Last weekend I attended the first national meeting of the new Dodge Viper owners association near Detroit, Michigan. It was an absolute blast and I thought I’d share some of the photos I took of the awesome event!
I’ll start with the tour of the factory where they assemble the cars. Chrysler was super awesome to open their doors to us and all other Viper owners.
The chassis start out on rolling dollies with barely any parts put on them:
Differentials and transmissions are on pallets nearby to be put onto the chassis:
The huge engines are standing by too. I’m told they’re built in this same building, something that isn’t done anywhere else apparently.
The engine, suspension, brakes, and other various pieces are bolted onto the chassis as it goes down the line:
The wheels are put on along with a temporary seat and at this point it’s a fully drivable car:
The car is actually driven onto a test machine where the brakes and other things are tested:
After that, the chassis are set aside to await the next part of the process:
More of the interior is put into the car:
Including the seats:
Now it’s finally time for body panels to begun being added to the cars:
The body panels are painted at a supplier somewhere else and delivered on pallets. We got to tour the paint supplier’s building to see their process and I’ll post photos of that in an upcoming post.
The hood, windshield, and doors go on next. I believe the hoods are the largest pieces of carbon fiber on any production car.
Lastly the front bumper covers go on:
And now you have the finished product!
All that’s left is some finishing checks including going through a rain tunnel to make sure it doesn’t leak and it’s done! Super cool seeing how my car was built.
My next post will be showcasing the historical Vipers located at the end of the factory floor. Check back soon!