GranTurismo Trofeo and Folgore CGI-Unite to Help Dodge Viper Come Back as an EV

We have known for quite a while now that at least some of its ICE offspring are going to retire, and soon. Those would be the ICE-powered Dodge Challenger and Charger, which are falling victims of the EV revolution past the 2023 model year production and after hitting the collector crowd with no less than seven ‘Last Call’ special edition models – the last of them coming for a big fiesta in March.

After that, it will be a Banshee EV lifestyle with nine mind-blowing power levels (up to 1,320 hp with the 800-volt Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust version) across the board – although it’s a mystery if both nameplates will survive the transformation when considering that Dodge’s Charger Daytona SRT Concept morphed the Charger sedan into a two-door coupe, just like in the good old, vintage days. Anyway, that is not all on the Dodge front, and not by a mile.

Instead, the brand is hedging its bets at all levels, starting with the base Dodge Hornet – which is not a direct successor of the 2006-designed concept car but rather the 2023 model year rebadged and re-engineered version of the Alfa Romeo Tonale designed specifically for the North American market, complete with ICE and PHEV powertrains. Then, at the top of the SUV game, there is also the 2023 Durango which offers families three rows, lots of trim options, and even the craziness of a 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8 engine for the SRT Hellcat grade, once again.

So, on one hand, there is the novel EV lifestyle, and on the other is not lotion but rather the mighty SRT Hellcat lifestyle that just does not seem ready or willing to retire for the plains of automotive Valhalla. But if there is one thing missing from the roster, according to legions of Dodge enthusiasts, that would be a crazy sports car – particularly of the Viper heritage. And yes, of course, we remember the nameplate was retired for a second time almost six years ago, in 2017.

The story of the mighty sports car and its bonkers 8.0-liter (then 8.3L and 8.4L) V10 engine began in 1988 but it was not until early 1992 that the first retail units hit dealerships – and today some of its early prototypes have become true gems of Dodge automotive history. Anyway, the Viper V10 lifestyle was not for everyone, so we cannot really say that it is not understandable why Dodge put the model on hold between 2010 and 2013 (plus also for a brief ‘moment’ in 2007). By the way, one of my earliest memories of the Viper belongs to the TV series of 1994 to 1998 where the crimson Viper RT/10 roadster (later a blue Viper GTS coupe) morphed into a gray weaponized assault vehicle dubbed ‘The Defender.’

And, of course, that was not the only transformation incurred by the iconic Viper over the years – both in the real world as well as the imaginative realm of digital car content creators. Speaking of the latter, some pixel masters simply cannot accept the current fate of the nameplate and have decided to take matters into their hands. Or, rather, at the tip of their CGI brush, as is the case here with the virtual artist better known as Theottle on social media, who has resorted to a quirky digital metamorphosis to revive the beloved Dodge Viper sports car – and as an EV!

As such, in his latest behind-the-scenes making-of video (embedded below), we get to see the beloved American liftback coupe take lots of DNA from yet another Italian brand. Only on this occasion, the donor is not Alfa Romeo but rather Maserati, with a couple of unsuspecting GranTurismo coupes used as virtual templates for the reinvention of the Viper EV. From the front, the CGI blueprint belongs to the 2023 Maserati GranTurismo Trofeo – albeit the Italian sports car is coming without its twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 that is good for 550 hp (557 ps/410 kW) and 479 lb-ft (650 Nm) of torque in the most powerful installment of the Nettuno series.

Then, at the rear, a proper Maserati GranTurismo Folgore is used for the CGI switcheroo, although not even now can we be sure that its all-electric powertrain churning out a combined 751 hp (761 ps/560 kW) and 996 lb-ft (1,350 Nm) from three electric motors is coming along for the fine digital ride. Instead, maybe the author just wanted the sleek and elegant allure of the Maserati GranTurismo and then fully intended to give the Viper EV a taste of the aforementioned Banshee EV lifestyle, especially since its flagship power level is beyond even the ultimate, 1,200 hp wild dreams of the real-world Folgore version!