SEMA Top 10 – #1 Viper Powered Cuda
SEMA Top 10 – #1 Viper Powered Cuda w/ Video
Photos by Ryan Graham and Steve Secor
I hope that everybody has enjoyed the Top 10 picks of SEMA. We try to stay unbiased, but every car guy has some attraction to a certain style or attitude in a custom build. Our Top 10 has been mostly domestic, but those are the cars that really stood out to us. We like it all. If you look at our Top 10, we have a vintage Mustang race car, a JDM holy grail 240Z build, a bananas PreRunner Colorado, a twin-turbo ’67 Camaro road racing machine and a rat rod with a Cummins capable of 3,000 lb-ft of torque to the back tires. We try to spread the love around. There may have been other rides worthy of this list, but we aren’t perfect. Now for our #1 favorite car of SEMA 2015: The All Speed Customs “Medusa” 1971 ‘Cuda.
All Speed Customs is a custom car shop located on the edge of Lake Michigan in Muskegon Heights, MI. They’ve been building amazing rides for years and their builds always seem to bring something special to the table. This one is pretty insane because it is a 1971 ‘Cuda. The 1971 ‘Cuda is one of the halo cars for Mopar guys and if you know most Mopar guys, they aren’t into the crazy custom body mods and full chassis builds like other people are. I’m a Mopar guy myself, but I don’t see myself as a purist whatsoever. The whole point of building a car is to drive it and enjoy it. No matter what you say, the factory suspension just isn’t a ton of fun on a back road. Cars like the ‘Cuda or a Camaro are more fun than most, but they are still lacking in performance. ASC decided to remedy this with their insane build.
They started off with a plain old 1971 Barracuda, then they went nuts. They had Kris Horton of Cars by Kris do a full rendering to give them an idea of what they wanted the car to be, but they changed a few things along the way. The whole point was to build a ‘Cuda up to par with all of the insane Camaro and Mustang builds that appear at SEMA every year.
They went absolutely nuts with the body mods on this thing. The big thing that sticks out to me is the hood and the fender and door vents that were inspired by the Viper that this gets its engine from. The roof appears to have a stripe that has been recessed into the body. The team at ASC calls this the Reverse Mohawk. All of the drip rails have been shaved, the bumpers have been tucked, the quarter panels have been extended and the list goes on. My favorite part is at the front and the back of this thing. The front valence is all-aluminum and has integrated oil and transmission coolers behind the custom LED driving lights and turn indicators.
They also brought in details from exotic vehicles to make it really special The flush-mount door handles for example, are sourced from Aston Martin. The rear diffuser panel is from Ferrari. All of the red leather in the interior is from hides ordered directly from Ferrari. To make it feel more like a modern car than an antiquated classic, they installed flush-mounted glass and even extended the windshield openings to make it look right. All around this thing is as top notch as you can get.
The interior is just as nuts as the exterior. It has full custom interior their Interiors Expert Todd Holmes did in house. The custom Recaro seats are both heated and cooled to make sure you’re comfortable while you haul ass down a back road. Classic Instruments sells a lot of basic gauges, but these custom gauges they built are epic. Watch the video below to see them in action.
It has an Infinity Box wiring system and a custom stereo system with Audison and JL Audio components all controlled via an iPad that also has navigation. Although this thing is all about performance, it has every creature comfort you could want, including a Vintage Air climate control system. My favorite interior feature is the dual pistol holsters made for 1911-style pistols and extra clips. Just in case you have to take care of business when you’re done burning off tires, they’ve got you covered.
Under the custom hood is the real attraction: a 750-horsepower race-spec Viper V-10. This monster is hooked to a 6-speed automatic transmission from TCI Auto with paddle-shifters. Follow the drivetrain down and you’ll find a Strange 9” rear end. It has custom headers with 3” stainless exhaust all the way back with Magnaflow mufflers and electric cutouts. The center-exit exhaust tip is one sick piece integrated into the body design. Details like this are what separates cars like this from your average custom build.
The suspension is a custom Roadster Shop chassis with C6-based front suspension and a 4-link in the back. It also has an Ididit column with Woodward rack and pinion steering. The Penske double-adjustable coil overs make the car ride and handle just like ASC wanted it to. 14” Wilwood disc brakes handle stopping the Viper-powered beast with 6-piston rotors up front and 4-pistons out back. The brakes are engaged with the help of a Hydratech power brake assist to make it stop on a dime without putting the pedal through the floor. The wheels are custom Forgeline’s that measure 20×10” front and 20×12” rear wrapped in 335/30ZR20 Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires.
All Speed Customs takes the time to build their cars entirely in house. They don’t have to send it across town for upholstery or paint, they do it all. They even create all of their designs and strive to keeping the performance and function the most important. These are the guys who originally build Josh Kalis’ Speed Society ’69 Camaro back in 2006. ASC build a heck of a car in their new Medusa ‘Cuda. I love seeing a radical Mopar build since there are so many Camaros and Mustangs built this way. What do you guys think? Worthy #1 pick? Check out the rest of the SEMA Top 10 picks HERE!
Watch the VIDEO BELOW!
Check out the Roadster Shop Camaro on Blackhawk Farms Raceway
