SRT Viper's initial allotment sold out, convertible still a ways off

The launch of the 2013 SRT Viper marked the first time the car has been introduced as a coupe rather than a roadster, but that didn't matter to buyers. According to Wards Auto, the initial run of 800 Vipers has already sold out with deliveries starting next month, and, even more impressively, SRT president Ralph Gilles reportedly said that more than 80 percent of those sales consisted of the sportier, more expensive Viper GTS model.

Gilles indicated that a convertible version of the new Viper could be available within a few years, and it won't be hard to produce since the current car was designed with a topless model in mind. Two of the likely reasons behind the SRT Viper reversing the trend of launching as a convertible was that the outgoing Viper was selling 60 percent coupes and 40 percent roadsters when production ended in 2010. Further, the SRT team wanted to get back into American Le Mans Series racing, which necessitated a hardtop.