Five limited edition Vipers were on display at the Chelsea Proving Grounds during FCA’s media preview this week, which will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Chrysler sports car. They also commemorate the final year of Viper production, the 2017 model year.
The retro rod that Bob Lutz blatantly and unashamedly modeled after the original Shelby Cobra, debuted decades later in 1992, Viper got caught in the Chrysler bankruptcy in 2009. Viper was originally listed as an asset to be sold – plant and all for a mere $10 million. There were no takers. One of its champions was former television host Jay Leno who would come to the Detroit plant periodically to inspect the newest revisions, some of which were slight.
The Viper ACR (American Club Racer) version of the sports car achieved victories at Laguna Sega Raceway in Monterey, Le Mans in France, among 13 track records for street cars, a decent record.*
But the Viper couldn’t muster excitement even among its most ardent supporters the Viper Owners Association.
“There is nothing wrong with the current car — just not radical enough and ran into a Corvette juggernaut of all things. A Gen 2 look but under-powered car in a time of world beaters,” said Drummerviper on the Viper Owners website. “The truth is, if you want a true world beater exotic, the price goes up. What we have now is a nice car that is in the mix and is not knocking anyone’s socks off to say the least.”
Viper has a base MSRP of $87,000 – about the same as a state-of-the-art Corvette – for a car hand built in the Conner Avenue Assembly in Detroit. Each car reflects more than 145 hours to develop the show-quality, hand-sanded, multi-coat paint finish. Inside, the car has premium appointments to customizable controls and communication screens.
Among its features are an 8.4-liter, variable cam, single fuel injection, all-aluminum V10. It has a 645 horsepower Hellcat engine with 600 pound-feet of torque, a Tremac six-speed manual transmission, four-wheel independent suspension, coil-over shocks, multi-stage electronic steering control, traction control and brake assist.
The 2017 Viper will be available in more than 50 million unique build configurations through its one-on-one customization program for a hand-built cars that debuted in 2015. Its deeply sensuous curves conceal an 8.4-liter, V10 truck-derived engine that is rated at 645 horsepower. Jeff Reese, Viper engineer, claimed the vehicle was the fastest production car in the world. It was and is certainly not the most sophisticated in AutoInformed’s view.
Viper has Sabelt ballistic performance racing seats, 8.4-inch Uconnect media center with navigation, a seven-inch instrument cluster and 12-speaker Harmon-Kardon sound system. See Viper Customization – No Copies with Unique ‘1 of 1’ Builds
Sales Went South
What happened? Owner Sybil TF on the Viper Owners Association website complained about price. “Not many have the coin to buy this. I do but I’m a tight wad and besides, I love my 96GTS. Economy is downright scary and it has too much depreciation for a toy for those who can afford one.”
The one good thing about closing the brand is that existing vehicles may go up in value according to Drummerviper on the owner website, citing “increasing exclusivity.” Whistling past the used car graveyard?
Replacement sales for speed lovers will likely go to the Dodge Challenger and Dodge Charger SRT models which un-explainably (likely intake and / or exhaust tuning contraints) have a more powerful version of its Hellcat engine and a more family-friendly car body for carrying people and stuff. The base price is $65, 195.
*A 2010 production Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR (American Club Racer) posted a 7:12.13 lap time this September on the12.9-mile Nürburgring Nordschleife – the longest permanent race track in the world. This means that the old Viper on one timed lap was faster than a 2012 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1, which posted a lap time of 7:19.63 back in June. A Porsche 997 GT2 RS posted a 7:18 lap time last year, but the Porsche at $350,000 in Germany is roughly three or more times expensive than the American super cars.
See:
- Dodge Viper Bests Chevrolet Corvette Lap Time at Nürburgring
- Corvette ZR1 Cuts 6 Seconds from Nürburgring Lap Time
- Click here for in Corvette video
- Click here for Viper video
Ken Zino contributed to this story
