New Guy......questions!

[TheEricHarris]

Yeah, I'm that guy....please bear with me :kinglock:

I just sold my 2006 Pontiac GTO yesterday to another enthusiast, so now the hunt is on for my next vehicle. I sold the goat because we moved from Las Vegas to Woodland Park, CO a few weeks ago and the goat just isn't a practical car up in the mountains at 8,500'. I drive to Cripple Creek, CO everday for work, which is at almost 10,000', so you can guess that snow will be a factor in my commute each day. So my next vehicle has to be AWD!

I've pretty much limited my choices to either a Magnum RT AWD or a Subaru Legacy GT wagon/sedan. I've always been a fan of the Magnum since it came out, so this just may be my calling to own one.

I found a pretty nice 2007 RT AWD Mag at a local Dodge dealer in Colorado Springs. It has 13,500 miles, it's Red with tan leather, sunroof/heated dual power seats/homelink (no nav). They are asking 21,900. Since you guys are the experts and I'm still absorbing all the information on this forum, I was hoping you could guys could answer some quick questions since I'm thinking of test driving this thing tonight.... and you know how that can go....the car sometimes follows you home!


1. What is a fair asking price on this? According to KBB, they are priced very good.
2. The lifetime powertrain warranty would not apply to me right, since I'm second owner? Their web site says it's certified, does that give me a better warranty than the standard 3/36?
3. How hard is it to add the roof rails? I'd love to mount a couple bikes or skiis on the roof.
4. Can anyone here lookup the VIN and see if it was a demo/rental car? Also maybe see if anything major was done or if it was a buyback? VIN is 2D4GZ57207H687868
5. How do the factory tires with AWD handle in the snow? Any mountain people own one of these? How does it do in 6-12" of the white stuff?
6. Anything I should check over, like common issues?

Damn, this car has me excited. Can't wait to test drive it and see how she does.



EDIT: I just realized I didn't put this in the Magnum section.....perhaps a mod could move this for me? Thanky.

[Super T]

1 - You could get it for 20,000 flat out the door I'd think, but that's definitely ballpark. The depreciation in the first 24 hours of ownership on these things hurts!
2 - I believe it can be transferred once for like a $100 fee or something
3 - The factory rails are mounted using studs that are welded to the roof supports. Redfox99 did it but it'd be a lot easier to get a quality Thule or Yakima rack
4 - can't help ya there
5 - I can't imagine the AWD would have problems... granted Chicago winters don't compare to yours, but my RWD RT and SRT have both been fantastic in the snow.
6 - There are some common TSB's but I honestly don't know which apply to the AWD cars.

[TheEricHarris]

Thanks for the quick response!

Just ran a CARFAX on her.

Private lease, 8 months of ownership. Was owned in Iowa and Texas.

25 months or 22,575 miles remaining of warranty.

This is interesting. Wondeer why it was repossessed? Hopefully just couldn't make the payments:
01/29/2008 Virginia
Motor Vehicle Dept.
Roanoke, TX

Title issued or updated
Vehicle repossessed

[TheEricHarris]

Oh, if anyone needs a Carfax report, PM me the VIN. My as well get my $30 worth!

And... will SRT8 wheels bolt right onto a Magnum RT AWD? The wheels that are on this thing are boring and are the only thing holding it down IMO. I've read that wheels for the AWD are harder to find.

[Super T]

awd is a different offset, i don't think the srt wheels will work.

[gotls1]

Greetings from a fellow GM convert! I think you'll really like the Mag - it's practical, yet you don't feel like you're giving up too much of the fun factor.

Like Super T said, I bet you could get it out the door for $20k-ish. Just make sure you really go over it well and check it out. If you've got a mechanic friend near by, it'd be good to get it on a lift and check out the underside for evidence of repairs. Sometimes dealers "forget" to mention those things. :roll:

[TheEricHarris]

Thanks again.

Now I can post a link to the actual car:

http://www.perkinsdodge.com/used-inventory/vehicle-details.htm?vehicleId=84aba5154046381e0187b5ffccda 65a2&useHistory=true#

She's definitely BRIGHT RED. Buy my GTO was Brazen Orange, so "bold" colors are nothing new to me. lol.

[PAMagnumguy]

Wow, that's a nice Magnum. And a real nice price too, but I agree that you could probably get it for $20K out the door.

Beautiful state, Colorado. Wifey and I rented a Mag out there last summer, Rockies are awesome!!!

[AJ_Gil]

As far as the altitude goes the HEMI works well up there. We went up to Asheville a couple of years ago and heading up the steeper inclines with the cruise on 75 the thing didn't even downshift. At the time I had a CAI, Zoomer Cat-backs and a Superchips tune in it. I think you'll be pleased in the hills.

[TheEricHarris]

Talked with the dealer. It has 25months/22,000 miles of B2B warranty left. Since it's CPOV, it has 8yr/80,000 miles of powertrain warranty. That should give me enough time to break anything I hope.

[Spittin Game]

Umm, nice name...:wtf::doh:

[TheEricHarris]

Huh? My name is Eric Harris, so I'm "Theee". Had this screenname forever.......theericharris@hotmail/aol/yahoo/etc.

I see you are from Denver, so I'm assuming you think I'm mocking the Columbine killer 'Eric Harris'. Really wish people would understand there are thousands of people with the name 'Eric Harris' out there. Oh, I own ericharris.com too, before the Columbine thing happened. Should see all the hate mail I got during that first week!

[Super T]

Huh? My name is Eric Harris, so I'm "Theee". Had this screenname forever.......theericharris@hotmail/aol/yahoo/etc.

I see you are from Denver, so I'm assuming you think I'm mocking the Columbine killer 'Eric Harris'. Really wish people would understand there are thousands of people with the name 'Eric Harris' out there. Oh, I own ericharris.com too, before the Columbine thing happened. Should see all the hate mail I got during that first week!

Oh man, that's gotta be rough! At least I know I'll never run into another person with the same name as me!

[Spittin Game]

Huh? My name is Eric Harris, so I'm "Theee". Had this screenname forever.......theericharris@hotmail/aol/yahoo/etc.

I see you are from Denver, so I'm assuming you think I'm mocking the Columbine killer 'Eric Harris'. Really wish people would understand there are thousands of people with the name 'Eric Harris' out there. Oh, I own ericharris.com too, before the Columbine thing happened. Should see all the hate mail I got during that first week!

My Bad!:beerchug:

[TheEricHarris]

OK, test drove the Magnum tonight.

First, the reason why it's priced at 22K is because it has some cosmetic issues. Lots of small scratches (some may buff out) and on the driver side front fender there are some nice scrapes with a dent. The dealer said they priced it low due to these blimeshes. Didn't talk numbers with them but if they come down $3k or so, I'd probably take it and have it fixed. Not totally sold on the bright red, a bit much!

I thought the car handled quite well and had enough oomph to satisfy me. Thought the ride was great and felt sporty. Definitely going to look for more RT AWDs, hopefully in better condition. I'm kinda hoping they call me back desperate for a sale before the end of the month. Who knows!

I did find this guy: http://www.autotrader.com/dealers/dda/detail.jsp?dealer_id=4383061&car_id=242564707

I love the white and it even has the NAV. Too bad it's about 60 miles from me, but I might check it out this weekend. Seems like a good starting price, $19,000 with 32k miles. Not finding many RT AWDs around my area :(

The search continues! :thumbs_u:

[Mosie]

I did find this guy: http://www.autotrader.com/dealers/dda/detail.jsp?dealer_id=4383061&car_id=242564707

I love the white and it even has the NAV. Too bad it's about 60 miles from me, but I might check it out this weekend. Seems like a good starting price, $19,000 with 32k miles. Not finding many RT AWDs around my area
:(

The search continues! :thumbs_u:So did you get a call back from them on Old Red?

If it were me, I'd take a good look at the white one. Cheaper W/NAV?
I think that is worth the drive.

As far as the rims go, you will be more limited due to the off-set. It's almost like getting front wheel drive rims.
After market is really going to be the way for you to go. Check out our supporting vendors for special deals, like 402 Motoring:
http://www.lxforums.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=119

Let them know you have AWD. Post pic's when you get your ride!

[TheEricHarris]

The white one was just sold, doh!

Do have my eye on this one: http://denver.craigslist.org/car/660024639.html

Been in contact with the seller (Dodge Dealer). Only 12k miles, has Sunroof, rear DVD, 6 disc changer. He said it has everything but the NAV. Claims it had a few rock chips and scratches repaired by their body shop, so it's perfect condition (we shall see). It's about 60 miles from me, so I'll check it out this weekend. If they came down to 19K, I'd rock a black Magnum, even though it's such a PITA to keep clean especially in the winters here! Oh well. :)

[05magmn]

The white one was just sold, doh!

Do have my eye on this one: http://denver.craigslist.org/car/660024639.html

Been in contact with the seller (Dodge Dealer). Only 12k miles, has Sunroof, rear DVD, 6 disc changer. He said it has everything but the NAV. Claims it had a few rock chips and scratches repaired by their body shop, so it's perfect condition (we shall see). It's about 60 miles from me, so I'll check it out this weekend. If they came down to 19K, I'd rock a black Magnum, even though it's such a PITA to keep clean especially in the winters here! Oh well. :)
That looks like a very good deal.

[NummThumz]

I just bought a slightly used Charger that was Chrysler certified. A week after I bought it, Chrysler sent me a letter offering me the lifetime powertrain warranty for $900. I'm not sure if I will go for it as I still have the 80k one that you mentioned. I might give them a call for kicks to see if I can get them to come down on that price.

[FactoryD]

Good luck, bud!

You'll definitely need to change out those AWD wheels. ;)

[themongrel]

That black one is a sweet deal!

[IES99]

The lifetime warranty is NOT transferrable.

[IES99]

I didn't know that they would transfer these. If I could get one for $900 on my 2006 I think I would buy it.

[HemiHearse]

What are these people smoking? No Nav, No Motor, No Way
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=0&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-%7cM-_12_%7cH-%7cD-_3662_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cX-popular%7cZ-38501&aff=national&paId=270186154&recnum=0&leadExists=true

sorry, didn't mean to hijack your thread, but this i hadda share...

[Mosie]

I didn't know that they would transfer these. If I could get one for $900 on my 2006 I think I would buy it.
If I could get a Life Time Warranty for my 05 Maggie, I'd pay double that.

[TheEricHarris]

Got approved for 4.5%/60 or 4.9%/72 at my Credit Union today. So going to drive up to Denver and check out these two Maggies:

1. 2006 White RT AWD $18,995 33k miles, Nav/Roof. I was told it was sold but someone contacted me today saying the financing fell through. If I like it, I will probably offer $18K out the door with everything. Has 3 months of warranty.
http://www.autotrader.com/dealers/dda/detail.jsp?dealer_id=4383061&car_id=242564707

2. 2006 Black RT AWD $20,995 13k miles, Roof. Looks fully loaded except Nav. Not certified which I find strange since it's a Dodge dealer. If they can certify it and go down a grand, this will probably be the one I get. Has 4 months left of warranty.
http://www.prestigedodge.com/externalviewpage.cfm?pageid=117833&vin=2D8GZ57296H132950

I'm not a big fan of black but the Magnum does look good in it, especially with some black or chrome wheels (hate the OEM AWD wheels).

Thoughts?

[TheEricHarris]

Well, there is a black Magnum RT AWD in my garage!

With very little RT AWDs in my area, I decided this was the best one for me. It's mint other than some deep scratches on the rear tailgate that have been touched up but are very noticeable. I'm going to consult a bodyshop to see how much this will cost to fix or maybe find a black gate at a local salvage yard.

Car has 12,500 miles and was put into service 30 months ago, so only 6 months of warranty left. The dealer sold it brand new to the original owner, an older aged man who traded it for a big truck.

I did buy an extended warranty for another 4yrs/60k miles for $1200 with $0 deductible. I usually don't go for these things, but it only came out to like $10/month more, so why not. I paid $19,000 for the car + tax + warranty. So with everything just around $22,000 out the door (tax is 7%). Financing with 4.9%/72. I'm sure I could have done a little better if I didn't buy it the same day, but this car was over 120 miles from my house, so the driving back and forth would kill me. KBB is like $24K, but we know that doesn't reflect true market for these cars.

This thing has every option excect the NAV I believe. It has the rear DVD player (never been used), tow package (very nice to put some bikes on!), 6 disc CD, sunroof, etc. It's black with gray leather.

I'm going to keep the mods fairly minimal on this guy. I dumped a lot of $$ into my GTO, so I'm kinda burned out on it. I will tint the front windows to match the rear this week and put a catback on (gotta let the V8 sing..still not sure which one I'll go with). Then maybe a tune or some aftermarke wheels.

My sales guy said someone from S. Dakota called about it, which I'm guessing was CEV :D Hopefully he found something this weekend!

Tomorrow I'l give her a good detail with wax and might even put some Mobil 1 in it. Got a lot of research to do!

Oh, how can you tell if it has the Tire Pressure Monitoring System? Would you be able to monitor each tire pressure or does it only warn you if a tire is low?

I'm pooped! Ready for bed ZzZzZzzZZz