Chrysler orders 93 rare early Vipers to the crusher

[Marcus M. Jones]

http://autos.yahoo.com/blogs/motoramic/chrysler-orders-93-rare-early-vipers-to-the-crusher-170043330.html

Chrysler orders 93 rare early Vipers to the crusher

The original Dodge Viper revealed in 1992 was a beast of a machine — an attempt by then-Chrysler exec Bob Lutz to revive the spirit of the Shelby Cobra and give Chrysler a world-class sports car. Powered by a massive V-10 with 400 hp, the early Viper's brute force overwhelmed many drivers.

Today, the power that made the Viper a legend appears to be at the heart of an order from Chrysler to dozens of trade schools, demanding the immediate destruction of some 93 early Vipers, including a preproduction model that could likely fetch a couple hundred thousand dollars at auction.

According to The Olympian, the staff of South Puget Sound Community College was told by a Chrysler official that their Viper had to be crushed within two weeks. It's common for automakers to donate cars to automotive shop classes, and in many cases the vehicles in such donations aren't saleable — meaning the company technically still owns the cars. School officials say Chrysler told them two of the 93 early Vipers given to schools had been involved in accidents by joyriding students, creating a major liability for Chrysler.

Of those 93, the Viper at SPSCC stands out. It was the fourth Viper ever built, with a prototype hard top years before Dodge offered a production version. With no emissions controls, and no speed limiter, the V-10 can make 600 hp, and school instructors say it could be worth $250,000 to a museum or private Viper fan.

“It’s like the day Kennedy was shot,” Norm Chapman, automotive technology professor at SPSCC, told The Olympian. “No one will forget where they were when they heard the news.”

There's several precedents for Chrysler's order, the most memorable being General Motors' decision to destroy all of its original EV1 electric vehicles after a safety recall it decided not to repair; the few that remain in universities and museums have been permanently disabled. The Vipers at SPSCC and other schools were useful more for promotion than education, but trashing a piece of automotive history seems like a different kind of educational tool: Punishing everyone for the mistakes of a few.

[Ridge Rider]

The last sentence says it all. What a waste.

[John Goschke]

"It's like the day Kennedy was shot..." Really? That's a completely ridiculous analogy.

However, it is sad to hear of those cars, especially the unique early ones, destroyed.

[Ace-Garageguy]

"Punishing everyone for the mistakes of a few."

Or the actions of a few. Stood in an airport line lately, or tried to get into a government building, or even figured out how much bloated weight and un-necessary airbag complication is necessary on new cars because some people just refuse to learn how to drive BEFORE they do it?

Far as the Vipers go, it seems to possibly stupid me it would be better for Chrysler to just repo the things, citing the potential liability, and sell them on the open market.

They could use the money to pay their lawyers to do the paperwork, and save all those lovely cars.

Edited March 6, 2014 by Ace-Garageguy

[Rob Hall]

Seems a bit pointless 20+ years later...

[Brian_R]

UPDATE: Chrysler told Yahoo Autos this afternoon that while it did not have any records of crashes involving Vipers donated to trade schools, the cars involved did not have historical significance. It also said it regularly expected vehicles donated to schools to be destroyed once they had lost their educational value, which the cars in question had given their age. The full statement:

"Approximately 10 years ago, Chrysler Group donated a number of Dodge Viper vehicles to various trade schools for educational purposes. As part of the donation process, it is standard procedure — and stipulated in our agreements — that whenever vehicles are donated to institutions for education purposes that they are to be destroyed when they are no longer needed for their intended educational purposes.

With advancements in automotive technology over the past decade, it is unlikely that these vehicles offer any educational value to students. Chrysler Group fully understands and appreciates the historical significance of the Viper and is very active in preserving many of its legendary models and designs for historic purposes however, none of these vehicles fit into this category.

Chrysler Group has no record of any legal proceedings involving Dodge Viper vehicles donated to educational institutions being involved in accidents and product liability lawsuits."

[Thatswhatshesaid]

"It's like the day Kennedy was shot..." Really? That's a completely ridiculous analogy.

However, it is sad to hear of those cars, especially the unique early ones, destroyed.

I think that is the stupidest thing I read all day. I doubt I will remember tomorrow where I was when I heard this news.

Losing all the cars seems a little extreme but not as extreme as that analogy.

[1930fordpickup]

If they thought the cars were no longer worth anything I would give them double scrap value for two that still ran. The Schools could take the money for the shop. Then Chrysler would get to call it a donation to the school for the sale of the car.

[wisdonm]

Back in the mid '60s Chrysler crushed most of the Turbine Cars, because they didn't want to pay the import tax on them. Déjà vu allover again.

[JM485]

Not to start world war III here, but I'm a little over Chrystler lately. It kills me to say that since my great grandfather was at one point the Northern California Chrysler Representative, but some of the things they have done lately really tick me off, and this is just another example. I honestly do not understand how they don't see the historical importance of these cars, do they know what most of us would give to be able to just see or even drive one of those!? I mean really, talk about short sighted thought! I understand that those cars could never be legally sold, our high school shop actually had a mercury with the same restrictions on it, but to just crush them is absolutely ridiculous. Hopefully a few of them "disappear" or are "stolen" before anything can happen to them. Sorry, got a little carried away, end of rant.

[Art Anderson]

Somehow I rather doubt, however, that the Viper used as the Pace Car at Indianapolis in 1992 will be repo'd and crushed. Having seen that car (#6 of the prototypes) side-by-side with the later GTS coupe (a production versin), those original prototypes were pretty ugly--rippled bodywork, mis-fitted panels, even vac-formed clear plastic headlight covers!

Oh well.

Art

[Dave Van]

Typical current mentality of the world we live in today.

Anyone with a single brain cell could figure out a better solution than just crush them. One thing....sell them for $1 to the current holders AFTER a release is signed. Or....how about them being donated to museums with the same release and conditions. OR....sell them as off road vehicles to collectors...again with release of liability. So many solutions it just seems more like the current owner of Chrysler is wanting to wipe the past from it's history and make it much more Fiat like......

Glad I stopped buying Chryslers.......and just removed Journey from my list of cars to look at for our new vehicle.

[DrGlueblob]

Kinda reminds me of my Fire Dept. days. We had an annual statewide Fire School in The Valley. One class was held at the GM Proving Ground east of Mesa AZ.

It was called Vehicle Extrication and we got to take the saws, spreader, and hydraulic rams to a few "New" Vettes one year. Low-mileage test cars, and we COMPLETELY DESTROYED THEM.

Seems they couldn't be sold after being used for testing on GM's track. Sooooo....

Lawyers.

[Mark]

Fiat Chrysler is in business to sell new cars, not to unravel the legalities involved in reselling twenty-year-old ones that have probably been disassembled and put back together a bunch of times. Anyone who wants an early Viper (and can afford to buy it) can find one, so it's not like anyone is being hurt personally by this. The day Kennedy was shot? Really?

[Ace-Garageguy]

... to unravel the legalities involved in reselling twenty-year-old ones that have probably been disassembled and put back together a bunch of times...

I really can't imagine it would be all that hard, really. Chrysler MADE them, would have certificates of origin for them, or could EASILY generate them with a few mouse clicks, and most collector cars have "been disassembled and put back together a bunch of times".

What's so hard about it?

And we're not talking about some stamped out mass-produced POS. The tube frames on the early cars were hand built. These things are something special, lumpy bodywork or not.

Edited March 7, 2014 by Ace-Garageguy

[Mark]

The "Chrysler" that built those cars no longer exists. Apparently Fiat Chrysler can make money selling 93 of any combination of new Vipers, Challengers, and other high-end SRT (or even Ram) vehicles, and doesn't feel obligated to rescue 93 vehicles that were built long before they entered the picture. These cars were basically scrapped 20 years ago, they are only now making it official...

[A.R.C.]

I`d be scrapping the drivetrain and suspension straight into the back of my truck.

[Ace-Garageguy]

The "Chrysler" that built those cars no longer exists.

Following that statement to its logical conclusion, the "Chrysler" that "exists" now would have no more legal right to order the destruction of the cars than they would have to generate paperwork to dispose of them for parts or rebuilding.

Corporations derived from earlier corporations usually have contractual, legal provisions for dealing with issues arising from actions of the prior corporate structure.

Obviously if anybody there had any real interest in the heritage of Chrysler, the cars, at least some, would be liquidated with some kind of respect for what they represent...rather than being treated like inconvenient trash.

Edited March 7, 2014 by Ace-Garageguy

[lordairgtar]

I remember where I was when Kennedy was assassinated. I was in my 3rd grade classsroom. I do not remember where I was when the Vipers got the order to be destroyed.

[impcon]

Kinda reminds me of my Fire Dept. days. We had an annual statewide Fire School in The Valley. One class was held at the GM Proving Ground east of Mesa AZ.

It was called Vehicle Extrication and we got to take the saws, spreader, and hydraulic rams to a few "New" Vettes one year. Low-mileage test cars, and we COMPLETELY DESTROYED THEM.

Seems they couldn't be sold after being used for testing on GM's track. Sooooo....

Lawyers.

What more can be said? Bottom feeders - one and all.

[Craig Irwin]

If something is donated (given) to someone didn't they relinquish ownership (control) of said item? I would imagine that the VIN's have been removed so that they could never be sold of licensed.

If I was the shop teacher I think I would have just found the chassis parts and drive train for my new street machine project.

[Ace-Garageguy]

I would imagine that the VIN's have been removed so that they could never be sold of licensed.

Most states have a procedure whereby cars that have no VIN, for whatever reason, can be issued new VINs and then be returned to operational status. A VIN doesn't have to follow a vehicle factory to crusher, and a car with no VIN doesn't have to be destroyed. And as I said, Chrysler MADE the damm things, and can easily issue certificates of origin, which allows the issuance of a NEW VIN.

[JM485]

I finally got around to reading the entire article and watching the video, and now I am even more annoyed. I can't believe nobody in Chrysler management sees how terrible of a decision this is. As for their excuse of saying it is not a viable learning tool anymore, I call major BS on that! What do they think a viable learning tool is, a new prius or some sort of car made of more plastic than metal? How the heck could you ever teach someone how to work on a car with anything rolling off the assembly line today, everything is too fragile and complex for a beginner to even comprehend starting with. Sorry, but I won't be buying anything from them any time soon. If our school shop had one of those, you could bet the farm that we would have put up one heck of a fight before we let them take that thing away. I'm still holding out hope that most of them get "stolen" or something before anything happens to them.

[jbwelda]

Chalk up another one for the League of Concerned Mothers.

"Is it safe?"

jb

[slusher]

I guess its cheaper to send all of them to crusher then go repo them. All car companies have scraped rare cars. Some of witch was sold on Barrett-Jackson that was rescued from the crusher but the company did not know about. I hate to see them crushed. I happen to be a Chrysler car owner and have been one most of my driving life..