I have the feeling these cars may only be on the market for a short run like the GTO. Market conditions don't favor 400HP sedans. If you want, one I'd snatch em up quick, lest uncle Lutz yank the plug on ya.
My High Performance Pontiac magazine covered these two cars. They quoted the G8 GXP having a 400 hp, 400 lbs. torque neutered LS3 along with the G8 ST (el camino) having a neutered L76 (LS2 with cylinder deactivation basically) having the 361 hp. They had a bunch of pictures of the G8 ST. It looks nice, but I think they could've done more (being a prior El Camino owner I am especially critical of it).
The question that kills me is, why couldn't they have just slapped an unmodified, non-neutered LS3 in the G8 pumping out 430 hp to be more on par with the 425 hp SRT8 Dodges that have been prowling the streets for years now. Sitting side by side and the same price, I'd take an SRT8 Charger or God forbid SRT8 Super Bee Charger over the G8 GXP any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
Not me. I couldn't live with the crappy Chrysler interiors. I'll gladly trade 23 HP for a car with 300 lbs less weight and a Holden interior.
Besides, tests by the car rags indicate that the G8 GT will pummel the Chrysler R/T cars and give the SRT8's a run for their money. I imagine the "neutered" LS3 will be dead even with the SRT8's and easily modified.
Still, like you, I wonder why they didn't just drop the LS3 in as is. A 4,000 lb sedan is no threat to the Vette.
I've been in an SRT8 Magnum. It had the interior of a Mercedes. But I agree with you on the LS3 statement 100%.
Wow we had amazingly different impressions of the Chryco car interiors. When I got rid of the GTO, I almost bought a black 300C SRT8 off the lot at my local Chrysler dealer. But, I couldn't get past the cheap plastic interior that was a tarted up version of the run of the mill 300. The seats were much better but the instruments, center stack, and door panels were the same old hard plastic poorly fitted crap from the high volume V6 cars. I ended up in a Volvo XC90 V8 instead mainly because of the interior. I needed cargo capacity but the SRT8 would probably have sufficed.
And my wife's car is an R500. I wouldn't put the Chrysler in the same zip code as the Mercedes when it comes to the interior.....or drivetrain.....or suspension.....or price.
My exboss had a Crossfire SRT6, that thing was bad to the bone and is nothing more then a rebadged Mercedes. I had an '07 Charger rental car from Enterprise. It had the 190 hp or less baby v6 in it, light years from the 250 hp SXT. I guess that's what I'm comparing the SRT8 Magnum too, the plain-jane, run-of-the-mill, rental car fleet Charger that I had the displeasure of driving for a week. There are some who aren't too impressed with the Holden interior, btw. I've read some pretty terrible reviews about the new G8 (I subscribe to a sh@tload of car mags), it passes the time along with the beer drinking... One more thing, the Monaros and Commodores over in Aussie land come in 3 levels of trim, named: Functional, Sport, and Premium, fucntional being the basement, premium being the top of the line, the U.S. gets the middle grade Sport only, with very few options to pick from other then leather or cloth, now why would GM do us like that? Dodge went balls out. Flip down dvd players from the ceiling, all wheel drive, navigation system, hell, they even got an option called nauxious chemicals venting, or something along those lines where the air conditioning/heating system filters out stench from the air outside you so you can drive by a hog farm and still smell your wife's perfum, that is of course, unless she smells like a hog herself and she's inside the car with you with the windows rolled up, in which case, you're screwed.
p.s. I've read numerous times on hear about you bashing Fords. Don't you know who owns Volvo? They're nothing more then a red-headed step child from the blue oval company.
Last edited by dustyminpin : 03-17-2008 at 10:44 PM.
Dodge went all out...starting around $40K for their Challenger...what happened to the GTO when GM priced it too high???...you can get in a V8 G8 for 'bout $30 (starting) right?...The Challenger looked nice at the auto show but I'll stay GM...gotta go with Wingnut on the ChryCo interiors...blechhhh and they all look the same...hard plastic and cheap looking...including the Challenger...
Bill
__________________ **QSM/RH/A4/17**1 of 52**
Like what you've got?...Thank a Vet!
Last edited by silversport : 03-18-2008 at 06:40 AM.
p.s. I've read numerous times on hear about you bashing Fords. Don't you know who owns Volvo? They're nothing more then a red-headed step child from the blue oval company.
You had to bring that up. Just mean and spiteful. Yeah, I know.
It sickened me when Ford got their hands on a brand that I love. Volvo has never been known for performance cars but they make a rock solid dependable car that's very cheap in total cost of ownership.
It took a good deal of denial, rationalizing, and pretending for me to be able to plunk down cash for a car whose profits were headed back to Dearborn. But at least thru the 06 models, it looks like Ford hasn't contaminated the Volvo product too badly.
Life is compromise!
Hopefully, Volvo is the next brand that the troubled Ford guys put on the auction block. I'm thinking Chinese ownership. And I think I'll be done with Volvo at that point.
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