For those of you that don't know already, my father picked up a Magnum RT a couple weeks ago. I got to drive it from time to time over the last week and here are my impressions.

First and formost let me point out, it is NOT a station wagon. It may look like a station wagon, and it may have the practicality of one, but the Magnum RT is a hot rod as soon as you sit in the drivers seat. It feels lowslung and aggressive, much like one would expect to feel in some chopped and slammed 30s hotrod, it even looks the part from the outside. The interior is very spacious, as to be expected. It's pretty minimalist inside, with a black dash and lots of little chrome accents around which lend to the hotrod feel of the car. The black dash material is a bit odd and almost sticky to the touch and some small accent parts seem a little cheap, but I'm not one to care a whole lot about interior materials. The light tan interior is pleasing to the eye and again simple. The best part of the inside is by far the white dials, but I've had a weird thing for those ever since Nissan put them in the Maxima.

Fire it up and you get the muted sound of what might be a V8 at idle, it's really hard to tell since the exhaust is rather subdued before the car is set in motion. The throttle on the car is a little odd at first, it's really tough to find that middle range area between snails pace and laying rubber. I see a recall or TSB in the near future for this one since it's to the point that it can startle you (my dad has a 8 foot patch of rubber at the bottom of his driveway to prove it). But it's a minor quibble that I'm sure will get worked out. Getting used to the feel of the car just rolling at around 30mph down a side street the first thing I notice is the car is stiff, and I'm reminded yet again this is no station wagon. It's almost rough, but not unpleasantly for me but I could see how some of the older or less enthusiast type crowd won't like it. It's reworked Mercedes E class suspension for those that don't know. To give you an idea I would say it's stiffer than the RX-8 and my WRX. It handles really well, but I never truely tested the limits 'sorry dad I just wrapped your new 35k car around a tree' was not coming out of my mouth, not this week at least . I think it's safe to say it handles well enough to please most auto enthusiasts, however at extreme limits some of the electronic gadgetry may bother some.

The Hemi, let's see... HOLY CRAP I forgot how much fun a big V8 could be. Mashing the pedal and listening to the engine is addicting, I found myself coasting to sub speelimit MPH just to mash the pedal again for a few seconds. It pulls hard and efforftlessly and this was only in full auto mode (shifting well before redline), not in manumatic. I think it's one of the only times I've driven an AT and didn't wish I had gears to row through. The brute force of the torque and horsepower along with the great sound of the Hemi is intoxicating and mates very well to the AT. I finally understand why so many of the big V8 guys prefer the auto tranny. I'd liken the acceleration feel to a pissed off charging bull while the WRX or RX-8 is more like an angry feline (I.E. don't mess with one unless you don't mind seeing wagon tailights).

It's a great car and my hat goes off to Chrysler, it's a great package all around and I'm looking forward to driving it again in the near future. Don't like the wagon and want a little less hotod and a little more luxury the 300C should fit the bill.

EDIT: Forgot to mention the part where the cars runs off of 4 cylinders at cruising speed isn't even detectable, nifty little feature I say.

 

sorry for the poor lighting and quality

 

front

 

guages (the steering wheel feels great!)

 

I think I could take him... :p

 

Dirty interior

 

It won't stay stock for long, messing with cars seems to run in the family (my sister's bug and my stepmom's PT)

 

Another interior

 

The wheels, for now... including puncture proof contitouring tires

 

The bug again because I think it's a neat little car

 

Hotrod PT

 

Lastone

 

sweet! thanks IKE. one question- what's with you guys and white? except for your sister's bug every other vehicle in the pics is white!! nice shots of the Magnum.

 

My Dad has a thing for white cars and it's rubbed off on me a bit, though the WRX is my first white car. Mainly I got the WRX in white because the blue and silver are very common, I could never drive a yellow car unless it's a supercar, and the red was the maroonish color for the 03s. My bro has the steel gray MDX and a silver audi. The two white SuVs belong to the neighbors and are for towing boats, there are a couple classic cars in the garage.

 

I'm still not positive about the Magnum/300 styling. Sometimes I really like it and other times not so much, but I have a feeling it will grow on me.

I do like what Chrysler, and other US automakers are doing. They are going back to powerful rear-wheel drive cars. It is not a trend I'm opposed to. :D


My only question Ike, is how much did it run you dad exactly?

 

as stated in another thread...Chrysler has a winner.

I've seen more of these already in a week then I have seen of the RX-8 in six months.

 

Chrysler already has a 300C vert and coupe in the works and Dodge will be releasing a Sedan and Coupe version of the magnum as well as a a revival of the Charger nameplate. In addition the Magnum SRT-8 is in the works and will reportedly be pumping out 425hp. I see Chrysler sales skyrocketing in the next few years.

 

of course, all the success is ONE BIG RECALL away to be squandered....

 

I like your WRX Ike . White cars are cool. I like the Dodge Magnum for some reason. The idea of a Hemi-powered wagon sounds really vintage. Vintage things can be cool too, like the SA22C Savanna RX-7 :D. I saw one while driving to Boudreaux's (my favorite restaurant) in Houston. It really sticks out. In Houston, you want to differentiate yourself from the behemoth SUVs.

 

I gotta tell ya, Ike, your WRX looks sweet but that magnum just looks UGLY. I mean, it looks so huge sitting on those poor wheels. The styling sure doesn't do it for me.

 

It's very large and muscular in person and if you don't like the grill on the Dodge trucks you'll never like the Magnum. THe wheels look bigger in person for some reason, though they are suprisingly more narrow that I expected them to be.

 

Whoops, missed your post Cueball. I believe it was about 35k out the door, and it has every option on it. I think the most basic RT model (Hemi) is S29,995. He didn't get much off MSRP, but talked them up on his trade in quite a bit. I think the biggest problem with liking it sometimes and not as much other times is the base models of the cars just don't look as nice, at least that's the case for me with the 300.

 

where is the pic of the patch your dad laid down??? I like the magnum. I think my dad should trade in his Pontiac montana for one. Don't you?

 

Seems that the magnum would harken to the 50s & 60s hotrods moreso than the 30s, but I certainly get the point - I wish they would've come out a year earlier (I might have had a real decision between the 8 and the 300C). These cars rock (love that liftgate on the Magnum) - I hope they sell 300,000 of them. I for one would love to be lost in a sea of 300Cs and Magnums than bloated, lumbering, SUVs.

 

I don't doubt they will sell a ton of them, and that's probably the biggest downside if you're the type of person that wants to be a little unique. You're right about the hotrods, I guess when I think chopped I think more about the 30s and 40s cars but it's doesn't really resemble those much.