I had a whole 500 word rant typed on Consumer Reports but, I erased it all and decided to go with this. I don't care what Consumer Reports has to say about anything.

 

In one way or another, I have owned four crossfires in the last 6 years. Altogether I have had fewer repairs to all of them than my 95 Jeep Cherokee or 99 Minivan.


I stopped reliance on the CR when they bad mouthed my 200,000 mile Oldsmobile Starfire. Except for the clutch, I never touched the engine on that one.


I'm with StephenJXN

 

What year Starfire ? I had a lovely 1963 with white leather interior, only problem I had was 8 MPG.
Can you imagine feeding that beast these days ?

 

About three months ago, I began my Crossfire quest. My wife Martha patiently requested that I research these cars before getting too excited about the idea.
My first purchase was a CR membership, then access to their '05 report. Uh oh, there's something wrong here... Either CR is wrong, or I just joined a forum of whacked car enthusiasts.
I'm still not sure about the forum, but CR has sure lost my confidence.
John

 

WELLL helllll.....I have been called worse many times....whacked, yes and car enthusiast, guilty.....CR is a lying rag....I had a subscription many years ago, and things I have owned over the years certainly never matched the bad reports...in fact, the only thing CR did was help me get a better deal....think about that one....

 

Well, that '63 is my dream collector car I will likely never own. A red Vert' slab sided with brushed aluminum.


What I had was essentially a '75 Chevy Vega with a Buick V/6 engine and Oldsmobile Stickers on the hood.
Known as a poor man's Porsche by Car and Driver magazine, I still have dreams in which I am driving it. Great little hatchback coupe with a Muncie four speed.'


My Na Crossie is the first car I have owned since then that is as much, if not more, fun to drive.




http://www.ebay.com/itm/OLDSMOBILE-STARFIRE-1976-Original-ADVERTISEMENT-AD-NO-ORDINARY-CAR-/261405071926?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3cdcf4da36









Mine was aero blue.

 

Welcome to the forum. I'm curious, how did CR rate the Crossfire back in '05?

 

No,,,,,we are wacky.




But CR is still wrong

 

The only problem with owning a crossfire is the simple facts. It was only made for four years, never supported by the builder or the two arguing divorcing car companies. And since this was true, along with no real media marketing, no after market products were made. A few but no many. So, if you buy, you are really on your own to some extent. That is why many hang right here. Usually someone on here will diagnose a problem for you. More so than any factory mechanic, because again, there wasn't a real support for the car. Chrysler was dumping them and MB snubbed their noses at them. Middle finger salute to them both...

 

Well put Doc...I couldn't agree more.

 

And that is why I like owning the cars...no one except us, really know much about the car or it's capabilities. WELL, until track days.... I don't go as much as I did in the beginning with the roadster, but when I do go to a test and tune night, I do draw a crowd. There are things there that will beat me, but they aren't street cars, and if they are streets cars, they are approaching triple figures price tags...love my cars...

 

It was very bleak. "Major issues" with the engine and transmission for starters. It was a contradiction to everything else I was reading at the time (this forum included).

I then printed out the CR '03 MB SLK review, and what's this?? It had NO issues with its engine or transmission. In essence, they even contradicted themselves. Those funny guys...

John
(proud whacked owner)

 

LOL...Just like any 10 yr old used car, you have some issues to address. I bought my '04 back in '09 with 23.5K miles. It's almost 4 1/2 yrs later and it still runs strong and looks new inside and out. Just stay on top of any maintenance required or recommended. This is an awesome forum with a bunch of great guys (and girls) who are more than willing to help. Use the search feature here and you can find everything about these great cars and then some.
P.S. Just saw an '05 coupe on ebay with 643 miles...WOW!!

 

Put your glasses on. 64K, not 643...lol....

 

No doc, I couldn't believe my eyes. It is 643 orig miles. Here's the link:http://www.ebay.com/itm/Chrysler-Crossfire-Base-Coupe-2-Door-2005-Chrysler-Crossfire-ONLY-643-ORIGINAL-MILES-1-OWNER-LOOK-/121285899020?forcerrptr=true&hash=item1c3d33f30c&item=121285899020

 

My father -in - law use to swear by the CR mag and would always use them to buy his items......then he bought a Kenmore dishwasher from sears because they were ranked best in the mag (almost 2X the money).......8 months later and 12 service calls after..... he got rid of it and the mag subscription as well. I don't recall many critics having anything good to say about the cars I like (crossfire) or the movies I find entertaining so I have never paid attention to them anyway. I like what I like and watch what I want and to hell with the critics. I believe everyone here would not be here looking at this thread or the forum if they went with the crowd or listened to others for their opinions. We all have an affinity with this little orphan car and wouldn't have it any other way.

 

My dad had a red '63 with a white converible top. Remember my mom complaining that the interior got dirty too easy and that it messed her hair up.
Dad liked the silver highlights on the side and the big engine.

 

Besides that CR critic probably also reviews washers and dryers too.

 

For some reason I keep all my back issues of Consumers Reports. I have looked back on other car ratings. In the April 2005 Annual Auto issue the Crossfire has the usual paragraph description each car gets:

"This German-built two-seat, rear-drive coupe is based on the previous-generation Mercedes-Benz SLK. It competes with the Nissan 350Z and Audi TT. The Crossfire is powered by a punchy 3.2-liter V6 from Mercedes and either a five-speed automatic or a clunky six-speed manual. The outdated steering system makes the handling neither as precise nor as sporty as one would expect. Tenacious tire grip ads security. The ride is stiff, and there's too much wind noise. The interior is cramped, and visibility is poor. A convertible and supercharged SRT-6 are new.

The Reliability, Satisfaction, and Depreciation ratings were all N/A for insufficient information. I looked in the December 2005 issue index for the entire year and there were no full or short reports on the Crossfire.

I looked up the SLK in the April 2004 issue, and found these parts interesting: "The SLK320 uses a smooth, punchy 3.2-liter V6 and a standard six-speed manual transmission, which despite it's rubbery-shift feel, helps transform the character of the car. the steering, though, is short on feedback, robbing the car of true sports-car driving experience."

 

So far, save for regular maintenance, the grand total is $26 for light bulbs at 50k, plus a set of tires early by choice. Not seeing anything mechanical on the horizon. Wear to date only visible on drivers seat bolster, driver's door speaker covers (need reattached with some non-permanent adhesive), and the beginning of a crack on the center counsel. That works out to about 1/20 of a cent per mile. Oh the humanity.
P.S. Severely knocking on wood at this point.