- Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis reveals that the Viper had ‘reached the tip of its lifecycle.’
- He mentioned it may ‘maintain its personal towards something on this planet,’ however admitted the automotive had ‘downsides.’
- The brand new Copperhead isn’t a sports activities automotive just like the Viper, however a ‘hyper muscle automotive.’
It has been practically a decade since Dodge killed the Viper, discontinuing it after the 2017 mannequin 12 months. It was a novel American sports activities automotive that the automaker needed to discontinue for security causes, and the probabilities of its return are subsequent to nonexistent.
On the newest episode of The DriveCast, a podcast from The Drive, SRT head Tim Kuniskis mentioned the Viper has “reached the tip of its lifecycle.” He added {that a} fashionable Viper would probably should ditch the handbook transmission in favor of an computerized or dual-clutch gearbox.
Kuniskis praised the fifth-generation Viper’s styling, calling it “one of the vital lovely vehicles ever constructed” with “completely astounding” observe functionality that allowed it to “maintain its personal towards something on this planet.” However he additionally admitted that the Viper wasn’t precisely excellent.
One concern that Kuniskis talked about was the automotive’s incapability to satisfy a brand new ejection mitigation rule as a result of “you would need to put airbags as a driver proper over your ear.”
Photograph by: Dodge
The Viper’s Observe-Up
Whereas Dodge might need zero plans to resurrect the Viper, the corporate is making ready to launch one thing totally new—the Copperhead. It gained’t be a sports activities automotive, just like the Viper. As a substitute, Kuniskis mentioned the brand new mannequin can be a “hyper muscle automotive.”
The Copperhead is anticipated to share a platform with the brand new Charger, that includes a lot of vents on the hood and behind the rear wheels. It additionally has a large hood bulge and an equally large rear wing.
We anticipate Dodge’s new “hyper muscle automotive” to pack a supercharged V8 engine with over 700 horsepower. It’s unclear when the brand new Copperhead will launch, however it ought to be quickly.
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Motor1’s Take: The Dodge Viper is a sports activities automotive that would solely actually exist at a sure time in historical past. Kuniskis is true {that a} fashionable model must undertake a ton of know-how to compete, and that may dilute what the Viper was all about.
