SRT Engineering Chat HERE on June 21st!

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Question about the GenII PCM's: When power is disconnected to the PCM for a period of time in order to 'reset' it, what exactly becomes reset in the PCM? Adaptives? Short/Long Term fuel trims? What is the proper way to reset a GenII PCM? Thanks!

All of the volatile RAM is dumped... which includes the items that you mention and misfire crank adaptives. The "proper" way would be with a scan tool... because constant plugging / unplugging could damage the module.
 

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I just went to change front brake pads on my 2005 Ram SRT-10 only to find that Centric had changed the pad. It now has less material than the original!!!

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TOP: new pad from Centric.
BOTTOM: Original pad.

When I asked about it, the vendor told me that DODGE had made the change in the D1085 pad design and Centric had followed suit.


Why on Earth would someone make the pad for a 5200 lb. vehicle capable of 160mph SMALLER?


BTW- the new ones also sit 'lower' in the caliper, so the top radius is no longer flush with the rotor.
That's probably a Centric thing, but I figured I'd throw it out there in case you guys changed the seating specs of it for some bizarre reason.

We are not aware of any changes ever being made to that pad throughout the lifecycle of the SRT10 RAM.
 

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i have a friend that has a 2000 gts, he wants to know can you swap out the gas and brake padels from a gts to 08-10 cars? the reason is he likes to use the heel to toe when he is on the track. he says it is not as easy on the 08-10 cars. has anyone tried to retro fit one yet?

I don't think we have ever tried to put the Gen 2 pedals in a Gen 3-4, but probably not. The gen 2 pedals with manual adjuster are nice because you can take the mechanism apart and set the pedal height individually to whatever you want. The pedal pads are removable on the Gen 3-4. Perhaps a solution is to adjust the pedal height with custom pedal pads to get it how he likes it. All of us usual suspects here think the Gen 3-4 pedals are fine for heel-toe, so we are a little surprised by this comment.
 

GTLaser

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We have not had any pump problems in the past. Based on what you mention, it would be a good idea to check your belt tension and alignment.

A common issue is the '01 pumps failing.... You are saying there is no known problems with the '01 pumps? Wish I had the time because I could find a bijillian threads on this.... Thanks for your input though.

What about the operating temp?

Belts are nice and tight.... car has less than 10k miles on it as well.
 

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While it has been asked 2.3 bajillion times, what is the BEST weight for oil in a street (not track) driven Viper, and is SRT now recommending something besides Mobil 1?

Our recommendation is to follow the owner's manual. The car was engineered to work best with the oil that we recommend in the manual.
 

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Can SRT give an opinion regarding billet aluminum steering rack bushings on Gen3/4's. I've read on the VCA forum that the steering feel is increased and more precise, but one post stated they may be dangerous in that there is no "give" and may cause a steering failure if you hit a pothole at speed, etc.

What does SRT think of this modification from a safety viewpoint?

Thanks,
George

Since we have not tested the solid bushings, we can't comment on them from a safety viewpoint. The steering feel will be more precise and and the response will be quicker with solid bushings. The spike loads from the system will be higher without bushings acting as springs. I would suspect the effect would be more steering kick from reduced isolation and sensitivity to wheel imbalance. Everything is a compromise, so when you remove isolation, you need to be prepared to take the bad with the good effects.
 

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Which brakes ( actually the discs) are more robust, those on the regular Gen III or IV coupe or the ACR discs. I am not asking which stop better. I am asking which discs last longer. Assume that they are both used for daily driving and an occasional track day.

It depends on how fast you are at the track on your track days! Kidding aside, the ACR discs are the more robust setup as they dissipate heat better than the other 2 setups that you mention.
 

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Unfortunately it looks like I've come upon my first problem as a 2003 Viper owner. Any help or guidance would be much appreciated, and I've conducted searches with little results.

For the past month or so I was noticing that my car would making a "clicking" or "clunking" sound in slow (approximately 5-10mph) sharp turns, such as U-turns and driving in parking garages. Other than the noise, I've not experienced any other problems, but I wanted to get it checked out. I've read similar account of other cars needing their differential fluid replaced, which has oftentimes solved the problem. This morning I dropped the car off at the local Dodge dealer that has one certified Viper tech and told him off the issues.

I just got a call about an hour ago saying that he thinks the entire transmission or differential needs replaced, and then quoted me the outrageous prices of $5,300 for a new transmission, or $3,350 for a new rear end. Obviously those prices are completely ridiculous. And just now as I'm typing this I received a call from the representative that stated the tech wants to "put in a new transmission assembly and drive it to see if that fixes the problem."

Now I've told her to have him replace the fluid in the differential and I'll be coming to pick up the car. But I have a few questions.

1) Any good shops in the Virginia Beach area that may be of more help if replacing the fluid doesn't solve the problem.
2) What type of cost would I be looking at if I do need to replace the transmission? The differential?
3) Best sources to purchases these parts if it does come to that?

Thank you guys very much.

***UPDATE***

So as I requested, the differential received new fluid and Mopar friction modifier. The tech had me come into the back while the car was in the air with the windage tray remove. He said that there was "excessive backlash" in the tailshaft of the transmission. Now I don't know what "excessive" is exactly, but I was able to move the driveshaft up and down approximately 1 millimeter, or less. There certainly was some movement; is that normal or should there be absolutely none at all? Regardless, I advised him to go ahead and put her back together and if the problem wasn't solve then I'd look for a new solution.

Unfortunately the problem isn't solved. Driving in a parking garage after receiving the car from the service department I've noticed that the car only makes the clunking sound when the transmission is in gear and the clutch is not depressed. During the same slow turns, with the clutch depressed, the car makes no noise.
 
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For a 2006 Coupe in stock condition and not tracked, is there any need to upgrade the rear half shafts to solid shafts or make other changes to the driveline? Reason for asking is cool weather wheel hop during spirited driving and clunking/bucking of the driveline at certain low speed driving conditions such as going downhill in low gear off of the throttle. thanks in advance

Bret - There is no need to go to the solid rear shafts on a stock Gen III, as a matter of fact, I prefer the lighter hollow shafts in such applications (save the 3 or 4 pounds of rotating weight)! If you want to make a change, swap the Gen III hydro-lock diff with the Gen IV visco-lock rear end for improved performance (a bolt in!).
 

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The 2010 went to a .8 5th gear but left the 6th gear at .5. Was that because of mileage needs? Cost? or both? I do not know whether you can answer this but can we expect a true six speed in the Gen V? FYI. I have an upgraded true six speed Gen IV transmission done by your former colleague (Mr. Donato). Shot ball peened parts, upgraded second gear synchro pack; somewhat tighter tolerances and .8 and .63 fifth and sixth gears, respectively. It is a much better piece in all driving contexts and has far less NGR even though I have the Woodhouse harder engine and tranny mounts.

A - The 5th gear ratio change for 2010 was inspired by our experience at the Nurburgring. 4th gear is sufficent for almost every road course race track - except the Ring.

We can't discuss the other half your question.
 

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Since we have not tested the solid bushings, we can't comment on them from a safety viewpoint. The steering feel will be more precise and and the response will be quicker with solid bushings. The spike loads from the system will be higher without bushings acting as springs. I would suspect the effect would be more steering kick from reduced isolation and sensitivity to wheel imbalance. Everything is a compromise, so when you remove isolation, you need to be prepared to take the bad with the good effects.

Same goes for Gen 2. As much as we would like to test all the Viper aftermarket parts, we only have the resources to test what we intend to sell unless one of us really wants/needs to know which is handled on a case by case basis. Wouldn't you rather have us working on a new Viper?
 

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A - The 5th gear ratio change for 2010 was inspired by our experience at the Nurburgring. 4th gear is sufficent for almost every road course race track - except the Ring.

We can't discuss the other half your question.

For regular highway use, the .63 sixth gear is much better and I believe safer than the .5. It allows increased fuel efficiency without the almost total loss of the ability to accelerate present with the .5 sixth gear.
 

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Many VCA members have commented that they are experiencing issues with door hinge springs breaking, presumably because they are too weak. I think this is an issue with Generation I & II Vipers. I have a Gen II Viper and am consequently concerned, especially since this could occur at an inconvenient and inopportune time. Is Dodge aware of this, and is there a "Fix" for this? I would like to address the issue before it occurs, but do not really know what to do. Any thoughts or ideas?

This is an issue that concerns a component called the door check. We are aware of some field issues. Typically, it results from lack of lubrication. Make sure that your checks are lubricated liberally with a good lithium "white grease".
 

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I just attended the SRT Track Experience in New Hampshire. Everyone had a great time and several of us have a request. Would you please build an SRT Durango!
Please Ralph!

BTW: The SRT Track guys were a great bunch!

We're glad you were able to attend the Track Experience - it's a great way to enjoy the SRT products in a proper environment! Sorry, we can't comment on the Durango question, but please keep your product requests coming. Thanks!
 

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Is there a solution to tunning the GEN 4 vipers? or does the Mopar PCM the only tunning ability we could get for our GEN 4 vipers..

if not then will there be a solution now that the GEN 4's are no more..

To our knowledge, there are no aftermarket tuner kits available for the Gen IV. We tune the engine to satisfy all of our performance and durability requirements with 91 octane fuel and there wasn't much left of the table. The Mopar controller is more aggressive and requires at least 93 octane fuel to take full advantage of the changes. Aftermarket tuners don't have the same requirements as we do and the usual result is a broken engine…sooner or later.
 

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PLEASE MAKE a 5.7 liter SRT Nitro. I am assuming the 6.4 would not fit but I know that the 5.7 can fit since you all did a one off a number of years ago.

Then I will by one and put a Vortech kit on it. LOL

A 5.7 liter SRT Jeep Wrangler would also be a real hoot. I have seen one done aftermarket locally. Incredible!

We're glad you were able to attend the Track Experience - it's a great way to enjoy the SRT products in a proper environment! Sorry, we can't comment on the Durango question, but please keep your product requests coming. Thanks!
 
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A common issue is the '01 pumps failing.... You are saying there is no known problems with the '01 pumps? Wish I had the time because I could find a bijillian threads on this.... Thanks for your input though.

What about the operating temp?

Belts are nice and tight.... car has less than 10k miles on it as well.

The operating temperature needs to be between 185F and 190F. The other thing to check is that the belt is not too tight. Also, make sure that the tensioner is working properly and that the belt that you are using is the correct MOPAR replacement part, and that it is in good condition.
 

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I get an ocassional P0300 code after drag racing my car. My question is does the code activate instantly on the rev limiter or does it appear later on. After running a few timed runs I hit the rev limiter ( it happens) and the car seems fine but on the ride home driving normally I get a light. Does this have anything to do with the light? Does the light appear later than the incident? Or are the two not even related,

Canyon - You didn't say what year your car is and that makes a difference. In general, all misfire codes require two consecutive occurrences to set the code (and turn the light on). The misfire system will disable when on the rev-limiter. Is your car stock? Re-learning tooth error correction is always a good idea when the misfire system causes problems (assuming there isn't a real misfire). If the light comes on after your race and on the way back to the pits or home then it sounds like that is the time when the code is being set. I'd check your ignition and fuel system (and O2 sensors) to make sure everything is working properly.
 

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How do you guys feel about the new Corvette ZR1 taking the Ring record away from Viper? A re-match in the works?

Notwithstanding some unsubstantiated Porsche claims, the 2008 Viper ACR held the "production car" record at the Nurburgring for almost 3 years. And, of course, we're not thrilled that after thousands of miles of testing, Corvette has finally gone faster.

As you may know, as a direct result of the 2008 record effort, the 5th gear ratio was changed to specifically allow it to work better pulling up the long straightaway hill at the Nurburgring. So we know that the 2010 ACR would perform better at the Nordshleife than our last 2008 effort.

But sorry, we can't announce any future Nurburgring (or other) plans. But VCA will be the first to know when we have something to announce.
 

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The operating temperature needs to be between 185F and 190F. The other thing to check is that the belt is not too tight. Also, make sure that the tensioner is working properly and that the belt that you are using is the correct MOPAR replacement part, and that it is in good condition.

There's been many posts here over the years about water pumps failing on some 2001 Vipers. I first of heard of this 5 years ago. Specifically, the plastic impeller would separate from the shaft, stop spinning and cause heating/coolant 'barfing' issues. According to some well known Viper techs, there was a batch of bad water pumps with this issue that went into some '01 production Vipers. But the problem has been corrected since then. I experience this issue in '09 on my '01 and Chuck Tator confirmed it was the bad pump issue. I was able to freely spin the impeller with my fingers when I replaced the pump. I replaced my pump with another Mopar replacement and haven't had any issues since. I find it surprising that this water pump issue is so common yet that no TSB was ever released about it.
 

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Unfortunately it looks like I've come upon my first problem as a Viper owner. Any help or guidance would be much appreciated, and I've conducted searches with little results.

For the past month or so I was noticing that my car would making a "clicking" or "clunking" sound in slow (approximately 5-10mph) sharp turns, such as U-turns and driving in parking garages. Other than the noise, I've not experienced any other problems, but I wanted to get it checked out. I've read similar account of other cars needing their differential fluid replaced, which has oftentimes solved the problem. This morning I dropped the car off at the local Dodge dealer that has one certified Viper tech and told him off the issues.

I just got a call about an hour ago saying that he thinks the entire transmission or differential needs replaced, and then quoted me the outrageous prices of $5,300 for a new transmission, or $3,350 for a new rear end. Obviously those prices are completely ridiculous. And just now as I'm typing this I received a call from the representative that stated the tech wants to "put in a new transmission assembly and drive it to see if that fixes the problem."

Now I've told her to have him replace the fluid in the differential and I'll be coming to pick up the car. But I have a few questions.

1) Any good shops in the Virginia Beach area that may be of more help if replacing the fluid doesn't solve the problem.
2) What type of cost would I be looking at if I do need to replace the transmission? The differential?
3) Best sources to purchases these parts if it does come to that?

Thank you guys very much.

***UPDATE***

So as I requested, the differential received new fluid and Mopar friction modifier. The tech had me come into the back while the car was in the air with the windage tray remove. He said that there was "excessive backlash" in the tailshaft of the transmission. Now I don't know what "excessive" is exactly, but I was able to move the driveshaft up and down approximately 1 millimeter, or less. There certainly was some movement; is that normal or should there be absolutely none at all? Regardless, I advised him to go ahead and put her back together and if the problem wasn't solve then I'd look for a new solution.

Unfortunately the problem isn't solved. Driving in a parking garage after receiving the car from the service department I've noticed that the car only makes the clunking sound when the transmission is in gear and the clutch is not depressed. During the same slow turns, with the clutch depressed, the car makes no noise.

1- As far as Virginia shops, we suggest that you talk to your local club president
2- The price for the transmission can be of about $3,700 and the differential can be of about $1600 (not including shipping)
3- Viper Parts of America is likely the best place to get these parts. Hopefully you don't have to replace them though!

You likely need to drive the car a little bit more (couple hundred miles of street driving with corners) with the new differential oil in order to get the friction modifier on to the clutch plates in the differential. Make sure too that the U-joints in the driveshaft and axle shafts have no play.
 

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Please also consider producing a 5.7 liter SRT Wrangler. I have seen one done aftermarket locally and it was incredible.
 

RyanRC187

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You likely need to drive the car a little bit more (couple hundred miles of street driving with corners) with the new differential oil in order to get the friction modifier on to the clutch plates in the differential. Make sure too that the U-joints in the driveshaft and axle shafts have no play.

I will make sure I'm driving it often the next couple weeks and see how that effects the rear end. Thank you, and I'll look into the U-joints in the driveshaft.
 

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When the Snakes were aligned at CAAP, the suspension was excercised through the full range of motion at each wheel. Was the final alignment an average value? Seems like something extra was done that would not be possible at a standard front end alignment shop. Can you elaborate?
 

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SRT,

Good to hear PENNZOIL as the Official Dodge Viper Cup series sponsor! Can you share with us the recommended oil specs (viscosities / class type) for the owners tracking their Viper's and on the ATF side are you switching from MOPAR to PENNZOIL ATF for the 6060's and please advise on correct class type as well?

Do you recommend any type of additives to the ATF under these most harsh conditions?
Thanks,

BAD BOYZZ GARAGE, INC.
Toddy

=DISTRIBUTORS OF POWER=:usa:


Todd - Shell/Pennzoil is now the official supplier for Chrysler factory fill and service fluids. We have been using the Pennzoil 10W-60 racing oil at the track (but the old stand-by, Mobil 15W-50 is still a good choice too) with very good results. ATF+4 is the choice for the trans and no additive is required.
 

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Does SRT know that NASA allows high speed testing by auto manufacturers at the Kennedy Space Center shuttle runway ( 15,000 feet long)? I checked. How about doing some testing there and, at the same time, making it a fund raiser for Chrysler's favorite charity by allowing VCA members to come for a donation and watch? Seems like a win/win idea to me and a good marketing move.
 

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