Keep in mind that a lot of the earlier Vipers are now down in the $20k range to acquire. They aren't crazy high priced supercars that only the rich can attain. They are easily within the range of the average joe that wants a fun weekend car. That doesn't mean they can drop $1500 on a whim. The Viper is pretty well known as a stout car that lasts and doesn't require the same kind of high priced maintenance as some finicky European exotics.
The Viper carries an interesting mystique and can get you into some circles that you really might not fit in. By no means do I consider myself rich. I bought my Viper as my primary car at a pretty reasonable price because it had some miles and blemishes on it, which was perfectly fine in my book because I planned to drive it every day and have no problem working on it myself. I have 125,000+ miles on my car and intend to put that many and more on it in my lifetime. I just finished rebuilding the engine after a spun rod bearing and did it for a half to a third of the price that a specialist would have charged because I don't have the money to just throw at someone. I have hung out with people that surely have 10-100x more money or more in their bank account than I do. I feel way out of place at some car events, but the majority of owners I've ever hung out with are super cool down to earth people that just really enjoy the car and company of fellow owners. The cars fit in just fine with Ferraris and other high priced exotics though, which is where mixed company gets a little weird.
Long story short, just because the Viper looks expensive doesn't mean they are and that everyone that buys one has plenty of disposable income. People at work were giving me grief when I first bought it because they see it as a 6 figure car, but the reality is they paid twice as much for their premium pickups as I paid for my Viper.
