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Tattoos have become extremely popular in the last ten years, so much so that if you don’t have at least one, you’re in the minority. But people aren’t the only ones sporting tattoos these days. As we found out from Jalopnik, more and more production vehicles are being treated to a bit of pseudo ink, including the brand new SRT Viper. While these hidden designs don’t quite go to the extreme of some of the “tattooed” car designs we saw last year, they are certainly interesting and fun to scavenge for.
The 2013 SRT Viper is a stellar big sister to the many generations of Dodge Vipers that have come before it. With 640hp and 600 ft.-lbs., it will give the sports car market a run for its money. But it’s not all about power and performance for the model, it is also about design. With that has come two unique “tattoos” on the car that you may not have spotted even if you walked around the model at the recent New York Auto Show reveal.
The first of these strategically placed designs appears on the door pull. Etched there in the plastic is a map of the Nürburgring Nordschleife track. As you may recall, Dodge recently slaughtered numerous Nürburgring track records with their Viper ACR, laying down an amazing 7 minute and 12.13-second lap time. This lap put the American automaker within the top four slots for fastest lap time ever and set the bar high for the next-gen Viper.
The other tattoo you will find on the new Viper is hidden on top of the transmission tunnel underneath the cup holder. Placed there is a map of California’s famed Laguna Seca track. It was at this track that the 2010 Dodge Viper ACR set the lap record back in 2009 with a lap time of just one minute and 33.944 seconds.
Whether the two tattooed maps were put on the new Viper to pay homage to previous successes or to inspire future accomplishments at either location, we really like the stealthy bonuses.
While these two hidden designs came as news to us, auto manufacturers have been including little extras in their cars quite a bit lately. Among those that have seen these extra treatments include the 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8 with a special built-in cup holder under the hood, the 2010 Mustang GT with a vanity mirror that looks like the hood of the car, the 2009 Corvette ZR1 with the Corvette Racing “Jake” mascot on the intake runner, and the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee with a Willys slotted grill etched into the headlight.
Design extras aren't new to Chrysler with the Challenger SRT and Jeep Grand Cherokee getting little tidbits of their own
