Muscle car questions from a foreigner
 

So I got some questions for those here who own or have owned recent musclecars.

So essentially. I am planning to sell my Z. fiancé is moving in in a month. I got two dogs and the Z is abit too small in terms of trunk and seats .

First I was looking at a subaru WRX STI 2015 model because it has alot of spae and a pretty big trunk. plus it has AWD.

now I have been looking around and there is this dutch american car import business that isn't too insane on import costs(friend got a RAM from them) and essentially a challenger SRT8 or mustang would end up being about the same price as the WRX STI. so now I am kinda stumped on what to do. because big american V8s sound sexy as ****.

now the thing is. I have gotten some RWD frights from my Z mostly on the highway when its raining decently hard. you know you are driving and then suddenly the back goes loose and I am like "URGH" hence why I was looking at the STI with it's AWD. but now that I know that I can get a sexy *** challenger or mustang for pretty much the same price I am kinda :ugh2:.

so my biggest question is. how is the traction on these cars? do they step out easily in the rain. or do they just be all "SCREW U RAIN AMURICA". do they feel more steady on their wheels than say a Z.

I am not really planning to go on a track or anything but I like to go fast once in a while but this is belgium where we have rain and cold

and occasionally snow.

The new Mustang with the IRS, I might consider in a couple of years.

Dodge? Run like hell.

WRX/STI is probably decent but the motor is basically the same one from 10 years ago.

Hydroplaning is mainly related to tire width and tread design. But a car that weighs 400+ lbs more than the Z won't hydroplane as much, all other things being equal.

These are my biased opinions. :D

I used to have an STI and I liked the car. It was no Z, as far as feeling sporty and cornering and stuff.

These cars will not handle like your Z does if that is what you are asking. With the V8's massive torque numbers, heavier in weight, and some sport qualities in them they could be just as scary or worse than the Z. Challengers are very sexy but too heavy, Mustangs spin the rear tires too easily, and Camaros are pokey with major blind spots with them. Call it a wash on any of them and pick what you like best. Test drive them and decide.

What's wrong with dodge?

yeah is mostly my not so super great tire brand but you know. when you get scared once it always remains in your. I am not like my dad who loves it when a car's back breaks loose once in a while

This is belgium. there are no muscle cars here. :roflpuke2: dodge bailed out of europe. chevrolet is bailing out next year ford is FINALLY releasing a mustang here....in 2015

i know they won't handle like my Z. like I said. I don't track my cars. hell I don't even really dragrace....since there aren't any dragstrips here.

like I love the mustang's look(well I love the camaro too but I looked at it's interior once and damn it's ugly) but the fact that they still use that old axel suspension tech is just like. :shakes head: makes for a uncomfy ride.

do the challengers use independent suspension? didn't find it instantly.

For a DD, there's not that much difference between the Camaro, Mustang, and Challenger. All of them have pretty crappy suspensions in the base configuration but aren't all that bad once you step up to some of the sportier models.

They are all heavier than the Z and should be less likely to hydroplane. Depends on the tires. A good set of tires and you should be good to go.

yah, if you get the low/mid grade ones they come with skinny sedan tires. :ugh:

then u got folks putting fat tires on their skinny wheels. :ugh2:

or the other type running 22's with rubber bands at stock height. :facepalm:

Not trying to be disrespectful. But any european that buys a muscle car is an idiot. Quality cars are plentiful ( and cheap - occassion ) in Belgium, I know as I have been there a few times in my life. In fact my dad used buy his cars from there or Germany back when I was a teenie bopper.

What am I supposed to buy that I can buy with the money a muscle car comes at?

a BMW? yeah maybe a 120(which actually is a 1.8) or MAYBE a base 320.

audi if you want some proper power you are looking at stuff like the RS3 which is like 60K base.

mercedes if you want proper power you need to look at stuff like AMG.

european cars are stupidly expensive. BMW,Audi,Mercedes you need to go 70-80K to have something that is anywhere near the performance of muscle.

and sorry but I don't want a car that looks like every other model in the series, all BMW look the same, all audi look the same, almost all mercedes look the same.

renault is basically just the megane RS. citroen is ugly, peugeot are grandpa cars, italian cars are too expensive except alfa romeo but they are horrible in quality.

british is like aston martin and such. want a decently performing jaguar? prepare to pay over 100K

SEAT? lol no.

european cars are decent in quality, interior tend to be nice but performance wise they are a HUGE HUGE ripoff.

with the price of a base challenger SRT you cant even buy a proper optioned golf.

I know to americans european cars might seem exotic and special but over here we see infinite amounts of them and they just uck.

American muscle give stupid amounts of power with little money, they look great, they sound 50 billion times better than all those 2.0 liter turbo 4-cylinders. and over here we have NO muscle cars officially other than the camaro corvette and next year mustang.

I joined a test drive with a M3 last week. it was pretty boring ok it went quick but honestly it sounded like a boredom.

plus the backseats are horrible. hell I went to take a seat in the 520 BMW and even then the backseat were hard.

and no I don't want second hand cars. you never now what happened most of the time the warranty is over. last thing I want is to buy a second hand car and end up with one that blows up.

eh if I get any of the muscle I would be sure to make sure they have all the good options.

now let me just save up another 20 and get me a hellcat so I can utterly piss my pants :roflpuke2:

Have a look at a UK website called PistonHeads.com :: Speed Matters they have a few American used car dealers selling a lot of muscle their. It may be your worth in time to take a ferry to the UK for the deal.

Last time I was in England not that long ago near Christmas. You could buy a 2007 M3 for about 12 -18 grand . to me thats cheap. Much cheaper than the rigged prices here in the USA.

PS consider a used M5 for sound factor.

PPS . Do they still have the festival in summer in Bruxelles near avenue Waterloo, I remember the Cote Dor factory their and also the lovely Fritz with American Sauce YUMMMMM

like I said. I don't like BMW. they literally all have the same face. there is no distinction between them. yeah the 6 and 7 have a sleeker face. plus their interior is once again. all the same. the 320 and the M4 for example...have the same dash, same steeringwheel (picking the M steering wheel doesn't matter since you can get that as option on pretty much any model)

I appreciate that link but getting a car from the UK registered here is hard as hell as a normal person. plus I personally don't feel like getting 4-7 year old cars. warranty is gone so if I buy the car and something goes wrong. bam costs, especially if its any of the big 3 germans then it's gonna cost tons.

if I get a new car I get 3-5 year of warranty and I don't have to worry about buying a car from the UK and then risking it being stuck in customs for months. I had a friend once who imported a mustang on his own. took him 5 months to get it through customs just on customs not including shipping time. while my other friend who bought a ram bought it through a company specialised in american imports. it took him 2 months to get here.

second hand cars are pretty cheap I know but it's just. I don't trust them most of the time.

I really do appreciate you trying to help me out tho. :hello:

plus it's also american muscle has a very distinct noise. hell the noise is one of the big reasons why my dad still isn't sure between picking between the 2015 Z06 or getting a new GT-R. The sound. plus the fact that the interior is alot better than the GT-Rs

Fair enough. In that case you best look at local importers, which I am sure you already have. Just skip the current mustang with a live rear axle wont be good on those cobble stone roads ;)

Yeaaah I am pretty eliminating it because of that axle. challenger is kinda eeeeh. i have always seen the 2015 model and I didn't realise it wasn't out yet so I looked at the 2014 model and the interior is kinda :ugh2: compared to the 2015. also dem halo lights.

anybody know if they have given release dates for the new mustang and challenger?

Perhaps a Camero with its superb magnetic shocks?

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I had a 2013 mustang 5.0 handling wise it wasn't near the Z. I would suggest something with an IRS like Camaro or Challenger if you want a muscle car. That would be awesome over there, but I would think buying the gas for them would really suck. you are looking at 20 miles per 2.2 km.

Not my fault.

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I am personally a fan of the new Dodge Challenger and Charger, and I don't think their reliability ratings are particularly poor -- definitely worth looking at Consumer Reports or Edmunds as you zero in on a make and model car you like.

The latest iteration of the Mustang also seems like a good choice for your wants and needs, but I think when you start adding on the better suspension and power packages, it starts to get a bit pricey ( I may be mistaken on this).

Either one will definitely stand out, and probably be a blast to drive as you cruise past random Peugeots and Fiats and such :D

How narrow are typical roads in Belgium? If its anything like France or Italy, parking should be... fun... :ugh2:

Narrow very narrow . like in UK

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:icon18:

Davey is spot on.

And muscle cars are sexy as hell. Even I like muscle car looks and power.

But I love my Z more :p

Good luck :tup:

its looking pretty much like it's going to be be either a challenger or a STI.

but eh gas doesn't really matter. I don't drive all the time so that compensates but I got a gas card from a belgian gas company that gives me 10% off. and - tax because its registered on our business.

and eh our roads are decently big enough to handle RAMS most of the time.
unless you go in cities like brussels but brussels suck so I never go there :roflpuke2:

plus the miss likes the challenger more.

"the 2014 mustang looks like it's sad and apologetic because it disappointed you with those droopy eyes and the 2015 mustang looks like it's giving you the upset mother squinty eyes" :roflpuke2:

saw a vid of the hellcat yesterday and the camera dude held the camera at the Ram air intake. dat supercharger squeel.

Historically speaking, poor reliability and resale. I said it was biased, remember? :D

So you have a hard-on about warranty on a new American car. Am I misunderstanding tho that there are no dealers over there and you'd have to have one of these cars imported in? So who the **** is going to warranty the car when you destroy something?

The best handling option, IMO would be the ZL-1 Camaro, good power and the fancy magnetic suspension...at least of what you are looking at.

Just by a smart car and put a hayabusa engine in it.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ugWBfyHhuo


Problem solved..

importers tend to respect the warranties and take care of everything if something happens for example matthias has about 3 years of warranty on his imported RAM1500. plus the former dodge dealerships still work on existing dodges plus I still have tom who works on my Z who wouldn't mind working on it. when I posted the C7 and camaro on facebook his first reaction was "I got a supercharger for that"

considering the fact that belgium has a hardon for hating on any form of modding this would get you pulled over and get it pressed in about a week.

hell you have to have certified european papers for fricking suspensions and exhausts. we can't do all the fancy cool stuff like you muricans can(well depending on state)

hell I had to take off my stillen gen3 intake off my Z or it wouldn't pass the yearly inspection :shakes head:

Looks like the 2015 Charger switches to all the fancy Fiat technology. I had a Dart before my Z and was absolutely in love with the huge touchscreen, customizable instrument cluster, voice command, and iPod interface. Heck, the stereo even sounded good enough I didn't rip it out. They have some neat safety tech, too, but my Dart didn't have that package. Dodge is offering a lot for the money. If I wasn't a Z guy I would have seriously considered a 2015 Challenger.

So how about the dodge charger? just saw the 2015 model and been reading up on it more. seems like it comes with AWD?

eh. the waifu prefers the look of the 2014 model but that one is pretty much like. want a V8? nope can't have that with AWD and 8AT. i think there is one model with a V8 and AWD but sorry in this day and age and these fuel prices a 5AT is stupid.

urgh. that thing is pretty much scratched off the list.

Pssh my challenger handles like my Z does. So don't say that. And if your looking for overall space and stuff the challenger has more space by far then the mustang has.

well the perfect combination would be muscly car with dat V8 and AWD. would destroy my dilemma between big american V8 but oh god RWD and eh 4 cylinder subaru but it does have AWD.

the biggest issue now is that the V8 models(that are currently out) had a 5 AT and are all RWD(except one I think) and sorry but fuel prices are so expensive these days and 5 gears would use too much fuel. plus the highway engine noise would probably be pretty damn loud. plus gas is literally 8 bucks a gallon over here.