The sticky steamroller tires provided ample grip through the turns and body roll was near-flat thanks to an incredibly rigid chassis, but steering feel was number than Novocaine. Still, the Crossfire posted competitive handling figures at the time. The Crossfire shared the same braking setup as the SLK Braking performance was solid. On the other hand, some buyers felt that the inflated price was a fair trade-off given that the Crossfire offered more distinctive styling and the cachet of sharing some Mercedes lineage.
For the model year, Chrysler diversified the Crossfire lineup by offering a roadster variant as well as a high-performance SRT-6 model packing the supercharged hp 3. The Crossfire Roadster retained the distinctive styling features of the coupe model but addressed the fussy hunchbacked profile. As far as we know, no one has publicly quipped about the convertible variant looking like a defecating animal of any variety. Sometimes cars that are initially rejected by enthusiasts end up becoming classics simply because of their rarity and quirky features.
The Chrysler Crossfire is a car that was considered controversial in the car enthusiast community for a variety of reasons, but these days it has a growing fan base.
It is possible that the Chrysler Crossfire will become a classic thanks to its relative scarcity and unmistakable design. The high performance SRT6 model and the rarer manual models are more likely to become collectible. So we know that the Crossfire is likely to become a future classic, but what sort of performance does it have, and is it expensive to maintain?
The Chrysler Crossfire can be considered a sports car as it has all the main ingredients; a 2 door coupe design, decent performance, and sporty handling. Most would agree, however, that the Crossfire is a sports car. Certainly most insurance companies list it as such. Despite some lamenting the lack of power in the basic models, it has 2 doors, 2 seats, the engine up front and rear wheel drive.
The regular model came with some cool sports car features such as an active rear wing , but the tacky interior and lackluster handling have both been criticized by some. The Crossfire SRT6 produces bhp from its supercharged engine. The Crossfire does mph in 6. The Crossfire SRT6 reaches 60 mph in 5.
Many consider the standard Crossfire to be somewhat lacking in power, but the Crossfire SRT6 is considered a fast car, especially when compared to similar sports cars from the time. In any case, the bhp from the standard model is more than enough for some. The Crossfire SRT6 was a different car altogether.
As well as being nearly 1. These included:. The SRT6 was only fitted with the five-speed automatic gearbox. Remember the Chrysler Crossfire? Photo: Wikimedia Commons. Advice on if owning a car like the Crossfire is a wise choice. Introduced at the North American International Auto Show as a concept model and then as a production model at the Los Angeles Auto Show the following year, the first Chrysler Crossfire went on sale as a model.
It retained many of the styling cues from its original concept form — something rare in the industry. The sales guys at the Chrysler store now have a great-looking coupe, or convertible, that runs like a sprinter and costs two to six grand less than the Benz products. One word of advice to Chrysler: Lose the big wing on the back. It's tacky-looking, and it only muddles the Crossfire's sleek and elegant profile.
Cult-car alert! Twenty years from now, the SRT-6 will be one of those scarce machines that will command a prominent location at concours across the country. Just consider its exotic concept-car-derived styling, its Mercedes-based mechanical bones, and its outstanding acceleration, handling, and braking.
Unfortunately, although the SRT-6's performance neatly splits the difference between a Z and a Corvette C5, its sticker price is near the Vette's. Furthermore, this performance comes only with an automatic gearbox. Customers attracted to this feature will not likely appreciate the SRT's firm ride.
In other words, the SRT-6 is destined to be a rare bird. I want to know what happened to the 19 horsepower that didn't make the jump over to Chrysler's SRT Just because the engine isn't in a Mercedes, it automatically has to lose power?
The SRT-6's horsepower is nothing to sneeze at, but stomp on the accelerator through the kickdown switch, and it just doesn't fly at other cars' rear ends the way the SLK32 did.
Perhaps it was the larger wheels, or the green engine in our test car, but with the rest of the vehicle so uncompromised, you don't expect to make any concessions. New Cars. Buyer's Guide. Type keyword s to search. Today's Top Stories. View Photos. Bill Delaney Car and Driver. From the August issue of Car and Driver.
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