THE VIPER HOUSE: Conner Avenue assembly plant will become a collection showcase

June 25, 2018
Posted by Barrett-Jackson

Written by Chris Griggs

When the last Viper (pictured below) rolled off the assembly line in August 2017 at the Conner Avenue assembly plant in Detroit, the fate of the facility was up in the air. However, a plan for the building to keep its heritage alive is in the works. Encompassing a footprint of almost 400,000 square feet in northeast Detroit, the building first opened its doors in 1966 as a factory for Champion spark plugs. By 1995 Chrysler had acquired the building and began producing the Dodge Viper, followed by the Plymouth Prowler in 1997. Eventually production of the V10 engines for the Vipers was moved there as well in 2001.

The last-production 2017 Dodge Viper, which sold at the 2018 Barrett-Jackson Northeast Auction as a pair with the last-production 2018 Dodge Demon, raising $1.1 million for charity.

Production of the Viper would remain there through the end of the model run, with a brief hiatus in 2011 and 2012, when Viper production was stopped. In March 2018, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles announced the plant will be converted into a museum to house over 400 significant cars and concepts. 77,000 square feet will be dedicated to the display and storage of the cars, allowing them to consolidate the entire FCA collection under one roof. An additional 22,000 square feet will be repurposed for meeting space.

Initially the facility will not be open to the public, but FCA plans on changing that in the future to provide a replacement for the former Walter P. Chrysler Museum, which closed in 2016. In the process of repurposing the facility, numerous pieces of Viper memorabilia are being auctioned for charity online. Items such as hoods, signs, limited edition prints, coffee mugs and more are being sold to clear room for the collection.

Fingers crossed, in the not-too-distant future automotive history buffs will be able to visit some true treasures of our motoring past – like the 1902 Rambler, the oldest in the collection, and the pivotal 1924 Chrysler Touring – at their repurposed new home.