Chrysler 300 C 3.5 V6 By Kent on Jun 12, 2008 - Updated Oct 15, 2011

So here is my review of own chrysler 300C.

A few facts.

This chrysler uses Mercedes-Benz E-class (W210) platform.

300C is an update of 300M .

Usualy it is called Soprano's car.

It handles better than you might expect.

It is the very first car from chrysler which can stand with 5th series BMW, E class Merc and Audi A6.

Well...

I fell in love when i saw this car in picture on the net. That style, small windows, huge body. You can hate american cars but you can't say that is ugly. I needed big car for reasonable price. Of course I love BMW's 5 series which has the best engine, the best handling but the price limited my choice. Merc is expensive too while I don't like audi's boring design and ride. So I bought 300C for 45455 $ . It was almost new it had few test rides and thats it. Option list is pretty full: white leather seats, ABS, traction control, stability control,leather steering wheel,all electric windows, remote trunk release, 6 Bouston acoustics speakers, FM/AM/MP3 player, Bluetooth Compatibility, parking assist, 18" alloy wheels,and so on.

Interior.

Well this is car from america and that means plastic quality is not very high quality as you expect . it can't be compared with european cars (same class). of course it is better than major of other american cars but still you can feel that materials are cheap by touching them.moreover it is abit too shiny. Only leather seats are high quality. Bouston acoustics speakers creates good bass and trebles mix,while there is plenty of volume.In the dar dashboard illuminates green color which is annoying because it is too bright for eyes. Theis enough space for 4 adults while forget the middle rear –it is hard and high. space for legs is enough to have good and comfortable ride.

The engine.

I don't like diesels so i bought chrysler with optional 3.5 V6 . it provides 183 kW at 6400 rpm and about 340 Nm at 3800 rpm. it is 24 valve engine. you see,you can choose 2.7 engine but this will be bad choice becausthe car is really heavy,so 2.7 engine is not enough. if you are not racer you'd better choose 3.5 or 3.0 CRD diesel. Of course you can choose 5.7 or even 6.1 SRT8 (which is my dream) ,but then think about fuel consumption.. so, in my case the engine is enough to reach 0-62mph in 8.5 s. and top speed (which i tested by myself) 141mph (though chrysler says 300C's top speed is 124mph). the best engine power you can feel from 4000rpmwhen pushed hard there is nice rumble sound,like real american car. if drive slowly the vehicle creates minimum sound.

Drivers position.

It is comfortable,everything is in its right place so the ride will make you happy. leather seat is very comfortable and has memory option. Small windows makes poor visibility while rear window and high trunk makes almost imposible to see what is happening in the back. thanks God there is parking assistant with sensors which is MUST.

The steering.

Driving slowly can be relaxing,while after 86mph you can feel that car is a bit nervous and you must concentrate on driving because steering wheel doen't provide information about road and is too ligh for that speed. after reaching 100mph wind and tyre noise level is too high and driver must turn steering wheel very carefully.when i reached 124mph it was not a pleasant trip. manufacture must improve steering ,honestly. it is the main problem why chrysler is really worse than German trio.

Fuel consuption.

Don't expect that it is economic car. it is american and that means it is thirsty. I did my best and i got 11 litres per 100km in the city. but it was very slow driving without pushing right foot hard. so usually it need about 14-15 litres in the city and about 8 litres in the motorway.

Gearbox.

5 speed automatic gearbox with ability to shift gears manually. actually gearbox does its job well but it takes a bit too long to 'give engine information' when pushed harder from start position. anyway gearbox is normal.

Overall impression: With its disadvantages and advantages I love this car. its style its design,everything.. yes,steering should be improved and plastic is a bit cheap but honestly there is one interesting thing: sometimes it can be boring ,big thirsty saloon and sometimes it can be brutaly sounding fast car which says:Yeah,i'm american car,i'm cheap inside but rich in soul. and you know what? THAT MAKES A SENSE.