Dodge

The first two generations of the Dodge Viper (Some sources break those two generations into two further generations.) were brash, brutal and downright angry. These thundering 10-cylinder neo-Cobras, both open- and closed-top, routinely beat up on all manner of European supercars, not to mention crosstown rival Corvette. What’s more, these beating occurred on the street and on the track, the latter being where race-prepped Vipers scored numerous wins, including three consecutive GT class wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the overall win at the 2000 24 Hours of Daytona.

However, the Dodge Viper’s story came to an end on July 1, 2010, as the last example rolled out of the Conner Avenue Assembly plant in Detroit. Scarcely two months later, though, word came down that a new third (or fifth; take your pick) generation Viper would be coming in a couple years. Well, now it’s a couple years later, and the new Viper is indeed here. A lot has stayed the same with the new car, but a lot has changed, too.

The 7th Annual Spring Festival of LXs is a huge gathering of LX owners (LX is the code name for the chassis for the 300, Charger, and Magnum) from 25 states and 5 countries, which started out as a small forum meet. The Chrysler group eventually made it official, this time bringing out their executives to meet and greet their fellow LX enthusiasts, and unveiling their new Challenger model. Needless to say, it was a great time, with hundreds of amazing cars, chill vibes, drifting, and good music.

When I first walked into the event, I felt pretty lost. Originally being from the import/euro scene, I wasn't exactly sure what I was seeing as I walked across the initial set of cars. When the new retro vehicles started coming from Chrysler and Dodge, I was excited by the new design direction starting from the 300. Then came the arrival of the Charger, Magnum, and the Challenger, which I was also very excited to see. However, on the rare occasion I did see them on the street, most of them weren't modified. This was very disappointing for me because a car like the Challenger has a lot of potential.

In an interesting departure from talking babies, vaporizing vampires and alter-ego dancing heads, hats off to Chrysler for getting serious, looking at the big picture and sending out a message of hope, goodwill, patriotism and unity during Super Bowl 2012. Touchingly and toughly narrated by a revered American icon, the “It’s Halftime in America” ad managed to not only give weight to our shared history, challenges and concerns but also pointed to a better and brighter future. Though the ad could have so easily slipped into the abyss of sentimentalism and schmaltz, it managed to steer clear and deliver a strong and uplifting message. In my humble opinion, this was an absolutely brilliant strategy on the part of the automaker and one which I believe will ultimately pay big dividends.