I know that I'm not going to get a lot of support on this on here...

But anyways, I'm thinking of trading the C55 for the Grand Cherokee SRT-8. I'll be moving to an area where snow is more an issue and hence have been considering a more competent winter vehicle than the C55. I've only heard awesome things about the SRT8 Jeep (except for the fact that you almost need your own private oil refinery...). Any thoughts from the fellow C55 drivers would be appreciated. Do any of you have a Jeep SRT8 or have you driven it? If so, any thoughts on how it compares to the C55 would be appreciated. Thx.

 

KEEP BOTH!! At least that's what I plan on doing. I have a C55 and currently a Jeep GC with the 4.7L, but am seriously looking at upgrading it to the SRT-8. From everything I've read, it's an incredible machine. Best bang for the buck hands-down in SUV territory IMO.

I'm not sure how well it will do in the snow, however.....it is all wheel drive, true, but it did lose some ground clearance from the other Grand Cherokees. It is after all the only non-"trail-rated" Jeep in the lineup. That and controlling all that power on slippery terrain???....Whoa.

Decent forum for info, specific to the Jeep GC SRT-8 only:

http://www.cherokeesrt8.com/index.php

Good luck!

 

I have my C32, and a Jeep for the extreme winter days. I'm thinking about trading in the Jeep for an X3 though.

 

Hey scoop have you taken your car into Kearny Mesa MB lately? I was there today and saw a guy drive away in a black C55. It was parked right in fornt of my silver C32, tried to catch up to the guy, but he beat me off the lot, never to be seen again...

 

Boy after reading it's spec, I say go for it. My be my next /first SUV ..until now i was stuck on caynne..

 

Well, unfortunately having both is not a realistic option at the moment. I really love the C55 and am somewhat afraid that I'm going to regret getting rid of it (if I ultimately decide to).

On the other hand, I continue to read more and more about the new 204 with the 6.3 engine. I am starting to think that now might be a good time to still get rid of the C55. Given the huge jump in performance with the next C-class (i.e. 6.3 with at least 420hp), I am thinking that our 203 amg will take quite a hit in terms of depreciation when that car comes out (especially if mercedes decides to also offer a C550).

Whereas the Jeep body style was just revised in 2005 and the new model probably won't be out until earliest 2009. Hence, from a depreciation standpoint, it might be more prudent to go with the Grand Cherokee SRT-8 at this point.

As you can obviously tell, I have been giving it quite a bit of thought (maybe too much...). Any further recommendations and ideas are appreciated.

 

I got my wife an X3 about 1 1/2 years ago.. It's a great little SUV. I added a tow bar for my 18' jet boat and it pulls it like a champ even up steep hills.

With that said though, when the lease is up, it will be hard not to go pick up the Jeep SRT-8.. We had a Grand Cherokee before getting the X3 and it was always a great vehicle.

 

I never drove one, but my buddy did a few weeks ago and told me its fast as hell!

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/0-60-...QQcmdZViewItem

 

Nope, wasn't me, bro....haven't been there in a while. Speaking of that, I need to take it in sometime to get my damn rear speaker rattle fixed.

 

I posted the same link a few days ago on the Jeep SRT-8 forum.

Just plain sick.

 

I test drove an SRT-8 a few weeks back. I was hoping that it would serve my two main needs: Haul **** and have enough utility to handle kid, dogs, boat, etc.

Well, let me say this: To call the SRT-8 a "Sports-Utility Vehicle" is sort of a stretch. Remember when BMW came out with the X5 and they introduced the term "Sports Activity Vehicle?" This is also probably what the SRT-8 should be called. It certainly has the "Sports" down very well. However, the utility quotient is very low. The vehicle is very small inside compared to my current 03 4Runner or my former 02 MDX. It is about comparable to the X5, although the X5 is alot nicer inside (but the Jeep will smoke any X5).

I guess it comes down to your priorities. If you do not plan to use the vehicle as a tow vehicle or vacation vehicle (with bambinos), and are willing to trade interior luxury/fuel economy/interior space for the low price and smokin' performance, then the SRT-8 rocks. On the other hand, if you have visions of loading up the dog, the kid, and camping gear into the SRT-8 and heading to the mountains, you are going to be in for a bit of a shock. Personally, for my needs, the nicest SUV that I drove was the GL450. Tons of interior room, nice ride, nice interior, but more $$$.

Not to hijack, but I ultimately decided not to buy another gas guzzler, as I am tired of being raped at the pump for the benefit of big oil, so we kept the 4Runner as a tow/vacation/Home depot vehicle only and bought a Camry Hybrid for the daily grind. Before you laugh, drive one. Drives like the LS430 and we are pulling 35 MPG overall, with mid-40s on the highway. Not bad for a loaded (leather, sunroof, kickin' stereo, etc.) 3600 lb. vehicle that will run 7-8 seconds 0-60, not to mention the $28K price tag, which gets partially subsidized by a $2600.00 tax credit (not deduction. . . a credit comes right off of your final tax bill!). The only problem is finding one, as they are back-ordered, and eveyone is trying to buy one before September 30th, as the tax credit goes down by 1/2 if you buy one after that date. I found ours the old-fashioned way. . . by calling about ten different So. Cal. dealers until I got lucky. The hard part is finding one with leather without the dealer trying to reem you. Picked ours up from Toyota San Diego for $100.00 under sticker (some dealers are asking $3000.00 over sticker for leather Hybrids).

Pretty funny, huh? I go test driving SRT-8s, GL450s, Navigators, and Escalades, and end up buying a Camry Hybrid