I just recently bought a 2007 Dodge Charger with the Police Package at 94K miles for about $8K. I was wondering what I should do to my car to tune it up a little, or personalize it, or maybe just make it get a few more miles per gallon.
It has a 5.7L V8.
I know one of the first things I will be doing is replacing the god awful carpeting and converting it to a floor shifter. Researched this, will cost aprox. $250.
Make it sound good.. new headunit, subs, speakers?
Rims?
Tint?
Lower it?
Exhaust?
Plugs n wires (IIRC it's a 4 coil COP wastes spark setup.. so 4 wires to change) if it hasn't been done yet.
Keep an eye on other chargers, etc.. might be stuff like converting to floor shift and all that that you see and want to do on your own.
[QUOTE=clutch2;42125591]Make it sound good.. new headunit, subs, speakers?
Rims?
Tint?
Lower it?
Exhaust?
Plugs n wires (IIRC it's a 4 coil COP wastes spark setup.. so 4 wires to change) if it hasn't been done yet.
Keep an eye on other chargers, etc.. might be stuff like converting to floor shift and all that that you see and want to do on your own.[/QUOTE]
There's a shop about an hour away from where I live that has MANY, MANY totaled Chargers. I'm buying a map light, interior carpet, shifting kit (wires, stick, etc), and a few other things for about $250. I was thinking about changing out the spark plug wires and plugs.. Though.. It's a HEMI, so I'd have to replace 16 plugs. Oh boy.
I'm planning to get a tuner for it, for increased fuel economy, and slightly more HP. And after I get a few spare piles of cash, I'll install a ram air hood (or shaker) with cold air.
Oh yeah, does anyone have suggestions on a head unit? The stock radio is pretty awful.
[QUOTE=Lerlth;42125717]There's a shop about an hour away from where I live that has MANY, MANY totaled Chargers. I'm buying a map light, interior carpet, shifting kit (wires, stick, etc), and a few other things for about $250. I was thinking about changing out the spark plug wires and plugs.. Though.. It's a HEMI, so I'd have to replace 16 plugs. Oh boy.
I'm planning to get a tuner for it, for increased fuel economy, and slightly more HP. And after I get a few spare piles of cash, I'll install a ram air hood (or shaker) with cold air.
Oh yeah, does anyone have suggestions on a head unit? The stock radio is pretty awful.[/QUOTE]
Pioneer, Sony, and JVC make good head units for the money, though if you're replacing that you might as well go for a speaker replacement as well. I spent about $160 on the six speakers in my blazer, and those were Pioneer ones.
Indeed it is the pits. A very weak power output from it I've found.
Do you want a fancy headunit? Let's explore the following features to decide just how hardcore you'd like to get
Din or DDin?
Bluetooth? (both for handsfree calling and wireless audio streaming)
Color change?
Navigation?
Rear auxiliary / usb input, or front on the face of the radio?
You can get 4 nice speakers for that car to really up the sound quality, too, like was said. Which ones you chose will depend on whether you get a sub or not in the future.. if you get a sub you'll want speakers that will focus heavily on mids/ highs for clarity and volume, and let the sub to the bass work.
If you don't plan on getting a sub and still want bass, it'll be all about getting speakers that will be able to produce both a healthy bass note, as well as good mids and highs for music. A lot of times, depending on how much bass is wanted, a 4ch amp is necessary to get it where you need to be.
For example, I did Polk DXI 6.5 components in the front, and 6x9s in the rear of a 300. After I put them on a 4x100wrms amp they beat like a little 10".
For a head unit, I'd like to spend no more than $300. Perferbely DDin with Bluetooth. Navigation would be nice, but not required, I usually use my phone if need be. Aux input over USB.
I know nothing about car speakers. I know a little about head units, but I'm more of a under the hood type of guy.
Oh and, is it possible to get a different cluster for the dash? The current one is a little hard to read. It goes from 0-160, but only bolds by 20's. My current vehicle (95' Dodge Dakota Sport V8) has it by 10's and a notch every 5. Much easier to read. The needle covers about 3 notches in the Charger. Which, is enough to get a ticket.
[QUOTE=Lerlth;42126448]For a head unit, I'd like to spend no more than $300. Perferbely DDin with Bluetooth. Navigation would be nice, but not required, I usually use my phone if need be. Aux input over USB.
I know nothing about car speakers. I know a little about head units, but I'm more of a under the hood type of guy.
Oh and, is it possible to get a different cluster for the dash? The current one is a little hard to read. It goes from 0-160, but only bolds by 20's. My current vehicle (95' Dodge Dakota Sport V8) has it by 10's and a notch every 5. Much easier to read. The needle covers about 3 notches in the Charger. Which, is enough to get a ticket.[/QUOTE]
Cluser swaps are easy. Well, it depends on the car, but most cars of the same brand swaping clusters is simply plug and play. Wiring shouldn't be the issue, I'd more be worried about if it would fit or not. Just check the mounting points on the OEM cluster and the one you wanna swap. If they are the same its usually plug n play.
One thing i would do first for sure, change all fluids and filters.
Engine oil/filter, tranny fluid/filter, rear diff oil, steering fluid, brake fluid, coolant, fuel filter, air filter.
If you dont change them, who knows the last time they were?
If possible, id also put it up on a lift and inspect everything.
Check wheel bearings, tie rods, pretty much look for anything that could go wrong.
After buying and helping sell many cars, ive seen quite a few used cars that were supposedly in great shape, end up having many issues.
One such story, my dad bought an 02 Camaro for a DD. Had about 75k miles iirc. Ran beautifully, rode amazing. But we noticed the rear end made odd noises. After further inspection, the Camaro had a bent axle (think banana kind of bent)
[QUOTE=Lerlth;42126448]For a head unit, I'd like to spend no more than $300. Perferbely DDin with Bluetooth. Navigation would be nice, but not required, I usually use my phone if need be. Aux input over USB.
I know nothing about car speakers. I know a little about head units, but I'm more of a under the hood type of guy.
Oh and, is it possible to get a different cluster for the dash? The current one is a little hard to read. It goes from 0-160, but only bolds by 20's. My current vehicle (95' Dodge Dakota Sport V8) has it by 10's and a notch every 5. Much easier to read. The needle covers about 3 notches in the Charger. Which, is enough to get a ticket.[/QUOTE]
For 300 you won't get anything with navigation. Do you have an Iphone?? If you have an Iphone you can get a Pioneer that can do advanced App mode and run Navi apps off your phone.
This would fit the bill pretty good.. can find it cheaper than list price.
[url]http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Car/DVD-Receivers/AVH-X3500BHS[/url]
Kenwood makes nice DDIN units, too!! Just not quite as connected with the Iphone stuff I find.
[url]http://www.crutchfield.com/fg_168550_FFBrand%7cKenwood/Kenwood-In-dash-DVD-Receivers.html?tp=20220&avf=N[/url]
The only thing to keep in mind, if it's the factory radio like this, with the ears:
[img]http://www.carstereo.com/images/classifieds/charger%20radio.jpg[/img]
You will need to cut the dash bezel just a little to make a DDIN fit. Very easy, but yea.
Otherwise you can buy a factory nav bezel:
[img]http://l.yimg.com/dv/ag/dodge_charger_srt8_2007_dashboard_11.jpg[/img]
This just replaced the dash plate there, making it the correct size for a DDIN with no cutting, just using a dash kit.
Good stuff there. Anywho..
Wanna run a sub/subs in there for bass?
As for the cluster swap.. take a peek at the SRT8 chargers and 300/ 300C clusters.. see if any are different or special. Those should all swap right in.
And like FordLord said.. all that stuff is smart maintenance to do for sure!!
Arrest people woop woop
[QUOTE=clutch2;42128627]Bunch of helpful stuffz[/QUOTE]
I have an android phone and unlimited data, so the navigation thing it's much of a worry. More of a luxury. Thanks for the head unit info, I'll look into finding a new speaker + sub setup.
[editline]9th September 2013[/editline]
[QUOTE=A_Pigeon;42130360]Arrest people woop woop[/QUOTE]
Vigilante police cruiser?
Get an LED light bar and some wig-wags. Wholah vigilante police.
Your car is going to break on you. Theres a reason why police cars are sold with ~100k on them for cheap.
Invest in getting your transmission checked.
Pics please :v:
on a police cruiser, 94k miles means 94 bazillion idle hours. have a mechanic check it out before you go modding it
[QUOTE=butre;42134421]on a police cruiser, 94k miles means 94 bazillion idle hours. have a mechanic check it out before you go modding it[/QUOTE]
I told the people I wouldn't buy it unless it was fully inspected. They've changed the oil, plugs, ABS, and a slew of other things. If my calculations are correct, they're now losing money on it. So, I really don't mind paying what I did. They've already called me asking if I wanted to wait 2 weeks for the back ordered part or buy a different car, I think it's because the part they replaced was about $1000. So, yup.
My father is also a mechanic, and we're going to do a full tune up as soon as we can.
[editline]10th September 2013[/editline]
[QUOTE=dass;42131604]Pics please :v:[/QUOTE]
You never realize how huge the wheels are until you see them in person.
[t]http://cimg.carsforsale.com/493342/BF03E604-D3E9-4427-80FB-42F34F21DADA_1.jpg[/t]
[t]http://cimg.carsforsale.com/493342/BF03E604-D3E9-4427-80FB-42F34F21DADA_2.jpg[/t]
[editline]10th September 2013[/editline]
Sweet. Just got the factory map light in the mail.
[editline]10th September 2013[/editline]
[QUOTE=KnightVista;42130839]Get an LED light bar and some wig-wags. Wholah vigilante police.[/QUOTE]
[url]http://youtu.be/roreagfb-4c[/url] ?
[QUOTE=Lerlth;42136695]
[t]http://cimg.carsforsale.com/493342/BF03E604-D3E9-4427-80FB-42F34F21DADA_1.jpg[/t]
[t]http://cimg.carsforsale.com/493342/BF03E604-D3E9-4427-80FB-42F34F21DADA_2.jpg[/t]
[/QUOTE]
Man, that thing looks Bad-ass. That's something I always liked about LX-platform cars: they look awesome, all of them. Even when it's diminished it still looks above-average.
That's actually bad ass, I thought it would be kinda boring.
[QUOTE=masterwolf;42127374]Cluser swaps are easy. Well, it depends on the car, but most cars of the same brand swaping clusters is simply plug and play. Wiring shouldn't be the issue, I'd more be worried about if it would fit or not. Just check the mounting points on the OEM cluster and the one you wanna swap. If they are the same its usually plug n play.[/QUOTE]
Clusters look the same but are not plug abd play. Every cluster swap ive done requires a repin on the harnesses. Also on newer cars, with automatic transmissions, the cluster is part of the circuit, and will make the teansmission shift wrong, or hard, or just not function. No idea why it is, but run into that problem a lit. The temperaturw gauge will likely not function, etc... I would not mess with anything in the dash of a car of that caliber unless you really knew what you were doing to a t. The h. U. Is a different story, granted, you know how to pull the dash apart.
[editline]10th September 2013[/editline]
[QUOTE=areolop;42131182]Your car is going to break on you. Theres a reason why police cars are sold with ~100k on them for cheap.
Invest in getting your transmission checked.[/QUOTE]
TThen taxi companies buy them and drive them for 100k more miles. Ive owned interceptors before. Theres nothing wrong with it. The ones you dont want are the taxis. Those ones are truly dead and abused to the end
Oh and in case any one is wondering, a big part of my purchase was because the insurance is much lower than an RT or SRT8. Even though it's basically an RT (with a few mods), it's still considered an SXT. So I get a V8 with the insurance cost of a V6.
Good deal, ah?
[QUOTE=Lerlth;42139396]Oh and in case any one is wondering, a big part of my purchase was because the insurance is much lower than an RT or SRT8. Even though it's basically an RT (with a few mods), it's still considered an SXT. So I get a V8 with the insurance cost of a V6.
Good deal, ah?[/QUOTE]
that's a real good deal then, I might have to get a police auction charger in that case
I thought decommissioned Crown Vics looked good, That charger is amazing.
Damn that Charger.
Now thats a sweet first car...
that charger is sick! id tint it out for sure.
Super 44 it
[QUOTE=CubeManv2;42142608]Super 44 it[/QUOTE]
Ehh, I'm not sure. I was thinking about getting exhaust dumps. I don't really like to have a loud car ALL the time, but when playing around that's alright. Plus, isn't it like $1000 to have those installed? I don't have a garage to work on something like the exhausts.
Super 44s sound great. Can pick up for like $100 bucks a pop used and then just weld em in where the old ones were. Probably like $300 installed?
one word: glasspack
cherrybomb vortex sounds better imo
do this, i'll literally come over to you and do what ever you want me to do to you
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrnTN97c-p8[/media]
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