Mirage77

Yes guys you guessed it right, I'm doing another short review again.

Today, the papers brought some real good reviews of the SRT8. One thing that caught our eyes was the price - at SGD210,000, which is the equivalent of a base 5 Series or an E-Class, we get a 425bhp, 570Nm monster which does 0-100km/h in 4.7 seconds. It was a no brainer. Off to the showroom!



At first, the lady who served us didn't want to provide us with a test drive, as only 'VIP' clients can have a go at the SRT8. She offered us instead a test drive for the 3.5L model, which we declined. We were about to walk away when she called us back and told us to wait for 15 minutes. We were getting excited. We warmed up with some hot chocolate, and discussed about the SRT8 with the people working there. We talked about the history of the HEMI engine, the specifications and what not. This really built up the suspense.

Finally, the car eased into the driveway and I can say, this is one badass looking car.











We stepped in, and immediately I didn't like the interior. Some merits about it though: the leather seats feel of high quality (and they seem sourced from the R-Class), the switchgear and materials used are sometimes good and sometimes bad. The design of the dashboard is really imposing - it's as if a brick wall was blocking your view from the road. Also, the doors were unimaginatively boring, as is the instrument panel.



The engine started off surprisingly soft, and the idle rumbled the car a little - an irritating vibration could be felt.

We turned off and then headed for the highway. As we got along I liked the car more and more - the suspension was well-sorted, more so than the Quattroporte's, and the engine sounds like a hotrod, a true American muscle car. It's a raw growl. Also, everyone on the road was staring at the people in the SRT8... It sure attracts a lot of attention with its loud exhaust, as if the extrovert design wasn't enough.

In the highway, the engine simply shines. Pulling power is brutal, I could see a smile forming on my dad's face as he nudged the accelerator. The torque however seems to come pretty unevenly - the engine sometimes lost steam at higher revs. Ride noise was acceptable, though it could have been better at high speeds.

My dad says its handling is less 'twitchy' than the Quattroporte's, which is good news indeed.

Overall, we love the power and the very very attractive price, but the SRT8 sends out a wrong image as my father is a businessman. For a young punk racer, maybe, but my dad will take his Maserati anytime.

We intended to test drive the RS4 as well, but we weren't allowed.

Nevertheless, we took the opportunity to test drive a A6 2.0T with Multitronic, rated at 170bhp. It is detuned from 200bhp because of government regulations.

The engine, as in the Golf GTI, is a peach. Revving up to 5000rpms, we did not get the lacklustre feel experienced in the SRT8 in the high revs - this 2.0T is a workhorse. The ride is a little jerky though, and the interior feels sparsely furnished - maybe because it is a low trim model.

The A6 2.0T is an able car but as a personal preference the 5 Series features a better interior.

Some shots of the RS4:









Hope you guys enjoyed this review... I don't seem to get much responses for my reviews.

Curb Zone

 

MikeJ

That doesn't mean we're not enjoying them.

I think the SRT-8 is a delightfully menacing-looking car, but I can also imagine it looking out of place in S'pore.

Yannis

Thanks for the report Mirage.

The rims in the SRT8 look great.

Mirage77

To be honest I really like the side-profile of the 300C... The back's decent as well but the front really doesn't do the rest of the car justice.

One thing I find peculiar is that the SRT-8 is only available in black or silver... Ironic considering that it is supposed to be a bespoke exclusive limited production model.

Mirage77

No problem my friend.

Yeah, those 20" rims sure look good!

Snake Vargas

Thanks for the review here, too.

The SRT8 is a strange car for Singapore. I guess that type of car isn't really common, let alone the high performance version. That said, the person who can afford one and wants one can also typically afford a lot of other cars, too, so the Chrysler had better be pretty darn good.

By contrast, in Australia, this type of car is much more common, and the 300C has been quite competitive compared with high-spec versions of the other large Australian domestic cars.

Honestly, I can only imagine that the SRT8 is going to be a bit of an orphan car in Singapore. It seems to have neither the luxury and quality, the badge or the price to get any real market share of any particular segment. At least the Quattroporte has the badge and the luxury to be worthwhile, even if price is higher and performance is similar.

Mirage77

The dealer mentioned about a 100 being sold, which isn't bad at all. I was kinda surprised at the acceptance rate of this car.

Well they said they will expect to sell less than 10 SRT-8s. But honestly, it has the power for the price - no car in its price range can match its power - but that's about all going for this car.

Snake Vargas

I suppose I didn't think there was so much space or opportunity to use that sort of power in Singapore, so much that people would take the power over the interior quality that other cars of similar price but lower power might provide.

Mirage77

Oh, I get what you mean now.

I think there's a whole lot of people who want 'cheap' power - it's like how people will buy EVOs or WRXs. But of course, they're still in a minority compared to the people who would buy a 5 Series, A6 or an E-Class above the SRT-8.

I fit into the demographic minority... Somehow, the SRT-8 just appeals to me because it's inexpensive.

Star&Car

I hope you will not be waiting around too long till you get your driving licence man..I guess you are impatient as hell..enjoyed your review and pics thanks.

ps i have no idea if the RS4's wing mirrors can be power folded or not..any thoughts Mirage77?

Curb Zone