I'll start off by saying over 15 years of ownership this car has been pretty bulletproof. Only things that went wrong were:

1. The sticky key issue. I'm glad I corrected it before the ignition got totally stuck like my srt6. Making me have drill out the pen which took the life of two or three Dremel bits and a good hour or two of drilling.

2. The alternator. I didn't buy new, I just took the old unit and installed new brushes. The unit itself lasted over 15 years and never had a problem since the new brush install.

3. The RCM. which I had to resolder twice (I never soldered before, so my work was horrible) third time preventative once I improved my skills. I'm surprised after three attempts the board didn't burn through.

4. Coolant line. headed to the reservoir became brittle over time. I fixed it with some JB weld. The main coolant pipe I was able to fix by slightly shortening the pipe and adding a new clamp.

5. The Fan. After about 17 years (I never did the fan recall). The fan disintegrated, I was able to install a new fan. The car got really hot, but I was able to bring the temperature back to regular operating temperature by turning on the heat full blast (I have to thank writers of the episode King of Hill, when Hank's truck was over heating). The new Fan didn't work at first, then I realized there's a 200 amp fuse that is located in another box. Bought the fuse off eBay super cheap worked like a charm.

6. The serpentine belt. which probably was damaged during the fan incident but didn't break until about a year after, was able to hobble the car home with no power steering or overheating.

7. The Skreem module. became a sometimes problem it would crank and then die. Sometimes start on the second or third attempt. However I drove it like that for months because the Autel 808 scanner when selecting the SLK320 menu. Would boot, I'm assuming whatever module was running the ignition and the car would start. Eventually I ran out of luck trying to start the car multiple times by giving it a little bit of throttle to avoid using the scanner. Fried the Skreem eventually. The unit was fixed by Mercedes Swap Shop (which I highly recommend). The owner fixed my old keys and sent the unit back in less than a week. I also installed a new Halo ring just in case didn't want to go through all that effort and not be working with a new unit.

8. The motor and transmission mounts. The car vibrated for years I just thought it was old age and a couple of accidents the car has been through. Eventually the mounts fully collapsed which was causing the oil pan to hang dangerously low causing it to scrape over any imperfections in the road. After changing two oil pans (stupidity and they were cheap I believe like $25 dollars on eBay). I was able to change out the mounts, which made a night and day difference the car is beyond smooth now.

9. Convertible top issues. The back window started to lose adhesion I had to glue it on a couple occasions over the years. I didn't do the best job eventually I took the time and effort to glue it in place really well. The top itself I started to separate along the two seams I was able to adhere it with some off-the-shelf super glue. I went down the two lines with the same sealant I used for the back window. Which miraculously is pretty water proof, again I didn't do the best job.

10. I might as well throw in there the srt6 was roof liner was starting to droop. I just spent the money at an upholstery shop for them to fix it they replace the liner with this nice alcantara like material that matches the seats, and alcantara steering wheel cover. 10.Crank and camshaft position sensors I replaced prematurely I thought I had the issue but I misdiagnosed it. It was just bad spark plugs after 200k miles. Yes, the OEM units lasted that long and didn't affect the mpg whatsoever.

11. Paint. As my crossfire aged and became my "park anywhere take anywhere vehicle" the clear coat is starting to crack and peal. Along the front, rear fender door, and Hood. Is only on one side of the car so I'm thinking it's probably just a shoddy body work I've had done over the years.

12. The radio. Sometimes the radio would just stay on (I couldn't turn it off) the CD changer got stuck. It eventually starts to cause a battery drain so I just remove the fuse in the back of the radio and called it a day.

13. Crank and camshaft position sensors I replaced prematurely I thought I had the issue but I misdiagnosed it. It was just bad spark plugs after 200k miles. Yes, the OEM units lasted that long and didn't affect the mpg whatsoever.

14. Steering stabilizer. I always thought it couldn't make that much of a difference and one was going for sale on eBay really cheap. It really did sharpen up the steering tremendously.

The reason I call the car bulletproof is because it has definitely had its fair share of accidents. I was not religious changing the oil, other maintenance. Also definitely probably went over the 10,000 mile oil change interval a couple of times. Or did any of the preventative maintenance until things broke. However this car has never let me down. For all the Crossfire owners that are wondering I'm still running the same fuel pump, and water pump no issue whatsoever.

Thank you guys in this forum, for helping me with all of these fixes. I have always passed forward the information. When I run into a new Crossfire owner, that's in a bad situation because a lot of the times. The mechanics don't know these fixes. We have all seen many of crossfires sent to the junkyard prematurely. For easy fixes (RCM & Crank/Cam sensors) or because insurance companies salvage title them after light accidents. You guys are beyond amazing and I'm thankful for you. Sorry for any Typos I wrote this rather quickly.

Cheers to another 250k miles

-Edward

 

Kudos on a comprehensive, informative (for a new owner like myself) and enjoyable post. Also, reads promising and installs confidence that my Crossfire and I have many miles of reliable motoring ahead (These cars have an undeserved bad rep, here in the UK).

Great share, thank you.

 

I am confused about lines #9 and #10, 9 is for a convertible top repair and 10 is headliner fabric replacement which would be a coupe. How did one car need both?

 

Thank you for reading, The only thing I would add is.

15. The 13 pin connector/conductor plate. If you catch the problem very early when the automatic transmission. Is holding a gear too long or shifting erratically. You can often just clean the 13 pin connector with electrical conductor cleaner. And as a preventative job change the part it connects to with the o-ring I forgot what it was called. Whatever you do, DO NOT USE a drill to remove the part. YOU WILL STRIP THE BOLT. And be forced to change the whole conductor plate, to fix the issue (very messy job).

If you do have to change the conductor plate you may be if the problem gets too bad and the car goes into limp mode. Get the transmission reprogrammed but any independent shop with a star diagnostic, or any other tool like snap-on diagnostic system to reprogram the transmission.

 

Sorry I didn't clarify, I have both a crossfire roadster and an srt6 coupe.

 

"Sorry I didn't clarify, I have both a crossfire roadster and an srt6 coupe."

Me, too. Best combo other than having two roadsters.

 

So I have 9 on your list to still look forward to! These engines are very well made... It's all the stuff everywhere else that becomes problematic but with cars closing in on 20 years of age that is to be expected. In my opinion, people who drive these on a regular basis or use them as daily drivers (like mine) have far fewer issues. Letting a car sit 6-9 months out of the year or keeping a low mileage garage queen is not a good idea. I'd take a 2004 with say 60-80k on the clock any day over one with less than 15K on the clock.