Originally Posted by mightyjlr
One of the cars I was looking at before the Crossfire was the G35. The one thing I liked about the G35 was its 280 hp. The Crossfire has 215. The 1/4 mile time is a cars true test of performance and the the G35 1/4 mile time is 14.6 seconds and the Crossfire's is 14.8. That's pretty impressive if you ask me. The G35 does weigh 500 lbs more, but still... 215 might be less than what I was hoping for, but certainly not shabby now that I look at it.
The 14.6 number must be for the 260hp G35 Sedan. I've beaten 14.6 in a G Coupe with an automatic transmission while "launching" with rpms at idle. Based on that, I think a 6MT G Coupe with a hard launch should hit at least 14.3. The weight difference is actually 400 pounds, but that's still big. The Crossfire actually weighs less than the 350Z.
Still, 14.8 is a respectable time. A 330ci with MT that I ran against at the track did a 14.8. A few mods and you're right there with any other stock luxury/sport coupe in this price range. One thing Crossfire owners might want to look at to cut some time off their quarter miles are the rear wheels. I strongly suspect those things are overly heavy, because almost nobody makes 19" wheels with performance in mind, just looks. They're not good for either drag races or autocrossing. Especially on an underpowered engine that doesn't need the extra rotational mass. Swap them out for lightweight 17" wheels and, with the better selection of performance tires at that size, maybe 14.6 times are right there waiting for you.
I like the Crossfire. 'Bout time an American company put a car like that on the road. If my G hadn't come out, I'd probably be driving either a Crossfire or a RX-8. I hope it's wildly successful so that Chrysler uses this model as its formula for future cars.