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SRT TT Q & A

892 views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  John Hennessey 
#1 ·
Manny - I would say that the real advantage to the SRT when adding a big power TT system is that the car uses the power very well. SRT brakes are superb in stock form. In my opinion, the SRT is the best "driver's" Viper you can buy. You can just flat out drive the piss out of a big power SRT with all the confidence of being able to stop and turn when needed. There are some suble differences in the SRT that do need attention: 1. You dont need to upgrade the CV shafts (not halfshafts) but its a good idea to upgrade the rearend center chunk with a quaiffe. Big power SRT's will blow the stock diff sooner than later. 2. Upgrading the clutch is an absolute must do.

For road racing you should consider the addition of a rear diff cooler, Moton suspension and rollbar. Stainless brake lines and Motul 600 brake fluid are also highly recommended. Some intercooler designs such as ours will remove the stock front brake air ducts. This can be compensated for with simple Porsche air deflectors.

Some intercooler designs are better than others for road racing. A big front mount that blocks most or all of the front opening of the front airdam will not be good for road racing. We have always used a lower profile intercooler design that allows most of the air coming into the front bumper to go straight to the radiator. Larger intercoolers that block the radiator are going to cause the car to run hotter on road courses.

Water injection would be nice to have on road racing. A good system like aquamist should atomize the water efficently to last a while. But its hard to know exactly what the rate of WOT driving vs water consumed is until you start testing. Parker runs his Venom TT on the road course without water injection and he is able to go about as fast as he can hook his car up.

A boost controller is a nice thing to have for road racing. It allows you to lower your power level to a point where you can try to use as much power as possible. And if you need a bit more power on the straightaways, then you can bump up the boost as needed in a straight line.

We got our first SRT TT running back in Sept. of last year and we have spent a lot of time testing the system and have learned a lot about what works and what does not. Most of this info. thus far has been on the dyno, street and dragstrip. We have 2 customer SRT TT's that we will soon begin doing some road race testing with.

Bottom line for anyone looking for a TT to go road racing wtih is to get in one and go for a ride on a road course. There are some very minute details in the various tuner designs that can effect TT road racing performance such as fuel system design, fuel tank pick-up location, turbo oiling/draining design, etc. Done right and the TT will perform as you would want it to. Un-tested systems could fuel starve or have turbo oiling issues from the G-forces associated with road racing.

One thing is true about tuners and the new projects they undertake, me included, and the saying goes like this:

"WE DONT KNOW WHAT WE DONT KNOW".

And the only way for tuners to find out and prove up the performance and reliability of their new creations is to simply build them and test them extensively. This is definately true for any SRT TT, including ours.

Questions and comments are welcome.
 
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#2 ·
John, I do not have any questions, just a comment. That was a pretty informative post for a guy who has built hardly any fast cars ever and who is so new to the Viper tuning scene! /images/graemlins/laughing.gif

Seriously, that was right on the money. One thing I would like to add is the fact that people do not realize how little power(relatively speaking) is needed to go fast on the road course). The beauty of a turbo car is the ability to dial down the boost to maybe 5-6 psi max which is all the car could ever realistically use anyway. I would bet that a really good driver could drive a stock RT/10 on a low-medium speed road course faster than any average driver with 2-300 more RWHP TT Viper. Road racing is simply car setup and driver. Maybe on the front straight at Road America the TT could put a ghetto asswhipping on whatever in terms of top speed by the end of the straightaway. A high HP blower car is not worth a shit on the road course in this regard. I know this from personal experience. The SRT would be the better choice for the road course if you only did the turbos and nothing else. But you could but a gen 2 for 1/2 the price, not have to do the motor,add ABS, add better brakes...... wait now I sound like a mustang guy! /images/graemlins/laughing.gif
 
#4 ·
John,

How does an stock SRT feel around a track compared to an ABS equipped Gen II? Same driver and same track, should the SRT pull better times?
 
#6 ·
I would think so as well. But the GTS just seems like it was made for a track, while the SRT-10 doesn't look it.
 
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