For the past eight years, the members of the Texas Auto Writers Association have gathered some of the country’s top cars together for the organization’s annual Spring Challenge. This year, some 40 Texas automotive journalists evaluated more than 50 different cars in a variety of head-to-head competitions to come up with just one “Performance Car of Texas”: The Dodge Viper ACR.
It’s another fitting honor for Dodge’s sensationally serpentine sports car, which Seattle Dodge said leverages race-bred engineering to more than live up to Herzing’s kudos. Combining 600 hp and 560 lb-ft of torque from its big 8.4-liter V10 engine, along with world-class Brembo brakes—boasting 14-inch rotors at all four corners—the Viper can go from 0 to 100 mph, and then back to a full stop, in just 11 seconds.
But the Viper is about much more than just in-line acceleration; this is a car that can slither with the same kind of enthusiasm it shows on the straightaways. Underpinned by a high-performance suspension that features aluminum control arms and knuckles as well as lightweight coil-over shocks, drivers can pull 1.05g through curves.
And the ACR model—that’s short for “American Club Racer”—was designed to take the Viper’s performance to the proverbial next level. In ACR trim, the Viper is significantly lighter and, thanks to revised aerodynamics, significantly slipperier. It also sits on a new, driver-adjustable suspension that was specifically tuned to help drivers push their limits.
One thing’s for sure, it certainly pushed the Texas Auto Writers Association to deliver some Texas-sized kudos for the Viper.
“The Dodge Viper ACR is the worthy recipient of our first Performance Car of Texas award,” said Michael Herzing, president of the Texas Auto Writers Association and publisher of LetsTalkWheels.com. “By topping some of the toughest competitors in today’s performance car marketplace, we feel this award is a real testament to the Dodge Viper’s superior level of overall performance.”
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