Do many of you drive your Crossfire as a daily driver or are more owners keeping them for sunny day toys? I'm on the fence looking at Crossfires after reading many of the discussions in this forum, the most helpful being at https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...crossfire.html.

My greatest concern is availability of parts if I need them. I generally do most of my own automotive work as a shadetree-type mechanic so I'm not afraid to tackle the basic maintenance & tune up things (can be a blessing and curse). My current daily driver is a 2004 PT Cruiser and back up is a 1997 Chevy K1500 either of which have my fingerprints as deep as a timing belt (PT), front wheel bearing (PT), spider fuel injector (Chevy) and head gasket (Chevy).

That being said, if I were to get a Crossfire, it would be my daily driver. I've loved the looks of these cars since they came out and I believe that I can find a relatively low mileage car in the $8,000 - $13,000 range (non-SRT - sorry - don't necessarily need a hot rod and prefer rowing my own).

Thanks for your insight.

Rick

 

I've driven mine daily since April with no issues (aside from the alarm going off for no reason).. certainly not a long enough time period to truly test it out, but from an enjoyment standpoint I certainly am still having fun and can't help but smile every time I walk up to it... now I do plan on getting a winter beater and storing the Crossfire, so you'll have to speak to someone else about driving it in the snow...

 

ive own my xf since march of this year i love it , and drive it everyday, so far not really any problems i did have my upper windshield molding blow off about a month and half ago i found the pice on the internet for about 350 all the junkyard didnt have the pice and chrysler wanted 800-1000 for it. after posting on the forum about this within days another member was able to find it for me at 150$$ with the side moldings as well. i havent done much to engine so couldnt help u there just sharing my experinece

 

Poncho it certainly sounds like you possess more than enough mechanical skills to take care of most anything that may go wrong with your future Crossfire.
You didn't say where you live, but many people drive their cars year round. As it came from the factory, it's not what I would call user friendly in the snow bound states. But with dedicated winter tires, and a little extra weight in the trunk, it's not out of the question.
I purchased my Crossfire brand new over 8 years ago, and it's been the most fun, and one of the best cars I've owned, (and I've had a few). I have yet to experience any mechanical related problems to take away from the Crossfire ownership experience.
As you mentioned, having a 6 spd. outweighs the benefits of owning a "Drag Racer". IMO. But there's a lot to be said for having SRT power. It totally surprises the drivers of much more expensive sports cars, and that's always fun too.
Welcome to the forum, and good luck finding just the right car.

 

I've had the SRT for 2+ yrs now as my DD. The only time I don't drive it is when there's salt or snow on the ground. I have an explorer for those days. Averaging about 13k miles per yr. No problems outside of routine maintence, oil change, tires, etc. Love the AMG engine.

Mechanical parts shouldn't be a problem since the Xfire is built on the MB R170 platform (CLK, SLKs)
Body parts for the NA shouldn't be too difficult as long as you don't mind used parts since they sold 70k cars. Body parts specific to the SRT may/can be a problem since so few were sold, under 3k cars.

If you're willing to spend $13k, you can get a lower milage (50k miles) SRT6. See link

Used Chrysler Crossfire SRT-6 For Sale Gainesville, VA - CarGurus

good luck

 

I drive mine daily. I do have a van now for the winter, and mine hasn't seen much snow, but it has seen it. Like other posters said, with snow tires, is not too bad. Its easily the best car I have owned, and it makes a really good daily driver. They are pretty decent on gas, easy to drive, and tons of fun. I haven't had any mechanical issues with mine in the year or so that I've had it, I've probably put around 7,000 miles on it in that time.

 

I have owned my roadster since April 2005 and the SRT6 since January 2008. They are both daily drivers from May thru Nov (live in Michigan). I have the luxury of keeping the top down all summer because it is garaged (and covered). It was a conscious decision not to drive them in the winter with salt and other careless idiots on the road. I had a 74 TR6 that I drove year round for six years until it started to rot away under me. The paint prep is much better in newer cars, but why take a chance. Only issues in 40k on the roadster was the fan recall and on the SRT6 (20k) was the intercooler. Otherwise I change the oil in the fall and keep them on a float charger all winter. PS - The winter beater is a 2003 Audi A6 2.7T MT6 with 206k miles -- it is the best vehicle ever for high speed comfort and safety in bad weather driving.

 

I have 2005 Roaster NA , had going on 7 yrs Sept of 12 , drive it alot through the summer months ,it go in during the winter time , i know of alot owners who have but alot miles on the Na M112 motor and there still running great , and welcome to a great place with a bunch Crossfire Nuts ,

 

The majority of the mechanicals are Mercedese. Now body parts are another story.

 

I have had my 2005 roadster for almost 4 years now as a daily driver. It now has over 75,000 miles. I have replaced the crankshaft position sensor, the steering stabilizer and changed the oil myself. The only other repairs I have had is to replace the water pump and of course brakes and tires. I average 25mpg mixed highway and city driving. Like other people have said it is the best car I have ever owned. I also have a winter back up, so I have never tried driving it in snow.

 

If I were in your shoes, the only thing that would bother me about it being a daily driver and parts, is if you have or are in an accident. Body parts aren't readily available. All other mechanical parts are. Reliability is there. Certainly the fun factor is there. Remember, it was built for 4 yrs and now it isn't. So forget about aftermarket parts. You stated it wouldn't be a drag racer...so, the only aftermarket parts left today, are performance parts for the most part...so, that isn't much help. But, filters, plugs, will be around for a long time...good luck with your decision..

 

Wow! You folks are great! These responses are very helpful. Oledoc, I think you nailed what's been nagging at me most. I think general maintenance and drive train parts will be somewhat available but body & maybe suspension parts may be difficult & expensive (if not impossible in time) to obtain.

I live in Oklahoma City and see occasional snow & ice. For bad weather days, I'd likely drive my beater pickup.

I'm not much of a risk taker so buying a limited production car is challenging me. Looks like I have a little soul searching to do! :-P

 

Hey there Poncho Villa,
There are several forum members here in the OKC area. When you decide to jump in and join the fun we can get toghether and may be do a fun run....
As to your maintenance questions, I've not had any major issues with either of ours (not including the recalled top on the roadster-fixed at no charge by Chrysler, thank you very much) and one crank sensor (easy fix), and the notorious upper cover leak (for someone of your skill- a no brainer).
So, come on in, the water's fine....
Smallfry

 

Good to know there's an OKC following! I found a white 2004 at a lemon lot that looks great to me. However, I'm always leery of the lemon lots. This one is at Motor Fair on N May if you're familiar with them or know someone who is, let me know. It's a white 2004 manual transmission with only 20,000ish miles. Sounds almost too good to be true. I haven't tried running a carfax but I may just have to loose the pursestrings and pop for one. Maybe I'll at least stop by this week to take a closer look.

Thanks to everyone for taking time to reply!

 

You found a good one! It's white so you know its right!

 

Just jumped over to their sight.
Nice, cedar and slate interior looks in good shape.
You just might want to jump on this if the price is good.
Change out the oil/filter, probably a new battery, and you're ready to join the Permagrin Club.

 

I ran a VinAlert (similar to CarFax but only $10) and learned that the car was subject to a "manufacturer's buy back" (manufacturer repurchased the car under lemon law terms):

http://www.vinalert.com/view.php?r=0...554e1f1917790c

I'm not sure if that link to the report will work but I paid for the report already and you may as well get the benefit too. It doesn't seem to be quite as thorough as a CarFax but it at least revealed what may be a bigger issue with the car.

 

Drive mine all year 'round except for when the snow is more than 2 inches or so. But if the roads are plowed then it's fine.