Dealer-Tuned Shelby Edition Viper Sets RT/10 Auction Record

The recipe is simple: drop a potent small-block into a curvy roadster and hold on for dear life. It worked when Carroll Shelby created the Cobra, and the Sunbeam Tiger, for that matter. When Dodge wanted to recreate some of that Cobra magic nearly 30 years later, the small-block was an all-aluminum V-10 based on its LA V-8 that debuted in the ’60s, and the curvy roadster wasn’t borrowed from Britain, but a modern effigy of a Cobra designed by Dodge’s Tom Gale. They called it Viper as an homage, and enlisted Shelby himself to bless it by piloting a pre-production version as a pace car for the 1991 Indianapolis 500.

The Viper quickly became American performance royalty, so clean examples and special models are highly sought after. One super-rare version crossed the virtual auction block on Hagerty Marketplace this week, and it sold for $197,950, making it one of the most expensive Vipers ever sold.

Three basic generations of Viper were produced, starting in 1992 and, after a brief hiatus in 2011-12, culminating in 2017 when the final model rolled off the Conner Avenue Assembly line. Through its production run, Viper was always heralded as a visceral performer. The early first-generation models in particular earned a reputation for finicky handling at the limit. Drivers had to be disciplined to balance traction on a razor’s edge or wind up oversteering. A chassis revision in 1996 made the Viper a bit quicker and a bit more manageable. The 1996 model, which kicked off the SRII update of the original Viper, ditched the side exhaust for rear-exit exhaust, which helped add a bit of power. Weight was also down. The other big change for 1996 was the addition of the GTS model, a hardtop that helped make things more civilized, but only just.

Also in 1996, an outfit called Fitzgerald Motorsports collaborated with Carroll Shelby on a small run of “Carroll Shelby Limited Edition” Vipers. The 19 special Vipers completed feature three-piece OZ Racing wheels and a unique fascia that eliminates the Dodge crosshair from the grille opening, which adds an extra hint of Cobra. A striped hardtop for the roadsters and new rear spoiler further set them apart. Inside, Schroth racing harnesses feature Shelby embroidery, and Shelby signed each steering wheel.

Ignition, intake, and exhaust upgrades free up 35 more horsepower, bringing the total to 450, matching the output of the high-performance GTS coupe. To harness the extra power, Fitzgerald Motorsports tuned the suspension with a new sway bar and unique shock and alignment settings. Finally, the Viper’s 3.07:1 final drive ratio was shortened to 3.73:1, and the speedometer was re-calibrated to compensate. That change alone would have had a significant effect on the sports car’s impressive acceleration. With the gear swap, 60mph is achieved just as the 8.0-liter V-10 hits its power peak in 2nd gear. It had to liven things up quite a bit, yet 70mph cruising in Sixth gear was raised less than 300 rpm.

While the Carroll Shelby Limited Edition Vipers are already low-production, only two were made in blue with white stripes, a color combo rare even among standard RT/10s in 1996. The well-kept Shelby Edition sold this week showed 9126 miles on the odometer and is in solid shape, save for some scraped paint under the fascia and a missing wheel center cap. Its $197,950 sale price is 2.5 times the current condition #1 (“concours”) value for a standard 1996 Viper RT/10, showing that the Shelby name and its association with Viper make for a tempting combo for collectors.

The current record sale for an SRII Viper is a GTS model that sold for $198,000 in 2023 on Bring a Trailer when including the $5,000 buyer’s premium. That was a GT2 Championship edition with just 1900 miles on the odometer. The current #1 (Concours) value for a standard 1996 GTS is $127,000. Both sales prove that Viper remains a valued collectible, which shouldn’t be a shock as it’s a low-volume sports car with stunning looks and performance to match.