Tested: 2004 Chrysler Crossfire SRT-6

The cockpit gets by with minimal changes, including a 200-mph speedo and Alcantara pseudo-suede trim on the buckets that is embroidered with an SRT-6 logo. Hence, a few complaints about the Crossfire cabin remain, including over-the-shoulder blind spots, a tight cabin for six-footers, no steering-wheel rake adjustment, and a dinky eight-cubic-foot trunk with nothing to tie down the goods.

The Japanese-made IHI supercharger does whack time off the Crossfire’s track numbers in big chunks. A 60-mph run now swiffs by in 5.1 seconds, a 1.4-second improvement over a six-speed manual Crossfire we tested in 2003. That car ran the quarter in 14.8 seconds at 96 mph. The SRT-6 posts a 13.5-second quarter, steaming through the trap at 107 mph. Whether it’s the next green light down the avenue or the gap between two rigs guarding the freeway merge lane, “up there” is “right here” much sooner in an SRT-6.

Even so, polite manners govern the powertrain. The throttle response and the automatic gear selections are smoothly keyed to your pedal inputs. If you like, pilot the SRT-6 all day without ever getting into the fat end of the power–let the Starbucks get cold in the one cup holder, and it won’t slosh if you’re careful.

More thrust doesn’t equate to more noise, either. The decibel measurements at idle and wide-open-throttle, 46 and 78, respectively, are not low by luxury-car standards, but they are virtually identical to those of the base Crossfire. A supercharger that is felt but not heard runs on sophisticated engineering.

Fancy multilink arrangements in the wheel wells strike a contrast to a medieval recirculating-ball steering box that deadens wheel feedback from the driver. The base Crossfire is no lubberly pig, but the SRT deckhands have pulled in any slack and reprogrammed the stability-control software to tolerate more friskiness. Some fast lapping at Southern California’s Willow Springs track proved that the SRT-6 is screwed down tight. Speedy steering reflexes, stable footing through the corners, and dependable reserves of grip from the monster tires (0.90 at the skidpad, about the same as the base car fitted with an older model of Pilot Sports) caused corner speeds to climb well past our expectations. Braking distances likewise shrank.

Clamped into full ABS, the four discs supply a stop from 70 mph in 157 feet, a few feet shorter than the base Crossfire. Better yet, the brake-pedal swing is packed with adjustability, and it fades little, even with torturous use.

We love cars that handle, but so much suspension resistance on such a short wheelbase means trouble. The SRT-6 hops its way up sectioned concrete freeways like a malfunctioning lowrider. It crashes heavily on railroad grades and fraying pavement. It shivers over the minutest cuts and crevices, the stout tire sidewalls transmitting all their energy through the stiff springs and into the rigid body. What works on track day makes life miserable every other day.

And there the SRT-6 creates a conundrum. No doubt Chrysler’s hot-rod group has extracted a serious performance car from a fashion accessory. But with no manual transmission available and a reputation as a too-cute coupe, the Crossfire may never appeal to hard-cores who live for the next apex, especially when it’s priced in Corvette and BMW M3 territory. And the Crossfire’s current constituency may never put up with having their pompadours viciously rattled with every trip down the driveway.

Car magazines may howl, but Chrysler—having fixed the power deficit and added better brakes and styling—should rethink the SRT-6’s suspension and relax it for easier boulevard work. True, the company expects to build only a couple thousand SRT-6s a year. But the corporate crossfire may be a little less deadly if this model actually sells.

COUNTERPOINT

The local Mercedes salesmen must be doing a slow burn now that the SRT-6 version of the Crossfire is going to hit the streets. The Crossfire has always been rakishly good-looking, with taut, sporty handling, but it needed more power under the hood to make it truly exciting. That’s all been fixed by the supercharger and its extra 115 horsepower. 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. —André Idzikowski

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 350Z 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. —Csaba Csere

I want to know what happened to the 19 horsepower that didn’t make the jump over to Chrysler’s SRT-6. Just because the engine isn’t in a Mercedes, it automatically has to lose power? I remember fondly the closely related full-powered, 349-hp SLK32 AMG, primarily because it was scary fast. The SRT-6’s 330 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. —Tony Quiroga