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Breaking: Dodge Viper Done By July 2010, Coming Back In 2012 With Fiat Group DNA

 
9 6,447 views Nov 4, 2009
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2009 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR

HI-RES GALLERY: 2009 Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR

Today Chrysler is revealing its 5-year plan, and one of the biggest bombshells so far is that Dodge will produce only 500 more units of the Dodge Viper. But according to Dodge brand chief Ralph Gilles, those 500 will be the most special Vipers ever made. Once they're done, production will end, no later than July, 2010. But that's not the end of the Viper story.

The Viper will be back by summer of 2012, according to Gilles. And best of all, perhaps, is that it will leverage some of Fiat's sportscar DNA. In an oblique reference, Gilles mentioned Fiat's sports car-focused brands--hinting strongly at Ferrari--as providing the basis for the revived Viper. No details or specifics were revealed, however.

As for what shape the final 500 Vipers will take, Dodge will be hard-pressed to top the Viper SRT10 ACR. That car still dominates production-car Nurburgring times with a 7:22.1--three tenths faster than the much newer Corvette ZR1 and ahead of almost all of its rivals.

The same 600-horsepower 8.4-liter V-10 engine is almost a certainty, but an even lighter, more exotic Viper could be in the works. On the flip side, they could go more luxurious with the car, adding an interior that takes the Viper more into the realm of supercar than its current position of street-legal race car.

We'll have to wait and see, but it's certainly some of the most exciting news to come out of Dodge in recent months.





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Comments (9)

  1. By ThatSucks Posted: 11/4/2009 9:22am PST

    This is BS! I was waiting for the money to buy one of those someday, now they're going to be even more expensive as collector items. Life is not fair! :'(
     
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  2. By ThatSucks Posted: 11/4/2009 9:24am PST

    I don't really have a rational reason for this, but I wouldn't be caught dead in a Fiat even if it does look like a Viper...
     
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  3. By stang67 Posted: 11/4/2009 10:42am PST

    It should become like SL550, Porsche, XK8-XKR, Corvette. Nice interior in different colors, paddle shift auto transmission. More refined, luxurious and easy to drive all year round.
     
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  4. By adamk Posted: 11/4/2009 10:53am PST

    Really, TS? I'm not a Viper fan, but one that might have even a little Fiat/Ferrari/Maserati DNA sounds pretty good...
     
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  5. By Michael Schumacher Posted: 11/5/2009 3:05am PST

    This could be good for the Viper since Fiat owns Ferrari and Maserati.
    Good things could come from this, so let's try to be positive!
    With some of this Italian intervention the next Viper could more refined, bore a smaller yet equally powerful engine.
    One downside though is that they might try to make the Viper be not as good as possible because it could step some Maserati and Ferrari toes! Let's also hope there are no conflict of interests!
     
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  6. By Opus Posted: 11/5/2009 5:06am PST

    Keeping Viper going seems so counter productive to reviving Chrysler. That said, Ralph deserves credit for being a true enthusiast and car guy for finding a way to save the Viper even for those of us that can only dream of owning one.
     
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  7. By  Multivitamins Posted: 12/10/2009 11:15pm PST

    I think he says that not in the "road performance" way, but more in the "day-to-day practicality" way. Simply, it's just that buying a Viper just for going to the mall it's not the best decision.
     
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  8. By Nipplator Posted: 3/25/2010 11:06am PDT

    If they bring it back and it has four doors like the charger, I'm going to shoot somebody.
     
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  9. By  Stan Gusinski Posted: 4/8/2010 6:55am PDT

    The Viper engine will not change. It will still ahve the big 8.4L which might even grow to 8.6. In order to keep the viper and Ferrari market out of each others faces, The Viper wioll be a raw muscle car, and the ferrari will be a girly cruser as it alway shas been. The only combination which will take place that Fiat will try to brighten up the Vipers interior. It will still be 2 door 2 seats. Still 6 speen stick, and still the rawest car made in 2010. What Hennesy does to that car destroys any Bugatti, or anything street legal veer built. The Viper is G0D! (Any questions email sgusinski@gmail.com)
     
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