Chrysler's Crushing Vipers

In what is shaping up to be a public-relations disaster for Chrysler, the company has decided to crush as many as ninety-three first-generation and pre-production Vipers. Worst of all, they’re forcing a community college in Puget Sound to crush prototype despite the fact that the school is still using it to train students. The question is: why?

And then… well, rumor (as reported by various blogs) says that a couple of these Vipers were crashed on public roads, costing Chrysler millions of dollars in fines and settlements. Early Vipers can be challenging to drive enthusiastically, although they’re no worse than any other, um, ten-cylinder car with no traction control and a hood the length of the USS Hornet‘s flight deck. The “loan agreements” under which the Vipers were given to their current custodians give Chrysler the right to demand their destruction, and the rumor is that Chrysler is giving those destruction orders in order to prevent further liability hassles.

Not so, claims Chrysler:

About 10 years ago, Chrysler Group donated a number of Dodge Viper vehicles to various trade schools for educational purposes. As part of the donation process, it is routine, standard procedure — and stipulated in our agreements — that whenever vehicles are donated to institutions for education purposes that they are to be destroyed when they are no longer needed for their intended educational purposes.

With advancements in automotive technology over the past decade, it is unlikely that these vehicles offer any educational value to students.

Also, Chrysler Group has no record of any legal proceedings involving Dodge Viper vehicles donated to educational institutions being involved in accidents and product liability lawsuits.

To recap, the Vipers in question have no significant historical value, have not been involved in any accidents and serve no educational purpose – which is what they were designed to do at first.

Hmm.

It would be easy to pick the blog entry apart, and the enthusiast community is doing just that. The only thing I’ll say here is this: The notion that ninety-three early Vipers, taken together, have no significant historical value — well, that’s ridiculous. Imagine if ninety-three pre-production ’53 Vettes were to become available. Hell, imagine if ninety-three pre-production ’83 Vettes were to become available. These cars have value to someone. At the very least, they should be released into a race series or some sort of historical collection. A “Viper Ranch” with all of them bleaching under the desert sun would be better for future generations than this decision.

Chrysler’s done a lot to earn the respect and admiration of “car guys” over the last few decades. From the Shelby Charger to the old Viper ACR, the company’s tried hard to give us the most speed for the least money. But this cowardly crushing of Chrysler’s own history is a dark day in that history. It won’t be forgotten.