Topic: Viper, as a brand, for sale...

[rrocket]

I just read an article in the Windsor Star saying the Chrysler has an offer from an interested party to buy Viper and sell it as its own brand.  No figures were discussed....but I wonder what it's worth??  Sales aren't great for the Viper, so it can't be worth THAT much...

[The Mighty Duck]

OTOH, the Viper ACR just ringed the 'Ring in 7:22...  that's for seconds quicker than the ZR1, and seven seconds quicker than the GT-R, for those that care.

For what it's worth. 

[rrocket]

But it's a terrible, awful street car.  They even recommend you remove the front splitter before driving it on the street, the gearing is short, it' loud, hot, crude.  More of a race car the ACR....

[The Mighty Duck]

Oh, no question.  I certainly would never buy one.  But it's branding...  if you're selling a brand, being able to say "our car set a lap record at the Nurburgring" helps the brand.

[mmret]

Doubt they can cover the fixed costs.

[Mitlov]

But it's a terrible, awful street car.  They even recommend you remove the front splitter before driving it on the street, the gearing is short, it' loud, hot, crude.  More of a race car the ACR....

How many dedicated sports-car-or-supercar companies don't make a single pleasant-and-comfortable street car?  Where are the civilized daily drives from the like of TVR, Gumpert, Ariel, etc?  I would have started off with Lotus, though the Evora kind of changes things.  Still, a year ago, Lotus would be the best example of a company surviving, and even thriving, based solely on hard-edged, no-compromise performance machines.  And Lotus (unlike Gumpert et al) is proof that you don't have to sell each car for a half-million bucks to succeed.

I think the "Viper" brand could be the American version of Lotus.  Not in terms of driving experience (Colin Chapman would be pooping in his casket at the thought of an 8.4L V10), but in terms of market segment and commercial strategy.

[rrocket]

Viper is not a terrible street car.  The ACR Viper is a terrible, awful street car.....

[Mitlov]

Viper is not a terrible street car.  The ACR Viper is a terrible, awful street car.....

True, but that's no reason that the Viper brand could not be a stand-alone like Lotus was with the Elise and Exige.  The brand would be the Viper line as a whole (base and ACR, coupe and convertible), not just the ACR.

[Wolfe]

An independent Viper brand is an interesting idea but I think the economics of it would work very differently than if the Viper stayed attached to Chrysler. Chances are that Chrysler isn't investing in further development of the Viper for now but even so they don't have to spend much on marketing and distribution as an independent niche company would.

Who would buy the Viper brand and then invest in building up a new sales channel? And who would do it now with all the uncertainty about the economy and the price of oil? An independent Viper brand would have had a much better opportunity to get off the ground a decade ago than it seems to now.


Even so an independent Viper would be cool.

[Mitlov]

An independent Viper brand is an interesting idea but I think the economics of it would work very differently than if the Viper stayed attached to Chrysler. Chances are that Chrysler isn't investing in further development of the Viper for now but even so they don't have to spend much on marketing and distribution as an independent niche company would.

Who would buy the Viper brand and then invest in building up a new sales channel? And who would do it now with all the uncertainty about the economy and the price of oil? An independent Viper brand would have had a much better opportunity to get off the ground a decade ago than it seems to now.


Even so an independent Viper would be cool.

I don't think that people who were ever interested in a sports car THIS hard edged, THIS impractical, and THIS expensive, would be put off by gas prices.  Even with cheap gas, a Viper is a huge financial burden.  You've REALLY got to want one for it to make financial sense.

[The Mighty Duck]

Wolfe raises a valid point, though.  Gas prices will not kill the Viper, but they may well impact sales negatively.  A new, independent company would have to build up an entirely new sales channel, and high oil prices mean less people buying Vipers, which means new entrants are less inclined to want to establish new channels.

Unless Chrysler allows Vipers to be sold through Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep dealerships, in which case "sales channels" become a moot point...  that would make Viper a very interesting offer, I think.

[safristi]

 an Independent Viper......that business model could bite someone in the arse.....or bosom.....