Dodge Halts Viper Orders, Wonders How Many More It Can Build

by Steph Willems

Published: October 12th, 2016

dodge halts viper orders wonders how many more it can build

The Dodge Viper’s plug is damn near pulled.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles steadfastly claims that 2017 is the final year for the Viper, and recently halted orders for the V10-powered road beast, The Detroit News reports.

However, this doesn’t mean the model has reached the end of the line. At least, not just yet.

After announcing very specific production numbers and specifications for its 25th and final year, then adding another special edition model run, FCA shut down orders on October 7 to figure out how many more Vipers it can build.

The answer probably wont be “many.” After the initial run of 217 vehicles announced in June sold out within a week, FCA opened orders on 31 units of its Snakeskin ACR variant. According to The Detroit News, one dealer — Gerry Wood Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Salisbury, North Carolina — has ordered 135 final model year Vipers in the last two months.

Initially boasting that the order was 99 percent of remaining Viper production, the dealer has since dropped the claim. FCA representatives confirm the order but didn’t say if it represents the last of the Viper line. The automaker has said that orders will be reopened at some point.

In the meantime, and maybe for all time, the North Carolina dealer is the best bet for deep-pocketed collectors who missed out on a chance to place their own order. Reportedly, the dealer has a team of five working to find buyers for the 135 snakes, which includes 24 customized models.

[Image: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles]

#2017DodgeViper #DodgeViper #Enthusiasm #Fca #FiatChryslerAutomobiles #Production #Sales #Viper

Steph Willems

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17 of 22 comments

DaPlugg on Oct 12, 2016

Idk is this the last of this model or is the viper nameplate being totally done away with

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- Wumpus on Oct 12, 2016
  
  I'm pretty sure most of them have been SRT-10s for some time. Of course, should they replace the V-10 with the Hellcat, they might even have to revive the name. Wasn't there a relatively inexpensive viper suggested around here? I'm guessing it was the first generation (virtual prototype, no roof at all). Vipers seem to be fairly timeless, boasting endless power even if a Mustang-GT can match it.
  
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- Lorenzo on Oct 12, 2016
  
  @wumpus Yes, there was a very short-lived suggestion to build a Viper with the Pentastar V6, with all the tricks that engine was originally designed to accommodate - direct injection, forced air induction, and twin turbos, among others. Somebody shot it down as cheapening the supercar status and killing sales of the V10 version. If it were a mass-produced platform, that could be possible after the V10 is killed, but my understanding is all the bodies are pretty much hand made. Who knows what sick ideas the Fiat people have, though: maybe making a facsimile version based on the 500L. After all, eventually EVERYTHING made By FCA will be built off the 500L, like Iacocca made everything out of the K-car.
  
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- Ajla on Oct 12, 2016
  
  @Lorenzo "build a Viper with the Pentastar V6, with all the tricks that engine was originally designed to accommodate – direct injection, forced air induction, and twin turbos, among others." Leave that stuff for Maserati.
  
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- NoID on Oct 13, 2016
  
  Right now there are no publicized plans to replace it, and no new product going into the Conner Avenue plant beyond 2017 according to the union contracts. Unless there's a skunkworks project going on, it's dead. It doesn't mean that they couldn't revive it, but at this point it would require another gap in production similar to what occurred between the Gen IV and Gen V cars in 2010-2012. Which means another couple years where the halo car drops off the enthusiast radar. I don't think that would be great for marketing, and recent sales history seems to support that opinion. In my opinion. (If you're keeping track, I've just said that in my opinion recent history supports my opinion. This is how we ended up with Hillaronald Trunton as the two-headed monster currently running against itself for President, but that's just my opinion.) Sergio is on record saying he doesn't want unique platforms, but you can't build a car like Viper without a unique platform. Using the Giulia platform as he suggested would be an unacceptable compromise for something like Viper. I'm not a Luddite about the car like some fans, but putting it on a global C- and D-segment platform is a bridge too far even for me. If anything they could borrow something from Ferrari or Maserati, even an older platform, but certainly not something that underpins sedans and CUVs. I'm mostly bummed because I got my dream job just in time to get a front row seat to the (second) death of Viper. It's bittersweet.
  
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- Caltemus on Oct 13, 2016
  
  @ajla It would be really interesting if this platform lived on as a maserati with a different body and the giulia quadrifoglio engine. It would certainly fit with maser's legacy
  
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Dividebytube on Oct 12, 2016

I remember the first time I saw a Viper in the wild: it was on some pot-hole wasteland of a street in Chicago. This must have been early 90s and boy did it look exotic and mean back then.

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Dal20402 on Oct 13, 2016

Looks like Jack Baruth waited a bit too long to pull the trigger.

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- Ronnie Schreiber on Oct 13, 2016
  
  I'm sure that Gerry Wood Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Salisbury, North Carolina will gladly sell him one of the 135 Vipers they ordered. Since they haven't been made yet, they'd probably even paint it lime green for him. I think his fans should start a crowdfunding effort to buy him a Viper. I'd pop for $100. Now we just need to find another 878 people who think likewise. I mean what else could one do with the money, feed the poor?
  
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- Ajla on Oct 13, 2016
  
  We live in a world where Saabkyle04 and Doug DeMuro own Vipers but Jack Baruth owns an Accord.
  
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- Flipper35 on Oct 13, 2016
  
  @Ronnie Schreiber I would be in on that with the caveat that I get a ride around a track in it sometime. :)
  
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- Corey Lewis on Oct 13, 2016
  
  @ajla I couldn't watch Kyle gush over his Viper. I also can't watch his more recent videos, as he's gone WAY overboard on technical detail and "positivity so I keep my free car access" tendencies. The new Armada and Cruze (half hour each) reviews were both exactly the same. The interesting used cars and sometimes new ones aspect is completely gone.
  
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- Ajla on Oct 13, 2016
  
  @Corey Lewis Saabkyle was alright back when he did old cars (like the Cerealmarshmallows guy), but now that he's moved on to new car "reviews" I don't really pay attention. Pretty much all YouTube car reviews (and just automotive videos in general) are lame, boring, and repetitive. The only thing worthwhile is I can hear the exhaust notes. And the click-bait titles from many people are ridiculous.
  
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- Corey Lewis on Oct 13, 2016
  
  @ajla Let's not watch them any more, shall we? Lol
  
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- Caltemus on Oct 13, 2016
  
  @ajla Hey RegularCarReviews is pretty entertaining
  
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- Corey Lewis on Oct 13, 2016
  
  @caltemus That guy drones on forever and is so poncy! Though I think Ajla told me the one example I saw was a bad one (the imported 190E).
  
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Stanczyk on Oct 14, 2016

They could try to use 6.4L Hemi (for a basic Vette rival) , and Hellcat for sth more special .. V10 quietly farting .. in american sports-muscle car? ..

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