When the Dodge Viper RT/10 first appeared on the show car circuit, it blew most every mind that saw it. The Viper was a show car that seemingly went straight to production-ready, rough edges and all. This was a true muscle car in the deepest sense of the word, and we haven’t seen a car since the Viper that was so unapologetically brutal. This particular car is notable for a few reasons, with the first being it is a 1994 model – making it an early production example – and the paint scheme of Metallic Green, a rare shade for a Viper. It’s listed here on eBay with bids to $7,600 with the reserve unmet.
Only 440 Vipers RT/10s left the factory wearing Emerald Green paint, and it’s a shame more owners didn’t choose this striking shade. Sure, red over gray was the color that all the scale models came in, but the tendency for muscle car shoppers to choose red really sells short just how stunning the original design is all these years later. Of course, there’s no denying you’re going to find panel gaps, loose-fitting trim, and plenty of other details that suggest the Viper wasn’t built to Lexus-levels of quality. Mileage on this Viper is under 7,000, so it’s been kept under wraps by its caretakers since new.
The Viper sports a sharp gray leather interior, with the trademark three-spoke steering wheel with no airbag. It’s rather wild how bare-bones the Viper is from a features standpoint – no airbag, no roof, no side windows, no traction control – just you, a shifter, some awkwardly-placed pedals, and 400 horsepower. In many ways, this is what a muscle car was always intended to be, and the Viper’s spartan nature certainly contributed to its reputation for being hairy at the limits. While this may not be the car to use in such a way, it’s awfully tempting to buy a first-generation Viper as a beater exotic, the driver’s equivalent of a hiker who intentionally lives off the grid as an experiment.
I’ve often felt the early run of Viper RT/10s were poised to be even more of a collector’s item than they already are. The first few years of an iconic model are almost always worth a touch more, along with the final production run. When you combine that with the rare paint code, this particular Viper RT/10 looks like a smart buy – but the auction has a long way to go to get to what is likely to be a reserve number that’s safely over $30,000. If you’re in the market for a Viper, would you go for a first-generation model like this or is the hardtop GTS coupe a smarter buy?
I’d go first-gen all the way, Jeff. And the green looks terrific on these beasts.
The hardtop is nice, nearly as charming (and just as intimidating) as OG Vipers, but I found it a little claustrophobic inside. My preference is for open cars, anyway, with as few gadgets as possible.
Not sure “beater” would be the term I’d use if I could scare up the coin to buy one. I’d do all I could to keep it looking as fresh as this one, while racking up LOTS of miles. These are great to drive, the absolute antithesis of Full Self-Driving. Unless you consider “self-driving” to be your own self….
The Ebay listing has ended.
Someone somewhere snatched it up.
Mark my word, we have not seen the last of this car.
I went to the original ebay listing. WOW
what a nice original first year Viper.
On my Dell this shows as blue. Am I developing color blindness?
Ditto on my Dell. Sure looks blue to me. Re: the car itself. On one hand I’ve always kinda liked the menacing look of the Vipers, but for me the attraction stops there, especially true for the early ones. The V10 just sounds strange to me, and even where I live in Arizona, the no top, no windows thing is a little much.
Yeah David. Green as in “Gone”.
Way back in 94, I had a guy on my mail route that had a bunch of nice cars. One of them was, as he put it, the first green Viper in Connecticut. It was a beauty! Color looked great on it, especially when the sun hit it! He also had an 88 25th Anniversary Lamborghini Countach in black a 67 Corvette in green and a 69 RS/SS Camaro convertible in silver with black. A very nice collection of cars. Loved when I had to stop at his house! His Pantera was gorgeous, as was his 67 Mustang GT.
There is a dealer in the Cleveland suburbs That still has the original 1994 That Chrysler drop shipped to the dealer. ( as a dealer you could not order Vipers at first. You took what the “drop shipped”) The car is still in the show room with 127 miles on it. LOL It’s not for sale unless you really really want to buy it. Remember this car has never been titled! It’s 1994 brand new car! I think 80k plus would buy it. Of course it’s red with stripes.
I painted my 1968 Firebird convertible in that emerald green that also looks blue depending on the sunlight. I get so many compliments on the color !
Prefer the sidepipes.
I’ve always loved the Viper.In my opinion the Viper is the 2nd all American exotic sports besides the 427 Cobra and Ford’s Shelby GT 40.there’s also the 67 Gran coupe Corvette that GM stopped production of. I believe this Viper is a bargain right now and if possible I’d love to own one someday.