The heavily customized SRT SEMA Viper.
While the kids may be getting their costumes ready and dreaming of shopping bags full of candy, gearheads know the real place to celebrate Halloween is Las Vegas. Yep, you will find some wild costumes cruising the Strip, but the best treats in town will be on display at the Las Vegas Convention Center at the annual SEMA show.
For those who haven’t caught it before, the Specialty Equipment Marketers Association is the annual gathering for all sorts of aftermarket parts makers, tuners – and major manufacturers, like Chrysler, who roll into Sin City with some exotic updates of their more conventional product lines.
That will include an assortment of offerings from Chrysler and its Italian ally Fiat, the partners today giving us an advance look at some of the SEMA specials they’ll have on display – including Mopar-ized vehicles from the Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler, Ram and Fiat brands. Perhaps the big draw, however, will be the all-new SRT Viper.
Riding on 42-inch tractor tires, the Jeep Wrangler Sand Trooper.
“The SEMA show is the perfect place for us to showcase our vast portfolio of proven, quality-tested Mopar performance parts and accessories,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar®, Chrysler Group LLC’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “We hope that show-goers look at each of these vehicles and get inspired to customize and accessorize their rides.”
The customized yellow 2013 SRT Viper will feature a number of upgrades including lightweight carbon fiber engine cover, aero trim pieces and an exposed cross X-brace trimmed in a satin finish – half the weight of the production brace but equally strong.
The seats feature a hard Sabelt racing shell – but finished in dark Katzkin leather trim. Further interior touches include aluminum billet shifter knob and HVAC bezels and controls.
At the other extreme, the Mopar team will reveal the Fiat 500 Beach Cruiser featuring a body that has been widened a full foot from the current production minicar thanks to old-school protruding wheel flares barely concealing custom Mopar aluminum wheels.
Exterior details – from the tinted headlamps to the satin-finish door handles – get a look that will strongly set the Beach Cruiser apart from today’s Fiat 500.
A foot wider than the stock minicar, the Fiat 500 Beach Cruiser even has a dancing hula girl.
The maker notes that, “Performance upgrades include a Mopar exhaust and Mopar cold-air intake to provide horsepower boosts, while the Mopar strut tower brace improves handling. The FIAT 500 Beach Cruiser wouldn’t be complete without the cherry on top — a hula girl figurine, placed front and center on the dash.”
From Jeep, SEMA-goers will get a good look at two offerings from Jeep. The Wrangler Sand Trooper finds room under the hood for the familiar 5.7-liter Hemi V-8, here making 375 hp and 410 lb-ft of torque. Power is delivered to massive 42-inch Swamp Bogger tires that shod matte black lock wheels. The package gets an extra five inches of ground clearance over the stock Jeep Wrangler.
The exterior is appropriately done up in a Dune-in-Matte paint finish offset by numerous black accents. And there’s a big hood vent to help the Hemi breathe. Other details include Mopar skid plate, winch and LED off-road lights – as well as an Add-A-Trunk kit to stow your tent or other off-road accessories.
The Dodge Dart Carbon Fire.
And to get an idea of what a complete Mopar makeover might get you, there’s the Jeep Grand Cherokee and a Half. Half the customized vehicle is a stock Laredo edition with a Deep Cherry Pearl Coat finish. The other half features all manner of Mopar accessories, including 20-inch wheels, chrome-on-mesh grille, hood air deflector and fog lamp bezels. The interior also boasts a variety of accessories, including premium Katzkin leather seating and accents.
Mopar also juices up the Dodge Charger for SEMA, the Dodge Charger Juiced featuring a Viper V-10 crate engine.
“The Viper V-10 injects a venom-worthy boost of 650 horsepower into the Charger Juiced, but tones down the emissions to remain eco-friendly,” the maker explains, noting, “The Mopar cold air intake and Mopar cat-back exhaust provide even more horsepower and a menacing engine note, while the Mopar lowering kit tightens the ride and improves cornering.”
What do you get stuffing a Viper V-10 crate motor into this sedan? The Dodge Charger Juiced.
Other Chrysler models coming to SEMA will include an even more upscale version of the big 300 sedan, appropriately dubbed the Chrysler 300 Luxury, the Urban Ram pickup, and the Dodge Dart Carbon Fire.
“On the performance end of the spectrum, the Mopar prototype carbon fiber hood offers significant weight savings,” Mopar officials explain. “A three-piece prototype rear decklid spoiler provides downforce to keep the Carbon Fire planted through the corners, while also giving a more dramatic look to the vehicle. Silver brake calipers stand out while helping to control the Dodge Dart’s power.
The SEMA show opens on October 30 and runs to November 2. Unfortunately, it’s not open to the general public. So, if you aren’t connected to the auto industry, Stay with us on TheDetroitBureau.com for more updates from the annual Las Vegas extravaganza.