Keepin it Stock?

[troutstreamnm]

Is anyone keeping their new Challenger Stock?    Seems like everyone is doing mods right off the showroom floor.  I've vowed not to touch my First Edition 2008 SRT-8 and feel like a some type of alien.  It's really hard believe me  I think I need some counseling...  :smilielo

[MEK-Dangerfield]

I modified the heck out of mine. It is only a an '09 S/E, so what the heck. It's my daily driver, and I'm having fun with it.

You are in another boat. I really think in the future those first 6400 are going to be the ones worth $$$. So if I'm in your shoes, I wouldn't modify it unless you plan to keep it for life, or don't care about resale value. If you think you might want to sell it in the future, being stock and being one of 6400 is a BIG bonus for you.

[Chryco Psycho]

Do you have 40 years to wait & do you think we will still be allowed  to drive these cars in 40 years

[hpe600rt]

do what you want its your car but when you get your ass handed to you by a ricer or camaro dont be suprized

[1ownr]

Let's see, we did buy ours new and have kept it for 39 years. We drove it for a daily driver for at least 8 years or so. It is not in perfect condition and needs restoration, but we are sure glad we still have it. I think we made the right decision. In your case, I'd keep it stock. The years will go by faster than you can imagine.

judy

just wish we would have ordered the hemi.....   

[71chally416]

do what you want its your car but when you get your ass handed to you by a ricer or camaro dont be suprized

   Do the easiest things with the best benefit. Exhaust, better tune, better air filter, a small 75 shot of nitrous for those special times when you really need it. Than tell everyone it's "totally stock" just like they do.

[BIGSHCLUNK]

Earl, if you want some mods... its your car do 'em. If there's the originallality concern, only do what you could switch back to stock down the line...   

[JH27N0B]

I'm of the opinion that this is like 1970 all over again.  These cars are made to be modified and personalized just like back in the day!
For the most part, I am doing things to mine that can be changed back to stock someday if I so desire.  And I won't throw away or sell anything I take off the car.
But for now, I will worry about originality, correct date codes and such on my Challenger T/A I am restoring, and worry about those things on my '09 in 20 years or so after I have enjoyed it like it was made to be enjoyed for several decades!

[EVIL72]

 If a car maybe worth something one day, you can still modify it if you want, just do the simple bolt on stuff. And save EVERYTHING you take off. Just don't cut anything. And try not to drill new holes for stuff if you can help it.

[troutstreamnm]

CP has a good point about the timing of value.  I could possibility keep this car for 20 years and hope the value is such that we could make some money selling it.  Who knows what will drive value in the future.  I'll think about reversible mods, but in the meantime, if I really look at my situation, it's not really bad to drive this car around stock    Thanks for the perspectives! 

[nakita7]

Don't have mine yet, waiting to see what 2011 brings. I wouldn't dream of modding one (except maybe an SE). I like them the way Chrysler built them, not the the way Joe's Garage built them.

[N96cuda]

These cars don't seem that rare to me  . I will be modding mine in the near future, nothing too wild as my wife enjoys driving it as is. The reason I say this is because I found the Cudas that I wanted 15-20 years after they were built and there were a LOT less of them built than the new Challengers. I also bought a 93 Mustang Cobra new (1 of 4993) and turned it into a 550 hp (at the wheels) hotrod. I took a little flack for the rollbars, etc. but I still had a full interior 10 second car driven to the track and back with a/c that was featured in a national magazine. The car currently has 22,000 miles but can never be returned to stock. I like it that way because I had a lot more fun than I ever could have had it remained stock and you can still find a clean low mileage 93 cobra without trying real hard. The bottom line is, do what ever makes you happiest with the car.

[Rare_T_A]

The only stuff I've done to mine can easily be switched back. Like others if I remove anything it's put away  in a tote. Maybe someday it will go to my new grandson. His parents are already all Mopar and he will be trained right too.   

For now I intend on enjoying it and will worry about value later. I have no intent on setting on it in hopes it will make me money. If that was the case I'd have just invested the money elsewhere.

[Chryco Psycho]

We met a guy in Edmonton 2 weeks ago who has a full load SRT8 PCP 6 spd & he is not going to put more than 18 miles on it ever , I hope things work out OK for him but in 20+ years who knows the government may refuse to allow them to be driven & he is the in 45-50 yo age range now .
 Meanwhile Mopargirl has done a # of mods & is enjoying the car now for her own personal pleasure as opposed to future finacial gain , neither is the wrong way we will just have to see what works out better .
 If you look at the Vipers the initial 93 Vipers have no value today as the breed has continued to improve over the years , it is easily possible that the same thing will happen with the first year Challengers that are Auto only , the newer 6.4 or possibly Viper powered Challs could be far more valuable in 20+ years .

[JH27N0B]

We met a guy in Edmonton 2 weeks ago who has a full load SRT8 PCP 6 spd & he is not going to put more than 18 miles on it ever , I hope things work out OK for him but in 20+ years who knows the government may refuse to allow them to be driven & he is the in 45-50 yo age range now .
 Meanwhile Mopargirl has done a # of mods & is enjoying the car now for her own personal pleasure as opposed to future finacial gain , neither is the wrong way we will just have to see what works out better .
 If you look at the Vipers the initial 93 Vipers have no value today as the breed has continued to improve over the years , it is easily possible that the same thing will happen with the first year Challengers that are Auto only , the newer 6.4 or possibly Viper powered Challs could be far more valuable in 20+ years .

Some people have done things like that for decades, and it never pays off!  When will people learn?  If you want a late '70's Corvette pace car with only a few miles on the odometer for example, there are more than a few around and when they turn up for sale they aren't much over 20 grand.  Great 30 year investment return there!
I've got a PCP SRT8 Challenger here with no miles, it is a 1:25 scale model I built a few months ago.  I'll get just about as much enjoyment out of my model as that guy will get with the full size version he has stashed away!  And between the kit, paint, and glue, I probably have $40 or $50 invested in it, which is a lot less than 40 or 50 grand!!