Chrysler Viper GTS-R FIAGT GT2 Team Oreca #51 1997

[JR98]

In the early 90's sportscar racing had a huge resurgence with the demise of Group C in 1992. With series such as the BPR Global GT Series in 1994 and the FIA GT Series in 1997, GT racing was coming back in a big way, with all of the biggest manufacturers building high performance GT cars categorised into GT1 and GT2. GT1 cars had extreme aero and reached top speeds over 200MPH while GT2 featured moderate aero and reached around 170MPH.

Following the sales success of the first Viper, Dodge redesigned the car and also produced a coupe version, known as the GTS. Although 1st Gen Viper's sold well, Dodge wished to showcase the capabilities of the new GTS, especially in the realm of handling. At the same time, Dodged hope to increase sales of the Viper in Europe, where importation had struggled.

Dodge's parent company, Chrysler, approved development of a racing program centred around the Viper GTS, which was still in development. This co-development meant that improvements to the race car could then be implemented to the road car and vice versa.

Chrysler believed that in order to adapt their car not only for North American but also European circuits, they would require outside assistance. An agreement was made with the French racing and engineering firm Team Oreca, who had many years of experience in sports car racing as well as assistance in the Mazda 787B's win in the 1991 24 Hours of Le Mans. Oreca would construct and maintain the racing cars in their shops, as well as run Chrysler's official factory teams in Europe. For North America, Chrysler would recruit the Canaska/Southwind Team as their factory effort.

Although Oreca would construct the cars, key elements would come from British engineering firm Reynard Motorsport. This would mainly consist of the construction of the car's basic chassis and other integral parts before they were shipped to Oreca for assembly. As for the Viper's engine, it was ideally suited for competition at the time due to limits of 8000 cc being just beyond the Viper's 7998.5 cc. Modifications were therefore light for the 356-T6 V10, with concentration on redesigned intakes for horsepower and reinforcements for endurance.

In terms of design much of the bodywork of the Viper GTS was retained on the race car. Mandatory elements such as a rear wing, rear diffuser, and front splitter were added for aerodynamics, while initial cars had their fog lights covered over before being put back for increased visibility at night. To aid in lighting, optional lights were able to be placed in square notches above the grill. The exhaust would also be routed out the side of the car, just under the doors, about halfway between the front and rear wheel wells. Side exhausts had been a feature of the first generation American-market RT/10s, but were no longer used on the GTS. Vents were also added to the hood for cooling the engine, while intakes were placed on the roof and rear fenders.

In total, 57 Viper GTS-Rs would be built. After the production of an initial five prototypes for testing and early usage by Oreca and Canaska/Southwind, 52 more cars would be built. Although some would be used by the factory teams, most would be sold directly to customers for use in whatever series would allow them. Viper GTS-Rs continued to be built into 2005, after which Oreca concentrated on maintaining and supporting the existing Viper GTS-R fleet.

Although the production cars have mostly been known as Dodge Vipers, the Dodge brand did not sell the Viper in Europe. Because the new cars, named GTS-R, were built in Europe, they were mostly known as Chrysler Viper GTS-R. However cars racing in North America usually ran under the Dodge banner, making them Dodge Viper GTS-Rs. This naming difference therefore depends on location and region. The cars themselves actually carried no badging for either Chrysler or Dodge, with only the Viper GTS-R name appearing on the side of the bonnet.

In order to meet requirements laid out in the rules of certain racing series that the Viper GTS-Rs planned to run, road cars similar to the race cars would have to be sold to the public. Although the GTS-R was already similar to the GTS, a closer replica was needed to meet homologation requirements. Chrysler commissioned the construction of 100 road cars in 1998 that would use elements of the race car.

Named the Viper GT2 for the GT2 class which the Viper would participate in across Europe, they borrowed the rear wing and front splitter from the GTS-R, as well as dive planes and a deeper fascia. Replicas of the BBS racing wheels would also be used. Power on the production engine would be increased to 460 hp (340 kW). All 100 cars would feature white paint schemes with dual blue stripes, identical to the scheme used by Oreca.

Debuting in 1996, Oreca would run a limited schedule, concentrating on the GT1 class of the European and Asian BPR Global GT Series as well as the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Canaska Southwind would also run a short schedule, but instead the GTS-1 class in the North American IMSA GT Championship. The Viper GTS-R made its first competition debut at the 24 Hours of Daytona in the hands of the Canaska Southwind crew, with one entry finishing in 29th place. The team would improve at the 12 Hours of Sebring with a 12th-place finish before Oreca would make their competition debut in BPR in April, ending in a failure to finish.

For 1997, the Canaska Southwind team would end their involvement in the Viper program. This meant Oreca would make the only appearance for a Viper in IMSA GT with a lone car entered at Daytona, finishing in 12th place. After Daytona, the team returned to Europe to concentrate on the new FIA GT Championship which had replaced the BPR series.

The team would switch to the less powerful GT2 class due to the strength of the Porsche and Mercedes-AMG teams which were entering GT1, while at the same time being joined by the customer Chamberlain Engineering team. Oreca began the season strong with a 1-2 finish in their class ahead of the Roock Racing Porsches, and would go on to take six more victories in the eleven race season and winning the GT2 championship. The team also returned to Le Mans with three cars, although they would only finish in 14th place, fifth in their class. Another customer Viper would also appear in the All Japan Grand Touring Championship (JGTC) for Team Taisan, making two appearances with a best finish of eighth.

The Oreca team would strengthen their dominance in FIA GT in 1998, as the team managed to win all but one event in the ten race schedule. Oreca would also take their first class victory at Le Mans with an eleventh place overall finish. Chamberlain continued as a privateer in FIA GT earning several points, as well as earning a 14th-place finish at Daytona.

For 1999, Oreca's efforts were expanded further, as the team now operated in two championships: A two-car team in the new American Le Mans Series and the existing two car team already competing in FIA GT. FIA GT saw the Vipers once again sweep the series with nine wins for Oreca, and a lone win for the Paul Belmondo Viper. Chamberlain improved their team to finish second in the championship, while GLPK Carsport would be the fourth Viper squad to compete.

A similar story occurred in the ALMS, with Oreca winning six races and taking that championship as well. Oreca would also earn their second straight win at Le Mans, with various Vipers finishing in the top six positions in their class.

For 2000, Oreca chose to concentrate on North America, leaving the FIA GT Championship to privateers. The team opened the season with one of their most notable victories, winning the 24 Hours of Daytona by a small margin over the new Chevrolet Corvette factory team. Oreca went on to win ten races in the American Le Mans Series, eventually falling to Corvette in two rounds late in the season but once again securing the championship. Oreca would also outperform Corvette at Le Mans, winning their third straight class victory with a seventh-place finish.

In FIA GT, the Paul Belmondo and new Carsport Holland teams would run strong and win a collective four races, but would not be able to overcome the five victories by the Lister Storm, forcing the two teams to settle for second and third in the championship.

The backing by Chrysler officially ended in 2001, as Chrysler and Oreca had begun work the previous year on developing an LMP, forcing Oreca to abandon their Viper teams. The American Viperacing squad would be the sole contender in the American Le Mans Series, scoring no victories and finishing the season in third for the championship. FIA GT would however see a blossoming of teams, as eight different Viper squads competed over the season. Larbre Competition would win three events (including the Spa 24 Hours) and win the championship, while Carsport Holland won two races and finished second.

Hayles Racing would win four races in British GT to win that championship by two points over Lister, while the DDO team would win five French GT events, and Team Zakspeed would manage to win the 24 Hours Nürburgring for the second time. Le Mans however would not see the Vipers repeat their past success, as the factory Corvette squad won the class and only a lone Viper finished.

Since its racing debut in 1996, the Viper GTS-R has achieved many victories or class wins in competition, as well as many series championships.

This is a list of some of the more notable victories by the Viper GTS-Rs:

Overall Wins:
Daytona 24 Hours (2000)
Spa 24 Hours (2001 & 2002)
Nurburgring 24 Hours (1999, 2001 & 2002)

Class Wins:
Fuji 1000KM (2001)
Le Mans 24 Hours (1998, 1999 & 2000)
Mil Milhas Brasileiras (2004)
Nurburgring 24 Hours (2005, 2006 & 2007)
Petit Le Mans (1999)
Sebring 12 Hours (1999)

Championship Wins:
American Le Mans Series (1999 & 2000)
Belgian GT Championship (2001, 2003, 2004 & 2005)
European GT Series (2003)
FIA GT Championship (1997, 1998, 1999, 2001 & 2002)
French GT Championship (2001, 2003, 2004 & 2005)
Italian GT Championship (2003 & 2004)
VLN Championship (1999)
Swedish GTR Championship (2001, 2002 & 2003)

Source: Chrysler Viper GTS-R

Specifications:
Body Style: 2 Door Coupe
Length: 4495 mm
Width: 2050 mm
Height: 1150 mm
Wheelbase: 2700 mm
Engine: Dodge 8.0 V10
Aspiration: Naturally Aspirated
Drivetrain: Front Engine Rear Wheel Drive
Power: 625 BHP
Torque: 800 NM
Weight: 1150 KG
Transmission: 6 Speed Manual Sequential