At the Chrysler Group business plan presentation today, Ralph Gilles, the recently appointed President and CEO of Dodge, made several product announcements, but one in particular stood out. Gilles announced that when the current run of 500 Vipers is completed by the end of the year, production will end.
The V-10-powered Viper has become an iconic vehicle since production began in 2002. And our drive of the Viper ACR left little doubt that the Viper is still a world-class sports car.
But thankfully, that's not the end of the story. Gilles went on to say that a new Dodge super sports car is in the works, and it should be on the market by summer of 2012. Gilles said that the new car will draw from the Italian performance car heritage of his new Fiat/Alfa overlords and that it will utilize Fiat alliance resources. So it's clear that the new car will have a generous share of Italian DNA.
At this point, it is unclear if the new car will indeed be called Viper. Given that it will likely be an extreme departure from the present car, the question becomes, should it be? Would anything less than a V-10 be a disappointment? What about a hybrid or other next-generation powertrain?
Let us know what you think about the future of the Dodge's next halo sports car.
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