Then one of two things is just around the corner:
1. The 2015 or 2016 Viper gets another 100 to 150 hp or
2. The Viper will be discontinued
The status quo is definitely not sustainable as indicated both by the slow Gen 5 sales and dropping resale prices. So we are either on our way to being extremely excited about a new Viper or extremely disappointed with the loss of an American icon.
1) A stock Gen 5 can cut 11s on a prepped track with stock tires.
2) A stock Gen 5 can cut 10s with a good pair of DRs and a competent driver on a prepped track.
Did you buy your Gen 5 yet? Because I keep seeing you voice such disappointment and it seems like you have an innate knowledge of the car that would only come from owning one.
The cars are in completely different classes, competing with different cars at different price points, but it's possible a guy that had a casual interest in a Viper might fall in love with the Challenger instead...or a Jeep, or whatever. But the guy looking for a serious exotic supercar will pretty much have to go to the European brands if the Viper doesn't suit his tastes.
The Viper can hang with the Hellcat in a drag race, but can the hellcat hang with the viper on a road course? I think we all know the answer to that question.
Years back the core values included no nanny-gates like abs, stability control, cruise control, power windows...etc. Now the Gen 5 has as much high tech gadgets as a Porsche (except automatic tranny) and die hard Viper guys are still buying the car and still love the car. I for one don't think the SRT guys made the Gen 5 engine with forged internals just for Hennessey and Doug Levin...I think Chrysler/Dodge/SRT saw this day coming and built a Gen5 engine they know there were going to supercharge eventually. I saw another video today from a Chrysler spokesman/engineer who said that the days of naturally aspirated engines are limited at best. Forced induction is the way of the future for internal combustion engines as is automatic transmissions for sports cars.
No, it's not. Force induction is a great way to add power without increasing static displacement...but if you can produce the power and torque your application requires NA, then you will be better off as it's cheaper, more reliable and arguably more consistent under load.
Forged internals have other benefits aside from being able to handle high boost - like being lighter. A 640 HP engine that is every bit as reliable as some modest 4-****** pumping out 150 HP is an engineering feat that commands respect. Really, Viper maintenance is as basic as changing the oil at set intervals - no special tune-ups needed every 5K miles.
A well known fact and adage of life is you either evolve and adapt or become extinct. In a world that operates on that basis sticking to "core values" when those values result in a slower sports car is suicide. Sports cars are becoming faster using forced induction and high tech nanny systems and other systems. Accept change and adjust to the competition or join the Dodo bird, the T-Rex, and the Wholly Mammoth as only memories found in an encyclopedia.
And yet the lowly Gen 4 Viper still manages to put the smack down on the high-tech cars like the Lexus LFA and GTR on nurburgering. You keep repeating the same old nonsense over and over again, like having one company offer one supercar that is MANUAL ONLY is such a bad thing. The viper is not losing to its competition, it more than keeps it in line.
The funny thing is that pretty much all gen 5 owners are hugely impressed with them. The satisfaction rates between owners and shoppers seem to be on total opposite sides of the fence. Hard for a company to decide what to do in a situation like that.
Yes, SRT or Chrysler or Dodge or whoever needs to communicate the things that Gen 5 owners know to potential buyers, so whiny non-owners like mamba here don't prevent these people from experiencing one of the greatest vehicles currently available for purchase.