And that model is surprisingly one of my favorites of the year. When I review my faves at the end of the year, the NY Auto Show Viper is a sure thing. But that is a total surprise to me, considering I have never been a Viper fan. Like I said in the previous post, I have never liked the look of the Viper. It was TOO menacing for me. Too wide, too extreme. I realize that is a personal opinion, but I looked at the Viper like I did 1990's Ferraris. There was nothing elegant about them. Well Ferrari has changed that, especially with the 458 Italia, and in a huge way so has Chrysler. This new Viper is beautiful. It is still menacing under the hood, and it is exciting to know it will return to racing, but now it is just so nice to look at. To use movie critic vernacular, the new Viper is a triumph.
And so is the Hot Wheels model. Although the basic model does not stack up to the exclusive, it still has some great features. The exclusive gets the nod because of the detail. The rear detail, side logo, and intake detail. And other than that it stays clean. No stripes, just a great metallic maroon. And count me a fan of the J5 wheels. But the detail on the basic is also great. No rear detail, but a fantastic hood and roof off-center stripe. And you get the SRT logo on the roof, along with the Viper logo on the front. It looks great.
As I said, this will be one of my top models of the year, even with BMWs and Bentleys and Porsches littering the range. It is just too cool of a casting to ignore. Viper nuts, I have been converted...
Hot Wheels 2013 Viper SRT (2012 New Models):
Some comparison shots with the NY Auto Show exclusive:
