Post your ride!

"@rbalch1" (rbalch1) 09/13/2014 at 05:41 • Filed to: None

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2000 ML270

Thunderbee - Has the engine that kids like > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 05:57

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2013 Corsa (un)limited

promoted by the color red > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 06:16

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Yes, that is a sofa hanging out the rear window. That was nothing compared to move-out day. I somehow packed a bike, 32" TV, comforter, an IKEA chair, cookware, a PC, and other things.

@rbalch1 > promoted by the color red 09/13/2014 at 06:27

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I was unaware Honda made a 4 door integra!

Nerd-Vol > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 07:11

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07 speed 3

95 Miata base

Sn210 > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 07:15

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'08 TL-S

Brian Silvestro > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 07:15

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You're telling me Mathias isn't the only person on here with a first gen ML?

Brian Silvestro > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 07:22

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(mine's on the right, but I drive the left one sometimes too)

FromCanadaWithLove > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 08:34

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BMW M235i

FromCanadaWithLove > Thunderbee - Has the engine that kids like 09/13/2014 at 08:34

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That yellow pleases me.

sefeing, actually bought an E46 > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 08:42

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2013 Focus ST

mazda616 > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 08:56

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'08 Mazda3 S Touring.

Wife drives a '13 Mazda CX-5 Sport.

I drive it quite often as well.

@rbalch1 > Brian Silvestro 09/13/2014 at 09:09

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ahhh but mines a 5 cylinder turbo diesel!

Spaceball-Two > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 09:20

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Brian Silvestro > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 09:23

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I guess you win this round.

VinnieDeutsch > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 09:28

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I love all of you

JGrabowMSt > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 09:45

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20 cylinders, about 770HP.

JGrabowMSt > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 09:46

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but does it have 400+k miles on it?

Pabuuu, JDM car enthusiast & Italian parts hoarder > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 09:50

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1986 Toyota Celica ST Coupe

Jayhawk Jake > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 09:51

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2013 RS

The nose looks big from this angle

jkm7680 > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 10:05

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This is an old picture...

Crest > Brian Silvestro 09/13/2014 at 10:35

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Your dad will like to have a word with you

Brian Silvestro > Crest 09/13/2014 at 10:45

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*panics*

sellphones2493 > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 12:07

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The Vo. 2007 w/ 77K.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > JGrabowMSt 09/13/2014 at 13:54

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Is the Magnum your DD?

JGrabowMSt > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 09/13/2014 at 15:24

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as soon as I can find a buyer for my parents Neon, yes

PetarVN, GLI Guy, now with stupid power > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 15:38

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2012 VW GLI, known as "Lil' Red"

(pic isn't working... KINJAAAAA)

Ahad > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 15:43

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2009 FJ Cruiser

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > JGrabowMSt 09/13/2014 at 16:35

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How is it as an everyday car? I'm thinking of getting one in SXT trim with the 3.5L V6 as the replacement for my Stratus.

JGrabowMSt > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 09/13/2014 at 17:14

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The 3.5 V6 pentastar engines are actually really great engines. You'll have a few things to think about though. With the V6, you're going to want a predator tune, and a cold air intake. It will squeeze your MPG up to the low to maybe mid 20's. A bone stock 3.5L V6 will get you just about 19-20MPG no matter what you do.

The SXT also doesn't come with nicer suspension. The RT and SRT models will almost always have factory installed Sachs Nivomat rear struts were are self leveling and amazing. The bushings go and the ride can be rough, but as a whole, they ride way better in the long run. The SXT doesn't have a crappy ride, but the Nivomats are in a class of their own, as far as factory suspension is concerned.

My RT has 147k on it now, and I bought it in May this year and have put a total of about 4000 miles on it so far. At first, the gas mileage was a struggle, because the previous owner didn't feed it right and didn't stretch it's legs. It took about two weeks to get it to start running right, and after doing spark plugs, oil + filter, a cold air intake and resetting the cars computer a couple times, it started to run way better. Having an adaptive computer means it's finally started to "learn" when to shift, how to accelerate, but most importantly, how to average 20mpg out of the 5.7L HEMI. Highway I'm getting a solid 24-26MPG, and around town, I think about 18-20MPG. I stay out of it usually, but it's no slouch when I do decide to get into it. The higher gas mileage comes from the MDS (multi-displacement system) which will "shut off" 4 cyl, typically between 18-55mph based on the drivetrain load. I can usually tell when the cylinders become active again, but I can't say I can tell you by ear (or butt dyno) when they shut off because it's so smooth, and the system does work well.

I've also heard of twin turbo kits slowly coming out for the V6, so it's more than capable of putting down significantly more power than what it does stock. The SXTs are nice overall, but when I went to buy, I was told to avoid the 2.7L at all costs. They can have oil pickup issues which will basically cause catastrophic engine failure, and the 2.7L is a pretty pitiful engine anyway. The 3.5L is a great engine for a regular driver. I wouldn't expect any kind of power out of it stock, but a 93 tune and CAI will really wake the car up. Avoid cars that have donk wheels on them, they often go through tie rods and front end bushings a lot faster than the stock wheels will, and the wheel bearings do go as well. If you find a mostly or completely stock one, jump on it. Many Magnum owners that I know have zero intention of selling, so you'll be buying from someone who most likely took the car to the dealer or another service center religiously, so the cars will be well documented and up to date on maintenance. For a price range, I'd say 4-7k is the ballpark to pay. You'll see plenty of people trying to get more for it, but hold out for one in that range because it'll be worth the wait. I paid $6300 for my 2005 RT, and absolutely love it. You wouldn't be able to take that thing away from me now. Also, when you look, make sure that you get the 5 speed automatic rather than the dodge 4 speed. The difference is the shifter, you want to see a "+/-" at the bottom of the shifter by "D." The 4 speed Dodge is a POS, but the 5 speed trans is made by Benz, and is amazing. I have a fresh filter and fluid in mine, and it shifts amazingly well. The fluid level is a bitch to get right at first if you don't know the trans fluid levels, and you'll get a cloud of black smoke if there's too much fluid in it. Otherwise, they're great.

Cargo space is decent, the liftgate opens really wide, and the cargo area is fairly deep, but it's not something you'll get a full size refrigerator into. Oddly enough, the Honda Insight company car I drive for work feels like it has more room (even though it's just a little bit smaller actually). I keep my tools in the back, two jack stands, some fluids, and my toolbox, tied down with a couple bungee cords, and it's just perfect. I'll make a post about what I can fit when I go away for a weekend in October, as we'll be down for 2 days, 3 nights, but with the luggage for 4, plus bicycles in the car (I wont resort to the roof unless I have to, just to see what really fits inside).

The front ends all have weak/crappy bushings, so expect some clunking, and about $300ish in parts, or $650 or so from a shop to replace the bushings and ball joints completely. I have most of the parts collected, but I'm still debating going to coilovers, so I haven't rebuilt my front end just yet. It's not terrible with the clunking, but it is noticeable. I also have the Boston Acoustic sound system, which I have no idea was even offered in the Magnum, but it sounds great. I have a set of Boston Acoustics on my desk and can't find anything to replace them with, now I have this setup, and love the car even more because of it.

Most importantly, don't be afraid of a high mileage car. I know other Magnum owners well into 200k miles, even one that races regularly (runs 10s in the 1/4 mile), and has 326+k miles on it with only mild work on the engine. I have no worries at all about mine being just about 150k because of that. I also have a friend with an LS1 2001 Corvette that just rolled over 200k miles, and the thing looks immaculate. They do almost all their own work on it, and it's babied along completely, but regardless of that, modern V8 engines are more than capable of higher mileage. There are plenty of modern cars well into 200, 300 and even 400+k miles. Treat it right and it will last. Buying one that's rough around the edges to fix up isn't a bad idea, but I'd look for the most stock, and well kept one possible.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > JGrabowMSt 09/13/2014 at 18:09

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I'll respond longer when not on mobile but you've touched on almost everything I've been reading and thinking about. I have a 2.7L V6 in my 06 Stratus that is bone stock and it does great since I've been taking care of it, it's not a Pentastar to my limited knowledge. It's been good to me, I've read that it can have oil problems but haven't experienced any in the last 5 years. The 2.7s in the base Magnums are terrible on power and I read the same about the failures. I'd go for an RT V8 if I can find one that hasn't been messed with outside of actual improvements but the SXT seems like a great base to work from.

@rbalch1 > sellphones2493 09/13/2014 at 22:02

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Nice ride! How reliable are these old volvos.?
Ive heard of problems with computers/electronics going .. theres one for sale in my local area in bright red, im thinking about it

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > JGrabowMSt 09/13/2014 at 22:05

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I was unaware that the RTs had cylinder deactivation, I may just get the one of those then. if I can pull that kind of mileage out of it. I know that modern v8s are pretty great on fuel, but it still wows me when I see stats of 20+ mpg in the city out of them.

I already planned on upgrading the suspension if needed, the air intake for sure, and finding a good tune for it if I got a Magnum. Since it is based off the Charger, I'm wondering if I could find a suspension set up similar to the ones on the police cars that is factory. I'll definitely look for the 5 speed, my experience with the 4 speed in my Stratus is not great. I want a Bose stereo system atleast if not Boston or Harmon Kardio, I love the Bose systems in my Stratus and my mother's Caravan.

How is the stock exhaust? Worth keeping?

Thanks for all the info!

sellphones2493 > @rbalch1 09/13/2014 at 22:51

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Great cars. I can't think about what I'd even consider to replace it with. Find me something that's understated with AWD and a stick that's not an Audi or a Subaru...

Reliability-wise, don't get this thing to avoid German Maintenence costs - I spend ~$3000-4000 a year on maintenence. That's pretty much for your occasional faulty sensor and other small issues. Then again, mine needs a complete suspension refresh (~$4000).

Overall, a great choice I don't regret getting - just don't get it for the wrong reasons, and definitely get a PPI. These things need it.

JGrabowMSt > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 09/13/2014 at 23:29

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Stock exhaust is quiet, a CAI will give you lots of intake noise under hard acceleration. I went with K&N for my intake because they're proven and excellent quality, and I think they look better than most others.

I would say the Boston Acoustic stereo is a great one. I'm not sure if they came with Bose or Harmon Kardon, but you could look that up, and see what's common.

For the suspension, I'm looking at a couple different adjustable coilover setups from Megan Racing and BC Racing. They're both about $1000, so I just need to have that kind of change lying around to drop into the car. There is a police package for the Magnums specifically, but to my knowledge, it's only an oil cooler and bigger brakes, the suspension is the same from what I've read and seen. I think I finally found the steel wheels I've been looking for (5 spoke steelies off the charger police car), so that's what I want to have over the stock wheels. Otherwise, I'm very happy with the car, even without any special tune currently. Being higher mileage, I'd rather buy or build up a new motor and do a 6spd swap than drop probably the same engine budget into rebuilding the 5.7. The motors are not known for their durability under boost, but NA, the 5.7s are great. They have weak valve springs which can shatter when boosted even lightly, so it's always advised to upgrade the springs before running a supercharger or turbo. For my car, at 147k, I could rebuild the top end for new valves, but then I'd still have sloppy rod and crank bearings. Then I'd have to do the piston rings, and probably totally flush the block to make sure all the fluids flow correctly. That's not really worth it to me right now. I'd rather build a new motor, swap it in, and then decide whether I wanted to rebuild the original motor, or just bag it and save it. Or just outright sell it, who knows.

For my exhaust though, I'm thinking of trying to knock the resonators off to see what the sound is like. There's plenty of videos, but there's nothing like actually doing it to see. I want to eventually do a side exit setup, but the custom exhaust will run me a pretty penny, so I'm waiting on that for a while. I'm keeping my stock setup for a while. I'm sure at about 10 years old I need to replace the cats to keep it flowing freely, but otherwise, I have no problems with it. The CAI gives me plenty of noise when I want it, and the car is fairly quiet overall, so I don't need to worry about attracting attention.

I'd have to double check this to be sure, but the cylinder deactivation is definitely only on the 5.7L motors with automatic transmission. I think there might be a little confusion about the years, but the biggest difference between the years is really just the valve cover and coil pack setups. The 03-05s used a waste spark system, whereas the 06+ just have a dual spark setup. There's a shorty plug wire kit that effectively converts the waste spark systems to dual spark, I can't really say there's a difference in performance, but it cleans up the engine pay a lot to do that.

To get the 20ish MPG average out of the cars, you really need to baby them around town lightly. The car is rated for 89 octane, but I feed it 91/92/93 at the pump (stations around me vary) and you absolutely need to run 5w20 motor oil, I went with Mobil 1 fully synthetic. I'm going to put a little more air in the tires (door calls for about 30psi on all 4) to about 35 or maybe close to 40 psi, just to get slightly better mileage out of it. The big thing is that the MDS relies on 5w20 motor oil, and somehow knows when it's not, and will not work.

Compared to an SXT in pricing, I'd say a good RT should go for in the ballpark of around $5k to $9k. Mine was towards the lower end of that, but there are some really good ones out there. I managed to find a stock one, but many of them are modified to some degree, so you just have to watch out, some mods are good, but I've seen a ton of mods that are really bad. I'm shocked that people are proud of some mods because of how shitty they look. There's a local Challenger by me that has a nitrous kit installed, but the wiring wasn't cut down or anything, so there's a huge mess of wiring under a false cover under the hood. If you just lean over and look, you can see all the wire just stuffed under there. I can't believe when people do that and then consider their cars "show cars" because it's hideous. Just me I guess...

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > JGrabowMSt 09/13/2014 at 23:48

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Honestly, I prefer mostly stock vehicles and only upgrade the suspension and intake just to make the everything a little better. Any mods I see are usually detrimental to the whole vehicle and you aren't alone in your opinion. I really like the 5 spoke steelies on the police cars too.

If I really started to pour money into a Magnum I'd rebuild the engine and swap in a 5/6 speed manual (not sure from what), possibly a custom exhaust system to make it rumble a bit, custom paint in something like a sparkling white with navy pinstriping and accents.

Is yours RWD or AWD?

JGrabowMSt > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 09/14/2014 at 00:06

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I got a RWD because tire shredding goodness. Also because most of the AWD cars around me are the 4 spd trans, but worse yet, I didn't want to worry about a transfer case. I wanted the car to be as simple as possible to work on, and it really is. I did a huge amount of work on the car with a friend in one day really, because once you get the front end apart, the car is all right in front of you.

There are a ton of exhaust kits for the Magnum, and there's no shortage of videos of them. I'm actually a bit tempted to get the RAM1500 mufflers and resonators, and run something more similar to the truck exhaust, because I think they have a better rumble to them, but flowmaster makes a ton of different kits to choose from, and they all sound pretty good.

The manual swap is something I'm mulling over a lot, because it's not the simplest thing to do. I have been meaning to go to a tuning shop with the car, and have them check the wiring harness for me. All Magnums are automatic. I want to know for sure if the trans computer harness is a modular section, or if it's integrated in the body harness of the car. If it's a separate part, yank that out, and drop in a T56 or TR6060 , custom driveshaft, and a beefier rear end. The hard part will be running the pedal box. You'll likely need a donor car, like an manual Challenger for the entire pedal box with clutch, but also so you can get the clutch cylinders and everything else to run it. The swap is not super complicated because the Magnum is an LX car, just like the Charger, Challenger and 300. They share a lot of parts, so the hard part is making it fit correctly. Not just a weekend job.

There are 3 Magnums that I'm aware of that were all SRT-10 swapped specifically from 3rd gen Viper donor cars. For some reason only the 3rd gen viper will do it. It involves cutting up the firewall and making room for a lot of extra bits, but it has been done. Unfortunately, none of them have build threads, I just heard about them from people who have actually run with the cars on racetracks. I thought about the swap, but I didn't want to modify the firewall, so built HEMI it is for me. When I get the budget to buy a motor, then I'll make a final decision, but it's either a 392 or a 426 short block. The best would be if I found a 392 challenger donor car with the 6spd manual. Everything would be perfect if I could do that, it would save a lot of money on parts, because the donor car would theoretically be complete.

The T56 and TR6060 are the only two manual trans that I'm aware of that would have a shot at dropping right in, the TR6060 more so, because the Challenger uses it. The Challengers were originally built side by side with the vipers because they shared that manual trans, and still do. They are longer than the NAG1 (5spd auto), so you'd need a shorter driveshaft. The rear is good for around 600HP I believe, but I'm thinking about putting a Wavetrac in, but those are also around $1000. They appeal to me only because they can take a huge amount of power, but they also have a much better power transfer to the wheels, so I think it would be better overall in the car. There is a wavetrac made for the LX platform as well. Most of the mods that I'm interested in doing are already available as just about bolt-on for the car, so it's just less work for me. Nice that other people already dealt with the R&D side of things.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > JGrabowMSt 09/14/2014 at 00:35

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I'm agree with bolt ons being the the better way to go, definitely simplifies everything. Plus getting donor parts from the other LX cars would be easy. I'm only really concerned about having a RWD vehicle in southwestern Ohio since the last few winters have been especially icy and snowy. I know it is stupid to want AWD for only part of the year but with all the hills and ditches around it is a concern. The wavetrac would definitely be a worthy upgrade for sure.

If/when you find out about that trans computer harness, let me know I'm very interested. Or alternatively, do you think one of the new 8 speed autos could potentially be swapped in? I've heard many good things about them.

I want my next car to be easy for me to learn to work on and get to the point that I know my way around around a vehicle enough to do most maintenance and small upgrades. If the RWD Magnum is as relatively simple as you suggest, do you think it would be a good one for learning such things on?

JGrabowMSt > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 09/14/2014 at 01:01

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I plan on driving my Magnum through the winter. The greater NYC area doesn't see snow quite like Ohio, but we get enough of it. Oddly enough, I've been told that as long as you drive gingerly, snow shouldn't be an issue.

The 8 speed auto might be a stretch, I'm going to lean towards the cautious side and say it probably wont work, because they only really pair with the newest HEMI engines, which have much different computer controls and software. To go with an 8 speed, you'd essentially have to get a donor car for the engine, trans, wiring harness and dashboard, as that's the only way to be sure everything will work together.

For the most part, I think the Magnum is a pretty good car to learn to wrench on. The motor is easy to get to, and changing all 16 spark plugs only takes me about 90 minutes. On top of that, the front of the motor has easy access for working on, the belly pans are easy to get off and access the oil pan and trans, everything is pretty out in the open and workable. The hard part is really finding the car to begin with. They use a timing chain so there's no timing belt worries. The chain can stretch over time, and things can still go wrong, but nothing like the catastrophe of a timing belt*. The biggest things are that the motor is pointing the right way, and the correct wheels power the car. The Magnum certainly isn't perfect, but I think it's an okay beginners car, whether you get an SXT or an RT. The SXT will be a little simpler in that it has less cylinders, and a little more room under the hood, but the V8 isn't all that complicated really. There are far worse things to get as something to learn on. For costs alone, I would probably look for something a little smaller, or a 4 banger that's a little cheaper in order to really get used to the basics, but at least my Magnum has been really forgiving and easy to work on so far.

*Many timing belts also run the water pump so failures can be pretty big on any interference engine, I just personally find the timing chain far more reliable in the long term, as there's less that can directly interfere with them to cause an early failure.

anon-sxmcyecofnu1eocpqsk9iq > @rbalch1 09/15/2014 at 01:49

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deleted

anon-sxmcyecofnu1eocpqsk9iq > @rbalch1 09/15/2014 at 01:53

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I don't have a car yet :'(