Well, the dealer goofed up when he told me the car would be in next week - it arrived the next day! Picked it up last night and already have 200 miles on it ( not dark up here until 10:30 PM this time of year! ). I can't imagine anyone not being pleased with any brand new car, but so far I am very happy...

General Impressions:

I really like the silver - flawless paint, no orange peel. Interior fits me very well, and looks classy. The huge speedo seems a bit odd at first and might have been better if it was the tach - but that's just me. The TAP shift is GREAT, I find it superior to the AutoShift on my last Intrepid in placement, and it is a bit faster shifting. No problem at all with the paddles, seems very intuative to me.

The WS6 suspension is "firm" but not at all objectionable to me, even on our rough Alaskan roads. Small movements are well controlled without harshness, transients are very nice, no "floating" noticed at all.

The engine is very responsive, moreso than my '97 L69 Bonnie was. The wire drive does help with smoothness at low speeds and gentle takeoffs but is transparent when driving aggressively. I've not done any full throttle runs yet as I'm following the recommended breakin, but so far I like it.

The HUD is impressive as well, and can be given 3 different modes of display. One problem - I cannot see the display on a bright day wearing polarized sunglasses. Hmmmm.


Myths Dispelled:

It turns out that lots of BS was posted before the '04s started arriving. Some may have been innocent mistakes, but others were obviously lies.

* The DRLs are the amber turn indicators, not the headlights. They can be turned off easily.

* The odometer is NOT at the bottom of the speedo - it is in one of the DIC displays.

* Pushing the TAP paddle upshifts, pulling back downshifts. The timing is closer to 0.25 to 0.5 seconds for a shift, not the 0.05 seconds posted by several knowledgeable :rolleyes: folks.

* The SC pully is 4.0" overall diameter, 3.6" across the driven surface.

* The chrome wheel anomaly seems to have been BS too, as no one here had heard of it as described. Maybe it was true, but it didn't delay my build and I've got the "bent 10-spoke" wheels - and love 'em.