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Viper Production Could End in 2017, Conner Avenue Plant Closing

We have bad news for fans of American muscle of the V10 caliber. Despite their best efforts, the SRT people may have to finally say goodbye to the Viper, this time for good.
SRT Viper 1 photo
Photo: Dodge
How do we know the venerable V10 is getting the axe? Well, the information is buried inside a proposed contract between the Fiat-Chrysler Alliance and the UAW union. As it turns out, we'll say goodbye to the Viper in the 2017 calendar year, when the Conner Avenue factory responsible for its fabrication will also close down.

It's not the first time Viper production ends, as we didn't get any V10s between 2010 and 2013. However, Allpar argues that the Viper has overstayed its welcome. The original plan was to test new technologies, not turn Dodge into a supercar one-stop-shop. Conner Avenue also made the Plymouth Prowler, a testbed for aluminum fabrication.

A recent price cut meant that the Viper went from $100,000 down to just $85,000. Some might say it's a bargain for an American machine with seats made by the same supplier as Ferrari's. But everybody seems to want the supercharged Challenger and Charger Hellcats.

The Viper is an impressive machine, from its lightweight carbon-fiber roof right down to its road-scorching wheels. An oversized hood still hides the 8.4-liter lump of power, one of the biggest engines on the block, over twice as large as the engine used by the $130,000 Mercedes-AMG GT.

The Viper looks like a car from the world of comic books, like something designed by the guy who does Spider-Man illustrations. The rear tires have a 355 section and the exhaust still comes out in a weird place. After testing it, we couldn't figure out why an American would ever buy any other sportscar.

For 2016, Dodge rolled out the track-focused Viper ACR model, a low volume car that's unlikely to make a dent in the sales charts. We suspect production will be halted for a few more months next year.

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About the author: Mihnea Radu
Mihnea Radu profile photo

Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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