According to Sergio Marchionne, CEO for Chrysler group, Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo was speechless when he was introduced to the 2013 SRT Viper. Luca was in Detroit recently for a board meeting – Ferrari and Chrysler are both owned by Fiat – when Marchionne gave him a tour of the car and received the good words. 

Marchionne believes it’s one helluva compliment for Ferrari to admit the Viper is a unique car. And indeed it is. The new Viper is a cracking car with superb performance and a new-found sophistication that sets it apart from the typical American super car.

That said, di Montezemolo could be just complimenting a colleague. After all, the Viper is not considered a rival now that it’s owned by Fiat. Chrysler’s success is Fiat’s success, which by transitive property is Ferrari’s success.

“The car is a superb machine,” Marchionne, the chairman and CEO of the Chrysler Group, told WJR-AM radio, according to a transcript of the interview posted on the Chrysler Web site. “I had the chairman of Ferrari down here for the board meeting last week and he had a chance to look at the car, and he was speechless. I mean, for Ferrari to admit that the car is a unique vehicle is a hell of a compliment to the work that’s gone on here. So I’m delighted. I mean, so far, knock on wood, we’re doing well.”

Source: InsideLine