FCA's Detroit Dodge Viper Assembly Plant to Close Indefinitely

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is abandoning Conner Avenue Assembly in Detroit, Michigan. The plant produced Dodge Vipers sporadically for over two decades, but low sales volume eventually led to FCA’s decision to remove the high-performing model from its lineup. In 2016, Dodge only sold 630 Vipers. A final, limited-edition 2017 run sold out in less than a week.

The two-seater doesn’t meet upcoming safety regulations due to its absence of side-curtain airbags. Rather than undergo a costly redesign, FCA chose to let nature take its course and placed the model in hospice care back in 2015. However, the future of the assembly plant and its employees were uncertain at the time.

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  • Jkross22 Not to rub salt in the wound, but why would you put your hq in some extraordinarily expensive real estate like Manhattan Beach? I know little of Fisker the person, but this reeks of ego and the desire for appearances.
  • 3-On-The-Tree I’ve responded to several bike accidents where if the guy wasn’t wearing a helmet he would’ve been in a casket. Plus it saves your hearing.
  • Wjtinfwb Nice cars and a find if you're into Radwood type iron. But a near 40 year old anything, even something as robust as a Legend is going to have failure points that would be prohibitively expensive to fix. Electronics, A/C, leaky old gaskets, creaking suspension bushing etc., not to mention the lack of safety gear and an interior that no doubt has "seen a lot". I applaud the manual transmission, but you could likely find something 30 years newer for not much more money to hone your heel and toe skills on before graduating to a more expensive ride.
  • ScarecrowRepair Considering how over-priced Apple products are, I doubt a cheap Rivian is in the works.
  • Dick Mottram What happens when you are on slippery pavement and AEB slams on the brakes. I see it causing many accidents in the winter!