Viper Convertible

Make
Dodge
Segment
Compact

This isn't the first the time we've heard something like this happening, and sadly it may not be the last. Chrysler has just announced it's temporarily shutting down production and laying off workers at the SRT Viper factory in Detroit. Take into account that the Viper is the only model built there, but the production crew clearly takes huge pride in their work. A total of 91 workers will be out of the job until the week of June 23, when Viper production will start up again.

The reason for the shutdown? Slow sales. This happened last October, and Chrysler is clearly still having a hard time finding enough buyers to spend at least $100,000 on a car. After the shutdown last year, SRT brand chief Ralph Gilles started up a new Viper marketing campaign that brought factory teams to dealer showrooms to personally explain the details of the car to customers and allow them test drives. Chrysler also worked more closely with dealers on how to provide a better buying experience. Still, these efforts apparently haven't fully paid off as hoped.