Rejoice! A New Dodge Viper Might be on the Way
By Andrew Hulse
The Dodge Viper has always been a somewhat guilty pleasure of mine. I normally heavily prefer small, old, European roadsters and coupes. I am the definition of slow car fast. However, I was still very sad when Viper production ended last year.
Viper fans rejoice! According to a report from Car and Driver, Dodge is resurrecting the car for 2021. I would take it with a grain of salt since Dodge had shut down the plant that used to make them and the source is also unnamed in the report. In this case, though, I am reporting on hopes and dreams.
The report goes into some minor details, including the V10 that made the Viper legend will now be a V8. Also, there will supposedly be multiple versions ranging from 500 to over 700 horses.
A model Viper is a part of what got me into cars.
A short personal story. When I was 12ish, give or take a couple of years, I went to visit my cousin in Chicago. I looked up to this cousin quite a bit; he had a brand new Trailblazer SS at the time. When we were in the city, he bought me a blue with white striped second-gen Viper from Sharper Image. I loved the detail of the model and the car itself. I was a Viper fanatic until I started to learn more about my own preferences in cars, but the Viper has stuck with me forever.
What might this new generation have?
The Car and Driver report states Dodge might outsource the actual assembly to a supplier, no issues there as it could be a really good thing. The report also speculates on an entry-level model with somewhere around 500 horsepower. There will also be range-topping models similar to the ACR with upwards of 700 horsepower.
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The biggest sticking point will be the loss of the V10. It has become part of the icon. The car will still be recognizable to fans but won’t pack the same exotic punch brought by the V10. In my mind, if the V8 makes just as much or better power, then V8 it is.
All I hope is that the report is actually true and maybe I might be making enough to afford a second-gen by then.