It’s just bitter that the SRT Viper, with its beautiful 8.4-liter V10, was discontinued by some desk worker from the Controlling department with a stroke of a pen. We are still determining whether the decision was made in Detroit, Auburn Hills, or even Hoofddorp, the Netherlands. It’s a shame, and it’s been a few years since then.

Nevertheless, the ‘Snake,’ built from 2012 to 2017, has lost none of its charm—after all, there has hardly been a more beautiful yet ruthless way in recent years to draw black lines on the streets than with the last SRT Viper.

We know someone from Bavaria who loves and collects cars with character. His SRT Viper, with its semi-active chassis and raw 648 hp to the rear axle, wasn’t good enough for him because he knew it had even more potential. Like the die-hard Viper community, he also knows that we at KW have a great relationship with the Viper.

We celebrated our first overall victory at the Nürburgring 24-hour race in 2002 with the legendary Zakspeed Viper. Holy mother of torque, that was a long time ago. Not only did we think it was phenomenal, but so did Detroit.

Later, the American car manufacturer commissioned us to develop the chassis for the Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR, produced from 2008 to 2010. This coilover suspension allowed for separate adjustment of compression and rebound.

At the time, this coilover set was the standard suspension for the particular model. By the way, this limited-edition Viper set a remarkable record lap time of 7:22 minutes on the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Most importantly, they were thrilled that the SRT10 ACR was faster than the Corvette ZR1.

The KW V5 coilover suspension available for the Dodge SRT Viper (VX I), manufactured from 2012 to 2017, has only one thing in common with the ACR coilover suspension of that time: they are both ‘made in Fichtenberg.’ For example, the construction of the dampers in the KW V5 coilover suspension is entirely different from that of ordinary monotube or twin-tube shocks.

There are no overflowed pistons, as used in other shock absorbers. Instead, the working piston is sealed, and the entire hydraulic column is displaced. This compact design dramatically increases the hydraulic working and practical range of a shock absorber. As a result, relatively smaller and lighter piston rods can be used, benefiting both compression and rebound damping forces. Additionally, our solid-piston suspensions allow us to work with much lower spring rates than other systems in road applications, thanks to the higher force range of the dampers.

A valve structure separate from the working piston controls and regulates hydraulics’ higher forces. With the KW V5 coilover suspension, compression and rebound damping can be adjusted independently for both high-speed and low-speed forces.

High-speed forces are generated during compression damping when driving on poor or undulating road surfaces; even bridge expansion joints can cause high-speed excitation. Low-speed damping, on the other hand, relates to acceleration, braking, and steering.

Even in the preset setup, our suspension brings a little more calm to the SRT Viper without distorting its unique character. This setup is our recommendation for everyday use; if you like, you can adjust the parameters even further in a sportier direction. By the way, the suspension always comes with setup instructions.

The ability to adjust the V5 dampers allows ride comfort to be modified without affecting handling. For instance, the high-speed compression valves can be set to a more comfortable setting, while the low-speed damping can be adjusted to a firmer setting for more direct handling.

Thanks to the axle geometry featuring double wishbones at the front and trailing arms, as well as double wishbones on the rear axle, the shock absorber housings are made from a high-strength aluminum alloy. Typically, we use stainless steel struts for our KW coilovers, and from the KW V3 onward, we also use stainless steel for the multi-link rear axle damper housings.

As part of the parts certificate, the Dodge SRT Viper’s KW V5 coilover suspension allows for stepless lowering of 10 to 20 millimeters on the front axle and 5 to 20 millimeters on the rear axle. Nevertheless, ride comfort remains at the same sporty level as with the adaptive standard suspension.

A hydraulic lift system is also available as an option for the KW V5 coilover suspension for the SRT Viper, raising the sports car by 45 millimeters at the touch of a button. This feature ensures that steep parking garage ramps or speed bumps are no longer an obstacle.

Our hydraulic lift system in the SRT Viper is a further development that we internally refer to as HLS Evolution. Compared to the first version, we now use an even more compact pump unit. It is so tiny that it can often be installed at existing mounting points in the car.

At speeds above 65 km/h, the two lifting cylinders lower again. A lift system’s significant advantage compared to an air bellows is that it does not affect the spring rate. Additionally, the entire system is much more compact, as neither an air compressor nor a pressure accumulator is required.

On our brand homepage, www.kwsuspensions.net, you will find all the information about the KW V5 coilover suspension and the V5 version with KW HLS for the SRT Viper. Our website is also the first point of contact if you are looking for an installation partner or a specialist dealer.