Chrysler 300C 3.5 V6
Some cars are eternally cast to suffer by comparison. Take the Chrysler 300C 3.5 V6 as an example. Priced identically to its diesel sibling, its markedly slower, drinks significantly more fuel and emits a good deal more carbon dioxide per kilometre travelled.
On the face of it, this car seems dead in the water. Drive one and youll find it actually has a lot to offer.
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5-litre petrol powerplant at typical motorway cruising speeds. Yes, it has a whole lot more torque available, but the petrol engine counters with the best engine note in the whole 300C Range and yes, that does include the Range-topping Hemi V8 models. Another factor weighing in the 3.5-litre cars favour is that the diesel and the V8 engines are both big, heavy lumps whereas the petrol V6 engine is a whole lot lighter.
Youll feel this the moment you go to tip the car into a corner. Although no 300C has what youd describe as balletic body control, the petrol V6 sniffs out an apex and clings to it better than any of its siblings. Twirl the wheel inelegantly and the 300C responds with a sensation that the upper and lower sections of the car arent talking to one another, but drive in a smooth and sympathetic manner and the car handles very well, the sophisticated multilink suspension soaking up mid-corner jolts without complaint. Ball jointed lateral links and tension struts in the front suspension replace the usual one-piece lower control arms and create a virtual pivot point for the tyre.
This, in turn, isolates the rack and pinion steering from reaction to vertical deflection from bumps without compromising what test drivers describe as hand/wheel response.
"This is a vast, supersized, hunk of car for not a great deal of money"
The engine is good for 253bhp which, when the £26,250 asking price is taken into account, is some going. Theres no Touring estate option with this engine: to get that versatility, you have to opt for V6 diesel or V8 petrol power. Chrysler are nothing if not realistic about this cars market position and dont pretend that its a natural Audi A6, Mercedes E Class or BMW 5 Series rival, but put the 300C up against next tier models like the Saab 9-5 and Jaguar S-TYPE and it utterly decimates them in terms of value for money. Specify either of these cars to broadly the same level as the 300C and a 185bhp Saab 9-5 2.3T works out 10.
3 per cent dearer and the 240bhp Jaguar S-TYPE 3.0 V6 is a hefty 16.1 per cent more expensive. Thats not exactly loose change by any stretch of the imagination.
Flog the 300C off the line and itll reach 60mph in 8.9 seconds and keep going until it hits 136mph which, on the face of it, doesnt seem wholly stellar for an executive saloon packing this much power but there are a couple of caveats. Firstly, this is a seriously big car with more space in the rear than a BMW 7 Series or a Jaguar XJ and tips the scales at a distinctly American weight. Secondly, the 300C is fitted with a five-speed automatic gearbox as standard that blunts all-out acceleration a tad.
The gearbox loves shunting you into a very high gear, usually attempting to default to a subsonic 1,500-2,000rpm given half a chance. At this point, its entirely possible to prod the accelerator pedal to the floor and back again without the rev needle moving a millimetre. Get a little more persistent with the loud pedal and the car will kick down to around 4,500rpm, indicating that youre some 3,000rpm shy of where the real fun happens. As soon as it drops a cog or two, youre treated to a meaty bark from the engines triple plenums that wouldnt sound out of place coming from a NASCAR racer.
You still wont be accelerating at a concussive rate but the glass half-full perspective is that youre getting all the effects without licence-threatening numbers appearing on the clocks. Drive the car a little sedately and you may be able to replicate Chryslers claimed 25.7mpg combined economy figure. The 262g/km emissions figure is unlikely to endear the 300C 3.
5 V6 to those looking to run one as a company car. Indeed, most corporate types will still prefer something like a BMW 320d, a car which in SE trim comes within about £1,000 of the Chryslers asking price. Judged objectively, the BMW is probably the better car, and fleet managers will judge objectively. Private buyers work to a different set of criteria, however, and the 300C will put an enormous smile on your face every time you throw open the drapes and see it sitting on your drive in a way the BMW never could.
Call it a sense of occasion, a big personality, whatever, but the 300C has it in spades, making the Munich car feel as if its undergone charisma bypass surgery. Youll be able to chuckle at the way the BMWs 16-inch wheels look toe-curlingly feeble, whereas the Chryslers big 18-inch split five-spoke alloys bulge from their arches as if pumped up on testosterone. The interior is a long way from the usual ugly American stereotype and only the rather token faux tortoise shell on the door pulls and steering wheel jar somewhat. The quality of plastics doesnt match the Euro norm but the design and finish is tidy enough.
Theres a vast boot, a 60/40 rear split seat, heated leather seats with electric adjusters, dual zone temperature controls, cruise control, metallic paint, self levelling suspension and a six-speaker Boston Acoustic Sound System that packs a 280-watt punch. ESP stability control, front and rear side curtain airbags, xenon headlights, a tyre pressure monitor and ultrasonic rear parking assist are a few other features that will reside on the options list of rivals but are standard on the 300C. Chrysler acknowledge that 80 per cent of all UK 300C sales will go to the diesel car with the lions share of the remainder being mopped up by the V8 hemi models. That leaves the 3.
5-litre V6 without a significant slice of the pie. If I was spending my money, Id buy the identically priced diesel version but the petrol engine has a certain charisma. Try both and see if youre one of a select few.
NEED TO KNOW
CAR: Chrysler 300C 3.5 V6 Auto
PRICE: £26,250 on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 16
CO2 EMISSIONS: 262g/km
PERFORMANCE: 0-60mph 8.9s / Max Speed 136mph
FUEL CONSUMPTION: (urban) 17.9 (extra urban) 34.4 (combined) 25.7mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: ABS, stability and traction control, brake assist, twin front airbags, front and rear curtain airbags WILL IT FIT IN MY GARAGE?: length/width/height mm 5015/1880/1475 WHO TO SEE:
