2014 SRT Viper TA (Time Attack) at the 2013 New York Auto Show

• Competes with: 2013 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1, 2014 Nissan GT-R
• Looks like: A Viper competition car endorsed by Dreamsicle
• Drivetrain: 640-hp, 8.4-liter V-10 engine; six-speed manual transmission; rear-wheel drive
• Hits dealerships: 33 examples go on sale starting in third quarter 2013

The SRT Viper TA (Time Attack) is the Viper for track rats and those who want a more dedicated track package from the all-new Viper that debuted for the 2013 model year. Power remains the same at a chest-thumping 640 horsepower, and the package offers a more road-race-oriented suspension and aerodynamic package while remaining street legal.

It's also bright Crusher Orange, the only color available on the 33 planned production examples, and a single-spec trim level with no optional equipment.

An adjustable two-mode suspension borrowed from the up-level SRT Viper GTS combines with the low weight of the "entry-level" SRT Viper base model to make up the package's most notable change besides the retina-burning Crusher Orange paint. It's not a straight swap, however, as the two-mode Bilstein adjustable suspension is retuned with more track-oriented shocks, springs and road-racing derived stabilizer bars. The SRT brand says the TA has a smaller spread between the levels of dampening found on the Viper GTS models.

2013 SRT Viper at Roebling Road Raceway: Photo Gallery

The third generation of the erstwhile Dodge Viper returned from a three-year hiatus not only a "better car overall," says Cars.com reviewer Joe Wiesenfelder, but no less outrageous. Faithful to its rep, the 2013 SRT Viper boasts showy features like a forward-opening hood, 18- and 19-inch wheels in front and back, respectively, and lightweight carbon-fiber and aluminum components. Similarly impressive are interior upgrades, which in the GTS trim Wiesenfelder drove at Roebling Road Raceway in Savannah, Ga., included abundant Laguna leather that muted memories of its previous inferior interior. Check out the gallery below.

2013 SRT Viper GTS at Roebling Road Raceway Video

Admirers of the former Dodge Viper should be thrilled with the 2013 SRT Viper GTS. Those who would never dream of paying $100,000 for a less-than-practical sports car aren't likely to become converts. Whatever one's attitude on it, the third-generation Viper is an all-around improvement on its predecessor, says Cars.com reviewer Joe Wiesenfelder. The new Viper has shed 100 pounds thanks to lighter-weight materials, helping its 640-horsepower, 8.4-liter V-10 achieve a low-3-second zero-to-60 time and a 206 mph top speed. Better yet, the track-ready SRT Viper has become an overall more manageable performance sports car without sacrificing its essential "Viper-ness." Watch the video above.

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2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray: Photo Gallery Two

If the stingray's stinger could deliver the viper's venom, could it become the most formidable fish in the sea? Chevrolet hopes to take that analogy to the high-performance sports car segment with the all-new 2014 Corvette Stingray, whose design cues from fellow American icon the SRT Viper are apparent.

More Detroit Auto Show Coverage

The 2014 Corvette Stingray, bowing this week at the 2013 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, boasts Viper-like exposed headlights and a gaping lower grille. But with features like defined rocker creases and shoulder lines, this Stingray-badged Corvette tempers the hulking appearance of the Viper. Still, the Stingray retains enough classic Corvette flavor to satisfy the faithful while tempting higher-end enthusiasts.

Check out the gallery below.

Chrysler to Offer Dealer-Activated Navigation Systems

Until now, new-car shoppers who want a navigation system have to pick a more expensive navigation-equipped vehicle at the dealership or have an aftermarket system installed into a lower trim level. At this week's 2013 Consumer Electronics Show, Chrysler announced plans to address that with a dealer-activated navigation system. Basically, the automaker will offer standard — but deactivated — navigation in cars equipped with the Uconnect dashboard screen. Pay for the option and dealers will activate it. It's sort of like how your TV's cable receiver could play a gaggle of premium channels but locks them out until you pay up.

Dealer-activated navigation requires Chrysler's Uconnect Access system, the latest version of Uconnect. It debuts in the 2013 Ram 1500, 2013 SRT Viper and 2014 Fiat 500L, with screen sizes ranging from 6.5 to 8.4 inches. Dealers can activate navigation when you buy the car or if you decide you want it later on. Chrysler spokesman Eric Mayne said dealer-activated navigation will run $595 in the Ram, but there's no pricing on the other two yet.

We'll see if Chrysler finds many takers down the road. A handful of Ford owners are clamoring for a similar post-purchase option on cars that have MyFord Touch and its dashboard screen but not the navigation option. Dealer-activated navigation "is theoretically possible, but we’ve not seen the customer demand for it yet," Ford spokesman Alan Hall said. "Most people purchase navigation up front when they order or choose the car."

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Top 10 Most-Watched Videos of the Year

The end of another review- and video-packed year at Cars.com is approaching. Our most popular video of 2012 comes from sister-site PickupTrucks.com and features the Ford Raptor SVT and the Mopar Ram Runner duking it out in the desert. In the video, professional off-road racer Chad Ragland and PickupTrucks.com editor Mark Williams test the trucks' limits on the rugged terrain of Ocotillo Wells, Calif., in a first-time duel to determine which would emerge victorious once the dust settled.

Check out that video above and see what other videos were popular in 2012:

1. Raptor vs. Ram Runner: Head to Head
2. 2013 Ford Fusion
3. 2013 Honda Accord Coupe
4. 2013 SRT Viper First Live Exhaust Note
5. 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe
6. 2013 Nissan Altima
7. 2013 Cadillac ATS
8. 2012 PickupTrucks.com Midsize Shootout
9. 2013 Chevrolet Traverse
10. Mopar Ram Runner: Sights & Sounds

SRT Viper Gets Sub-$100,000 Price Tag

After reading Joe Wiesenfelder's spirited First Drive of the 2013 SRT Viper earlier today, the only question left was, "How much?"

Now we know.

The base SRT Viper will command a $99,395 price tag, including $1,995 in destination charges, before any options are added.

This puts it right between Nissan's GT-R at $97,820 and the Corvette ZR1 at $113,575 including destination as well as gas guzzler taxes for the 'Vette. EPA figures and gas guzzler taxes for the Viper have not been determined yet.

The even more extreme, more ready-for-the-track Viper GTS will start at $122,390, including a destination charge.

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2013 SRT Viper: First Drive

If you told me three years ago that I had written my last Dodge Viper review, I wouldn't have blinked. Certainly this noisy, crude, gas-guzzling ode to testosterone wouldn't survive an era defined by hybrids, soaring gas prices and its own manufacturer's bankruptcy.

No one counted on such a quick rebound for the Fiat-owned Chrysler Group or the lunatic vision of Fiat/Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne and designer/gearhead/leadfoot/executive Ralph Gilles, now the CEO of the SRT division. We found out at the New York International Auto Show earlier this year that the Viper would be back as a 2013 model.

As I made clear in what I thought would be my last Viper review, which was of the second-generation model in 2008, I liked the car. I respected it. But a car like that has no place in today's market. To make any sense at all, the 2013 will have to be more grown-up and refined. If my time in two development Vipers at South Haven, Mich.'s GingerMan Raceway is an indication, SRT has nailed it.

Daily News Briefs: Aug. 7, 2012

Chrysler will introduce an upgraded Uconnect system in the 2013 Ram 1500 pickup truck and SRT Viper that connects through an embedded wireless system powered by Sprint, the Detroit News reports. You can make phone calls, compose text messages by voice or find nearby points of interest via Bing. Passengers also can connect smartphones or computers to the system's on-board Wi-Fi. We hope it works faster than Chrysler's existing AutoNet-powered Uconnect Web, which left our iPhones in the slow lane. Like Uconnect Web, the Sprint-powered Uconnect system will require subscription or pay-per-use fees, the Detroit News says, but some of this could offset additional data charges on your own smartphone. Typical multimedia systems — think Ford's Sync AppLink or Toyota's Entune — stream applications off your smartphone's data, and unlimited plans are becoming harder to find. Chrysler will announce pricing closer to the fall launch of the Ram and Viper.

In other news:

Lapping Road America With Chrysler's Design Chief

Ralph Gilles tapped the drivetrain's Sport button and held down an adjacent key to deactivate the electronic stability system. We were in a 470-horsepower Dodge Challenger SRT8 — Gilles at the wheel, me riding shotgun — about to hug the best four miles of asphalt anywhere in the Midwest: Wisconsin's Road America racetrack.

"Now we're in full 'oh s—t' mode," Gilles smiled.

I figured Chrysler's chief designer could careen around a racetrack in his own cars any way he liked, and it seemed like a good way to pass time after the 20-year company veteran spoke to journalists at the Midwest Automotive Media Association's Spring Rally last week. Careen we did, nearing 140 mph down the half-mile Kettle Bottoms, between the 11th and 12th of Road America's 14 turns. Gilles is a better track driver than me, but that's not saying much: My apexes are messy, my drifts fleeting. Any weekend enthusiast would show me taillights.

Gilles has also navigated Chrysler's own twists and turns. The 42-year-old designer jokes of still having nightmares of former CEO Bob Nardelli, whose tenure lasted all of 21 months, and he calls his current boss, Sergio Marchionne, a "globally minded" car guy. Gilles has led the automaker's design for three years, overseeing cars from the Dodge Dart to the SRT Viper. A year ago, Marchionne appointed Gilles the CEO of Chrysler's SRT performance brand.