Sometimes the truth of something can be determined by noticing who does not post in response to a thread. It seems to me that something about the Gen V has to be said at VOI. The silence since Herb's recent thread about wanting feedback from us on why the Viper should continue for him to provide to the decision makers is deafening.
You know Bob, I really am starting to have doubts about the Gen V being a reality. If Dodge was really serious about getting feedback on the Viper, wouldn't they contact current owners with a written or email questionaire to get real feedback on the people most likely to order the new Gen V, the current Viper owners? Really, asking for a second time on a forum on why to build the Viper seems a little strange. The majority of future Viper owners probably never even saw that post (there were two threads on the Grail....one asking what needed to be done to the future car and this latest one asking why it should be built IIRC).
One of the lasting impressions I have of Viper owners came to me at the 2007 SEMA show. Talking to customers through the day, I met two separate clients that were Viper guys. They both owned at least 2 Vipers and had already pre-ordered the new Gen IV and were excited about getting the unit in their hands. When I asked how they liked the car, they responded by saying it wasn't even built yet, but it had 600 hp, upgrades, best performing Viper ever, etc. At the time I couldn't even imagine ordering a $90k plus car without at least driving one. These guys had no problem with it and felt it was a performance bargin for what Dodge promised (and they were right).
I too am now in that group of Viper owners that would pre-order a unit if I had "some" idea of what was coming down the pike and it was desirable to me. If it is built, I think Dodge should offer up a discount on the purchase price on the first 500 units built if people want to put a deposit on getting their hands on it. I think Ferrari and other high end marks do this know with their limited production units...apparently very successfully.
I am hoping that the VOI will give us some sort of "hint" as to what's coming down the line. I'm thinking you may see some other Dodge model with uber performance mods try to take the place of the current Viper platform for the uncertain future.
Lets hope for the best.
Cheers,
George