2016 Dodge Viper ACR Returns As The Fastest Snake Ever Built

Back in 2011, a Dodge Viper ACR left the Nürburgring with a new production car lap record of 7 minutes 12 seconds. Only recently has that time been eclipsed by the Porsche 918 Spyder, and yet the 2016 Viper ACR revealed today is said to be Dodge’s fastest production car ever. But will it be enough to claim back the title? Only time will tell.

The ACR shouldn’t be viewed as a track-ready street car. It remains a race car that’s barely legal for use on public roads; if it rains, with its Kumho Ecsta V720 tires, your life is in the hands of Zeus.

What’s more, the rear wing is wider than Byron Schlenker’s tongue (didn’t see Kimmel the other night, check this!), and the splitter protrudes further than Screech’s jaw. With the “Extreme Aero” package selected, nearly one whole ton of downforce is produced at 177 mph — that’s three times more than the track-focused Viper TA 2.0.

Carbon ceramic matrix brakes help stop the 8.4 liter V-10 and its 645 hp and 600 lb.-ft. of torque, and those aforementioned tires are mounted to 11-inch wide wheels offering the largest combined tire patch available on any production car.

The suspension, too, is stiffer — 600 lb. front springs and 1,300 lb. rears (more than double that of the TA). The Bilstein shocks boast 10-way rebound and compression adjustability, and the ride height can be altered by up to three inches. Negative camber now resides at 1.4 degrees, which helps sustain more than 1.5 g on high speed curves, and according to Tim Kuniskis, President and CEO of Dodge and SRT, the package will run all day on track — even when temps crest 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

What all this means is that the new Viper ACR should be downright absurd. It’s sure to be faster than the old ACR and may well maintain a reasonable shot at going sub-seven at the ‘Ring.

And yet it doesn’t appear to be positively stripped down: You’re still left with three speakers for the radio, an Alcantara-wrapped steering wheel, a color touchscreen, and even carpets — albeit “lightweight carpets.”

Could the Viper ACR, then, legitimately challenge the more powerful 918′s 6 minute 57 second record? That’s hard to say, but unlike the Porsche, the Dodge is most definitely a one-trick-snake — if there is such a thing? This car’s sole purpose is to annihilate the racetrack. And by the looks of it, that’s exactly what it’ll do.