SRT Track Experience - Texas Motor Speedway

[NERVOUS]

I just got back from the SRT Track Experience held at Texas Motor Speedway and I must say that it was thouroughly enjoyable! I have a new found respect for SRT vehicles and I would highly recommend that anyone on the fence about attending one of these events strongly consider going to one.

I was extremely impressed with the amount of actual seat time I got. I was also very impressed with both the variety and quantity of vehicles available to participants - Everything from the Crossfire to the Viper! I actually got sufficient seat time in a Crossfire SRT6, Magnum SRT8, Charger SRT8, 300C SRT8, Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, Ram SRT10, and Viper SRT10. Best of all, they actually encourage you to romp on these vehicles (i.e. utilize the high performance driving techniques being taught by the Skip Barber instructors).

The events were broken up into three stations.
Station A: Road racing with the Crossfire SRT6, Magnum SRT8, and Viper SRT10.
Station B: Drag racing and emergency braking procedures with the Ram SRT10, 300C SRT8, and Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8.
Station C: Autocross with the Crossfire SRT6, Charger SRT8, and Viper SRT10.

Also, I won a raffle held at the end of the class to go for a ride in a Competition Coupe Viper which was being piloted by Claude Bourbonnais - Suffice to say, this was very exciting!

Lastly, an interesting note on an unexpected surprise... The event organizers took a poll to see what everyone's favroite SRT vehicle was. Obviously everyone in attendance was there for a chance to drive a Viper SRT10, but shockingly the unanimous favroite was the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8!

[Sleeper300]

I can agree more, that SRT Exp. is awesome. That is way Kool that your wife drives the Jeep, i'm trying to get my wife to trade her current Murano for the Jeep,,, she's not interested. Would just add to the stable, but running out of room.

Now, how many times have to taken the Jeep instead of Yours?

Larry

[NERVOUS]

Unfortunately, we are still waiting for our Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8... We have been waiting since January and we are getting nothing but the run around from our dealership (Bankston in Frisco, TX). Suffice to say, I am not very happy with then right now!

We were both very excited to actually drive one at the SRT Track Experience, but now that we know what we have to look forward to it makes it all that much harder to wait.

[WildTurkey]

Hey Nervous - I was there as well...lucky you getting the lap in the competition Viper coupe!! The SRT Track Experience is definitely a great time and anyone reading this post (that is interested in SRT vehicles) should attend. The day was awesome - flat out. It is so cool to be able to romp full throttle and lock in the ABS on these cars...especially the Viper for me...where else can you get this opportunity - and for free if you bought an SRT. Hats off to DCX for setting up this event!!

Overall impressions:

SRT6 Crossfire - impressive little car...especially on the autocross (coned) course. Feels very confident and nimble. A little feminine in the styling for my taste...but definitely a fun car. I must say, I had a blast driving this (with the top down) on the track as well.

Charger - loudest exhaust note of the bunch - including the Viper! Really a fun car. I only got to drive it on the coned course. I wish I could've driven it on the track. I did ride in the lead car with an instructor around the track - very visceral...fun. This car is heavy (like the 300 and Magnum), but has a definite attitude. I love the front - not as crazy about the rear.

300 - what can I say, I'm partial to this car. It is surprisingly smooth, offers strong/smooth accelration... just fun/cool. It has a level of interior sophistication beyond most of the others. It is fun to throw its weight around and accelerate out of the turns. Many of the instructors talked about how the LOVE this car. BTW - I asked them if they were having any issues with the brakes/rotors on their track cars. They said that they have experienced some squeaks, but no abnormal grooving - hmmm.

SRT10 - This truck can move. We only drove it at the drag race station. Slightly rougher idle than I anticipated (but I KNOW all of these cars are driven hard...trust me). The one we were in was averaging under 2 MPG! I was definitely impressed with how fast this thing could stop - better than the Jeep.

Jeep - Wow. The all wheel drive definitely rocks on this car at launch. We only got to drive it on the drag strip - makes sense, since I'm sure the corning is not that good. It was beating the 300 to 65mph or so by 1/2 sec on average (6.1 was best time - although an instuctor did the run in 5.9). The best time for the 300 was 6.3, 6.6 for the SRT10. The Jeep did not brake as well as the others. We actually had to stop running the Jeeps through the final ABS brake and turn tests....ABS not working/overheating??

Viper - overall my favorite - well it better be for the money. Kinda tough (and fun) to get in. This car drives and behaves well. I REALLY enjoyed driving this on the autocross course....of course, it rocked on the road racing as well. The Viper is the only car I saw other people spin-out. I took my final drive with an instructor on the track in the Viper - what a thrill!!

Magum - hey....I'm quite impressed with the Magnum. I drove it on the road course. It accelerated, cornered and braked great for such a heavy car. It was quite fun to see several Magnums full throttle chasing the lead car on the track. The steering was a little loose for me - but this car drives great.

Once again - if you are even considering NOT doing the SRT Track Experience - DONT!!

[NERVOUS]

My sentiments exactly!

By the way, I bet we were probably parked right next to each other in the first row, huh?

[WildTurkey]

Originally Posted by NERVOUS

My sentiments exactly!

By the way, I bet we were probably parked right next to each other in the first row, huh?

Good guess, but no. I did see many black 300s out there, but I drove my vette out to the track. The reason - the battery went dead because I've been driving my 300 all the time.

The dead battery happened to coincide with my state inspection. Since the comp had lost power, they told me I needed to put 50 miles on it before I could get it inspected. I told him - man, thats 1 week of driving for me (since I travel all the time). So, I took advantage of driving 35 miles to the track to reset my computer....worked out great.

BTW - I've been more aggressive on both of my cars since the SRT track experiece. You get an appreciation for how these cars are supposed to be drive'n - and what there built to handle.

[gritz45]

I don't think anyone who attended the track day didn't think it was great. I was very surprised that they would allow you to beat on the cars the way they do. The great surprise for me car wise was the Crossfire. It was unbelievably nimble on the autocross, but was also a blast to drive on the road course. The open air driving experience in the Viper roadster and the Crossfire on the road course was fantastic. The better you were able to keep up with the lead driver on the road course, the faster they would go. The Jeep is a great short run drag car(and handles surprisingly well) because of the AWD, but I expected that. It was the most fun I have had in a single day in a long time. BTW, for those in attendence, I was the gray headed old fart in the Big Dog Motorcycles T-shirt.