Not long ago we featured ten cars that have a V10 engine under the hood. This time we turn our attention to the last production car with a V10 engine and rear-wheel drive and manual transmission. Three pedals once defined skill behind the wheel, and as more enthusiasts rediscover this connection, the demand for analog performance icons continues to grow.
The model in question does not come from Europe or Asia. It’s American, more specifically, it’s the 2017 Dodge Viper ACR, a car that capped one of the boldest chapters in American performance car history. We reported back in 2015 that Viper production at the Connor Avenue Assembly Plant in Detroit, Michigan would cease after 2017. This news came directly from a contract update from the United Auto Workers (UAW), which confirmed that no new product was planned for the plant. In August 2017 it was all over.
Since 1992, more than 30,000 Vipers have been built at this site over five generations, each assembled by hand. Ralph Gilles, then head of SRT and FCA design boss, shared images of the last two cars to roll off the assembly line: a yellow Viper ACR (American Club Racer) with black racing stripes, the final customer car, and a red Viper GTS, now in the company’s heritage collection.
The fifth-generation Viper returned in 2013 under Gilles’ leadership and was developed as a direct competitor to the C6 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1. After MotorTrends Since the lap time at Laguna Seca was in favor of the Corvette, the SRT engineers went back to work. Within weeks they developed the Time Attack, or TA, to reclaim the record, and two years later the ACR became the ultimate answer.
Under its hood is the legendary 8.4-liter naturally aspirated V10 engine with 645 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque, routed through a Tremec TR6060 six-speed manual transmission that sends power exclusively to the real wheels.
Its Extreme Aero Package produces 1,781 pounds of downforce at 177 mph, not far off the Porsche 992.1 GT3 RS’s 1,895 pounds. The 74-inch solid carbon fiber wing, aggressive chin spoiler/rear diffuser and vented fenders served their purpose. Bilstein coilovers allowed for tenfold adjustability, while spring rates doubled compared to the Time Attack 2.0. With carbon-ceramic Brembos, lightweight BBS racing wheels and grippier Kumho tires, the ACR was able to endure over 1.5g in corners.
Since this was a car that was intended to dominate on the racetrack, non-essential parts such as the radio were removed. The Viper ACR was light, tipping the scales at just 3,392 pounds, and in the hands of Randy Pobst, it ran the 2016 Laguna Seca in 1:28.65. Using track-focused hardware, he set thirteen production car lap records at various tracks across the country, including Laguna Seca, Road Atlanta, and Virginia International Raceway, among others. It holds a Nürburgring time of 7:01.3.
For its final year, Dodge built five special editions: the Voodoo II, the 1:28 Edition, the GTS-R Commemorative, the Snakeskin Edition GTC and the Dealer Edition. Each has been serialized and finished by hand. Production ended in August 2017, marking the end of a 25-year story.
While the Dodge Challenger models continued to use a manual transmission, the Viper is one of the most important cars in Mopar history. It was the only American performance car powered by a naturally aspirated V10 engine, and clean, low-mileage examples still sell for high prices today.
Images: Dodge
