The Chrysler Viper GTS-R was developed in 1995 as a joint project between Chrysler, French racing constructor Oreca, and British engineering firm Reynard Motorsport, originally conceived to showcase the then-new Viper GTS coupe in international motorsport. In Europe the car carried the Chrysler name rather than Dodge, as Dodge was not an officially recognised brand in European markets. The racing car retained the GTS coupe's bodywork profile but added a full aerodynamic package including rear wing, front splitter, diffuser, side exhausts routed beneath the doors, and roof-mounted air intakes. The 7998.5 cc V10 engine required minimal modification for competition, sitting just within the FIA's 8000 cc class limit for GT1.
When the FIA GT Championship launched in 1997 to replace the defunct BPR Global GT Series, Viper Team Oreca chose to compete in the GT2 class, judged to be more accessible given the strength of Porsche and Mercedes-Benz in GT1. The decision proved correct. Oreca opened the season with a 1-2 class finish, went on to win six of the eleven rounds, and took both the GT2 Teams and Drivers championships. The privateer Chamberlain Engineering team also competed, earning championship points throughout the year.
In 1998, Oreca's dominance in FIA GT GT2 became near total: the team won all but one event in the ten-round calendar, claiming the championship a second consecutive time. The Chamberlain team continued as an independent privateer, again scoring points across the season.
For 1999, Oreca split its European FIA GT effort with a new American Le Mans Series program. Despite the divided resources, the Oreca Vipers swept nine FIA GT victories, with Paul Belmondo's separate entry adding a further win. The Chrysler Viper took all but two FIA GT events that year, with Oreca and Belmondo sharing championship honours.
Chrysler's factory backing officially ended after 2001, as both Chrysler and Oreca redirected resources toward Le Mans Prototype development. The transition ushered in a fully privateer era for Viper racing in FIA GT. Rather than collapsing, the Viper's presence actually expanded briefly: in 2001, eight different Viper GTS-R squads competed across the season. Larbre Competition of France won three events including the Spa 24 Hours to claim the championship, with Carsport Holland earning two wins and finishing second.
Larbre defended the FIA GT title in 2002 with a single race victory, while Carsport Holland and Paul Belmondo each added wins. The 2002 season also saw the emergence of Ferrari 550 competition, which began to erode the Viper's dominance.
By 2003, Ferrari's Prodrive-built entries had surpassed the Viper's competitiveness. Viper teams were unable to win FIA GT races that season, and Larbre's seventh-place championship finish represented the best available result. The GTS-R continued in French GT and Italian GT — winning in large numbers in those series — and made its final FIA GT appearance at the 2005 Spa 24 Hours before homologation lapsed.
The Chrysler Viper GTS-R's FIA GT championship campaign produced back-to-back GT2 class titles in 1997 and 1998, and the car transitioned naturally to overall championship contender once the class structure evolved. Its status as an affordable, robust, and fast GT car made it the backbone of the privateer entry lists in the early FIA GT era. The Chrysler Viper's FIA GT record — multiple championships, victories across four continents, and competitive presence for nearly a decade — confirmed the program as one of the most successful factory-sanctioned GT racing efforts of its generation.