Hey guys,

I took a ride to a local dodge dealer the other day and I was browsing the Challengers. A salesman walks up to me and we start talking about the car. So he eventually says to me "Well since your interested in the car lets take it for a spin." Now this is a brand new light metallic blue SRT8. I explain to him that I really was just looking and that although I'd love to I can't buy the car right now. He responds "Well you'll never know if you want it unless you drive it. I'll grab the keys." Needless to say my jaw dropped. He ended up letting me take a pretty decent length test drive down a long side street by the dealer. This was TOTALLY unexpected but i'll say it made my MONTH! What a fun car to drive. It was just amazing. The only drawback is of course now I want one beyond belief.....well.....one day.

Just a cool story I thought I'd share. Here are pics of it:

 

They are beautiful cars, at least on the outside.

 

Is that a poke at the interior or the mechanics of it?

 

The interior is bland, not ugly like the Camaro mind you, but bland.
The power is completely lacking, but I'm sure that's ok for some folks. No harm no foul there.

 

Cool Story man..I've driven one myself and loved it. I will definetly own one one day.

BTW was it a 6-speed or auto?

 

I do agree with you on that. it is bland, but I liked it. The seats were very comfy. I also agree about the Camaro. Not a fan.

It was the auto. I know HOW to drive stick, but I don't really have much experience and practice so I didn't want to chance having an issue with a car I can't afford.....yet.

Heres a question for you guys. For about the same price as one of these....actually cheaper than the SRT8 I could pick up an older Viper from like 2002 and back.(This has been my dream car since I was in 6th grade) What would you guys think is more worth while? The Vipers insane and nuts but they are older cars now and are COMPLETELY impractical, but the Challenger is new, more practical and fast....(At least to me). I'm curious what your input would be.

Edit: I could also always break down and do what everyone does and get a Vette. lol

Thanks

 

I loved my 71 and would love to have a srt8 in my garage....... next to my stang of course

 

One large thing people never consider when buying a vehicle is maintenance costs. You may be able to afford the car when you buy it, but can you afford the monthly payment, insurance AND new tires when the time comes? How about brakes, or what happens if something else goes wrong? I'm sure a Viper isn't the most cost-efficient car when it comes to maintenance. I don't even want to imagine what those massive rear tires cost. The SRT8 may not be the most cost-efficient vehicle, but when it comes to filling up the tank in an SRT8 or a Viper it may start to feel like it.

 

They are nice cars but I don't think I could ever trade my mustang in....

 

Everything you said makes perfect sense. I'm just kind of thinking aloud bringing up the purchasing. It will be a few solid years, unless I can land a much better job, before I could ever buy anything else. The Viper is my dream car has been since I was a "youngin" but it is without a doubt the least practical car on the list for many reasons even beyond what you stated. To be honest if I went with a challenger I'd probably get an R/T. Even the salesman said its the best bang for the buck in terms of challengers. With the SRT you are paying for badging and a slightly bigger engine 6.1 425 hp vs the R/T 5.7 370 hp. Thats also why I kinda made the qwip about the Corvette. In terms of an all around sports car the Vette is without a doubt the best bang for your buck....other than a Mustang of course. It will be a long process for me to narrow down. Just figured I'd bounce some ideas off of fellow car guys.

 

I got to drive an SRT-8 last month. I honestly loved it. If I ended up getting one, it would be a Plum Crazy Purple one with black stripes. It wasn't as fast as I had hoped it would have been, but the look of it and the extremely comfortable interior were amazing.

 

Completely agreed. Being the fastest car I've really driven before the SRT8 was my V6 Mustang, it was fast as hell to me.

 

I know the feeling. haha I remember when I went from my V6 to my V8. Its awesome! haha

 

Yea. See thats my problem. I really truly don't want to trade in my car. If I could bring myself to do it I could probably get an R/T challenger, if I went that route, relatively soon.....but I can't bring myself to do it. I know it's just a "lowly little V6" but I truly love the thing plus it has a special meaning to me. Oh well....SAVE TIME!!!!

 

That's pretty sweet! I would hate the color but to each his own. When the car was about to be released we had one at Stillwater Designs for the Kicker optional audio upgrade on SRT models and I got to see the car for the first time and was blown away. I love the body. I also am a huge fan of the Challenger in 1970 skin so to see this was really neat. A classic example of a muscle car though. I wish there were a new term for the new Mustang as I just can't call the new Mustangs muscle cars anymore. The Challenger yes, it's big, it's heavy and has a very large V8 and sounds the part. The Mustang is leaner, quicker, turns sharper and not really the definition of a Muscle Car anymore.
Anyway, that's good that you had fun on your test drive. I love the salesman's response to your "just looking" comment. They always want you to lust after it, they have to sell it don't they?

 

The Mustang is a "Pony car". It's not a new term; has been around since the Mustang spawned a whole new category cars, such as the Camaro, Firebird, Cougar, etc. in the 1960s. The Mustang is not a muscle car nor has it ever been.

 

I recently bought a Chrysler product for my winter car. (as usual pullin' for the underdog ) So when I was in for service the same salesman and I were hangin' out and then we took the Chally V6 for a drive. They really are nice cars and some of their colors are great. I'm not a fan of red but I love their Inferno Red - seems like it has some crimson in it. And I thought the auto stick was a blast! V6 pulled pretty good all the way through the power band. I told him I was surprised for a pushrod and he said it was roller everything.

I won't be able to have two summer cars but if I could the other one would be a Chally - not a Camaro. And a 5.7 would be fine - don't need the 6.?.

 

True, I just see it get tossed in with Mustang a lot. Even today, the Pony term sometimes seems sparse. I don't really know what I was thinking, but yes, pony is still proper.

 

Hmmmm. I learned something new today. I usually thought of a mustang as a muscle car too.

 

Check this out, it explains it better than I can

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pony_car