11 Aug 06
High-performance cams, a forged steel crank, powdered metal conrods and sodium-filled valves have also pushed the peak engine speed up from 5,400rpm in the regular 300C V8 to 6,200rpm in the SRT-8. It's hooked up to a five-speed automatic gearbox with manual override and drives the rear wheels.
Even with a hefty 2340kg kerb weight, the SRT-8 still touches 60mph in five seconds dead and goes on to 168mph, which pokes a sharp stick in the eye of the M5 and E 63 AMG, both of which are limited to 155mph.
To ensure the chassis can keep up with the engine, the SRT-8 gets bespoke Bilstein dampers, recalibrated springs, fatter anti-roll bars, a 13mm lower ride height and less assistance on the power steering for improved feel. The brakes also get overhauled - Chrysler turned to Brembo to develop the anchors on the SRT-8, getting 360mm front and 350mm rear discs, all ventilated and gripped by four-piston racing calipers.
The cabin gets the full works, too, with electrically adjustable leather-wrapped sports seats, dual-zone climate control, leather and brushed aluminium highlights, and a whopping 280-watt, six-speaker audio system. Build quality is decent enough, but some of the plastics are a little hard and brittle.
Track time. Oddly enough, for a mildly tuned big V8, the Hemi feels merely very brisk below 3500rpm, as if the torque curve is not quite as high and flat as it should be. But wind it over 4,000rpm and the engine really shifts. In-gear go is terrific, the SRT-8 squatting down on its fat haunches, catapulting forward and blaring out a nape-tingling V8 wail that would sound at home on a NASCAR oval. This engine loves to rev, and blipping the throttle at idle zips it up to an easy 3,000rpm and rocks the whole car for that true muscle car feeling.
One of the great things about the Nurburgring is that its surface is rutted, pitted, peppered with off-camber corners and generally made up of dozens of different patches of tarmac and concrete - just like a typical British A-road. Despite its huge wheels, stiff suspension and rubber-band tyres, the big Chrysler's suspension does a pretty good job of dealing with all but the worst intrusions, only getting jittery over the most acned surfaces.
