The first myth that I have to
The first myth that I have to dispel is that the Viper's V10 is just an aluminum version of the V10 truck engine. Dick Winkles had been part of the Viper project work from the prototype (which had a V8) to the production Vipers. He was one of the original powertrain development engineers at Team Viper, and he said that the iron block truck V10 weighed around 900lbs, so it was never going to work in the Viper. In the end, the only actual things that the aluminum Viper V10 engine had in common with the truck engine were having a 90 degree V10 design and 488ci (8.0L) engine displacement. Everything else was changed as the truck engine was engineered for low RPM, high torque operation for truck duty, rather than track duty. Lamborghini actually built a couple aluminum V10 engines for use in the Viper, but they were shown to be too expensive, complex, and not reliable enough for the kind of racing abuse that the Viper was bound to encounter. So the only carryover from those prototype Lamborghini engines was the cool looking intake manifold. I do agree with the idea of building the next Viper as a very lightweight performance car. I also don't have a problem with using the Hellcat's V8 motor, as long as it has an aluminum block and heads to save weight, and twin turbos are a wise, modern choice for forced induction because they are both efficient and controllable to provide flexible power delivery that can provide optimal performance. I also like the idea of an electric motor for the front wheels. This way you get the added traction, and performance of AWD, combined with instant torque, economy, and power control of an electric motor. The upcoming top version (Zora/ZR-1) of the new Corvette will most likely have this same configuration of a V8TT with AWD from an electric motor driving the front wheels. It is always a treat when I drive my Viper around, and I really hope that Dodge revives the Viper again in the near future, even if it gets changed to become a more modern performance car at the cost of losing a few legacy features like it's iconic V10 engine.