I'm probably the last person ever that should even think about buying a SRT-6, but here are my great reasons for wanting one:

I really prefer stick-shifts, but it is doubtful you won't make any trip on SoCal's freeways, without experiencing some slow and go and frequently stop and go. I'll add that the super low 1st gear almost immediately needs to be shifted into 2nd which makes the stop and go's a pain in the ****. Also...the lift up on the shift lever to go into reverse is a pain. Heavy spring and it's right next to 2nd - so it's easy to think you're backing up, but you're really going forward.

So getting an XF with an automatic (wish they were six or seven speeds) solves the shifting situation. And since I knew what a supercharger was (at quite a young age and I'm no kid anymore) I'd really, really like to have a car that has one.

I'm sure you'll all agree that these are really valid reasons.

The questions/comments are in order of importance with the most important first. And once again I will say that my priorities most likely are not yours.

Sound wise, how intrusive is the supercharger, especially when going 65 or more? I listen to CD's when driving, and would like to hear the music without turning it way up.

Should you have or had both a stock Limited and a stock SRT-6 (if they exist), please throw out a percentage as to how much stiffer does the SRT-6 over the Limited feel when driving over crappy freeways?

Fortunately there are two fairly current threads that help with the next: I did read that one of the main problems with the SRT-6 is the intercooler pump. I assume they're readily available and it didn't sound major to replace. However, a fellow I know who is the head mechanic at a busy independent Mercedes shop said they get a lot of shot superchargers. Two part question, how much does it run to replace them, probably with this guy? So labor and parts costs. The main one for now though is that most likely if I find a SRT-6 it will be a long distance away so I'll be buying on the seller's answers to these questions. What question can I throw out that the seller (probably a dealer), if honest, will have to answer that implies the supercharger's state of condition? A sound, rattle, or...?

I make no bones regarding the next question. I love my motorized rear spoiler. And I agree with some of the comments, that the permanent one on the SRT-6 really breaks up the lines at the rear. Let me say, there are quite a number of cars that have rounded backs, so the dog comment is really stupid. Okay, in my opinion - but it's stupid no matter what. I read the comments and information regarding switching the SRT-6 one for a motorized one. Can I assume you need parts from a wrecked car and/or are they available? Yes, most likely a repaint is needed. And how tricky is wiring the unit to the dash's switch? I assume the SRT-6's black box does not have the required memory to have the wing open automatically...or?

Should you have moved up from a Base or Limited XF to a SRT-6, what percentage did your insurance go up?

Weird one: how difficult is it to remove the dash on any XF? Anyone have a good guess as to the weight of the seats? I know how to remove the door panels, but that's it. I have the reddish interior which is pretty pristine and would like to keep it. How difficult is it to clean the Alcantara?

Originally when searching for a Limited XF it had to be black. Unfortunately I'm in a very dusty area. How blueish is the Sapphire Silver Blue Metallic? If the blue is pretty subtle, that would be a consideration. The other choice would be Graphite Metallic. And black would be fine, providing the paint is close to perfect.

I say this should someone have one - must be a SRT-6 Coupe - for sale. Though to be honest, I'm really not quite ready to get one at this time. I'll throw out that for some reason very few XF's, let alone SRT-6's, come up for sale anywhere in or near SoCal.

 

Quote:

Should you have or had both a stock Limited and a stock SRT-6 (if they exist), please throw out a percentage as to how much stiffer does the SRT-6 over the Limited feel when driving over crappy freeways?

I have had both, the SRT when purchased was punishing on the 1,500 mile trip home, a harsh suspension and noisy tires. As soon as I could I replaced the shocks with the adjustable Konis and the tires with Hankooks. The difference was amazing, although harder than the NA it is OK for me and my bad back. I would hazard a guess that it is 50% harder than the NA.

Quote:

Sound wise, how intrusive is the supercharger, especially when going 65 or more? I listen to CD's when driving, and would like to hear the music without turning it way up.

The SC can be heard and with the OEM intake it is not too loud and probably not heard much at all even when accelerating. With the CAI it can be heard when you accelerate reasonably quickly, just for a second as it spools up, then it goes quiet.

Quote:

How blueish is the Sapphire Silver Blue Metallic? If the blue is pretty subtle, that would be a consideration. The other choice would be Graphite Metallic. And black would be fine, providing the paint is close to perfect.

Very subtle, in some lights it looks silver and in others a very very light blue. Oddly overall it looks a mostly silvery light light blue.

I had a new black manual tranny NA for six years, and the SRT for four, I loved my NA but I would not swap the SRT back to an NA. You just love the power, you just cannot beat the extra horses in the Crossfire. I always liked V8's before and this is better than the V8's I had. I liked the manual tranny but stop and go traffic was the pits. I added the paddle shifters to the SRT, not the same and I hardly ever use them except to toy around with, others seemingly use them all the time.

Fubu can tell you about the motorized spoiler, not for me but if you want to I think you can do it. If not a manual switch could be used or powered up when the ignition turns on.

 

I have an srt6, but I've never drove an n/a, so I don't know how the two compare, but I'll give you my opinion on the 6. The autostick is nice; it's like getting the best of both worlds. I generally stay in the automatic mode, unless I'm trying to haul a$$ from a stop or if I want to hammer it out of a corner and need to downshift to get a quicker throttle response. All around, the automatic transmission feels super smooth.

The supercharger whine is awesome, but you won't hear it at all on a completely stock srt6. If you get a cai you will be able to hear it sometimes when you really get on the gas, but you really need to get a different pulley and up the boost if you want to hear the whine all the time. Even then it won't be as loud as the whine on a cobra or the new hellcat. The whine fades away at cruising rpms. I have the nw dcai on mine and when I have the windows down I can hear what seems to be a swooshing/whistling sound under average acceleration.

The suspension on mine is completely stock, but I'm running summer tires. I can honestly say that this car is one of the smoothest rides I've ever been in and I don't hear much noise at all when cruising on the highway. But when driving on crappy roads, the seats feel very bouncy, to the point to where it's difficult to change the climate control settings while driving lol. All in all, the srt6 is a very nice car!

 

Thank you both for this helpful information.

While it is far from a deal breaker, but onehundred 80, since you owned both a n/a (which I'd like to know what that stands for) and the SRT-6, what percentage did your insurance increase?

If you own a house and other vehicles all insured with the same agency, I would imagine they would go easier on you.

Unless neither of you don't ever do any stoplight racing, what's your speeding ticket record like?

I'll admit I'm not at all thrilled with the 50% harder situation, but what both of you have described for the SC sound, I'm sure I'd enjoy it immensely.

 

N/A natural aspirated (not super charged)

 

Am working on a few things for my 6 speed NA (normally aspirated e.g. no boost) coupe.

First is the 2.87 rear end I just bought to hopefully make the super low 1st usable for more than malls. and drop the revs at 70.

Second I-4 through downtown O'town is rough enough to bounce my glasses & am thinking about shorter wheels and more rubber in the tires. My Reattae are a similar size and weght but much more comfortable and the 225x60x16s may be part of it. Will a 16" Merc wheel fit particularly over the brakes ?

Third the dual exhaust into a single pipe out of the cats then splittig into duals is just cosmetic to me. Anyone ever just pull a single 2.25" pipe back from the collector to a single oval resonator tip (no normal muffler) ? What was it like ?

And that is my plan for 2016.

ps my Jeep and the Crossie are about the same to insure but am of age.

 

An NA will feel gutless after driving an SRT-6. SSB is an old man favorite. Something about the old MB color drives geezers crazy. Insurance went up after a ticket...considerably. Dash pad is not exactly simple to remove. I've seen multiple SRTs with Cedar interiors. I kinda like the look when used sparingly. You won't really hear the SC on a stock 6, but what's fun about that?!? Swapping the wing is asenine in my opinion. You bought the big one, why make it look like a weakling? Yes, the ride is harsher than a Limited/Base. Finding one in SoCal isn't hard. Saw 3 for sale in the San Diego area not long ago.

 

The funny thing is I don't think the insurance is much higher on the srt6 than the n/a. I'm paying almost the same amount on insurance on the srt6 as I am on my daily beater (saturn) lol. Granted, I've only had 1 traffic violation and took a driving course to get my driving points straightened out. Idk if insurance companies just aren't aware that this car is in corvette territory with a couple mods or that it is an amg mercedes in chrysler clothing, but it's laughable. I don't mind the cheap rates lol.

Also, one thing to keep in mind is that you will most likely need to upgrade the cooling system in the srt6, being that you live in a year round warm area (so. cal). These supercharged engines lose a little power in hot/humid climates, but you could take care of that with a nw supercooler and iso kit for about $500.

 

I'm in central Florida, track the car, with many mods and still run the stock heat exchanger (EC heat exchanger goes in next month) with no problems. It does have the coolant separation kit. No need to spend $500 on a HE for a car he plans to keep stock (from the sound of his post). A coolant separation kit is more than enough help.

 

Chuk: Do you have the johnson cm30 ic pump or the bosch? I still have the stock cooling system with the updated bosch, but I just recently added the 65mm pulley, dcai, and ec tune. The cooling is fine in virginia now with it being winter and all, but I was expecting that I was gonna have to add the bigger HE and iso kit in the summer. This past summer with a completely stock srt6 i felt a little power loss when the temps hit 90 plus. Does the iso kit really improve the cooling to a significant degree? I don't track the car fyi, but she does get a street workout every now and then.

 

I have the BOSCH 010 with pretty much all the same mods. Only differences are one heat-range colder plugs and Magnecor wires plus the catch can (no HP help). Car will heat soak after 4 runs back to back (which rarely happens at the track). Summer drives are no problem down here and you can ask anyone in the FL group how "aggressive" I am with the acceleration. All of this on the stock HE.

 

Good to know chuk, guess i'll be getting the iso kit for sure this summer.