In November 1991, the car was released to reviewers with the first retail shipments beginning in January 1992. One year later, Carroll Shelby piloted a pre-production car as the pace vehicle in the Indianapolis 500 race. By auto industry standards $70 million was not a lot of money but the potential in improved image was fantastic. Official approval from Iacocca came in May 1990. Though a V8 engine was first used in the test mule called White Mule, the V10 engine, which the production car was meant to use, was ready in February 1990. The production body was completed in Fall 1989, with a chassis prototype running in December. The team asked the then-Chrysler subsidiary Lamborghini to cast a prototype aluminum block for the sports car to use in May. Sjoberg selected 85 engineers to be "Team Viper", with development beginning in March 1989. But then Chrysler chairman Lee Iacocca delayed approving the $70 million needed to put the sports car into production, saying it was a lot to spend without assurance of financial return. Public reaction was so enthusiastic that chief engineer Roy Sjoberg was directed to develop it as a standard production vehicle. Produced in sheet metal by Metalcrafters, the car appeared as a concept at the North American International Auto Show in 1989. The following February, Chrysler president Bob Lutz suggested to Tom Gale at Chrysler Design Center that the company should consider producing a modern Cobra, and a clay model was presented to Lutz a few months later. The Viper was initially conceived in late 1988 at Chrysler's Advanced Design Studios. Top speed ranges from 160 mph to over 200 mph, depending on variant and year. The 0-60 mph time on a Viper varies from around 3.5 to 4.5 seconds. The Viper was eventually discontinued in 2017 after 26 years of production. In 2014, the Viper was named number 10 on the "Most American Cars" list, meaning 75% or more of its parts are manufactured in the U.S. Production of the two-seat super car began at New Mack Assembly Plant in 1991 and moved to Conner Avenue Assembly Plant in October 1995.Īlthough Chrysler considered ending production because of serious financial problems, on September 14, 2010, then-chief executive Sergio Marchionne announced and previewed a new model of the Viper for 2012. The Dodge Viper is a sports car that was manufactured by Dodge (by SRT for 20), a division of American car manufacturer FCA US LLC from 1992 until 2017, having taken a brief hiatus in 2007, and from 2010 to 2012.
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