Hi Nate_man

If you go for a SRT Xfire they are all auto boxes (Fixed rear wing) , I have a manual std Xfire & have no problems with it , Its has a very close gear shift & very firm feel ,you do get the hang of it after a few hours driving , The only problem i have is jumping out of our 206 & in to the Xfire all the switches are in a different place .



Cheers

Andy

 

Andy, I have a sapphire blue coupe in standard. My comments were a part of my contemplation about 5 months ago.

I am glad that I got the car that I did. I drove the SRT6 and yes is is sweet but the supercharger is an expseive option to fix if you push her too hard and all that juice would have made me work that car more than I should. I just love cruising around with the top down.

These are great cars! You really cant go wrong with any of them!

Xfires rule!

 

am really picking up a stack of ( good ) inf from the forum, and what a friendly bunch !
One thing I am beginning to appreciate is that there are not many of these cars around.Good in some ways but it does mean the Chrysler dealer mechanics don't get much exposure to them and they are dealing with a
M-B engine not a Chrysler lump.
Whats the general feeling on the Chrysler dealer network in terms of the way they work on these cars?
All the forums have their dealer horror stories and I'm sure there are some for the xf but don't want to get into those,I was looking more for a general
view as these cars have been around for 5 years now so most of them will have been in the workshop at some time.
I have not seen any reference to any xf 'specialists', are there any in the home counties that anyone can recommend?
P

 

Last weekend I was ready to buy an 07 xfire limited with 10,000 miles on it or an 08 with 3,000 until the dealer suggested I try a '04 Lexus SC430 he had on the lot. My wife (who doesn't really like the xFire) and I drove the Lexus and love love loved it! It totally quelled my Crossfire-lust. It has 32000 miles on it but costs about 4 grand more than the xfire. The interior is like a room at a 5 star hotel, the ride is silky yet firm and the visibility (with top up) is tremendous, especially compared to the xFire. Plus the 25 second hard top to convertible transformation is great. We dropped the top while waiting at a short traffic light.

We decided to think over what we wanted and went to pick up another car we own that was in the shop for an oil change. My mechanic had just finished fixing an 05 Xfire. I asked him what he thought of the xFire and he just shook his head disapprovingly. He said they are pain to work and not very reliable. He had three customers who had them and two got rid of them because they were such a pain to own and the guy who owned the one he just repaired was looking to get rid of his. I mentioned I also looked at the SC 430 and got a big thumbs up. He said it is a better performing car, extremely reliable and will hold it's value way better than a Crossfire. In fact he said that if I buy the SC 430 not to bother getting an extended warranty because I won't need it. If I buy the xfire he said be sure to get an extended warranty because I would definitely need it.

I Still haven't pulled the trigger on the SC but I think I'm quickly loosing xFire interest.

 

The Xfire is a very special car. There is no way to justify the ownership of one as there is always something, too small, too rare, too special, too finicky too whatever common sense excuse you can name.

It either gets you completely or it doesn't.

Sounds like it missed in your case.

And that's just fine.

For what any car costs to own and operate, it should be what you wanted.

Enjoy your more practical car.


roadster with a stick

 

I'm not being funny mate but the Lexus has always been slated and I thought it was much more expensive than the Crossfire.
How much were the cars you were looking at?
As for the Crossfire being unreliable i've never heard that before.
I've had mine for 4 years and never had any problems.
When reading this forum you might disagree with me but that is because when someone has a problem they post about it but if it is running fine you don't hear about it.
At the end of the day it's up to you but I think that the Crossfire looks a lot better than the Lexus in fact for the money I don't think you can buy a better looking car.
I love my Crossfire and even though I've had it for 4 years I still turn round to look at every time I get out of it.
But as has just been posted it's not for everybody.

 

interesting post Des,always good to get some alternative views.
I have to admit to being a big Lexus fan and if I was thinking of getting another rag top(tin top) then the SC430 would be top of the list over the Boxster,S2000,Alfa Spideretc.
IMO your mechanic was right about Lexus reliability,Lexus have taken reliability to a level that most other manufacturers can only dream about.
BUT thats not the point when you buy a xf,to me you are buying those classic retro looks,that boat-tail back end must have been inspired by Bill Mitchell's '71 Buick Riviera,what more do you want?
Add to that a practical hatchback and it means you have a Sunday afternoon sports car that can also accomodate a big dog,essential for me.
As a daily driver,probably not, but thats what old Volvo estates are for, taking care of all the boring stuff.
As you will gather I'm looking forward to getting a xf but its still price and future depreciation driven so I wouldn't touch a late one, I think the early ones will be going for the proverbial song soon and then I will make someone an offer they can't refuse.
Be interested to know what you finally decide.

 

Mate I came to the Xfire from a 350z and controversial as this might sound, but I think the Xfire is superior in every way.

So much more fuel efficient too, and im TRYING to use it.

 

thanks for the comparison.The 350Z was my first choice but that ridiculous body brace in the boot meant I could not fit the dog in ,it was only when I started to look for an alternative that I seriously looked at the xf.

 

Interesting to hear your perspective. It is great to hear that you love the xfire over the z. THey are now just so common (the z) and the xfire is so much more distinctive.

Thanks for your opinion. BTW what were the key areas that you felt that the xfire really stands out over the z?

 

Dont get me wrong, I liked my Z. It was gun metal with Alezan (orange) leather. It looked the business and had great road prescence. But overall, the Z felt the more budget car. I had various electronic glitches (windows, airbag faults, electric seat failure). The cabin was shockingly bad on build in the Z so I was probably one of the few delighted with the X. The amount of rattles and creaks was frankly annoying.

Engine wise, excellent, smooth. Great at cruising speeds 50-70. Petrol eater though so through town it dropped well below 20.
It was the clutch which was the worst part for me. I still do a lot of round town driving, and up in manchester thats a lot of stopping and starting and the clutch was just the heaviest awkward thing in the world. I used to get cramp in the clutch foot, and im being serious. I think 2006 on they intsalled a lighter clutch so I imagine this is now resolved.

The Chrysler just feels more defined, is better through the ranges although slower off the mark. I have no rattles and the ride comfort is far far superior as is the general build quality.

The Xfire falls down on engine / exhaust note for mine though, so I took away the centre cats and installed a powerflow cat back, and now its awesome.

Ive had a few performance cars, and I would probably suprise a few by pitching the xfire as a better all rounder than ANY of the following:

330ci E46 x2 (great cars)
Audi 225 TT (remapped 270)
Z3 M (321 Bhp)
BMW M3 E46
Nissan 350Z

You know I like a car if it stays for longer than 6 months.. especially a rag top through winter. Im still very very pleased, although dissapointed it now has to go. Currently on Pistonheads.com

 

Thanks for your update. Appreciate your perspective.
Thnx