Good list. I've driven all of them around a track, except for the GXP Coupe (although I've driven a normal GXP).

Of the cars on the list, I think the SRT6 is the best deal by a mile.

I think the Boss would win outright around a road course (the Lotus would be the most fun, but I'm biased), and as the article notes the GXP Coupe is definitely the rarest.

I, too, sometimes wish I'd bought an SRT-6, but I just don't like the automatic. I've still considered "trading up" every so often though.

 

I drive a stick all day long being in the trucking business... And, way back when...lol 1972 I ran a big block chevy Camaro with a B&M Auto conversion, 3500 stall. Way before it's time and I was hooked on autos every since. I still owned a few vettes with a stick...but, I just like the auto for racing. After awhile, you can get pretty good with it in the corners as well.... Besides, growing up with rock crushers, I'd rip the shifter out of a XF....lol

 

I hear you... I don't race the 1/4 but if I did, auto all the way, and the manually shiftable automatics are pretty OK around a track too. I just enjoy shifting and have never owned a car with an auto, so the 6 speed seemed like the right choice.

The Crossfire shifter feels pretty rock-crusher solid (and nice and crunchy, too) seeing as how it's the same basic transmission as the Wrangler. I bet it'd survive. Don't drive a Lotus with your rock crusher grip, though, you literally will rip the steering linkage right out of the center of the car. The weight reduction definitely went a little overboard there.

 

It would depend on the road course, the Elise will run rings around the 'stang on a tight one and I think you might hear some dissenting opinions with the SRT6. I don't think the solid axle would be quicker than the SRT6 on most courses.

 

and FOX News has said it now it must be right.

 

I drive a 2013 Boss 302 back to back with my Elise pretty frequently. While the Elise is much more rewarding to drive, the Boss can put down good lap times more easily. Part of that is that the Elise demands a lot of confidence. It depends on braking extra late and pulling really high lateral G through turns to make up time and keep the engine over 6,300RPM, where it falls off of the high lift cam. The track I usually run (High Plains Raceway, CO) also has a big uphill sweeper which the Elise really struggles with since it doesn't have a ton of torque.

I don't pretend to be a great driver but "pro" magazine comparos and in time trials match my experience: in their results the Boss usually does a few seconds better than an Elise. The Boss's lap times even around tight tracks are more comparable to the factory supercharged Lotus Exige models (S240, S260, and the Exige Cup Car) than to the Elise.

I think the Elise is still a better weekend-fun track car than the Boss, though. Not only is it more rewarding to drive but running costs are also a fraction of the Boss's thanks to its weight, narrow and smaller tire sizes with reasonable profiles, and relatively cheap to run and repair 1.8L Toyota drivetrain.

The SRT-6 would take heavy mods to compete with the Boss. The stock power to weight ratio is much worse (1:8.2 vs ~1:9.5) so it's already at a straight-line disadvantage. While the live axle definitely isn't the ideal suspension design, the Boss is set up much better for the track from the factory. Body roll is much more controlled and it steers fairly neutrally with the traction control off rather than dramatically understeering like the Crossfire does. The Boss brakes are also substantially better, and it comes with a factory LSD.

The live axle hubbub with the Mustang is really overblown IMO. It does just fine against plenty of cars with various IRS designs - it was billed as the M3 killer and sure enough it's generally faster than an E92 M3 around a track. Yes, the live axle is a drawback, and I'm glad they're finally getting rid of it, but they seem to have done a just fine job engineering around its flaws.

The SRT-6 is still the best deal, obviously. Even a mint SRT-6 would leave you with 10k+ in mod or running-cost money to play with vs. an Elise or Boss 302.

 

Is it too soon to put my rare '06 SRT-6 up for auction?

 

Article came from Hagerty, Fox just posted it.

 

Love my SRT-6 but feel my 280i TVR was more closer to perfect on the Dragon. The car felt designed for just that stretch of road.

 

well, the dragon is not a road course by any means....corners are off camber and many will just flat lift the rear end off the ground, wave trac or not wave trac. It is fun to run, but it is best left for the crotch rockets. Which I would love to have down there.... Anyway, I think roads like the hell bender are more suited for playing with the cars. I believe a few modded XF SRT6's on here hold there own pretty well on most tracks and I know Les will attest.... But the under steer really does suck...you just want to push it harder and can't... Running a banked track, I literally drove the right front suspension into ground so I tend to stay with drag racing...it would be expensive for me to try run round and round because I would have to do some serious suspension work to be happy. It's all good. Maybe there is hope I can get my money back someday when I have to trade them in on a wheel chair...lol

 

I guess I made a mistake buying an '05 SRT6 instead of the more desirable '06. On the other hand, I have the exceedingly rare 6-speed roadster instead of the standard 5-speed.

 

I just looked at Car and Drivers test of the car and I admit that it performed very well for an outdated suspensioned car. However the data shows that they are about equal in the 1/4 mile while the SRT6 has a slight edge in lateral G's so it would probably come down to gearing. The SRT6 is geared toward the GT class of car, not so the Mustang. Having said that, I like my highly modded SRT6 and its' all around capabilities. Isn't it great that we have so many good cars to pick and choose from, there's something for everybody. Thanks for your response.

 

I saw the build sheet at a dealer for a NEW BOSS and the trans is made in China. What junk.

 

If that's true, I'm beginning to lose my faith in "Made in the U.S.A." The new Chrysler 200 is made in Italy by Fiat and from what I've heard the build quality is better than when they were made here.

 

They are. It's called the Getrag MT-82. German engineered and built in either Slovakia or China depending on the car/market.

I think it's a pretty good transmission. The Boss I've driven is a 2013 so the minor issues were worked out and once it's warmed up it works great. It's certainly been to the track plenty and it's held up flawlessly. Just like the Mercedes transmission in the Crossfire 6MT it is a bit notchy when it's cold. Overall it feels better than the Crossfire transmission and worlds above the Toyota transmission in the Lotus, which is hobbled by a comically flimsy shift linkage setup.

When the MT-82 first came out in an American car (2011 Mustang GT), ~35-40 people from the violently anti-Chinese "'murica" crowd went on a campaign to report every single minor shifting hiccup as a recall/safety issue to NHTSA. I can't tell if they were trying to "punish" Ford or get them to change gearboxes, but even with an open NHTSA investigation breathing down their neck Ford found nothing serious wrong with the transmission itself. The only mechanical issue discovered was poorly installed pressure plates, which made the whole thing doubly funny to me since the engine and trans were mated in the good old USA.

I don't see the hate for foreign-made stuff. It can be just as good or just as bad as US stuff. People are people and parts are parts. There are definitely some business practice / cultural differences working internationally but with a good management setup and a solid company, products from anywhere in the world can be made to great quality at a good price. There's plenty of shoddy work to go around everywhere, too.

The competition to the MT-82 that's in the other big "American" cars (Camaro, Challenger, Corvette) is the Tremec 6060, which is a Mexican made transmission with parts sourced from, you got it, China.

 

The thing I hate to see is the loss of jobs to China, they are on the upswing and we are going down big time.
I will not be around to see it but they will take over anything that is worthwhile.
So buy your Chinese goods and say farewell to your and your children's future job prospects, but it is probably too late to save them anyway.

 

I've made 39 trips to China in the past nine years. You see trains loaded with VW's and Audi's all the time, I think most would be surprised by all that is manufactured in China. You may also notice that a lot of German manufacturers are saying German Engineered instead of made in Germany, which might be an indication of things to come.


Dave

 

and Buicks.

 

BINGO. A Chinese company owns all the Windfarms up here in Dufferin and Malancton County. We will all work for them one day.

 

Nah, we'll lose jobs to the robots and so will/is every other country sooner than many can imagine.