At $50,000, Is This Like-New 2007 Magnum SRT-8 A Deal We Can't Dodge?

With just 9,973 miles on the clock, today's Nice Price or No Dice Magnum SRT8 is a time capsule from... checks calendar... not all that long ago. Let's see if we like the price on this piece of modern Mopar history.

One has to wonder how many vegans there are in Poland. Given that the country's national dish is Bigos, a stew made with sauerkraut, fresh cabbage, aromatics, and seemingly every farm and game animal at hand, refusing to eat meat might be seen as unpatriotic.

Of course, another way for Poles to show their patriotism is to drive a home-grown car or truck, like the 1997 FSO Polonez Roy pickup that we saw on Monday. Touted as the only one in existence in the United States, that Polonez was actually competent enough to have been marketed outside of Poland as a Daewoo during the short time that FSO was under the ownership of the South Korean company. Our FSO received a full restoration and was now claimed to "need nothing." At a $13,500 asking price, that like-new presentation couldn't overcome the FSO's inherent weirdness, leading many of you to question its value in the comments and engendering a sizably lopsided 82% 'No Dice' loss.

While yesterday's Polonez might have been one of a kind and arguably weird, today's 2007 Magnum SRT8 wagon is a blast from the past that, when new, was a car out of its era. Let's just consider what this was at the time. The pièce de résistance of the Daimler-Chrysler merger, the LX platform introduced in 2004, used a RWD layout with massaged Mercedes rear suspension bits and gearboxes, plus Chrysler-designed front suspension and engines. This was all wrapped in low-slung bodywork that offered a gangster-style saloon for Chrysler, and a slightly more utilitarian wagon body for Dodge.

Introducing a sedan and wagon into a market that was predominantly SUV and crossover-oriented was a bold move, and in the case of the wagon-bodied Dodge Magnum, not a wholly successful one. Built for only four model years, from 2005 to 2008, the Dodge failed to sell in the numbers of the better-accepted Chrysler 300C, forcing Dodge to pass the baton to the more conventional Charger.

That, of course, means that the Magnum is appreciably rare today. Or at least compared to its platform mates. In fact, only about 3,845 Magnums were produced during its short run. Of those, only a few hundred were sold with the performance-oriented SRT-8 package. That package's party piece was a 6.1-liter edition of Mopar's famed Hemi V8, an engine good for a stonking 425 horsepower and a hefty 420 pound-feet of torque. Only one transmission was offered on the SRT-8, the five-speed W5A580 automatic, which, when paired with the Hemi underhood, makes the Magnum a fine cruiser.

Beyond the big-block engine, the base SRT-8 package included 20-inch alloy wheels, red Brembo brakes, a stiffer suspension, and sport bucket seats. At the time, the SRT-8 offered multiple option groups, and this car is claimed to have them all. That means it has a ton of comfort and convenience features in the cabin, including automatic climate control, power windows and seats, and, for the era, a decent-sized infotainment screen in the dash.

This car has done very little cruising. It also has a dearth of highway miles and, in fact, a general paucity of tarmac time in total. According to the seller, the car has a mere 9,983 miles on it. The reason given for the low miles is that the car was previously part of a collection, and who has the time to rack up miles when you've got a collection?

As such, the car appears to be in almost as-new condition. Well, it would be if it weren't for a couple of questionable additions (or, actually, an addition and a deletion) made by a former owner. Per the seller, the addition is an aftermarket hood featuring a scoop. To be fair, and in consideration of our purposes, that looks pretty decent and, if not loved, can be replaced with the original hood that will be included in the sale. The deletion is of the rear window wiper, likely done to provide a cleaner look to the Magnum's butt, though it's still a questionable choice.

Craigslist

Everything on this clean-title car appears to be in excellent condition, with no evidence of curb rash or chrome cancer on the alloy wheels, dents under the Brilliant Black Pearl paint, or clouding of the headlamp covers. The interior is in similar shape, with no issues in the upholstery or the cheap-looking plastics that plagued Mopars of this era.

Okay, so we've established that this is a fairly unique opportunity to buy a car with decent specs and performance bona fides, and, to top it off, it has a Hemi. What's not to like?

Well, we could start with the seller's $50,000 asking price. That's a significant enough price tag that, while someone might pay it, they likely wouldn't be too happy about it. To ease that animosity, the seller includes a screenshot of a couple of Mecum auction listings showing cars that sold for more, along with a threat to put the car on Bring a Trailer, where things tend to go for higher.

But we're still in the Craigslist world with this Dodge, and so it's time for you to weigh in on that $50K asking price in both the comments and with your vote. What do you think? Is that a fair price for this extremely low-mileage wagon? Or is that too much, even for such a Magnum opus?

You decide!

Denver, Colorado, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears. 

Hat tip to Bill Rice for the hookup!

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