According to Chrysler’s bankruptcy papers, the Viper business was offered for $10 million and only drew a single $5.5 million bid. In short, “no offers meeting the Company’s basic requirements for the sale of Viper assets were submitted.” But Rep. Darrel Issa [R-CA] doesn’t buy (so to speak) the non-sale. In a letter to Chrysler, Issa reveals that a Michigan-based investor group offered $35 million for Viper this year and was negotiating terms before Chrysler’s bankruptcy. According to the Freep, these unnamed investors even entered discussions with the state of Louisiana. Now Issa is asking Chrysler to disclose all of its documents relating to the Viper business. Feistily. “If it is the case that Fiat used its ‘hard-fought’ superior bargaining position to establish as a condition of the merger a requirement that Chrysler allow the Viper brand to disappear in order to reduce competition for Ferrari, this too must be presented to the court.” Competition? Ferrari? $35 million? It’s hard to decide what part of this story is least plausible.
I’m going to jump in here before all the “we don’t need such a declasse/niche market in the U.S. anyway, good riddance” commentary.
This is one of the niche markets that Americans do well in their imitable style, and Chrysler botched this one up too. It doesn’t matter if I or anyone else on this board likes or desires the Viper, its loss would be a shame.
A car as bold as the Corvette, one of the few things Cry-sler did right.
Who cross shops a new Ferrari against a Viper? Besides the $100,000 price difference, they’re completely different animals. Blue collar supercar vs. Greek shipping tycoon’s weekend plaything?
Sadly I don’t hold out much hope for the Viper. It’s just not a very promising investment.
Anyone remembering Chryslers former interest in Maserati and Lamborghini? Oh my, how the times have changed…
Your typical Ferrari owner could buy Vipers for the cost of tune-ups for the Ferrari. I would think F guy would buy a V, play with it, and sell it in a few months.
You can, however, track a V for a lot less than an F, but how many cars can you sell for that ?
Somehow, I don’t think Maranello was concerned. The viper part of the business probably does not make much money…they don’t have Corvette volume and the Viper is a total Halo Car. On the papers, it probably does not make sense.
Chevy dealers were always smart enough to have a Vette in the showroom to allow dad a moment’s fantasy before signing for a minivan or SUV. Most Cerebus dealers never had one in the showroom.
Drove one once (Viper), and thought “automotive sledgehammer”.
GM actually gets to use the LS in its performance edition Caddy’s but the Viper has always been a bit too much of a kit-car/hobbyist vehicle. And, I’d imagine, keeping up with the moving target that is the Corvette is pretty expensive.
Doesn’t surprise me that it is dead from both a performance and business perspective.
Then again, it is not like Chrysler has any good cars to begin with.
The Viper is/was a car that enveloped the American chutzpa. It always brought a little drool down my face when I saw one… and even more when I finally drove one.
speedlaw is correct, it was an absolute sledgehammer that I had a blast driving on the rural roads of western MA. Never made it higher than 3rd gear… and didn’t have to.
I drove a Viper around a short track as part of a one day driving class at Sears Point many years ago. The raw power was impressive, but everything else about the vehicle screamed Not Done. Massive cowl shake, shoddy interior and the very definition of an unrefined engine.
There may be a few people who own a Viper and a Ferrari, but I’m sure Ferrari has never lost a single sale to the Viper. I doubt Corvette lost any sales to the Viper either. The Viper is a big crude toy for those who enjoy such things. I’m not surprised Lutz loved the Viper. All displacement, no refinement.
I’m pretty sure I know why Chrysler dealers did not keep one in the showroom as a halo car. It looks a lot better in pictures than it does in real life. The badly fitting doors and scoops are a turn off then the hulk of the exterior versus the claustrophobic interior start to weigh on you. My first one on one with a viper was underwhelming.
Yeesh. Now don’t get me wrong, I love Vipers as much as anyone (certified Fanboy, really), but the thought of a consumer cross-shopping a Viper and a Ferrari is laughable, and given that they sell what, like 2000 Vipers a year, is there really that much to protect?
And yes, “automotive sledgehammer” is pretty much spot-on for the Viper driving experience. Jeremy Clarkson also put it very well, “it’s like owning a pet elephant. Just as dangerous, and just as fun.”
I still haven’t read what a sale of Viper actually includes, ie. would they get engine production facilities or just the brand and the manufacturing facility? To me, a Viper is most likely cross-shopped with either a ‘Vette or a kit car such as a GT40, Cobra, or Ultima.
If I wanted something fast, brutal, distinctive and impractical I’d get an Ultima CanAm. There are various builders out there who can put together a V8 (based on an aftermarket Chevy small block) that would smoke a Viper V10.
GM and Chrysler just got 535 new bosses. Great way to get the vision, huh, guys?
Robert Schwartz : June 5th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
“GM and Chrysler just got 535 new bosses. Great way to get the vision, huh, guys?”
Make that 536. You forgot one. ;-] The big one.
The Viper, in its current form and particularly in ACR trim, is simply the most spectacular production car in history.
Cross-ownership between Vipers and Ferraris is more common than one might think, particularly in the Midwest and Middle West. The existence of the 2008 ACR has certainly dampened F430 Scuderia sales, as it offers more pace for less money.
Those of you who have never driven a Gen3 or Gen4 Viper might be interested in my on-track test from last year:
http://www.speedsportlife.com/2008/03/26/supercar-saturday-part-one-running-the-r8-and-viper-against-the-clock-at-msr-houston/
Yes, “Mr. Roboto” was meant to be a dig at the Stig, and yes, it was me. :)
The Viper, in its current form and particularly in ACR trim, is simply the most spectacular production car in history.
Cough…..Ford GT….cough…. ;-)
i think the viper couldve been corvette profitable if chrysler had tuned the hemi v8 to make more power. they wouldve had a business case for it cuz the hemi is used in other cars, just like the vettes v8 is used in other cars.
I don’t think the idea is that far fetched. Instead of looking at Viper & Marenello as direct competitors with F430 fans crossshopping Vipers, look at them as both being in the discretionary purchase expensive car toy market.
The truth is that Ferrari doesn’t just compete with Lamborghini and other supercar makers, the also compete with ultra luxury makers like Bentley, Rolls Royce, and Maybach. My guess is that a significant percentage of Ferrari buyers are not so much string-back glove tifosi, or 10/10ths drivers, but rather folks with a lot of money looking to buy an exclusive car.
I’m too lazy to look up the exact figures but the worldwide market for cars that are $80,000 and up is small in terms of units, at least compared to more pedestrian sedans and pickups. I think Ferrari sold about 4,000 cars a year before the economic troubles hit the fan. In ’08, Chrysler sold about 1,200 Vipers. Sales had dipped, but the car was freshened for ’08 with more power. Also, the Viper’s impending demise may have boosted sales as well. In any case, though, 1,200 units of a car with an MSRP of ~$89K for the base models, and $98K for the ACR, makes the Viper a player in the big buck car market. Any of the companies selling cars in the six figure price range would benefit from removing a competitor that sells >1,000 units annually.
Also, the current Viper has 600 HP. There are only a handful of cars that are that high powered. Whether they are Dodges, Lambos or AMG Benzes, they all sort of compete with each other.
Vipers, selling for a million Barret Jackson bucks in 2030 (assuming the Mayans are wrong)