On Sunday I purchased an alabaster autostick w/ dark slate grey interior. Thanks to the wealth of info on this site I was able to educate myself enough to really decide that I wanted this car. The rebate and the fact that the Crossfire has to be one of the best looking cars on the road sent me over the edge. The looks of the car are confirmed by all the stares :shock: , positive comments 8) , and questions I got on the looooong drive home (more on that later). I have yet to see a crossfire on the road in my area. The first time I saw one was last September displayed by a dealer at a boating event. I liked it but thought it was a little pricey compared to the 350Z (based largely on HP comparison). I guess I've missed out on some of the earlier fun involved with having such a new model, but too me it feels like I have the first one produced.

Anyway, my purchase was probably more unusual than most. I tried negotiating with 5 dealers in the Baltimore area. I had seen the Carmax prices online, so I simply told the salesperson at each dealership that the Carmax price was my target. All 5 dealers came in at $1500-$2000 over the Carmax price or didn't have the colors/option that I liked. I even offered to split the difference with the cheapest local dealership which they wouldn't do. It's funny how they ask BS questions like "are you prepared to take delivery today?" and then "what can we do to sell you this car?" :roll: and then they can't even come close to a bonafide "no-haggle" deal.

So, Saturday night I called Carmax in Orlando reserved my car and even temporarily financed it. Then I bought a one-way ticket on Air-Tran for $174 and took a morning flight. Some people thought I must be Goofy, but rest assured he's still in Florida. Anyway, the salesman picked me up at the airport, and in a couple hours I took delivery of the car. No hassles, and the staff was a pleasure to deal with.

I stopped to visit with my brother-in-law for a couple hours then started my 900 mile trek home at 4 pm Sunday. That's where things almost got ugly. Only 300 miles into the trip, which was really fun, I heard a metallic sounding bang under the car. Fortunately, I was 1/4 mile from a rest stop and stopped there. I knew I had run over a small object (because I never saw it) but I was afraid it may have been thrown up along the side of the car. No damage to the paint.... but then I noticed.... the left rear tire was flat. I'm glad I stopped immediately even though I didn't notice that the low pressure indicator light came on until after I got back in the car to see if it had indeed worked. I found the hole in the tread groove, and it looked pretty large (compared to a nail or screw). I used my repair kit according to the instructions, but the hole was just too big. I was a few mile South of Walterboro, SC and the Chrysler roadside assistance I found out will only tow you to the nearest Chrysler dealership; they don't provide roadside repairs. :? There really isn't much other than gas/food/hotels along the I-95 corridor in SC, so I can't imagine where the nearest dealership could of been. Fortunately, a rest stop employee was able to locate the number of a "local" 24 hr. service center 21 miles away. After a couple hours they arrived and were able to patch the tire which was a huge relief because they would of had to order the tire. Too make a long story short, I drove the remaining 600 miles without any other problems. I may just get a new tire, or investigate keeping the existing one if the safety risk isn't too great. But I will probably carry around a tire plug kit with me in the future. So for the cost of the airline ticket, $70 in fuel, $102 roadside repair, a few roaming cell phone calls and a little "excessive" mileage depreciation (somewhat negated by having fun), I finally arrived home with her at 11am yesterday. Then I drove her to work and back. Has anyone else clocked over 950 miles during their first 24 hours of ownership? At least I can finally say it's broken in.

 

Well Rob M, welcome to the club.
Looks like you've clocked up more than just some extra mles on the car and, kept your sense of humour too.
Hope the next miles are more fun than the first. :P

 

Congrats Rob M..... I applaud your choice of colors... .... Glad you got it home safe and sound.

I agree with having that tire inspected. If the hole was too large for the sealant to work, it must have been a good size hole. I don't think I would trust the integrity of the repair.

Anyway.... ENJOY!!! :P

 

thanks!

i look forward to learning a lot in this forum, and helping others too.

my color choice wasn't too difficult though all 5 colors look great on the crossfire. my wife liked the graphite, but i like white for its visibility. i also like washing and detailing cars, so white is an easy color maintain. you don't get the depth of shine you get with darker colors, but light scratches and swirlmarks won't be visible. and, right now i don't have a garage, though i might within a year or so. the white should resist uv better than any other color.

i did like the two tone grey interior more than the dark slate but they didn't have one in stock.

 

Welcome Rob, I bought my Crossfire just west of Orlando in New Port Richey. I admire your resolve to get a decent price. Great idea buying a tire repair (plug) kit, good insurance. I supplemented mine with a can of fix-a-flat.

When they patched the tire was it full of sealant from the roadside repair you attempted? I guess you used the supplied sealant and compressor. Just wondering how that affects tire balance and stability.

 

ccrossfire,
i used the entire bottle of sealant but a bunch of it shot through the hole in the tire. initially, i didn't read the instruction that suggests driving backward and forward 30 feet to disperse the sealant better to the hole. i was just litening to air rushing out of the hole for the most part. after i moved the car back and forth, the sealant was dripping from the hole. when i turned the compressor back on, it looked like it was starting to hold pressure but then the sealant started shooting out of the hole like a geyser. i would imagine that the sealant remaining in the tire is distributed somewhat evenly. i haven't noticed any problems with the balance. what worries me more is whether there is the possibility of doing any damage to the valve pressure sensor in that wheel. interestingly, several hours later after i awoke from a brief rest stop nap, the low pressure light came on. i was worried that the repair had failed. ironically, the left rear was around 34 psi, exactly where i asked the service guy to set it, but the left front was only 26 or so. the other two tires were around 28 psi. i then realized why this had occured. the repaired tire was filled when the air temp was 45 F. the other 3 tires were probably set at around 30 psi by the dealer. of course orlando temps probably range 60-80F this time of year so the tire pressures would drop in the cold. when i awoke from my nap all the tires had cooled sufficiently (it was only 32 F), and the sensor was most likely detecting the significant difference in pressure of the two left tires (e.g. 25% as specified in the manual). i went to a gas station and added air to the other three tires. i think Chrystine (as I may call her) was expecting to spend the rest of her life in Florida. I keep having to remind her that if she were really intended to stay there she would not have come with heated seats. :lol:

 

Thanks for the update Rob, I getting mentally prepared for my first flat tire, inevitable here in Florida where due to all of the construction a veritable hardware store is spread on the roads on any given day.

I like the choice of Chrystine for a nick name for your Crossfire, maybe a take off of Stephen King's "Christine"? One very bad 1968 Plymouth, but "she" looked out for her owner.....I'm not a great King fan, but I did like that movie in my younger days.