By David Fleet
Editor
Brandon Twp. —It’s a rocket on four wheels.
That’s how Rusty Martin describes his vintage first-generation 1995 Dodge Viper RT/10 that spends the winter months nestled in his Brandon Township garage.
“My Viper’s color is ‘ticket-me-red,’” laughed Martin. “But I never had a ticket, you really have to be responsible. Just when you’re confident at the controls, it will humble you out.”
The humility is clearly needed when the hood opens to an 8 liter, 20 valve-488 cubic inch V10 power plant that Dodge and Lamborghini collaborated on which features an all aluminum block kicking out 400 hp. Coupled with a BorgWarner T56 six-speed bulletproof transmission it’s a perfect rugged match for the massive power plant.
Excluded on the Viper are exterior door handles (they returned in 1996) and airbags, but air conditioning was a selected option included on Martin’s Viper.. No traction control, nor anti-lock brakes, provides true performance, he said.
“You don’t want to drive the Viber in the rain either,” he said. “It’s like trying to steer a toboggan, the tires are too big, you kind of float down the road.”
The raw breed of roadster is also evident in the Plexiglas slide windows and a soft-top fold up roof.
“By today’s standards, 400 horsepower is not too much,” said Martin, a Detroit native and 1977 graduate of Dearborn Heights Crestwood High School. “This first-gen Viper brings the Muscle Car back to life.”
Martin is a life-long auto maker, who first hired into Chrysler as a die maker then after earning an engineering degree from the University of Michigan he started designing dies. The auto manufacturing crafted continued as he moved to processing parts, turning a flat piece of sheet metal into a fender, he explained.
“I worked in the design studio at Chrysler,” he said. “It’s a dream for a car guy. I really love the lines on the Viper, I’m not a fan of straight lines. I like the curves and the Viper has plenty.”
Martin retired about seven years ago from Chrysler and now lectures nationwide on sheet metal formability.
“Actually the Viper has no sheet metal,” laughed Martin. “The body is Kevlar and carbon fiber, not to be confused with fiberglass either.”
Martin and his Viper have been on a few road trips too, including several treks to the Smoky Mountains which features ‘The Tail of the Dragon.’” Designated US 129, between the Great Smoky Mountains and the Cherokee National Forest, the 11 mile sports car roadway features 318 curves, plus no intersections.
“It’s a crazy drive to make,” he said. “The biggest attribute of the Viper is hitting that gas and feeling like you’re on a spaceship. Hit the gas and hang on.”