I am USAF stationed in England for a few more months but I am from Michigan. I currently have a 06 Mustang GT. I am selling it in England and my wife suggested I may want to get a 4 door car because we now have a little bundle of joy. My friend has a 05 SRT 4 and told me to try a charger. My current ride runs mid-high 12s. I stopped by a dodge dealer and drove anAWD Charger R/T in MI while on leave. The handling was impressive but not to hot on the power. I am thinking on a SRT 8. Stock it looks like the same performance numbers as the stang and 4.6 to a 6.1 sounds fun. I am here to look at what can be done and hopefully will stay here and get my own SRT 8. Got a few questions I may as well put in here also. Was the handling and the slight dogness of the AWD R/T becasue of the AWD? I have no doubt that I will be happy with the handling of the SRT 8 especialy since they have IRS. Thanks, I look forward to learning more and getting an SRT 8. What do you uys do for mods? What are they doin in the quarter?

 

Sorry bout that didn't notice that there was a SRT 8 forum.

 

The SRT-8 charger outrun's a stock GT pretty easily. As far as the AWD R/T its held back from its weight I believe its about 300-500pounds heavier then a normal rwd R/T. As far as the 1/4mile goes alot of srt charger owners clock 12.9's and 12.8's with better rubber. With the basic bolt-on's, exhaust, headers,intakeand a B&G flash guys are running mid 12's. The only down sides of getting the srt over an R/T is the srt is alittle pricer, and gas mileage. Some srt owners claim 20-21mpg on the highway if you stick to the speed limit, while most R/T owners are getting anywhere from 23-27mpg on the highway. I personally average in the high 24's low 25's sticking to 70mph. And let me be the first to stay thank you for your service in the AirForce, a buddy of mines dad got back from Iraq about 6months ago.

 

THanks for the thanks. My stang get 12-13 mpg so gas milages is not my issue. Thanks for the info! They have any supercharger or turbo kits out yet for any charger?

 

Yes theyout therebut there is a catch. For the 5.7L motor superchargeing has yet to come full circle. Alot are blowing but there are a few that have lasted, and tuneing isn't quite there either I'd say tuning is at maybe 80% but with forced induction it needs to be 100%. Same deal with turbos. AS for the 6.1L, the motor is built alittle stronger but some motors are experianceing problems and tuneing for that motor is still a problem. Your best bet for serious power is to go N/A. A 6.1L with basic stuff, plus a mild cam with some ported heads, and some tuning will get you well over 400HP closer to 420-450HPto the wheels which is good for consistent low 12's with good rubber. The one thing that needs to be changed out on the srt's are the halfshafts owners are cracking them all over the place, new one's I think have come out that can handle 700-800HP. And just incase you are wondering the fastest srt with full interior is running mid 11's at 120+mph

 

No matter what, a Charger is probably going to feel less nimble than a Mustang GT, just because of the platform's size. I'm happy with my car's stock handling, but I have my Hotchkis Dakota for when I want to get out and play (just autocrossed it this past weekend). However, there are aftermarket coilovers and sway bars available that will help improve the handling performance of the Charger.

I wouldn't touch the GS Motorsports supercharger combo with a 40 foot pole. I spoke with Vortech at SEMA and they have their own factory kit in the works, should be out for the 5.7L by the end of the year, 6.1L in the spring - sounds very promising with better tuning options than what's currently available.

There are plenty of N/A mods available too - heads/cam, headers/exhaust, 426 stroker kits, etc.

If you live in a location with decent density altitude, mid to low 12's in an SRT-8 with bolt-ons is easily accomplishable - not too shabby for a 4-door car that costs $45k loaded...

 

Just as a piece of advice, don't get the AWD, you won't have the same HP/TQ rating as the RWD. It'll be a lot lower at the wheels. I had an 05 Dakota AWD with the 4.7L and I was only rated at the wheels at 168/219. Most of the power went to the rear wheels, but the power was considerably lower.

 

i would def. pull the trigger. great car