Would you have bought it?
06/25/2020
In January 1994, Chrysler presented the Dodge Venom concept car, a car with production potential. Automobil Revue wrote at the time in issue 6/1994:
"With the Dodge Venom, the Chrysler designers are reminiscent of the Dodge Charger and Challenger muscle cars dating back to the sixties, which fans still mourn. In terms of its style and name, however, the Venom (= poison) is also reminiscent of the Viper, which it clearly surpasses in terms of wheelbase and length, namely with 269/470 instead of 245/445 cm. However, instead of an 8-liter V10 engine with 20 valves and 406 hp, the Venom "only" has a 3.5-liter V6 with 24 valves and around 250 hp. As in the Viper, drive is transmitted to the rear wheels via a 6-speed gearbox.
Instead of a box frame (as in the Viper), the sheet steel bodywork of this concept car rests on a modified neon platform, with independent suspension with upper and lower wishbones at the front and rear. The aluminum wheels are fitted with P245/45 R 19 (front) and R 20 (rear) tires. Compared to the 'Aviat' (another study, editor's note), the Venom is much closer to reality and could undoubtedly find its sports car fans as a Viper alternative ."
As is well known, nothing came of it. The driving performance would have made quite an impression, as there was talk of 5.2 seconds for the sprint from 0 to 96 km/h (60 miles per hour). With an unladen weight of just over 1200 kg, it would certainly have been well positioned in terms of sporting performance. A target price of USD 8975 to 13,000 was quoted at the time, which would certainly have fitted into many a budget. Nevertheless, it remained a one-off.
Was the decision to refrain from series production the right one?
