This tease of the new Dodge Viper also introduces the sports car's new logo.
The Chrysler Group has confirmed the all new Viper will be unleashed for the first time in the Big Apple, normally not the place one might expect to be driving a high-performance sports car. But the reborn Dodge sports car will reappear during a press event at the New York Auto Show in early April.
In anticipation of the upcoming Viper reveal in New York, the Chrysler Group’s Street and Racing Technology brand has launched a revamped “driveSRT.com” website to help show off its vehicles, which
are designed and built by the Chrysler Group’s in-house performance division.
“We’re excited to bring the newly redesigned driveSRT.com to life,” said RalphGilles, the SRT president. “The new site not only offers more exclusive content but it also provides unique ways to connect and stay connected with many enthusiasts groups that we’re building the new SRT brand around,” he added.
The rebirth of the Dodge Viper is significant in a variety of ways. The original roadster, launched in 1992, was a raw, retro monster intended to provide a halo for the then-resurgent Chrysler brand. The new model is expected to do much the same for a Chrysler now flourishing under the control of Italy’s Fiat SpA.
The maker has released several “teaser” images but no pictures of the entire product, hoping to build anticipation of the New York launch. Senior sources at Chrysler tell TheDetroitBureau.com the 2013 Dodge Viper will be a much more modern car but confirm its design will hold close to that of the old model, which went out of production in 2010.
Much like the iconic Porsche Viper, one design source said, “There’s only so much you can do before it isn’t a Viper anymore.”
One of the more subtle but distinctive changes, our associates at Autoblog.com have reported, will be the use of an all-new snake-faced logo, more menacing than the one on the last-generation Viper.
While the new Viper will likely look familiar, it will be a very different vehicle under the hood, using a platform originally developed by Fiat’s high-performance Maserati brand.
It is expected to feature a unique-to-Viper powertrain, though there are conflicting reports over whether that will maintain the sports car’s classic V10 layout. Some reports have suggested the new model could feature an engine displacement of as much as 8.7 liters and push into the 600 horsepower range in a bid to challenge the off-the-line performance of some of the world’s most exotic sports cars.
Significantly, there’ll be more digital technology onboard once Viper returns, as the new 2-seater will have to comply with federal rules now requiring the use of electronic stability control, among other things. Don’t be surprised to see other high-tech touches, such as a tracking system that would display performance figures, such as cornering G forces.
The driveSRT.com web site guides visitors into the engineering labs, design studios and the factory floors for a closer look at the processes used during the vehicle development process.
More details will be surfacing in the month ahead on the new driveSRT.com website, which is also designed to let visitors to connect with owners and fans in real time through direct feeds to SRT on Facebook; on Twitter; on Youtube; and on Flickr.
Brand news as well as motorsports and consumer events, and community stories will be regularly updated and visitors also can expect owner profiles and information on SRT clubs nationwide, Dodge officials said.
But much of the focus will be on helping launch the new Viper.
“The Viper has always been a pinnacle of performance engineering for SRT and the Chrysler Group. In celebration, a full section on driveSRT.com is dedicated to the Viper, including historical information and racing news,” Gilles said.
Paul A. Eisenstein contributed to this report.