New AZ newbie

[Swest]

Hey all,

I just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Scott and after years of wanting to become a Viper owner, I have finally pulled the trigger. I purchased an 01' ACR. I am looking forward to local club events.

-Scott

[V1P3R]

Congrats on your Viper!

Gonna need some pics!

[Vprbite]

Hello. Welcome. Congratulations on your purchase. Go post in the Arizona section so everyone in the local club can see you are here. We are pretty active. At least one monthly event, though in the summer it's less drive oriented because of the heat. I think you will find the club very welcoming and helpful with anything you need. Welcome. I hope to meet you soon.

[Swest]

Hopefully I followed the instructions about posting pics and these show up....

http://i1288.photobucket.com/albums/b486/swest2507/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/F9427426-C3E0-4B01-A498-935A370B4DAD_zpsoiwdtszo.jpg (http://s1288.photobucket.com/user/swest2507/media/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/F9427426-C3E0-4B01-A498-935A370B4DAD_zpsoiwdtszo.jpg.html)
http://i1288.photobucket.com/albums/b486/swest2507/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/439D0B77-2D90-4B01-92EC-0DCAE543183E_zpsvgll8uen.jpg (http://s1288.photobucket.com/user/swest2507/media/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/439D0B77-2D90-4B01-92EC-0DCAE543183E_zpsvgll8uen.jpg.html)
http://i1288.photobucket.com/albums/b486/swest2507/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/7AB9A39D-E8C2-44D2-B6E9-A022A83C726C_zps0ul1f4lc.jpg (http://s1288.photobucket.com/user/swest2507/media/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/7AB9A39D-E8C2-44D2-B6E9-A022A83C726C_zps0ul1f4lc.jpg.html)
http://i1288.photobucket.com/albums/b486/swest2507/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/25B92FE2-5458-42C0-AE5B-F7B011BEE7A5_zpsfwyjroai.jpg (http://s1288.photobucket.com/user/swest2507/media/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/25B92FE2-5458-42C0-AE5B-F7B011BEE7A5_zpsfwyjroai.jpg.html)

[gerch85]

Congrats! Welcome

[St.Char]

Congrats on a great looking car! Your garage looks cool, but it's lacking something.....a lift!

[Swest]

Congrats on a great looking car! Your garage looks cool, but it's lacking something.....a lift!

http://i1288.photobucket.com/albums/b486/swest2507/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/803B2A2D-2BD4-42C6-ADB3-38292844162C_zpskpjm4rhp.jpg (http://s1288.photobucket.com/user/swest2507/media/2001%20Viper%20GTS%20ACR/803B2A2D-2BD4-42C6-ADB3-38292844162C_zpskpjm4rhp.jpg.html)

:D

[LeadfootRT10]

Welcome to the Club! What part of AZ are you in? Most of our member are in the phoenix area, but we have members in just about every corner of the state. If you're looking for somebody to cruise with in the phoenix area, let me know, i'm always looking for an excuse to drive my car!!!

Edit: i see you're in Scottsdale, so am i. If you want to meet of for one of the C&Cs or Saturday night at the Pavilions, let me know.

[WhiteSnake]

Swest,
Welcome to the VOA! We are looking forward to meeting you at our Sept event. Beautiful car! Beautiful garage and great looking garage mates for the Viper. As Vprbite ( the terror of Tucson ) said, we have a great bunch of folks who enjoy getting together for our monthly events.

[Vprbite]

Hey, whitesnake, go to bed it's past your bedtime! Put on 60 minutes and have a worthers original candy and settle down.

[Boba Fett]

congrats and welcome

[RedTanRT/10]

Welcome and congrats on your ACR, I'm partial to those colors Folks in AZ are great and the roads there are too! Enjoy

[JonB ~ PartsRack]

Welcome Newbee Scott.

HEY, If I look closely I can see a GNAT laying dead on your floor, so get cracking.......


If you Email me your particulars, Ill postal-mail you a doo-dad to match your ACR.

JonB@PartsRack.com


You have an Excellent Viper wrencher there in CHANDLER AZ if you need any work done: Eddie Martin


ps Pay Attn to the 2001 Water Pump IF you ever get a temp spike....

[stryfe]

welcome! very nice garage setup.

[Jack's GTS]

Welcome! Love the car and the stripes (I'm partial):D.

[98intrigue]

Great looking garage! I can also put in a good word for Eddie Martin. My current Viper came from Phoenix and Eddie took time out of his day to check it out for me.

[Space Truckin]

Welcome and enjoy the ride, couldn't help but notice the pretty Chevy (I have a 59 Parkwood under construction) in that WONDERFUL garage :dropdev: As always be Safe the Viper is quite an animal

http://i.imgur.com/czKk90R.jpg

[sparkrn]

Welcome fellow Gen 2 ACR owner! Have fun cleaning those wheels.

[PHX-GTS]

So you're the one who snatched this one up ha? Very nice and from one az newbie to another, welcome! I've had my car for a little while but its my first time posting on this site, great to see people from AZ on here. You should definitely bring in to C&C in a couple of weeks, I've been going and its a blast. Not many Vipers show up.

Beautiful car and garage!

[Swest]

Welcome to the Club! What part of AZ are you in? Most of our member are in the phoenix area, but we have members in just about every corner of the state. If you're looking for somebody to cruise with in the phoenix area, let me know, i'm always looking for an excuse to drive my car!!!

Edit: i see you're in Scottsdale, so am i. If you want to meet of for one of the C&Cs or Saturday night at the Pavilions, let me know.

That sounds good. I am tied up this weekend...but hopefully next weekend.

[Swest]

What water temps are you guys running in AZ? What's normal here?

[Swest]

Welcome and enjoy the ride, couldn't help but notice the pretty Chevy (I have a 59 Parkwood under construction) in that WONDERFUL garage :dropdev: As always be Safe the Viper is quite an animal

http://i.imgur.com/czKk90R.jpg

Your parkwood looks like a sweet ride. When are you hoping to have it completed? My dad and I tinker with old cars (the 59 el camino being one). It's fun as you don't have to plug a stupid computer into it to find out what's broken.

[Space Truckin]

PM sent

[Vprbite]

A question about Gen II Temps? Now I've seen everything. :smilielol:

Sorry, not your fault. It's just a super common question. I think all of us who own or have owned Gen IIs have struggled with. I would tell ya when it's 104 out, I doubt you'll see anything less than 215 unless you are cruising in 4th at 35 or 6th on the highway. Now, Eddie told me that the fan doesn't even kick on until 213. So, these engines run a bit hotter than most anyway. In the peak of he summer, I rarely took mine out in the daytime. I am in Tucson where it is a bit cooler but 8 degrees cooler when it's 112 in Phx doesn't mean a damn thing. Especially with the sun cookin ya. You may have luck adding a little bit of "water wetter" to your fluid. People swear by the stuff. I don't think you will see what they claim on the bottle, but I think it does help 5-7 degrees. Also, you can add the 170 thermostat. This is a huge point of contention amongst owners. Some say, "why add it, when in Phx the thermostat is open all the time anyway. Might as well weld the damn thing open like old school hottrodders did." And some say it helps. I think it helps, a bit, but here is why. It opens earlier, therefor starts the coolant moving earlier, hopefully keeping it cool longer, and taking longer to get to those really high temps. I sort of think of it like cleaning the house before it gets too messy. You wouldn't say, "lets wait till the house is trashed to start cleaning if the act of cleaning is basically the same." Strange analogy, but I say it is apt. And if the thermostat is useless why do all the race cars have them? Both of those things help a bit, but add them up and you should have a much happier engine.

I also found engine braking helped a lot. I had 3:55s so I braked harder than stock gearing but I swear it seemed to help. I assumed because the engine was cycling but i wasn't on the throttle adding fuel. Also, short shift. I know it's fun to run up the power band but...more bang in the engine equals more heat that needs dealt with. Shift early, get up to 4th like you are being a gas miser and lower temp than racing light to light.

A definite help is a good exhaust system. Hi flow cats and corsa cat back sounds amazing but add headers on there and you will help the heat fly out as fast as it gets made.

Another thing to remember is the gauge can be inaccurate and for sure imprecise. For one it isn't linear, so it is more of an approximation. Also, I think many of us are not used to a vehicle whose temps swing so rapidly. That in and of itself can be off-putting. What may help is to ride around with someone else in their similar car and watch the gauge.

Finally, get right with your religion and pray. I did that a lot and never overheated in Tucson traffic. Really I think we worry more than we need to with our Gen II temps but as I said above, a couple things here and there can help and they add up. After that, it's about getting used to it and unfortunately, not driving it when phoenix is hitting 119 for 3 days in a row. Remember it's not just the ambient temperature, but asphalt radiating upwards pushing intake temperatures of 200. Asking 10 cylinders and 450 HP to take air in at 200 and keep its temp at 190 is a pretty tall order. I am not saying not to enjoy your car or to lock it away all summer, but remember what you are asking of it.

I hope this helps. I look forward to meeting you.

--Jeffrey

[Vprbite]

What water temps are you guys running in AZ? What's normal here?

Oh yeah...also see what Jon said. On the 2001 the water pump impeller can break off. Fairly common. No impeller= temp SPIKE!!!! Especially at a light.

[WhiteSnake]

What water temps are you guys running in AZ? What's normal here?

SW, I never had a overheat problem with my '05 Gen 3 and certainly don't have a problem with the Gen 5. There are a number of guys in the club with Gen 1's and 2's and I'm sure they can give you some good input on what to expect. Vprbite has some good experience with his old ride.

[LeadfootRT10]

God damnit Jeff......was a novel really necessary?! As a Gen 2 owner, I can tell you unless you're sprinting thru the mountain passes or there is a mechanical issue, you should not see any significant temp issues. My car functions within the three "normal" bars on the gauge in the hotess weather and the slowest traffic. The only time it's run hot is on the track or excessive clutch-braking on descent thru the mountains.

[Swest]

A question about Gen II Temps? Now I've seen everything. :smilielol:

Sorry, not your fault. It's just a super common question. I think all of us who own or have owned Gen IIs have struggled with. I would tell ya when it's 104 out, I doubt you'll see anything less than 215 unless you are cruising in 4th at 35 or 6th on the highway. Now, Eddie told me that the fan doesn't even kick on until 213. So, these engines run a bit hotter than most anyway. In the peak of he summer, I rarely took mine out in the daytime. I am in Tucson where it is a bit cooler but 8 degrees cooler when it's 112 in Phx doesn't mean a damn thing. Especially with the sun cookin ya. You may have luck adding a little bit of "water wetter" to your fluid. People swear by the stuff. I don't think you will see what they claim on the bottle, but I think it does help 5-7 degrees. Also, you can add the 170 thermostat. This is a huge point of contention amongst owners. Some say, "why add it, when in Phx the thermostat is open all the time anyway. Might as well weld the damn thing open like old school hottrodders did." And some say it helps. I think it helps, a bit, but here is why. It opens earlier, therefor starts the coolant moving earlier, hopefully keeping it cool longer, and taking longer to get to those really high temps. I sort of think of it like cleaning the house before it gets too messy. You wouldn't say, "lets wait till the house is trashed to start cleaning if the act of cleaning is basically the same." Strange analogy, but I say it is apt. And if the thermostat is useless why do all the race cars have them? Both of those things help a bit, but add them up and you should have a much happier engine.

I also found engine braking helped a lot. I had 3:55s so I braked harder than stock gearing but I swear it seemed to help. I assumed because the engine was cycling but i wasn't on the throttle adding fuel. Also, short shift. I know it's fun to run up the power band but...more bang in the engine equals more heat that needs dealt with. Shift early, get up to 4th like you are being a gas miser and lower temp than racing light to light.

A definite help is a good exhaust system. Hi flow cats and corsa cat back sounds amazing but add headers on there and you will help the heat fly out as fast as it gets made.

Another thing to remember is the gauge can be inaccurate and for sure imprecise. For one it isn't linear, so it is more of an approximation. Also, I think many of us are not used to a vehicle whose temps swing so rapidly. That in and of itself can be off-putting. What may help is to ride around with someone else in their similar car and watch the gauge.

Finally, get right with your religion and pray. I did that a lot and never overheated in Tucson traffic. Really I think we worry more than we need to with our Gen II temps but as I said above, a couple things here and there can help and they add up. After that, it's about getting used to it and unfortunately, not driving it when phoenix is hitting 119 for 3 days in a row. Remember it's not just the ambient temperature, but asphalt radiating upwards pushing intake temperatures of 200. Asking 10 cylinders and 450 HP to take air in at 200 and keep its temp at 190 is a pretty tall order. I am not saying not to enjoy your car or to lock it away all summer, but remember what you are asking of it.

I hope this helps. I look forward to meeting you.

--Jeffrey

Ok so the 3 times I have driven the car it has been about a needles width above the higher of the three normal lines which I presume to be 215. The car has the Belanger headers, high flow cats, and corsa cat back. But when I get on it the temps do go up more than I would think they should. Which has me worried that the car has the crappy plastic impeller. Thoughts? Should I call Eddie ( I would need his info if some could pm it to me) and have him give me his take?

[Vprbite]

God damnit Jeff......was a novel really necessary?! As a Gen 2 owner, I can tell you unless you're sprinting thru the mountain passes or there is a mechanical issue, you should not see any significant temp issues. My car functions within the three "normal" bars on the gauge in the hotess weather and the slowest traffic. The only time it's run hot is on the track or excessive clutch-braking on descent thru the mountains.

I think it was necessary. But asking those type of questions is why you are so special to me. That question has been asked so many times so I gave my best answer given everything I know. Right before you were here, we did a Tucson trip and the Gen II guys were all worried about their temps. I am guessig they were probably not a lot higher than that orange mark to the right of center. But e Gen Is amd IIs were notorious for making people worry about their temps.

[Vprbite]

Ok so the 3 times I have driven the car it has been about a needles width above the higher of the three normal lines which I presume to be 215. The car has the Belanger headers, high flow cats, and corsa cat back. But when I get on it the temps do go up more than I would think they should. Which has me worried that the car has the crappy plastic impeller. Thoughts? Should I call Eddie ( I would need his info if some could pm it to me) and have him give me his take?


That sounds about right to me given the temperatures out here lately. Notice you said "when you get on it." If you notice that Leadfoot (I am trying to get a moderator to change his name to shortbus, but that's a different story for another day) said he usually runs in between those three bars. And occasionally a little higher. So if you are around that bar to the right, you are probably fine. Since it only goes up when you get on it, and only to that point, water pump is probably ok. Sounds like you have the right mods to help. If that is as high as you are going, I wouldn't worry.

It used to scare the hell outta me when I had mine and would watch it go from 190 and climb at stop lights, the. I would drive off and get some air moving and it would go back down. Took some getting used to.

[Vprbite]

SW, I never had a overheat problem with my '05 Gen 3 and certainly don't have a problem with the Gen 5. There are a number of guys in the club with Gen 1's and 2's and I'm sure they can give you some good input on what to expect. Vprbite has some good experience with his old ride.


Barry, I talked to Eddie when I got my Gen 3 about how much cooler it seemed to run. He said they changed the way the coolant runs around the block and made it more efficient. The only time I saw it start to run where my Gen II used to was driving like a total jerk in the middle of July.