Rides from the Readers: 1993 Dodge Viper RT/10
Hagerty readers and Hagerty Drivers Club members share their cherished collector and enthusiast vehicles with us via our contact email, tips@hagerty.com. We’re showcasing some of our favorite stories among these submissions. To have your car featured, send complete photography and your story of ownership to the above email address.
Today’s featured vehicle is a 1993 Dodge Viper RT/10. The first-gen (1992–95) Vipers possess a larger-than-life reputation … one that’s well-deserved. These are the most raw iterations of Chrysler’s turn-of-the-century tour de force: a fiberglass body draped over a custom-built tubular space-frame chassis housing a 8.0-liter V-10 intended for Dodge trucks but, with the help of Lamborghini, rebuilt with a new aluminum block and heads for Viper duty. That 400-hp, 450-lb-ft mill was the heart and soul of the car—glass windows, exterior door handles, and air conditioning be damned.
This particular Viper belongs to Paul Bedard, who in his childhood fell under the spell of flat-flared Porsche 911 Turbos and winged Lamborghini Countaches. Then, the Dodge Viper exploded onto the automotive scene, immediately joining Bedard’s list of dream rides.
Fast forward 30 years, and Bedard realized that, though the 911 Turbo and Countach were well outside his price range, the Viper was not. His heart was set on the bare-bones first-gen model—as luck would have it, the 1992–95 versions were the most accessible at the time. After a nationwide search, he pulled the trigger on a 14,000-mile 1993 RT/10 in Wisconsin. When the carrier arrived in Connecticut a few weeks later and he glimpsed the red V-10 beast inside the trailer, he felt like a kid at Christmas.
Though COVID-19 prevented him from immediately sharing his new Viper with his local automotive community, Bedard’s enjoyed the car in other ways: taking sunny weekend drives and, of course, simply staring at it in his garage. At last, he was able to participate in a local car show, a cars and coffee event, and a local rally benefitting the Connecticut Children’s Hospital.
“The memories made while taking my daughters to some of these events and cruising with my wife on sunny weekend afternoons is icing on the cake,” he writes.
