Tom and Vipers
Enthusiast
I was discussing the softness in the exotics market with a Viper owner who was selling his car and we both concluded that perhaps the biggest problem with Viper was that it is still a "mystery car."
A lot of car purchases are based on having a car that attracts attention.
The lay person usually picks the Corvette for this criteria.
The problem is that people just don't understand, even when you tell them, the amount of attention you get in a Viper.
I think that every Viper owner must be a "missionary" and "sell" Vipers at every opportunity.
If a Viper owner knows anyone who might be a potential buyer that is unaware of this dimension, that Viper owner must make a serious effort to "convert the heathen."
There are perhaps only 5000 GTS's in the US and there should be a demand for them that surpasses Corvette.
The problem is that when you read about Vipers in magazines, they basically treat the Viper as just another car.
The one thing the Viper is NOT, is just another car!
One of the biggest things the Viper owners could do is make a good showing at Bike Week at Daytona because I can tell you from 1st hand experience that Bikers LOVE Vipers and with over 250k bikes in Daytona, seeing a Viper and the attention others give it, will probably push a couple of people to decide to buy a Viper.
Whenever I meet someone who has had Corvettes and/or Ferraris and exhibits an interest in my Viper, I pitch them with facts and enthusiasm that if Pemberton saw me in action, he would give me a job.
And lastly, the more miles we put on our Vipers, the more people will see them and will see how others react to them.
I would bet that the average yearly mileage of a Viper is 4000. If that average was increased to 8000, twice as many sightings would occur and this would keep the Viper in peoples' minds when they consider a car purchase.
There were studies done with transcendental meditation that demonstrated a threshold effect to the following: If 7% of a population practices TM, then there is an overall effect on the psyche of that population. Basically, the population becomes less stressful, less violent, more peaceful and happier.
I think that a threshold effect could occur with the Viper and that we are currently below that threshold.
Kids, adolescents, teenagers, and a lot of the import guys think the Viper is the phattest car around. Perhaps the least appreciative are the muscle car guys which is quite a shame because they usually oogle Cobras pretty good.
Think about it, if each one of us "sells" a friend to get a Viper, we will all make a lot more money on the appreciation of our cars than if we were a salesman at a Viper dealership.
I think it is essential that we are out there "selling" Viper.
A lot of car purchases are based on having a car that attracts attention.
The lay person usually picks the Corvette for this criteria.
The problem is that people just don't understand, even when you tell them, the amount of attention you get in a Viper.
I think that every Viper owner must be a "missionary" and "sell" Vipers at every opportunity.
If a Viper owner knows anyone who might be a potential buyer that is unaware of this dimension, that Viper owner must make a serious effort to "convert the heathen."
There are perhaps only 5000 GTS's in the US and there should be a demand for them that surpasses Corvette.
The problem is that when you read about Vipers in magazines, they basically treat the Viper as just another car.
The one thing the Viper is NOT, is just another car!
One of the biggest things the Viper owners could do is make a good showing at Bike Week at Daytona because I can tell you from 1st hand experience that Bikers LOVE Vipers and with over 250k bikes in Daytona, seeing a Viper and the attention others give it, will probably push a couple of people to decide to buy a Viper.
Whenever I meet someone who has had Corvettes and/or Ferraris and exhibits an interest in my Viper, I pitch them with facts and enthusiasm that if Pemberton saw me in action, he would give me a job.
And lastly, the more miles we put on our Vipers, the more people will see them and will see how others react to them.
I would bet that the average yearly mileage of a Viper is 4000. If that average was increased to 8000, twice as many sightings would occur and this would keep the Viper in peoples' minds when they consider a car purchase.
There were studies done with transcendental meditation that demonstrated a threshold effect to the following: If 7% of a population practices TM, then there is an overall effect on the psyche of that population. Basically, the population becomes less stressful, less violent, more peaceful and happier.
I think that a threshold effect could occur with the Viper and that we are currently below that threshold.
Kids, adolescents, teenagers, and a lot of the import guys think the Viper is the phattest car around. Perhaps the least appreciative are the muscle car guys which is quite a shame because they usually oogle Cobras pretty good.
Think about it, if each one of us "sells" a friend to get a Viper, we will all make a lot more money on the appreciation of our cars than if we were a salesman at a Viper dealership.
I think it is essential that we are out there "selling" Viper.
