Good Morning All!

New to the forum and have started looking at purchasing a Crossfire. The prices are reasonable for what I am looking to do with the car. Would like your input on whether it is better to purchase a lower mile car or go for one that has higher miles. There is on '05 Limited that has 140,000 miles on it. Most of the modules such as SKREEM, RCM, and BCM have been replaced. The engine/transmission work well, but engine needs new MAF sensors and valve cover gaskets. I did notice that the ignition key does not turn easily (have read the great posts about sticky key), but owner says it is the tumbler. Last, but not least, the driver seat does not move or recline ( maybe seat relay or fuse). The interior is ok but could use a good cleaning and some new interior parts such as divider. Looking to make this a fun driver for me and my son. Your insight is appreciated.

Thanks

 

Depends on overall condition, price and your mechanical abilities. Many os these cars are over 200,000 miles and still running strong. I personally would prefer a higher mileage car that has been taken care of than a lower mileage one that has not been taken care of and was stored outdoors.

 

Low mileage, few owners, no crashes and well looked after. Florida is full of cars like this, just take your time and have the money ready when the opportunity arises. I would not look at a car over 60,000 miles if I lived in Florida.
If you want to have fun get a nice SRT6, it will not depreciate as fast as the limited or base cars.

 

There are plenlty of really good lower mileage cars available for well under $10,000. While I agree with ZERACER's philosophy, I'd point out that there are plenty of well maintained cars for sale.

I do agree that a car stored for five months a year is a questionable candidate. My car's former owner died, and it was driven maybe four times in 20 months; it took me two years to work thru all the problems caused by long term idleness. I'm not unhappy I bought it, (it is my 3rd Crossfire), but just know that a car with 28,000 miles CAN have a lot of issue. The Graphite roadster was always a daily (in Arizona) before I bought it. That car never gave me a moment's issues, other than when the ignition locked up.

And "it's the tumblers" is often a statement made by an owner with no clue. It's not the tumblers, the car needs the sticky fix done TODAY.

 

Different experiences for different people and locations. I bought my first Crossfire (07) back in 2008. It is a low mileage garage queen. Excluding the very common leaking valve cover gaskets covered under warranty, recalled driver airbag, rear camber issue, and two replacement batteries, I've had zero problems with the car. Most important I do try to keep the gas fresh and use fuel stablizer. The 04 with the highest mileage has had most of the usual common problems reported on the forum. The lowest mileage 06, my second garage queen, had the sagging headliner, leaking valve cover gaskets, bad crankshaft position sensor, tires, and a battery. I may have missed some minor repair items not coming to mind right now. Overall, I'm extremely pleased with the reliability of these cars.

 

A car stored inside for five months should not be a cause for alarm. They end up with half the mileage of daily drivers. Up here in Canada and the Northern states we pack them away for the winter, I have packed my Crossfires away for fifteen years and apart from a battery dying I have had no problems, you don’t just drive them into the garage and forget them, you prepare them a little.
How did you find your problems were due to the cars prolonged idleness?

 

Thanks all for the feedback and responses!

 

Like others have stated, lots of Crossfires out there to purchase. My criteria: Southern car (I'll include the Southwest & southern California) - less likely to have been exposed to winter driving conditions with salty brine; Low mileage (probably under 60k) - and realize that the powertrain on these cars is extremely reliable; if it's a 2004-2006 model year - has the "sticky key" fix been done; if it's 2007-2008 model year- has the Takata airbag recall been completed; per the CarFax report - has regular maintenance been done on the car (this may not be an issue if regular service (e.g., oil changes) isn't listed as many of us do our own oil changes & that's not normally reported to CarFax. My car will show a low CarFax rating for exactly this point & yet I'll state unequivocally that regular maintenance has been done beyond recommended intervals & I've got records to prove it. So will many of my fellow Forum members regarding their cars; I like a car that doesn't have an accident report, but I will say that a minor "fender bender" can be repaired on these cars w/o impacting appearance and/or drivability. If the accident is within the last 5-7 years, it probably was a minor one because insurance companies will typically "total" these cars if any significant parts are required.

Oh, and as you've stated in your original post, these cars do have weird electrical/electronic issues. Typical of the vintage - most German marques of 2000-2010 model years had poor electronic/electrical issues. And the Crossfire is more German that anything else.

Nothing else comes to mind - Good luck with your search.