Viper or Testarossa

Look at the 512Tr, much better technology than the standard TR. I am a 355B driver myself. Owning a ferrari is an experience in itself. How many viper shirts or sweatshirts do you own????? I can guess..... When you own a ferrari it becomes part of your being. It is not just another car. Good luck.

 

You nailed that one on the head!!!!!

 

No comparison....

There is no way I could ever enjoy a Viper as much as my TR.

 

Your looking in the right place. I can tell you, from experience... I am on Fcar #2, that you Must buy from someone reputable. Ebay can be a nasty mistake. It is not worth saving a couple thousand dollars to not get what you think you are getting. I say you are in the right place meaning do not rush, take your time. Investigate, drive several cars. Ask a million and one questions. Be sure with your decision before laying down the cash. Fchat is a great place to get advice. There are many cars out there, you'll find the one that fits you. I can tell you I bought my second one that I am extremely happy with from www.4ferrari.com. If you do not buy from someone you know pay to have a PPI, private party inspection. It is worth every penny. Look on this forum to see if there is a group in your area. Go to their meets, dinners etc. You will be amazed at how much knowledge you can gain in very little time on this site and from the info. you will get from those on this site. Good luck.... Welcome to the beginning of the rest of your life... now with a REAL automobile!

 

I've had both a 1989 TR and a 2001 Viper GTS, so here are my thoughts:

(1) The Viper has a pushrod V10 and the TR a DOHC flat-12. What this means is that you get Millennium Falcon-hyperspace acceleration off-the-line in the Viper, whereas the TR feels like a Chevy Impala until you get high up on the tach. The TR is designed for performance at/from high speeds; the Viper is a dragster.

(2) Both the Viper and the TR have disappointing-sounding OEM exhausts. To make the Viper sound like it looks, you need the MoPar exhaust, and for the TR a Tubi. Tubis cost over 3 times as much as the MoPar; be warned.

(3) Generally everything in terms of parts and maintenance will cost you much more. Dodge vs. Ferrari, after all.

(4) Both are "reverse-TARDIS" cars, i.e. smaller on the inside than they appear on the outside. The comfort level is about the same, particularly if you have one of the Vipers with the Cognac interior.

(5) The A/C on both cars suck. The Viper's because the engine runs so hot that you have to keep the A/C at max the whole time, and the TR because in very hot climates it is subject to icing up, hence ceasing to cool you when you need it most.

(6) Both cars have about the same minimal amount of luggage space.

(7) Both have mediocre headlights. You can get a xenon kit for the Viper; don't know about the TR.

(8) No worries about ground clearance with a Viper. The TR has a very low and expensive-to-repair front spoiler, so forget about steep hills and driveways. Get used to entering mildly-steep things at an angle.

(9) The Viper is average width. The TR is very wide because of that flat-12, and has those very fragile light-metal strakes on its sides. Forget about parking in parking lots unless you want expensive door/strake damage.

(10) The TR has a Ferrari 5-speed, which is slow/deliberate to operate. The Viper has a 6-speed which moves as fast as your wrist muscles. On the other hand the Viper has that infuriating "skip-shift" feature (which at least there is a kit to bypass).

(11) My Viper always seemed to be on the verge of overheating - the gauge right at the right-edge of the safe-zone - which was nervewracking. Never actually overheated, however, even in really hot weather. The TR does not have overheating problems.

Those are the thoughts that jump out of the cobwebbed area of my brain. Any specific questions, I'll be glad to help if I can.

 

Good-lord - "Reverse-Tardis"? Waaaay too deep a reference for a Sunday morning. Clever.

 

I've owned both myself, and while they are 2 different breeds, The TR will always be an icon, whereas the Viper is just an American muscle car and they are everywhere, the TR will give you more joy, sound, and looks everywhere you go, it has a pedigree and it is the most recognizable Ferrari in the world. GO for the TR, a much better buy for the money.

Stephane
Scaledetails

 

I had a 94' Viper and now own a 90' TR. The TR is more fun because there are so few of them. Here in Omaha I see up to 4 Vipers every week. As far as I know I'm the only one with a TR. One thing though:

"(8) No worries about ground clearance with a Viper. The TR has a very low and expensive-to-repair front spoiler, so forget about steep hills and driveways. Get used to entering mildly-steep things at an angle."

I find that to be the total opposite. I scraped the Viper all the time but never my TR!
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For people with only one heart, the TARDIS on Dr. Who was much bigger on the inside than it appeared on the outside. Just the opposite of a TR or Viper.

 

The TR has plenty of power (370hp I think), but it is available higher on the tach than you're used to with the Viper - again DOHC vs pushrod.

Look at the two photos another gentleman posted above. Note the short distance between the front end and the front wheels of the Viper, and the longer distance on the TR. It's this difference in "overhang" that means you will need to be more careful with the TR. This is nothing you can't get used to, but take sharp hill-beginnings, speedbumps, and raingutters very slowly until you get a feel for it.

You used to be able to get (and I suspect still can somewhere) a stainless steel strip that would go on under the TR's front spoiler to protect its fiberglass. I strongly recommend that.

Note also that on the original TRs (not the 512TR or F512M), there was a major quality upgrade that took place 1988-1/2. Consisting of 5-bolt wheels and a better quality dashboard (more padding, better leather fit, and 2 sideview mirrors lowered to the doortops instead of one halfway up the driver's A-pillar. These are all nice things to have.

TRs happened during the era when red/tan was all the rage, so that's most of what you'll find, and probably will eventually be easier to re-sell than odd colors. On the other hand, I had an '89 white/tan ... as Tubbs said, "Absolutely essential for serious police work."

 

Yes, the TR is wider, don't know by how much but it has a wider butt, and quite impressive on the road!! I also think the TR may be a 1/2" lower in my opinion, but that's just from memory of driving both.

Stephane
Scaledetails