Dunno why it came to mind. I was thinking of Chargers the other day and it popped into my empty noggin'...
Dunno why it came to mind. I was thinking of Chargers the other day and it popped into my empty noggin'...
V8 power maybe. The V6 does not even get an honorable mention (turd) (at least on the older ones)
Can you use cast off parts from the Challenger folks? Is there much of an aftermarket for the Hemi even?
A friend of mine has had one for quite a while. Big sway bars, bigger springs and a set of Bilsteins and its a super nice car. He lives south of Calgary, and takes it whenever he's headed to the mountains. The v8 is more than adequate in stock tune, and if you want more, its as near as your Visa card.
I test drove both a 300 and a charger at a dealer back in 2014 (both v8 hemi cars) and they felt very similar. I have seen some done up real nice.
I would have been happy with either car.
How are the transmissions on these? Legendary chrysler quality?
My brother bought an SRT-8 300C a couple weeks ago for 9500, that's a ridiculous car for that money.
Rented a Chrysler 300 two months ago. Never even checked to see which variant it was. It was surprisingly nice. Strong power especially up top (so it was probably a V6 not a Hemi). Comfortable, decent interior. I think it had shifter paddles. Nannies prevented hooning. Highway mileage was in the low 30s but in-town mileage was about 20 MPG.
Overall I was impressed, especially for a Mopar product and doubly so for a rental car. I would be very wary of reliability, though (Mopar product).
I've looked heavily into the Charger and 300C. There are minor differences in them, but they're on the same platform with the same mechanicals. The newer V6 is enough power for normal use, though not sure about reliability. The Hemi...well, because Hemi. For a barge, they're stupid fast. When you drive them, they have a presence to them, simply because of how big they are. But they're extraordinarily comfy. The 300C comes standard with more luxury googads and can be pretty nicely optioned up. I think the Hemi is fairly bulletproof. The transmissions were a weak point. Up until the newest generation, the Hemi had an old Mercedes unit that wasn't the best. The newest ones have a 9 speed (or is it 8, I forget) that's said to be better.
I still kinda wish I had one. They fit my needs in so many ways. My commute is 55 miles each way, mostly highway and in traffic. Family of 5, so I need lots of room. Love cars with power and luxury touches. I sure wish they'd offer the Hemi Charger with a 6spd manual.... and the other thing I'm not super fond of is a 4500lb barge that cruises the highway well isn't the best suited to curvy roads. I've seen worse, but you can feel its' size.
Just so you guys know, the first gen transmission is a Benz NAG-1 and is strong as hell and was used in AMG cars as well
Blitzed306 wrote: Just so you guys know, the first gen transmission is a Benz NAG-1 and is strong as hell and was used in AMG cars as well
Good to know. Most of them have been ragged to death and donked here, but I do likes me some srt8.
Blitzed306 wrote: Just so you guys know, the first gen transmission is a Benz NAG-1 and is strong as hell and was used in AMG cars as well
And the new one is the ZF 8-speed that lots of manufacturers are using these days.
I rented a V6 Charger a couple of years ago and really liked it. I later drove a 2011 Hemi model with the older 5-speed auto, and I dug it, too. The Hemi is really nice, great power off the line, makes good noises. I've seriously considered these cars in the past, and I may yet end up with one.
According to the wikis the 2013 and up pretty much share the powertrain with the RAM trucks (Pentastar V6/Hemi V8 + ZF 8-speed combo) so from a mechanical standpoint they should be pretty reliable. Rented a RAM 1500 last weekend for a quick trip to Orlando to exchange an engine. It had the Hemi with the 8-speed. Damn impressive combo for cruising effortlessly at 80+ while knocking down mid 20's highway mileage with a 400 pound lump in the bed. I made the same trip in a Nissan Frontier earlier in the month with the same payload and got worse fuel mileage. I'm a Chevy guy, but the big Dodge and RAM are impressive.
I'll just leave this here:
There was one hustling around the Grattan Raceway autocross yesterday and looked great.
I rented one at LAX in January. An almost new '16. Headed to Bakersfield and passed EVERYTHING with wheels up the grapevine. Pulled over at Tejon and popped the hood to admire the Hemi. It was a 3.6 VVT!
It's among my favorite rental cars. Great way to eat lots of miles.
for some reason, depening on the color of the car, tinting the windows, adding some bigger rims and low profile tires and the bently grill and they really look bad ass as a vip type car or something the mob would drive around in. black or silver seem to work the best.
my boss's 300m is an srt8 6.2 paxton supercharger brembo brakes 715hp on the dyno. Prob. bad ass but I won't ride in it unless i'm driving.
The 3.6/8spd cars (i.e. base drivetrain now) trap 95mph in the 1/4 or so. They are pretty fast. I actually think the Hemis are less impressive for being such a big engine, but they are still fast. There is plenty of aftermarket and despite assumptions one could easily make they are not that bad a starting point for handling other than weight.
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