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Help me decide! Save the SRT or not?

5K views 36 replies 22 participants last post by  RTShadow 
#1 ·
Bought it brand new back in 03 with 120k on it with the mods in my sig...been in storage now for almost a year...been starting it periodically to let it breath while in storage.
Right now I'm deciding on whether to keep it or not. Options are to sell it, keep it as a winter beater and do minimal mods to it to keep it running or dump some big $$ in it to bring it back to life.

Right now it was running fine but turbo is going on it. Was putting out 405whp 460wtq @ 25psi. Has a chewed up comp wheel and now smokes a little bit under WOT. Everything else seemed to run fine. Engine might be a bit tired...seeping gaskets etc. I'm leaning towards sending the Stage 3 turbo back to Bob and getting that good to go. Then upgrading the internals (rebuild kit from Modern) and replacing all the gaskets in the process etc. Wouldn't have time to do it myself so I'd be paying a buddy that works at a Dodge Dealership to be doing it all at the dealership. They usually give me a pretty good deal on labor.

Body also has rust issues being it's been driven all it's life in winter here in MN. Back wheel wells are getting pretty bad. Then under the trunk seems and under the same area of the hood. Thinking of having a shop getting rid of the rust then going with CF trunk and hood (OEM is junk and will rust again).

Other option is to just sell the damn thing and get a new car. lol I would miss it though...
 
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#3 ·
Tough for me to tell one of the OGs to sell. You will miss her, the turbo withdrawals gets pretty bad and fun to drive you won't find for less than $35K, MAYBE, these days. Car payments for the next 6 years is way more than fixing her up. Add insurance and mods to the new car and it goes up even more.
See if you can salvage the hood though, they are Very hard to find.
Even as worn out as she is, I am sure a smile comes to your face when you drive her.;)
 
#9 ·
Tough for me to tell one of the OGs to sell. You will miss her, the turbo withdrawals gets pretty bad and fun to drive you won't find for less than $35K, MAYBE, these days. Car payments for the next 6 years is way more than fixing her up. Add insurance and mods to the new car and it goes up even more.
See if you can salvage the hood though, they are Very hard to find.
Even as worn out as she is, I am sure a smile comes to your face when you drive her.;)
I don't miss car payments at all. Keep it, ONLY if you plan on DD'ing if it's going to sit let her go.
 
#4 ·
well this might cause a bunch of crap.
but..
i'm an original owner, 210k, dd with s3 upgraded to evo8 20g going to evo9 20 g.. shooting for 500 to the wheels

hard to beat the bang for the buck.. 3rd gear burning tires off the rim.

that said.. evo off the line will be 2-3 lenghts out .. and you'll catch him -- maybe

if cash isn't an issue .. get rwd.. and spend the money.. daemon

me.. living the dream.. cheap tires for dd.. burning the crap out of them.. (new set every year),, on the track 26"slicks

at 10+yrs old stuff breaks.. this week .. wifes door doesn't unlock
last year clutch clutch clutch
 
#10 ·
This is an interesting decision. I have been dealing with listing my car for sale on and off for a while and i still have it. It's hard to let go especially with the lowball offers and little to no interest on these cars (speaking solely from my experience and location). You should try to get a feel for what you can get for the car, and then decide if its really worth selling or repairing. Like others have mentioned, it's already paid off and its a one owner car. Those are rare. If you value my .02, I vote keep it and repair it, even if its a slow process.
 
#13 ·
I'm constantly thinking of selling mine. Bought my 05 used in 2005 with 16k miles on it. It's all stock except for motor mounts, but I've had a lot of fun with it. Its been sitting for a few years now, just can't bring myself to sell it despite having had several people approach me about buying it.

The little stuff going wrong with this car just got to be too much to keep up with for a DD.

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#14 ·
Original owner here. I say keep it. I have toyed with the fact of selling mine, but every time I get in and drive her I fall in love all over again. Here in Tampa, Florida there are a few running around, but a majority of the ones I have seen lately look beat (mis matched bumpers, stickers all over, slammed to the ground) and I have a certain pride knowing mine had been garage kept for most of its life and detailed weekly. Keep her refresh her the way you want to and enjoy for the years to come. After all of these years, you will miss her if you sell.
 
#15 ·
I tried to sell mine on two different occasions. I looked at the srt-4 being sold locally and priced it a little lower than most in similar condition, and figured it would sell. Well months went by and the only people I had message me are idiots that have nothing to do and asked a million dumb questions that were already answered in my ad, set appointments to see the car and never show, and lowball offers because "theyre only looking for a DD." Moral is, given how the current market is (this is subjective to my area/experience) and how slow this forum has become, it may me more of a pain to sell than it would be to keep and maintain. I have hopes that one day these cars will increase in value (I know its unlikely because they're neons) but they are rare and fun cars that some members regret selling. Who knows.
 
#16 ·
Let me try and throw my perspective in here...

-How attached to the car are you?

-How would you feel if the new owner pulled up next to you at a stop light and smoked whatever you're driving now?

-On the flipside, how would you feel if the new owner pulled up next to you and it was beat to hell and completely falling apart?

-Can you afford to keep it and still buy something else?

-Do you have the space (garage etc) to keep it and buy something else?

-What do you like about it?

-What don't you like about it?



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#22 ·
Exactly what I did. I bought a 2003 toyota tacoma 4x4 with 60k on the clock (need something to haul parts). I have two turbos sitting in my garage, they just need a rebuild! The SRT I bought for 3.5k with 135 on the clock and the exterior beat to hell. Engine seeping, needs catch cans, should swap trans and axles (I have both), you can hear clicking in the CVs, the halfshaft bearing makes some decent noise, and you need to double clutch to get into 2nd at times but I still daily her. Would need over 2k in body and paint work to look good enough to get the money for the suspension...I'm just gonna drive and slowly fix her. Down the road when I have the time and real money I'll consider doing some real restoration.
 
#20 ·
If you have the space and another car to drive I'd say keep it and work on it as a project car. With what you have in it you'll never get out. Just keep it and pass it down.

I couldn't think of ever selling my 2003 SRT-4 no matter that newer cars are faster and have better options. Driving this car is a time capsule and provides the best medicine no pill could provide. Also with what this car has been through and the friends and memories it has can never be replaced.

Now I have the movie "Christine" in my head.
 
#21 ·
If you have the space and another car to drive I'd say keep it and work on it as a project car. With what you have in it you'll never get out. Just keep it and pass it down.

I couldn't think of ever selling my 2003 SRT-4 no matter that newer cars are faster and have better options. Driving this car is a time capsule and provides the best medicine no pill could provide. Also with what this car has been through and the friends and memories it has can never be replaced.

Now I have the movie "Christine" in my head.
Here's the song on Christine's radio:
 
#23 ·
Well I guess it depends on what the money you'd get out of it means to you. If 6k (lets say) is a nice little chunk of change to have in your jeans
or put towards other things, then sell it.
On the other hand, if you trip over 6k to get out the front door every morning then I guess you could keep it and restore it..

I'm on my second SRT-4. It has been parked all winter and I have lately been working on it for this summer season. As of this second I hate it. If someone offered me a decent price for it, she'd be on her way to a new home. But truth is, once I put some fresh gas in it, and take it around the block I will likely have a smile on my face and love it all over again.

Chances are though, I will still list it for sale. I'm sick of working on shit all the time to keep it running. Yes, you have to maintain every car out there, but sometimes its easier to work on something you just enjoy more. When it sells, I'll be going back to the motorcycle world.
 
#25 ·
Thanks for all the replies. I decided I'm going to keep it. I'll keep it as a fun daily driver. It's been sitting with occasional start ups since November and it was sitting for 5 months before that. I'll get it back out of storage and get back to work. My to do list:
-Oil change, new plugs, coolant flush etc and get all the liquids fresh.
-Pull the turbo and send it off to Bob to get a new turbine/comp wheel and make sure it's all up to par
-Compression test all cylinders and see if the engine is still healthy

I'll try to stop the rust for now...see what I can do anyhow. Maybe get a CF hood and trunk lid. Then grind down the wheel wells best I can and try to repair it? Not sure what to do about the rear wheel well rust.
 
#30 ·
Glad to hear your gonna hold on to the ride! To this day the previous owner of big red ( good friend of mine actually) hits me up asking for pictures or telling me about the regret of selling her. I feel like the old guy now because a lot of kids in the car scene in my area have little to no idea of the srt-4 and I get the pleasure of saying... " back in my day this was THE car to get for the money" lol
 
#31 ·
Well decided to keep it...then it threw a rod out of the oil pan this past July. Sold it but I got a Hellcat just last week so I'm good! Haha Blessing in disguise I guess!
 
#33 ·
Sold it to a guy in WI who seems to buy a bunch of SRTs and rebuild them. He dropped a new stock motor in it and is holding on to my Stage 3 setup and other mods for a ACR that he finds.

He did want to sell it back to me but meh...who knows maybe I'll pick up another one sometime. Had it since it was new in 03 till 17. So it was a long run! Definitely miss it.
 
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