Lee-- I have been running the Goodrich Comp TA in a 245/50-17 for two years now. They were rated OK for the 7" rims. The Goodrich Scorchers are also rated OK in that size for the 7" rims. The Scorchers have the colors in the tread--blue,yellow, or red and I think you can get the plain black too. John Wyche had those on his ride and he may be able to give you some input on their performance. I rate the Comp TAs as OK, better than the Badyears but I do have to watch the air pressure at least every 2 weeks to be sure I haven't lost any. So far they have been behaving after I had the inside of two of the rims shaved of rust. But the car is 5+ years old now.
Sounds like a pretty good deal to me. Still, it couldn't hurt to try to talk 'em down a little more. All you can lose is time. Did you price it out using Edmunds TMV? I felt it was a pretty good guide when I bought mine.
Tirerack has been very bad the last year or so about load ratings, size's etc. #1 reeason I do not use them. They wouldn't give me a set of tires cause they said the rim woudln't support it even though the tire maker said it would. It's all about legalilty, so you can not hold them responsiable if you crash. There are ways around it though if you really want to use them.
I'm not an owner yet guys - just an aspiring one - sigh!
I'm taking the boards advice and going to try and talk the guy down some more. The Edmunds guide says 32K something was a good buy. Perhaps I'm just being pushy in wanting 0% interest too?
I had both input and output tranny speed sensors on my 99M replaced as preventive maintenance when I had the tranny serviced last month at 61K miles, and I think the dealer overcharged you for the service on your car. My 5* charged: Parts 23.38 each [x2] and $56 for labor. Total $102. These are simple plug in modules if you know how to do them, so I think they should owe you some money back on that repair.
Thanks for the welcome. I do absolutely love my car. It is amazing to drive. Mine is an 02m. It is white with the grey leather interior. The board is real informative. The tire info will be helpful. I travel weekly in the gorge between NC an TN. Has anyone had any major problems with their 300?
No, I didn't see those; thanks for posting it. But there's a lot of tape and covering, and at this stage I think that might still be a pre-production mule used to test suspension, NVH, safety, whatever. Keep the faith and hope; maybe the General will do the right thing with the car. DMC and Ford have dropped the ball, GM is our only domestic hope.
I just picked up my M after having the dealer replace the front passenger side window motor, and they also charged me $140 to replace the "lift plate" attachment points? They said they were broken and had to replace them, I told them to go ahead,and that it would take a day for the new "attachments" to dry after they used epoxy to glue them to the window glass. This sounds really fishy to me, but since I was out of town and could not go look, I told them to do it. I also found this TSB on alldata, anyone know the details? I may not have remembered the term correctly, so give me some leeway... 23-039-00 OCT 00 Door Glass Lift Plate - Service
What bulbs has anyone used? What kind of improvement have you seen? 5* has new bulbs for $27 ea that they claim will give 20% more light. Install is extra. Is it worth it? Appreciate any info. How do you install them? Really looks like you have to have a thin rubber arm to get to them.
The Car Connection has information and a picture of the production model 300C. Looks a little less German than the concept to me, but still looks like a hefty cruiser rather than a sports sedan.
Anyone got any ideas for some rims that would look really nice on the 300M? I don't mind the stock ones, but I'd love to see something that looks a bit more sporty and a little less like grandpa.
BTW, I may very well have a new 300 in my hands this weekend. She's stout - Black and Loaded - not a special though.
This link has a long write-up and several pics of both, including inside. They both look awesome to me, with the exception of the weird Magnum front end (I don't like it either). But then again, I've come to very much like huge, heavy, powerful, V8 cars (now that we have a '92 Buick Roadmaster LTD, a '93 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham (mine!), and a '02 Chevy Avalanche Z66--all huge, RWD, and V8).
They seem like hefty German tanks with 320 American Hemi V8 horses to the rear wheels...you can't get much better than that! I can't wait until they arrive so I can take the Caddy over to the Chrysler dealer and take a new 300C out for a spin!
The Dodge Magnum wagon looks like the perfect vehicle for a funeral home director; it's a sporty version of a hearst. As for that 300C, looks like a nice car some in the over-50 set might consider sporty. Nothing against the over-50 set, but it's a fact that they buy much more conservative offerings than a younger crowd. Otto, I believe there is another car plant, I forget if it's GM or who, but at the risk of being brutally honest, you might start looking for a spot there now and beat the rush. DMC looks like its going to crash in a flaming fashion. First the Liberty, then the Pacifica, and now the magnum and 300C. 3 strikes and you're either out or in deep ____.
I agree with bluesky, I don't know where DC is going, all their new vehicles look like trucks, and the Pacifica is a high priced wanabee of a SUV, and in my neck of the woods is really not selling very well.
My '99 M turned 52,000 miles this morning. With each milestone I become more aware of the potential for problems (generaly an unfounded fear so far, though...). Almost at the exact moment that the odo hit 52K, the climate control started blasting hot air. I shut the CC off, yet it would not shut off. So, rebooted the car and all was well for my 20 mile commute to work. Evil wife and I switched cars yesterday, she reported getting "The Light Show." Bad omens??? Gosh, I hope not.
For 52K basically trouble-free miles, I have truly enjoyed this beautifully styled, practical, fun and economical car. I'm hoping to get at least another year with her. No 300C for me, mostly based on styling. Maybe an E class which I find to be a very nice design, in and out. Except for that pesky price tag, though!
Anyone ever have an experience with the CC that I described above? Could it be the dreaded Body Control Module?
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
Only thing similar to what you had on yours was that a couple of times the CC has decided to blow cold air at its own discretion, and would not obey my attempt to make it stop. My solution like yours was to shut off the car and restart it and it worked normally again. This only happened twice in 5.5 years. I suspect a computer gremlin. No problems at 62K on my 99.
In my case, at least, the 300C doesn't work for the "over 50 set" ( I'm 64). In fact, I haven't seen any other car in my price range that I would swap even for my 300M. Mine has over 70K miles on it now and, unless something better comes along, I plan to drive it 'til the wheels fall off. The 300C is just plain UGLY! Lynn Flowers
Recently the transmission range indicator (PRND1234) in my instrument cluster is messed up. It often won't display that I am in Neutral when the others work (it stays stuck in Drive, then when I go to Reverse it lights up N then R), sometimes does not show that I am in Park (it sits at Reverse), it often will display that I am in all of PRND1234 (all squares lit), and once in Neutral it indicated nothing at all. Sometimes it will display P when started (after the startup test of all lit), then it will light them all again after a few seconds. Sometimes it works just fine.
As far as I can tell so far, the car's transmission operates just fine, regardless of what the indicators say. The Service Manual states that the Transmission Range Sensor tells the Transmission Control Module what gear it is in, and this is all located in the transmission itself. I mention this because I was just mucking about inside the center console beneath the shift lever, but I didn't touch the shift linkages or other cables and wires down there that were not part of my aftermarket car alarm. If I had screwed it up from inside the cabin, the transmission wouldn't be shifting when I use the lever. I think my recent work and this problem are coincidental.
Any ideas? I've tried unplugging the TCM fuse for a while to no avail.
Yes, I guess the new vehicles do look like trucks. The magnum has some of that. i can't tell where DMC is going either, and you don't see many Pacifica's in my section of the wwoods (NorthEast) either, unless you're driving by a Chrysler car lot.
As for the 300C just being ugly despite ones age, I agree. I don't know why I tried to pull age into it; I guess I'm always reading about car manufacturers trying to appeal to a younger age segment, like Cadillac w/their CTS and Toyota with the Matrix and Celica. But if a car is ugly it's ugly no matter how old you are. I'm not a spring chicken myself anymore, as I fit into the over-40 group, but these offerings don't appeal to me.
I read that DMC is set to introduce 10 new models in the coming year or so. Let's consider their recent track record. 1) The Jeep Liberty is overweight with poor fuel mileage. It's built like granite and great for riding the Rubicon trail, but that's not what 95% of Americans want an SUV tailored for; we seldom go offroad. 2) The Pacifica has uninspired styling and is priced in the category of luxury vehicles. Chrysler hasn't earned the reputation of service and quality yet that one would think would be necessary to even think about moving upmarket with a plain SUV. I can't imagine why anyone would buy a Pacifica over an Acura MDX. 3) The magnum and 300C has left 300M owners with no Chrysler premium sedans to turn to, as vehicle weight is going up over 400 pounds and the cars look like trucks and are in a whole different segment of the market. 4) the 300M started out with rave reviews in '98, but DMC wouldn't refine it like the other manufacturers so it lost its premier position. That was a great opportunity lost!
Let's hope that isn't the final production version. The [non-permissible content removed] end looks strange ---kind of like a mini aztek. The top should meet the rear of the car and look smoother.
The digital tach in my last car (1990 Buick Regal Gran Sport -- the best looking digital display on a car ever) flaked out. I think it would display a reading for a while and then hold it until it accepted/received a new signal. The problem went away when I got a new computer for another problem. This is acting similarly.
It doesn't read P or N. When placed in either position, it will not indicate it, but after about five seconds it will light up all of them. It seems to know that it isn't getting a correct signal and goes to startup test mode.
When I start up the car, it will initially display P, but after the few seconds it start tests again, even if I had turned off the car after it went into start test mode.
You know, it could have been doing this for months and I probably wouldn't have noticed -- I don't sit with the car on in P or N. Maybe you all want to check yours...
Has anyone tried this tire? It just came out in August and all the tire dealers around here are promoting it. Obviously, it is designed for good wet weather traction, but I am concerned about the mixed messages I'm getting re: snow traction. I called Tire Rack and the guy I talked to said it was NOT good in the snow. Yet on Michelin's web site, they rate it 8 out of 10 in snow, higher than any other all-season they make. Michelin is having a promotion (at least at Costco) for $60 off per set of any tire from Oct. 13-Nov.2.
Indy, I would suggest you go to tire rack web site. They list the reviews from buyers of the varied tires, and also a rating, based on owner feedback, of all kinds of categories including snow traction.
I plan to get some new tires soon, and based on my research, primarily spending hours reading Tire Rack review, manufacturers literature, and the consumer reports literature, I think I'll opt for one of the new high performance all season tires that they are now marketing. I've narrowed it down to 3: Pirelli pZero Nero M&S (note that this is ratedmuch higher than the old pZero) 2) Bridgestone Turanza LS-Z and 3) Continental ContiExtreme Contact. The Pirellis and Contis are a bargain, the z-rated Bridgestone would be around $200 a tire before extras and installation.
The Michelin Energy MXV4 Plus was rated quite highly by CR, and it is one of the few tires rated highly for quietness. If I was going for Michelins I would go for these. Supposedly very good fuel mileage as rolling resistance is very low.
I saw the TV commercials for this new tire and, since I'm currently in the market for new tires, I've done a bit of research on it. From what I can find out, it appears to be more of a mainstream passenger car tire that tries to maximize wet traction rather that a true high performance all season tire such as I am shopping for. I've decided to order a set of Pirelli PZero Nero's tomorrow. Tire Rack rates them as the number 1 all season ultra hi performance tire on the market and they rate high in dry, wet, and snow conditions and also rate as a relatively quiet tire. After mine are installed and I get a chance to evaluate them for a while, I'll post my comments on them. Lynn Flowers
That would be great to get an update on the Pzeros. Let us know how Costco is to deal with too. I'll be buying something soon, upgrading from my Pilot Sport HXs, so I'll post the results also. But I may wait to hear how the PZeros are first; they're at a pretty decent price point for their segment and rated very highly as you pointed out. Tire Rack may say they're number one, but they're actually just about tied with the Bridgestones if you do a compaerison.
nice ride, indeed. like the wheels a lot too. but i like comfort and bang for the buck, i still think the plain vanilla m w/o upgrades looks quite hot.
Lflowers, for what it's worth, CR rates the PZeros 6th in the "ultra high performance" category. The top 3 slots go to Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3, Toyo Proxes T1-S, and Continental ContiSportContact 2. OK, I'll shut up now. I'm monopolizing too much real estate on this board w/my msgs.
"Otto, I believe there is another car plant, I forget if it's GM or who, but at the risk of being brutally honest, you might start looking for a spot there now and beat the rush."
No worries here , I feel these cars will sell very well. Maybe not to the current 300 crowd but if they can sell Azteks , Elements , CTS and the like we will have no problem selling the 300 and Magnums.
Interesting that you mentioned that you were messing about with something else under the dash just before your PRND1234 problem.
In June, I removed my custom clockface (as provided by you) from my leased 300M and installed it in my new purchased 300M. The next day, I drove my leased 300M to downtown LA. I began having check engine light messages and finally, after I had parked the car (27 mile trip), it wouldn't start -- wouldn't turn over -- completely dead. It was towed to the dealer where it took a day to determine that the main computer was gone. It was replaced and the car was then fine.
I don't think I touched anything but the clock mechanism and I thought the timing of the failure was coincidental, but now I'm wondering after your current experience....
Well, due to the nature of the problem I really can't say when it started happening. I only sat in the car in Park with the engine on for an extended period of time because I was working on it, and it was then that I noticed it. As it turns out, I will almost never see this problem manifest itself. But I know it's there, and that annoys me greatly!
And I was in the shift knob (center console), not the dash. The only connection to the problem is the shift cable, which I didn't touch. The car knows what gear it's in; it's just not telling the cluster.
Comments
I have an '03 Special, Graphite Metallic w/ Dark Slate interior.
I'm taking the boards advice and going to try and talk the guy down some more. The Edmunds guide says 32K something was a good buy. Perhaps I'm just being pushy in wanting 0% interest too?
Special Mirrors -jediknight2b. As long as your M is a 2002 or newer the Special mirrors will plug right in .
Will the signal lights work as well?
23-039-00 OCT 00 Door Glass Lift Plate - Service
YUP !!
How do you install them? Really looks like you have to have a thin rubber arm to get to them.
They should have changed the grill!
http://www.thecarconnection.com/index.asp?article=6499
BTW, I may very well have a new 300 in my hands this weekend. She's stout - Black and Loaded - not a special though.
Personally, I think the stock silver aluminum looks great, but I have a matching silver M...
They seem like hefty German tanks with 320 American Hemi V8 horses to the rear wheels...you can't get much better than that! I can't wait until they arrive so I can take the Caddy over to the Chrysler dealer and take a new 300C out for a spin!
The link:
http://www.cars.com/news/stories/100703_storya_cc.jhtml
part of the 300C (midsection, with the low roof and chrome mirror housings) reminds me a bit of a Jag XJ.
For 52K basically trouble-free miles, I have truly enjoyed this beautifully styled, practical, fun and economical car. I'm hoping to get at least another year with her. No 300C for me, mostly based on styling. Maybe an E class which I find to be a very nice design, in and out. Except for that pesky price tag, though!
Anyone ever have an experience with the CC that I described above? Could it be the dreaded Body Control Module?
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
The 300C is just plain UGLY!
Lynn Flowers
As far as I can tell so far, the car's transmission operates just fine, regardless of what the indicators say. The Service Manual states that the Transmission Range Sensor tells the Transmission Control Module what gear it is in, and this is all located in the transmission itself. I mention this because I was just mucking about inside the center console beneath the shift lever, but I didn't touch the shift linkages or other cables and wires down there that were not part of my aftermarket car alarm. If I had screwed it up from inside the cabin, the transmission wouldn't be shifting when I use the lever. I think my recent work and this problem are coincidental.
Any ideas? I've tried unplugging the TCM fuse for a while to no avail.
As for the 300C just being ugly despite ones age, I agree. I don't know why I tried to pull age into it; I guess I'm always reading about car manufacturers trying to appeal to a younger age segment, like Cadillac w/their CTS and Toyota with the Matrix and Celica. But if a car is ugly it's ugly no matter how old you are. I'm not a spring chicken myself anymore, as I fit into the over-40 group, but these offerings don't appeal to me.
I read that DMC is set to introduce 10 new models in the coming year or so. Let's consider their recent track record. 1) The Jeep Liberty is overweight with poor fuel mileage. It's built like granite and great for riding the Rubicon trail, but that's not what 95% of Americans want an SUV tailored for; we seldom go offroad. 2) The Pacifica has uninspired styling and is priced in the category of luxury vehicles. Chrysler hasn't earned the reputation of service and quality yet that one would think would be necessary to even think about moving upmarket with a plain SUV. I can't imagine why anyone would buy a Pacifica over an Acura MDX. 3) The magnum and 300C has left 300M owners with no Chrysler premium sedans to turn to, as vehicle weight is going up over 400 pounds and the cars look like trucks and are in a whole different segment of the market. 4) the 300M started out with rave reviews in '98, but DMC wouldn't refine it like the other manufacturers so it lost its premier position. That was a great opportunity lost!
http://info.detnews.com/autosinsider/sneakpeek/index.cfm?id=10991
http://info.detnews.com/autosinsider/sneakpeek/index.cfm?id=10855
It doesn't read P or N. When placed in either position, it will not indicate it, but after about five seconds it will light up all of them. It seems to know that it isn't getting a correct signal and goes to startup test mode.
When I start up the car, it will initially display P, but after the few seconds it start tests again, even if I had turned off the car after it went into start test mode.
You know, it could have been doing this for months and I probably wouldn't have noticed -- I don't sit with the car on in P or N. Maybe you all want to check yours...
I plan to get some new tires soon, and based on my research, primarily spending hours reading Tire Rack review, manufacturers literature, and the consumer reports literature, I think I'll opt for one of the new high performance all season tires that they are now marketing. I've narrowed it down to 3: Pirelli pZero Nero M&S (note that this is ratedmuch higher than the old pZero) 2) Bridgestone Turanza LS-Z and 3) Continental ContiExtreme Contact. The Pirellis and Contis are a bargain, the z-rated Bridgestone would be around $200 a tire before extras and installation.
The Michelin Energy MXV4 Plus was rated quite highly by CR, and it is one of the few tires rated highly for quietness. If I was going for Michelins I would go for these. Supposedly very good fuel mileage as rolling resistance is very low.
Lynn Flowers
No worries here , I feel these cars will sell very well. Maybe not to the current 300 crowd but if they can sell Azteks , Elements , CTS and the like we will have no problem selling the 300 and Magnums.
In June, I removed my custom clockface (as provided by you) from my leased 300M and installed it in my new purchased 300M. The next day, I drove my leased 300M to downtown LA. I began having check engine light messages and finally, after I had parked the car (27 mile trip), it wouldn't start -- wouldn't turn over -- completely dead. It was towed to the dealer where it took a day to determine that the main computer was gone. It was replaced and the car was then fine.
I don't think I touched anything but the clock mechanism and I thought the timing of the failure was coincidental, but now I'm wondering after your current experience....
And I was in the shift knob (center console), not the dash. The only connection to the problem is the shift cable, which I didn't touch. The car knows what gear it's in; it's just not telling the cluster.
Shouldn't have removed that clock face... :-)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&cate- gory=6175&item=2436795095