What parts should we hoard

[ViperGeorge]

Mods, I think this should be a sticky.

Anyone that reads this forum on a regular basis knows that parts for our beloved Viper are sometimes hard to get. FCA does not seem to stock parts for even the newest Vipers and even items like tires have been problematic. Things like side sills, windshields, and other body panels are getting hard to find if you can even find them. Given this I have been thinking about which parts I should buy now and hold on to in case my Vipers need them. The ones that come to mind are any parts that would prevent the car from being driven and that are likely only available from the manufacturer. This may be a big list unfortunately. Items like wheels, brake parts and some others can be sourced from aftermarket providers today so there isn't much reason to hoard them.

I previously posted a thread on this topic but thought that maybe a good list could be developed using the knowledge of this community. I also thought that if we came up with a good list and everyone ordered some or all of it FCA might actually decide to meet the demand by making more parts. Or maybe a vendor like PartsRack would order and stock them so we don't have to. I know JonB does stock a bunch of stuff but even he runs out sometimes.

Now we are lucky that some vendors like Doug Shelby, TKO, PartsRack, MCS, Tracktive, Racing Brakes, etc have worked to provide alternatives to OEM parts. As an example there are several alternatives to the shocks on the Viper should yours fail. You can even get the OEM ones rebuilt. Brake parts are available as well. I've started to hoard tires though as they seem to be hit or miss and if you track the car you can go through them pretty quick. Batteries and cables can be had but what about other electrical components? Switches, sensors, etc. DSE makes replacement parts for the ACR aero bits and he also makes the repair kit for the plastic bushing in the window.

I will attempt to update this list based on your input but things I have been thinking I should stock up on are:

SRT Oil Filters (maybe because they are used regularly they will always be in stock though)
Air Filters
Windshields
Side Sills
Fenders
Bumpers (Front and Rear)
Quarter Panels
Headlight Assembly
PCM
Throttle bodies (the Year matters to quote JonB)
Cam Sensor
Crank Sensor
IAT Sensors
Window regulator
Door Node
Window Wiper Blades (bought these already)
Grill (have a spare)
Hinge Cover (have spares)
Water Pump
Oil Cooler
Oil Pressure Sender
Coils
Radiator Fan maybe
All weatherstripping

So what would you add or subtract from my list?

[Ronin47]

Bumpers, hood and wheels.

[Scott_in_fl]

Someone like VOA should start buying up and storing in a warehouse wrecked total loss cars from insurance companies Nd start building an inventory. No sense in having these cars die on lots scattered all over the country and not knowing where they are.

[swexlin]

Two extra parts cars! Oil pressure sensors, SRT Filters, are used by other FCA vehicles. Air filters available aftermarket.

[Mbccenter]

I have a couple semi trailer full of parts will gladly get rid of.

[Murpowa]

Two extra parts cars!

lol, agreed. Might as well buy a spare viper or two

[ViperGeorge]

I have a couple semi trailer full of parts will gladly get rid of.

Seriously? Like what parts?

[ViperGeorge]

Bumpers, hood and wheels.

Bumpers would be a good addition. I thought about hoods but they seem expensive to have sitting around. Personally I already have like 3 extra sets of OEM wheels (SWII and ACR) but you can always buy aftermarket wheels if you damaged one and you couldn't find one. I'm thinking about items that really would likely only be available from the manufacturer. For a "regular" higher production car aftermarket suppliers provide pretty much everything one might need. But I can't see this happening for the Viper as the potential market is small.

What about alternator? Is that a parts bin item from FCA or is it exclusive to the Viper? I might also add headlights to my list.

[ViperGeorge]

Two extra parts cars! Oil pressure sensors, SRT Filters, are used by other FCA vehicles. Air filters available aftermarket.

I was not aware of that. What other FCA car uses the oil filter? My Jeep GC SRT does not use the same filter although I guess it might fit. I wonder though about the bypass setting. I heard somewhere that the Viper filter has a higher pressure for bypass than other filters given the oil pressure the Viper runs.

Who makes an aftermarket air filter? I hadn't thought to check. I can tell you that no one makes aftermarket windshield wipers, I've looked. The attaching point on the Viper is different than any I've seen.

Given the frequency of failure of oil pressure senders and their relative low cost it probably makes sense to keep a few on hand anyway.

[JonB ~ PartsRack]

Someone like VOA should start buying up and storing in a warehouse wrecked total loss cars from insurance companies Nd start building an inventory.


Yeah, THAT'S the ticket!
The CLUB should collect and sell parts!
Maybe Start with hard-to-find TIRES?!
Maybe set up a 'Not For Profit' and sell at, or below cost.
Give their BOD members preferred access and preferred prices too.
Try their best to put their own sponsor/vendors out of business....
Maybe even restrict competition?

Deja Vue: "Those who fail to learn from History are doomed to repeat it"

[Arizona Vipers]

Great post! ACR rotors and pads for sure

[ViperGeorge]

Great post! ACR rotors and pads for sure

Would they be available from an aftermarket provider such as Racing Brakes?

[swexlin]

I was not aware of that. What other FCA car uses the oil filter? My Jeep GC SRT does not use the same filter although I guess it might fit. I wonder though about the bypass setting. I heard somewhere that the Viper filter has a higher pressure for bypass than other filters given the oil pressure the Viper runs.

Who makes an aftermarket air filter? I hadn't thought to check. I can tell you that no one makes aftermarket windshield wipers, I've looked. The attaching point on the Viper is different than any I've seen.

Given the frequency of failure of oil pressure senders and their relative low cost it probably makes sense to keep a few on hand anyway.

I was pretty sure the White Viper SRT filter was used on the Hellcats, etc. I could be wrong.

[ViperJon]

Yeah, THAT'S the ticket!
The CLUB should collect and sell parts!
Maybe Start with hard-to-find TIRES?!
Maybe set up a 'Not For Profit' and sell at, or below cost.
Give their BOD members preferred access and preferred prices too.
Try their best to put their own sponsor/vendors out of business....
Maybe even restrict competition?

Deja Vue: "Those who fail to learn from History are doomed to repeat it"

Lmaoooo......as soon as I read that I thought the same thing JonB....Where's Chris Marshall to advise on the steps needed to make this a reality....:)

[ViperGeorge]

Lmaoooo......as soon as I read that I thought the same thing JonB....Where's Chris Marshall to advise on the steps needed to make this a reality....:)

Where ever Chris Marshall is I'm sure his ears just perked up. Heck if we hired him to run the parts business he could take credit for destroying two Viper Clubs. It is amazing that one person was able to do so much damage to the old club. And no, the club should not get in the parts business.

[ViperGeorge]

Yeah, THAT'S the ticket!
The CLUB should collect and sell parts!
Maybe Start with hard-to-find TIRES?!
Maybe set up a 'Not For Profit' and sell at, or below cost.
Give their BOD members preferred access and preferred prices too.
Try their best to put their own sponsor/vendors out of business....
Maybe even restrict competition?

Deja Vue: "Those who fail to learn from History are doomed to repeat it"

Jon, You forgot to mention that the club should also buy all of the obsolete tooling and then find a warehouse to store it in. LOL. Certainly not my recommendation to get the VOA into the parts business. That was a major reason the old club went belly up as you know.

Serious question for you though. How do you determine which parts to stock? Is it based solely on demand or do you consider that some parts are getting hard to find and might be worth stocking now?

[ICPREY]

Gen 2 oil filters are still readily available after 20+ years, not sure I would get crazy about hoarding them.

[Vipes]

SWII"s...oh wait nevermind, those are gone already.

[J TNT]

Gen 3, Gen 4 Door trim moldings...........lol !
And window regulators.......

[AZTVR]

SWII"s...oh wait nevermind, those are gone already.
They aren't gone; the extra ones are just being stored on Gen 2 and Gen 3 cars now.

[TheMadMachinist]

I would think any and all weather stripping would be a good candidate for your list.

[Scott_in_fl]

Yeah, THAT'S the ticket!
The CLUB should collect and sell parts!
Maybe Start with hard-to-find TIRES?!
Maybe set up a 'Not For Profit' and sell at, or below cost.
Give their BOD members preferred access and preferred prices too.
Try their best to put their own sponsor/vendors out of business....
Maybe even restrict competition?

Deja Vue: "Those who fail to learn from History are doomed to repeat it"

Just like the theory of luxury communism, the model is sound and extremely beneficial for all (and some would argue necessary to avoid self destruction/extinction, but I digress). However, corruption destroys it, just as it apparently did with the prior club. Without proper checks and balances, any governing system is at risk for abuse.

[nx91notch]

I was pretty sure the White Viper SRT filter was used on the Hellcats, etc. I could be wrong.

They do not come from the factory with that oil filter installed. But a lot of Hellcat and 392 guys use that filter when changing their oil. The white SRT filter fits any current gen Hemi motor basically.

[Fourtrax250r]

They do not come from the factory with that oil filter installed. But a lot of Hellcat and 392 guys use that filter when changing their oil. The white SRT filter fits any current gen Hemi motor basically.

Confirmed. I use that filter on my SRT Jeep & Durango as well as my Hellcat with no issues.

[ViperGeorge]

Confirmed. I use that filter on my SRT Jeep & Durango as well as my Hellcat with no issues.

But can anyone answer whether the bypass works the same on the SRT filter as it does in a standard filter? I read somewhere that it takes a higher oil pressure for the filter to go into bypass. If you use it on an engine with lower oil pressure than a Viper will it ever go to bypass? Is that good for the engine? To be honest I have no idea how the bypass on an oil filter works, is it a function of an engine component other than the filter? or is it part of the filter design?

[swexlin]

Good question. I don't know either.

[SuperBird4404BBL]

From the Amsoil website:

How Bypass Filtration Works
Bypass oil filtration features a secondary filter with the purpose of eliminating nearly all contaminants from motor oil. Bypass filters have high capacities and eliminate much smaller particles than full-flow filters, including soot. Bypass filters reduce engine wear and increase oil volume, but their high efficiencies mean they also have higher restriction and must be used in conjunction with a full-flow filter.
Bypass filters operate by filtering oil on a "partial-flow" basis. They draw approximately 10 percent of the oil pump's capacity at any one time and trap the extremely small, wear-causing contaminants that full-flow filters can't remove. Bypass filters have a high pressure differential, causing the oil to flow through them very slowly and allowing for the removal of smaller contaminants. It is called bypass filtration because the oil flows from the bypass filter back to the sump, bypassing the engine. This continual process eventually makes all the oil analytically clean, reduces long-term wear and can dramatically extend oil drain intervals.

[ViperGeorge]

From the Amsoil website:

How Bypass Filtration Works
Bypass oil filtration features a secondary filter with the purpose of eliminating nearly all contaminants from motor oil. Bypass filters have high capacities and eliminate much smaller particles than full-flow filters, including soot. Bypass filters reduce engine wear and increase oil volume, but their high efficiencies mean they also have higher restriction and must be used in conjunction with a full-flow filter.
Bypass filters operate by filtering oil on a "partial-flow" basis. They draw approximately 10 percent of the oil pump's capacity at any one time and trap the extremely small, wear-causing contaminants that full-flow filters can't remove. Bypass filters have a high pressure differential, causing the oil to flow through them very slowly and allowing for the removal of smaller contaminants. It is called bypass filtration because the oil flows from the bypass filter back to the sump, bypassing the engine. This continual process eventually makes all the oil analytically clean, reduces long-term wear and can dramatically extend oil drain intervals.

Thanks for researching and posting this. This does confuse me more though as I had understood that under certain conditions oil "bypasses" the filter essentially circulating unfiltered oil through the engine. What you posted seems to refer to a second filter (which sounds like a good idea) whereas what I have understood is that it is a function of the main oil filter. See below which I copied from an oil filter company site. If this is true and if the SRT has a different bypass setting I would be careful using it in other applications.

41318

[Fatboy 18]

Well I went to a New Years Day classic car show today, Guy in his 50s was selling his late 60s fastback Mustang.

I asked why he was selling it and the answer came back, "I have been diagnosed with a terminal illness and I am selling all my toys off"

Not a great start to the New year, but Hording is not always a good idea :(

[BlueAdder]

Would they be available from an aftermarket provider such as Racing Brakes?

The RB stuff isn't the same as the stock Brembo stuff, FAR from it.
Worse case, you don't need the hats, just the actual rotors. As far as the pads go, Brembo only have a handful of caliper types anyway.

[Angleiron]

Emblems and headlights....

[SRT_BluByU]

Camshaft and crank sensors seem the obvious items. Weatherstripping is another good one.

[ViperGeorge]

Emblems and headlights....

I've added headlights to the list. Emblems on the other hand don't prevent the car from being driven and can probably be easily replaced with vinyl replicas. Even the front Viper emblem on GTS cars is only a stick on. TA's and ACRs come with a vinyl Stryker.

- - - Updated - - -


Camshaft and crank sensors seem the obvious items. Weatherstripping is another good one.

Got em. Thanks.

[ViperGeorge]

The RB stuff isn't the same as the stock Brembo stuff, FAR from it.
Worse case, you don't need the hats, just the actual rotors. As far as the pads go, Brembo only have a handful of caliper types anyway.

But, at least there are alternatives.

[JonB ~ PartsRack]

SWII aren't gone; the extra ones are just being stored on Gen 2 and Gen 3 cars now.

EXACTLY! The overbuild allowance for service parts is LOW for Vipers, and all of those went to aftermarket!

PartsRack sold about 50 sets at under $2500 all 4 !!! We may be partly to blame

[SRT_BluByU]

John what are common hard to get items for the gen iii and gen ii cars? Thatd be a good indicator for ours

[Dman]

I was having a flashback too, lol. Hey, shouldn’t you get ready to be banned, for being too helpful to the community?!? Haha.


Yeah, THAT'S the ticket!
The CLUB should collect and sell parts!
Maybe Start with hard-to-find TIRES?!
Maybe set up a 'Not For Profit' and sell at, or below cost.
Give their BOD members preferred access and preferred prices too.
Try their best to put their own sponsor/vendors out of business....
Maybe even restrict competition?

Deja Vue: "Those who fail to learn from History are doomed to repeat it"

[Mbccenter]

Seriously? Like what parts?

all sorts of variety

[Gen5snake]

TPMS Control Modules, door modules, side mirrors & SW II wheels...they don't take up too much room. I would love to stock up on some rocker panels.

[James]

PartsRack sold about 50 sets at under $2500 all 4 !!!
Too bad I missed out on this :/

[Mccarlin]

Well for me, i found out that the side ACR emblems on my car has extremely LOW stock. My car is PPF coated and if i ever remove or replace the PPF it will take the factory installed ACR emblems off the side panels. I called Roanoak Dodge and they checked nationwide inventory and there was 5 left, they are unsure if anymore will be made. So i bought a set for my car to keep just in case.

[JonB ~ PartsRack]

Well for me, i found out that the side ACR emblems on my car has extremely LOW stock. My car is PPF coated and if i ever remove or replace the PPF it will take the factory installed ACR emblems off the side panels. I called Roanoak Dodge and they checked nationwide inventory and there was 5 left, they are unsure if anymore will be made. So i bought a set for my car to keep just in case.

Spendy Decal !


You did NOT chek with JonB@PartsRack.com

We have both ACR decal colors in stock, but low numbers. Currently 40% off MSRP but going UP

[Mccarlin]

Spendy Decal !


You did NOT chek with JonB@PartsRack.com

We have both ACR decal colors in stock, but low numbers. Currently 40% off MSRP but going UP

Jon, Sending you a message

[sadil]

Can’t find TA decals anymore. I don’t even know what the PN is. At some point rockers will be repainted, and I won’t have any decals to use. eBay had it for a while before they dissapeared.

[sharmut]

Can’t find TA decals anymore. I don’t even know what the PN is. At some point rockers will be repainted, and I won’t have any decals to use. eBay had it for a while before they dissapeared.

https://www.moparpartsgiant.com/ says it's Mopar Part No.: 5SR42KL4AA
My extra set is labeled 1-05043041AA
I can't seem to attach photos at the moment, PM with your email and will forward you a photo.

[serpent]

Probably the SWII wheels.