I just bought my '04 with 48,000 miles a few months ago, but after joining this board, I'm considering selling it and upgrading to a new '06 limited with gps, etc. I know I would lose a little money because of the taxes, etc, but would this be a good move? And how much should I pay for the new limited '06, aero blue, gps, etc? Or should I just take what I bought and make it my own?

Thanks,

-Eva-

 

Eva, I've heard reports of 21K to 22K for the limiteds. Are you really sold on the nav/gps? For half the cost you can get an excellent Garmin with the new 2008 map update...works great and you get a touch screen with 3-D mapping as well.

 

I've just never owned a new car. I like the idea of owning a newer car with fewer miles that has a warranty. But if it's not worth it financially, then I can just make adjustments to the car I own. I just wasn't sure. *shrug*

 

It depends what you paid for the current one. Do you like it? Is it the color you want?

Look at the pros and cons.

With a new car you get a new warranty. The car will perform as you treat it (assuming you don't get a lemon). You won't be buying someone else's "issues".

On the other hand, if the original owner cared for it like most of us on the forum do, then you will have a very nice car indeed.

The '06 is not really a different car than the '04, so if you paid a lot less, then you have that much more you can spend to make it yours ( and probably have enough over to take it on a nice driving vacation as well).

As far as the on-board GPS. I have it and it is pretty good. But if I were to buy new now, I would not opt for it. You can get a better system for less aftermarket.

Either way, good luck. You have (will have) a great ride. Enjoy!

 

I was in your position I upgraded to a SRT6 thats the only way to go... It cost me roughly 5 grand and another year of payments but my car payment on the SRT is the same as it was on the limited. Shop around With 48,000 its going to be tough to get the full value out of it. Luckily I went to a dealer that gave me what kelly book trade in was and a little extra for aftermarket stuff. The first dealer I went to was only going to give me $14,000 did some more shopping around and got $18,200.

 

I do like the car I have - but I've already had to spend around $2,000 in maintenance... it still needs about $500 more work. The inside of the car is clean, but I'm not sure how the previous owner drove it... I suppose I'm just afraid of more problems popping up in the future and kinda wishing I had just bought a new '06 instead of this one, lol. Bought this one for $17,000 - which I thought was an excellent deal until I joined this board and heard that others got theirs for less.

 

If it were me I would go for the SRT6!!!

 

Ya know... I've never driven an SRT6. I may decide to go that route if I had an opportunity to experience the difference. My main concern is the warranty and having a car that I know wasn't abused.

 

Eva,

Don't Do It!!! No More No Less, Unless You Have Some Money To Burn And That Would Be What You Are Doing.. Nothing On The Cars Have Changed They Are All The Same Except For A New Exterior Colors, No New Bells And Whistles. If You Want A Good Navigation System That's Touch Screen You Can Go With The Pioneer Nvic-3 Which Is Nice. It Will Cost You Close To 2k After Being Installed But That Will Be A Heck Of A Lot Less That Dealing With The Negative Equity Of A Depreciating Asset That Has No New Features... That's My Advice...

 

Eva,
Let me look into my crystal ball! (If I only knew what you XF is going to do for the next 2 years).
It's a tough call, if you didn't already have one, I would go 2006/7, but with the Trade-in loss & the Sales Tax, etc. it may cost way to much. Sit on it for a while & take another look at it 6 mos or 1 year from now.
Yup, that is my "Final Answer"!

SF

 

If one were to buy a brand new Xfire now, it would come with Chrysler's lifetime powertrain warranty, right? If true, it may be worth it. Just my .02.

 

FYI, my new 2006 purchased in Aug. '07 DID come with the lifetime warranty.

You face a difficult decision. On one hand, the cost of buying a new XF (taxes, price difference, etc.) would pay for several repairs.

But on the other hand, you would be getting $1,200 worth of new tires and a lifetime warranty if you bought new.

Another issue may be finding an XF equipped exactly as you want. I do not recall seeing any Aero Blue XFs during my recent internet inventory search that covered the entire mid-Atlantic. Also, Chrysler is now only letting 5-star dealers show an on-line inventory through Chryslers dealer search. This will make any internet searches more difficult.

Good Luck. I could make a good argument for either decision.

 

I have a 2004 with 16,000 miles on it I bought it with 10,000 in April and paid $21,000. A little more than what some other cars are going for now. So I had similar thoughts too. I believe the previous owner took pretty good care of the car since I've had no major issues. Our cars have Mercedes engines, transmissions, rear ends and electronics. My bet would be that after you fix your current problems you will have a fine machine on your hands. Based on some of the other comments here on the forum. Unless you have an endless supply of cash...I'd stick with the car you have. Loosing money on your car and then paying the additional money on the new one could equal a $6,000 to $8,000 expense. Drive it for a year (since you already have pretty many miles on it it's not going to make a real big difference at trade in or sale time) see what other kind of problems may occur. If it doesn't give you any grief, I'd keep it! Pay it down a bit and then if you really want to make the move you can do it and hopefully not lose your shirt or skirt. Financially cars suck no matter how look at it. I'd hate to throw away good money just to move up a year or two in model year. $8,000 is a lot of cash for a warranty! Hang on to it, drive it, play with it by adding the little personal touches everybody likes to do to their Crossfires and decide if it's worth keeping later. Unless you have a lemon or the previous owner beat the crap out of it you should have pretty nice car that will last for years to come. Look for a good dealership with a certified Crossfire mechanic, read the forum often, ask questions and before you know it you might be in the garage doing the light maintenance yourself and loving it! I may have paid a bit too much for my car but I never think about it when I'm driving or pretty much any other times either. I really enjoy the ride, It's just too COOL!

My 2 cents!
GassGhost

 

Well, I wouldn't feel to bad of the price, I bought our '04 for full price the first day they went on sale in town. I paid wayyy more than 95% of the forum members but I've been enjoying it for several years now.

I've always believed in buying new but only if you plan to keep it for several years to offset the higher cost. As far as GPS goes, I bought a Pioneer AVIC-2 for both my crossfires. As was said if GPS is what you want to add, you have several options. Why get a new one that has the same options and looks for the extra cost.

Just my .02

 

If you want Nav, don't use the factory supplied ones, they work but they aren't like the graphical Nav/GPS you might be thinking about. It does give turn by turn but most other NAV units are touch screens so inputting characters is much easier.

You can go one of 2 ways if you keep your current car.
Portable GPS Unit (good since you can take it out of your car and take it with you in another one)...it's the cheaper way to go but the units work wonderful.



or using a head unit-based GPS/Nav, more expensive ($1,200 - $1,800 New).

 

Yes, but the lifetime powertrain warranty will be of limited value. And for obvious reasons, it is not so good for resale when compared to the 7/70. Sure, if you plan to keep the vehicle for the rest of your life you might get some free repairs or replaced components along the way, but it is not likely that any given owner will keep the car for decades. I think what most people enticed by this warranty will find is that by the time the covered powertrain parts start breaking, many non-covered parts will have already broken. You also have to take the vehicle in for service at an authorized dealer once every 5 years for an inspection. Even though the inspection is free, it is entirely likely that the owner will get bombarded with service recommendations or things that are required to be completed to continue the warranty. And, what happens if Chrysler goes out of business in 2020 or they stop making replacement parts?

 

I know it's easy to spend other peoples money, but really really go for the SRT-6.

I know myself and several other members kicked themselves for getting a limited/base instead of the SRT-6.

And for the prices now, there really is no reason not to...

 

WOW, I just can't live my life by that many "what ifs". I'm gonna lighten up for us both.

RP