First of all, I'd like to thank everyone on this board for everything they have contributed over the years. There are so many, like me, that consider or buy a Crossfire and part of the process is to learn from the owners of the cars themselves. So much "institutional knowledge" is here on this board, and it is priceless.

Now that I have had the car for about a month, and 1,000 miles I thought I would share my thoughts. To give you some perspective of where I'm coming from I'll tell you briefly about myself and car background: I'm a car nut who has owned three BMWs, a Mercedes, an Infiniti, and about seven other cars. I can do basic maintenance and some minor mechanical work, but I'm a driver first and cleaner/maintenance guy second .

Currently, the other cars in my stable are an Infiniti FX35, a BMW Z4 3.0 M Sport, and of course the Crossfire.

After a month with the car, I thought I would share my thoughts and opinions across several categories.

Exterior
To me, the Crossfire is drop dead beautiful. The bold styling, the classic coupe lines and the muscular back tires look confident and potent. I can't rationally explain how drawn I am to it but I find myself going into the garage at least once a day, usually more to look at it and run my hands along the smooth lines. Hours and hours of clay bar, wax, and polish has paid off! If I had any criticism of the exterior it would be that I wish the front tires tapered more from the rim to the tread. A very minor thing, but it is still sporting the original Contis and they are ready to be replaced with some new ones that aren't as boxy. I've also noticed that the metallic light blue paint is very slightly "cloudy" but in some ways I like it. It is a beautiful machine.

Interior
Like the outside, I find the inside to be wonderful. Having recently owned a 2007 Mercedes C Class Sport, everything feels familiar in terms of position and layout. Right down to the surprise-it's-cruise-control-not-a-blinker second trick stalk on the left. The same goes for the light switch that requires a pull out to enable the fog lights. I like the retro-styling of the silver trim, but I can see where some people might feel it is seems cheap. Then again, I don't want any wood surfaces in my car unless it is the nifty black walnut stuff that looks cool. Blindfolded from the inside as a passenger, I would not be able to distinguish the Crossfire from the 2007 C Class...right down to the sound the engine makes. A caveat I should note: I'm 5'9 tall. I feel like I'm at the height limit for the car without feeling cramped but at the same time I like my seat tilted back some and the real constraint is the compartment divider behind the seat which incidently is noisy and not pleasant if your seat is back far enough to rub or push on it. Truck space is amazing for a two seater. My wife and I hiked the Grand Canyon last weekend and brought several suitcases and backpacks with us to the airport and everything fit great. Rear visibility? Not impacted at all by cargo. There isn't any to begin with . Mirrors - just like drivers education taught you!

Build Quality
The Crossfire is pure Mercedes. Rock solid, heavy doored and rock solid. Zoom.

Highway / Open Road
From a driving perspective, I'm breaking down my thoughts across several different styles. I'll start with the Highway or Open Road. From point A to B on the slab, the Crossfire is as good as it gets. Quiet, smooth, solid, effortless and fun. Cruise control is your friend....because if you don't use it, this thing will go and go and go. Autobahn ready.

Sweepers and Rolling Turns
Owning a Crossfire is more than just getting from point A to B. Often referred to as a Grand Touring car, I can't think of a better label. When it comes to zipping along back roads a little faster than the posted speed limit it is great fun. Handling is solid, and predictable with plenty of midrange power to keep things going full speed ahead. The suspension eats up minor bumps or imperfections and the car is comfortable for hours on end. One thing I really like about the Coupe are the short windows. With such small windows, they can be left down without the airflow being too distracting and loud.

Tight Twisties
When the road starts getting really tight and twisty, the Crossfire starts to become a little more challenging to drive. It has several characteristics that are pretty curious as I've gotten to know it. First of all, the turning the wheel into a corner doesn't feel linear. In other words, the first degrees of steering wheel rotation direct the car with a different quickness that subsequent angles. Turning starts off slow and the car exponentially starts turning in quicker and quicker with linear inputs. At some point it starts to feel like it is riding on the edges of the back outside tire as it whips around the turn. Car lean is minimal, and the sense I get from the car is that it is more willing than I am to push and push. Smooth driving is awarded in spades, otherwise you will have to contend with the traction control system . Always there to make sure things are ok, I have found that it errors on the side of safety and will adeptly apply independent braking when things feel like they are going spendidly mid-turn. Other times the car doesn't even blink as it carves through a corner. My conclusion after a month is that I need to spend more time with the car, replace the front tires and get more familiar with it. Nobody would be disappointed with how it handles when the road gets real curvy, but it will not make an average driver look great. Rewarding.

Around Town
One of the greatest things about the Crossfire is how practical it is. I work at home most of the time, so I don't commute daily in any of my cars. However, since buying it, I always take the Crossfire when I need to run around town. It handles bumps and imperfections perfectly, the short windshield keep sun to a minimum and it is just plain fun to drive.

To Sum it Up: I love my Crossfire and it is exactly what I expected. The SRT6 would be an amazing car but with a Z4 in the garage I was intent on making a more practical purchase. Bless my wife, she saw it that way too . I can't help but feel like I ripped off the seller because it is such a fantastic car for the amount I paid. Couldn't be happier.

Thanks again to everyone who contributed, and continue to bring in newbs like me.

Rockster

 

Hello, glad you like the Crossfire. Just curious, how does it compare to the Z4. I have never driven one, but have considered the purchase.

 

Congrats and welcome, I like your prose, well stated.

 

My sister and brother-in-law live in Columbia and when we have visited them I have thought what a nice area it is for driving an XF and with the top down! Sadly, we were in a rental car. So, know that we are enjoying those drives through your experiences!

Wherever an XF driver is, you can bet that they are enjoying miles of smiles! Welcome!

 

[quote=Rockster]First of all, I'd like to thank everyone on this board for everything they have contributed over the years. There are so many, like me, that consider or buy a Crossfire and part of the process is to learn from the owners of the cars themselves. So much "institutional knowledge" is here on this board, and it is priceless.

Now that I have had the car for about a month, and 1,000 miles I thought I would share my thoughts. To give you some perspective of where I'm coming from I'll tell you briefly about myself and car background: I'm a car nut who has owned three BMWs, a Mercedes, an Infiniti, and about seven other cars. I can do basic maintenance and some minor mechanical work, but I'm a driver first and cleaner/maintenance guy second .

Currently, the other cars in my stable are an Infiniti FX35, a BMW Z4 3.0 M Sport, and of course the Crossfire.

After a month with the car, I thought I would share my thoughts and opinions across several categories.

Exterior
To me, the Crossfire is drop dead beautiful. The bold styling, the classic coupe lines and the muscular back tires look confident and potent. I can't rationally explain how drawn I am to it but I find myself going into the garage at least once a day, usually more to look at it and run my hands along the smooth lines. Hours and hours of clay bar, wax, and polish has paid off! If I had any criticism of the exterior it would be that I wish the front tires tapered more from the rim to the tread. A very minor thing, but it is still sporting the original Contis and they are ready to be replaced with some new ones that aren't as boxy. I've also noticed that the metallic light blue paint is very slightly "cloudy" but in some ways I like it. It is a beautiful machine.

Interior
Like the outside, I find the inside to be wonderful. Having recently owned a 2007 Mercedes C Class Sport, everything feels familiar in terms of position and layout. Right down to the surprise-it's-cruise-control-not-a-blinker second trick stalk on the left. The same goes for the light switch that requires a pull out to enable the fog lights. I like the retro-styling of the silver trim, but I can see where some people might feel it is seems cheap. Then again, I don't want any wood surfaces in my car unless it is the nifty black walnut stuff that looks cool. Blindfolded from the inside as a passenger, I would not be able to distinguish the Crossfire from the 2007 C Class...right down to the sound the engine makes. A caveat I should note: I'm 5'9 tall. I feel like I'm at the height limit for the car without feeling cramped but at the same time I like my seat tilted back some and the real constraint is the compartment divider behind the seat which incidently is noisy and not pleasant if your seat is back far enough to rub or push on it. Truck space is amazing for a two seater. My wife and I hiked the Grand Canyon last weekend and brought several suitcases and backpacks with us to the airport and everything fit great. Rear visibility? Not impacted at all by cargo. There isn't any to begin with . Mirrors - just like drivers education taught you!

Build Quality
The Crossfire is pure Mercedes. Rock solid, heavy doored and rock solid. Zoom.

Highway / Open Road
From a driving perspective, I'm breaking down my thoughts across several different styles. I'll start with the Highway or Open Road. From point A to B on the slab, the Crossfire is as good as it gets. Quiet, smooth, solid, effortless and fun. Cruise control is your friend....because if you don't use it, this thing will go and go and go. Autobahn ready.

Sweepers and Rolling Turns
Owning a Crossfire is more than just getting from point A to B. Often referred to as a Grand Touring car, I can't think of a better label. When it comes to zipping along back roads a little faster than the posted speed limit it is great fun. Handling is solid, and predictable with plenty of midrange power to keep things going full speed ahead. The suspension eats up minor bumps or imperfections and the car is comfortable for hours on end. One thing I really like about the Coupe are the short windows. With such small windows, they can be left down without the airflow being too distracting and loud.

Tight Twisties
When the road starts getting really tight and twisty, the Crossfire starts to become a little more challenging to drive. It has several characteristics that are pretty curious as I've gotten to know it. First of all, the turning the wheel into a corner doesn't feel linear. In other words, the first degrees of steering wheel rotation direct the car with a different quickness that subsequent angles. Turning starts off slow and the car exponentially starts turning in quicker and quicker with linear inputs. At some point it starts to feel like it is riding on the edges of the back outside tire as it whips around the turn. Car lean is minimal, and the sense I get from the car is that it is more willing than I am to push and push. Smooth driving is awarded in spades, otherwise you will have to contend with the traction control system . Always there to make sure things are ok, I have found that it errors on the side of safety and will adeptly apply independent braking when things feel like they are going spendidly mid-turn. Other times the car doesn't even blink as it carves through a corner. My conclusion after a month is that I need to spend more time with the car, replace the front tires and get more familiar with it. Nobody would be disappointed with how it handles when the road gets real curvy, but it will not make an average driver look great. Rewarding.

Around Town
One of the greatest things about the Crossfire is how practical it is. I work at home most of the time, so I don't commute daily in any of my cars. However, since buying it, I always take the Crossfire when I need to run around town. It handles bumps and imperfections perfectly, the short windshield keep sun to a minimum and it is just plain fun to drive.

To Sum it Up: I love my Crossfire and it is exactly what I expected. The SRT6 would be an amazing car but with a Z4 in the garage I was intent on making a more practical purchase. Bless my wife, she saw it that way too . I can't help but feel like I ripped off the seller because it is such a fantastic car for the amount I paid. Couldn't be happier.

Thanks again to everyone who contributed, and continue to bring in newbs like me.

Rockster

[Nice contribution Rock, thanks.

 

I've got to agree with this!...

"Build Quality. The Crossfire is pure Mercedes. Rock solid, heavy doored and rock solid. Zoom."

I've had some cars that just rattle their way way on down the road. The XF is solid!

 

I completely agree with this as well. The only time I hear a rattle is when it is something I have put in the car! I love the crisp sound of the doors closing. Has that nice 'thud' to it.

 

Good question, I am constantly comparing the two as they get about equal driving time for fun.

My Z4: it is a 3.0i with an SMG transmission and the sport package (M suspension, larger wheels and sport button to remap steering and engine mapping for more responsiveness).

Here are how I see them stacking up from a driving/experience perspective:

Engine
Although both cars have almost identical "tales of the tape" when it comes to engine size, power, torque, weight, and length the Z4's engine is noticeably faster and rowdy for the lack of a better word. Probably a full second faster 0-60 and car reviews seem to support that. The Z4 actually has a sound filter which basically controls and pushes certain engine sounds towards the firewall. The result is an intoxicating sound when you romp on it. It sounds like this before and as it starts letting you hear/feel it more: BMW Z4 3.0 Roadster accelerating engine sound - YouTube. It has a strong psychological effect. BMW engine sounds and feels like a smaller engine working really, really hard while the Mercedes/Crossfire sounds and feels like a big engine barely breaking a sweat. I could also go on for several paragraphs about how amazing the SMG transmission is, and how I will never own a manual again but the fact is that BMW only made them for a brief time and they were universally disliked or hated by many if not most. Not me.

Fit / Finish
This is a hard one for me to compare. I like the way BMWs feel to sit in and drive, but in my opinion the style of the lighting, controls, and overall experience feels less progressive than the underlying vehicle. Like cutting edge 1990s.

Handling / Ride
Standing next to the Crossfire, the top of the door comes up a few inches above my waist- more or less. Next to the Z4, it is several inches below my waist. The seating position in the Z4 is much lower and the car itself is lower. Really too low to avoid mishaps, but I'll tell you more about that in the next section. The center of gravity feels much lower. While the Crossfire soaks up bumps happily and provides a nice smooth ride, the Z4 does little to soak up imperfections, seams and other road characteristics. When I had the factory recommended run-flat tires on it I used to joke that my car was trying to kill me. It tramlined, or tried to track all over the road with reckless abandon. The ride was horrible and I drove in fear that a lapse in attention would send a tire off the edge of a shoulder free road. The Crossfire has a little bit of this but I suspect the worn tires in the front have lost some of their flexibility as the cause. Replacing the run flats on the Z4 with standard performance tires changed the ride dramatically but it is still pretty rough. Regardless of the tires, I think you would have to be either (a) an incredible driver or (b) a fearless madman to push the Z4 to its limits on public roads in the twisties. It will make a good driver look awesome and enable a great driver to scare the hell out of people in the passenger seat. It is a pretty stunning car in the handling department...and that comes price when it comes to suspension reliability. Yes, I really just typed that.

Keeping the Z4 stuck to the road
My car has 44,000 miles on it and has been taken care of. Garaged all the time for the most part. I work at home, and if a car isn't here it is sitting in an airport parking garage. At the 44K mark, the Z4 is on its 3rd set of tires, all (4) springs have broken and been replaced, the sway bar end links were replaced, and most of the suspension has had to be tightened down/greased religiously. I also had the lower air dam/bumper replaced after many incidents with steep driveways, parking blocks and other things you don't fret over with cars of a regular height. I'm only talking about suspension/footprint related costs. It has been completely reliable in other areas aside from expected maintenance but my point is that it handles incredible but is a pain in the *** -almost literally- as a result.

In the end
The Crossfire and the Z4 are just different. The Z4 feels rowdy while the Crossfire has a magestic sense about it. I love them both, and it is like having kids: Even though I say I love my kids the same, and I do, I also know that one of them is better at some things than the other and vice versa. With one being a convertible, it makes the choice of which one to take to the winery on a beautiful spring day easy. I credit myself with getting the Coupe to differentiate them better. How lucky am I?
Both are wonderful machines and I suspect the perfect intersect is the SRT6 convertible :-).

Rockster

 

Once you have had a car with the right weight doors (heavy), you don't want anything less. I have a picture of what happens when your 17 year old daugher completely closes one of these heavy doors on a stray finger. All is well and healed, but let's just say that a Civic door wouldn't have been as destructive.

I've noticed that the hinges are kind of odd on the Crossfire. They seem to want to only be in several positions when opened.

R

 

Interesting and enjoyable read. Before I purchased my roadster (new), I went out and looked at the Z4. No offense, but I found it ugly and the price quickly rocketed with the options (like a insulated top) that were standard on the XF roadster. I am sure it outperforms the XF, but that wasn't my reason for buying. I also plan to replace the original tires with wider Hankooks which should improve the stance, reduce the gap to the fenders, and [hopefully] protect the rims a little more. But with 37k on the clock, only the rears need replacement next spring. The fronts still have over 1/2 their tread remaining. And, yes, the SRT6 adds another dimension to XF ownership, even when left stock.

 

If you ever quit your day job, apply to Road & Track or Car & Driver as a reviewer .......

 

The Z4 was completely overpriced and still is new from what I am willing to spend. I only buy cars that are about 3 years old or 40% depreciated. Otherwise I'd only have one nice one :-)

 

Thanks, that was a nice thing to say.

R

 

I agree. You really have some nice writing skills... some I would like to see in a car reviewer. Thanks for the comparison between the Z4 and Crossfire!

 

Great write up. You have an automotive editor in you Although I too have to say I found the Z4 totally overpriced...and still find it to be overpriced.

 

Over 1,000+ more miles, new tires, and I have more to say.... .

Three weeks ago I put some new "shoes" on the Crossfire. It had General tires in the back and the original Contis on the front when I bought it. The front tires were very old and very worn.

A quick trip to my preferred tire shop and new tires were on the Crossfire. I had a great experience with the Sumito HTR Z III tires on my Z4 so I put them on the Crossfire. Discussing tires can be like debating religious beliefs, so I'll just say this: Awesome tires.......for me.

With fresh tires the Crossfire's ride improved quite a bit, especially up front where the worn Contis had lost both tread and flexibility. The car is much more compliant over bumps and entry into turns is smoother and less like the tire is riding on edge.

With several months, and thousands of miles under my belt I've come to the conclusion that the Crossfire is pretty complicated for a typical driver like me. The more I drive it, the more I appreciate how it feels. In many ways it is like having an animal that turns on you without warning because you don't know it well enough. Now that I know it better I can feel the limits and sense it's range. It makes for a very rewarding experience.

When I purchased the car it was hot and humid here in Missouri. The Crossfire loses quite a bit of punch in warm weather because it feels much stronger in the cool, crisp autumn air. It feels much stronger when the temperature drops below 80.

To the future generations that might enjoy the future collectible in my garage: too bad, you should have been more sooner. I'm taking every mile I can out of this care with reckless regard for future value in the true spirit of selfish automotive fulfillment.

This week I'm piling another 1,000 miles on it on a work trip down through the Ozarks. Yeah, I'll be getting paid to drive on those roads this week .

R

 

thank you for the posts - like said by others - I just love reading them - congrats again!
be careful - this forum and this car is addictive - just got my 2nd one ....

 

That's the way to do it!

 

His posts read like he lifted them from Road & Track.

 

I'm starting to feel the tug for an SRT6 myself. I keep telling myself that the AMG based engine is too expensive to maintain but I think I'm playing games with myself

Rockster