The new generation Dodge Viper has been a problematic child for Chrysler since day one. The car’s sluggish sales has already caused a halt in production once, and things are not showing signs of getting better for the 2015 version which will come with a couple of upgrades.

That is why according to some reports Dodge is preparing for some desperate measures to try and save the day. They don’t have enough resources to replace the ancient V10 engine in the Viper with something newer, but they can supercharge it in the hope that some crazy power output would solve the car’s fundamental issues.

It certainly worked for the new Hellcat models. Thanks to a 707-hp 6.2 liter supercharged V8 in the new Challenger and Charger Hellcat, everybody is now talking about them and the order books are said to be on the verge of bursting. Dodge hopes the same trick would help the Viper.

If green-lighted, this Dodge Viper Supercharged could have upwards of 800 horsepower. But as they say, it’s not how much power you have got, it’s how you use it. And the Viper’s rather unsophisticated drivetrain may not be able to put that power to good use.

It’d be tragic if Dodge goes to the trouble of making a supercharged Viper, only to find out it may still lose to the 600-hp Corvette Z06.

Via Allpar