naw.

71 BugMan > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:40

Man, that picture in the parking garage reminds you of just how SMALL the Viper really is!

wzzkll > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:41

I wonder how comparable that would be to other trackday tires. People get hung up on the fact that the treadwear rating might actually be only 20 (based on the number shown on the sidewall), but I can’t really fathom seeing how a 60 TW Pirelli Trofeo R would last 3x as long or a 180TW Michelin Sport Cup 2 lasting 9x as long given that they also are about as sticky and shallow-treaded as it gets.

wzzkll > StingrayJake
12/01/2015 at 13:44

Technically the ACR is also an (extensive) package that can be applied to GTC “1 of 1” Vipers, though it does exist as its own performance version too.

Rally Catalunya > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:46

Kinja'd!!!

I’m too lazy to look this up right now, but is this a Nychos piece? Looks like his work.

MoparMap > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:48

They’re awesome cars and really pretty firmly in the “affordable” territory for a lot of people. Most don’t realize it and still think they are 6 figure cars, but you can get early models in the 20’s and gen 3’s can be found in the 30’s for a good driver. They are also built like tanks and are pretty easy to maintain. No crazy Ferrari maintenance costs, just tires, oil, and gas for the most part. I bought mine with 43,000 miles and am about to roll over 91,000 nearly 3 years later and the only things I’ve really replaced out of concern were the oil cooler lines (factory crimps like to leak, switched to AN style fittings) and the coilover assemblies as I think some of mine were leaking and the ride was kind of bouncy (plus I just wanted upgraded ones). I replaced the diff as well with a gen 4 unit as there was a slight whine in it after an “off-road incident”, but I wouldn’t characterize that as normal wear by any means.

They’re also really pretty easy to drive normally, despite what most people think. However, they are also very easy to do stupid stuff in, which is the bigger problem and what people often think of. The car won’t instantly spin on you if you drive it like a normal car. When you hot rod it and punch the gas mid-corner, then you have a problem. Otherwise I’d say the controls are heavy compared to an average car, but not tiring by any means.

DerW220 > StingrayJake
12/01/2015 at 13:50

Yes, but you know what he meant by that.

wzzkll > Zoom
12/01/2015 at 13:50

I think the only thing that will ever heat-soak in a Viper would be the driver and passenger getting slow-roasted by the catylitic converters in the side pipes.

Josh Welton > 71 BugMan
12/01/2015 at 13:50

When I got home at midnight that Monday I had to shuffle my cars around. Hopped in my ‘15 scat pack and the shifter felt 2 miles tall. Next day I drove the Challenger to Chicago, it was like piloting an Abrams from a couch in comparison.

Josh Welton > Rally Catalunya
12/01/2015 at 13:52

I don't know off the top of my head.

71 BugMan > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:52

You're livin' the life...great write up!

casper > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 13:53

i hate stripes on cars, however, this car demands them. i wouldn’t own one without em’!

Josh Welton > Big Block I-4
12/01/2015 at 13:55

No, but he could have cited me for tailgating. Way less than jail, still...haha

Josh Welton > valis86
12/01/2015 at 13:57

Thank you!

Josh Welton > Big Block I-4
12/01/2015 at 13:58

He had an excuse, tailgating. I could have been cited for that. But yeah, a speeding ticket was a no go and he pretty much told me that up front.

Rally Catalunya > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 14:00

hmm, I’ll have to do some digging. Great write up though, I’m jealous! Congrats on being part of SEMA, my brother does freelance illustration work in the custom moto/auto world so I’m familiar with the group of dudes you got showcased with. Keep up the good work!

Josh Welton > Rally Catalunya
12/01/2015 at 14:13

Right on man, thanks! There are a few more pics that might show a signature on my Flickr (brown dog welding).

Yeah, pretty rad to be part of that crew. Ultra talented guys.

Big Block I-4 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 14:15

Did he make a mention of that or na?

Josh Welton > casper
12/01/2015 at 14:16

Yeah, the asymmetrical stripes on the ACR look understated compared to rest of the car!

Big Block I-4 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 14:16

Commented on this twice, because this stuff really pisses me off. Dude if off duty, still acting like he needs to follow every rule, but ignores the fact that he is ALSO speeding to pace you. I have a feeling this will happen to me one day and I will end up in jail. Good to know he at least knew he couldn’t give you a ticket for speeding, but still, makes me angry.

MotorboatingSOB > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 14:20

Kinja'd!!!

Why does every performance car manufacturer have to go for boy ricer look on such a stylish car? Like sticking a frying-pan sized rodeo belt buckle on Louis Vouitton belt. It’s vulgar.

StndIbnz, Drives a MSRT8 > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 14:20

Dick Winkles was there and we were talking a bit. Hopefully its just used to make the next gen, whatever that might be.

Josh Welton > Big Block I-4
12/01/2015 at 14:23

He told me he couldn’t write me up for speeding, yeah.

Do love that he didn’t even tell me to slow down.

bikertool > Josh Welton
12/01/2015 at 14:24

Thanks for a great read. This may be a little heavy, but your article got me thinking about death and legacy even before I read this line:

“I think about death every now and then. Everyone dies, but it’s what you do up to that final breath that defines you. I’ve always hoped to achieve a sort of immortality—-to leave a worth while legacy, through my words, my work, my art.”

I think about death every ten minutes or so. I’ve got Stage IV colon cancer, so it’s a reasonable thing to be thinking about, I guess. Right now the legacy I focus on leaving is whatever I can teach my three kids before I go. I was a bike (pedal) mechanic and shop manager for many years - that used to be my claim to fame; I still relive those old days with friends and former customers, but I do sometimes wish I could pick up where I left off and open a shop of my own. If my future weren’t so uncertain, I’d consider it.

I guess I’m writing this to hopefully inspire you, or at least encourage you to keep doing what you’re doing, not that it sounds like you need that encouragement. Thanks again for the great road trip story!