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| Click for 300C Gallery |
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It couldn't work this side of the Atlantic, surely. For a start, there's no way that the 300C could be mistaken for a European-styled car, with its high-waisted, slab-sided styling, huge upright grille and its impression of simply massive dimensions. Whatever it is, it's not pretty - especially when viewed alongside the elegantly be-finned 1955 C 300 Chrysler had thoughtfully lined up for us for comparative purposes - and on the roads of the South of France, it looks distinctly out of context. It's much more Miami than Marseille, not least because it's over 7' 2" wide (1881mm), nearly 16' 5" long (4999mm) and hardly suited to zooming around the hairpin bends of Haute Provence.
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| High waist isn't particularly European-looking |
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Or is it? For although it looks as if it should have the stereotypical saggy suspension, vague steering and straight-line-preferred handling of the traditional front-drive Yank tank, the 300C is actually rear-wheel drive and Euro-friendly under its brash be-chromed exterior. Very Germanic, to be specific: since Chrysler has paired up with Daimler-Benz to form the global conglomerate that is now DaimlerChrysler, the American firm benefits from sharing Mercedes' technology, developments and componentry. The 300C is therefore built on the same basic platform as the latest Mercedes E-Class - a car more than capable of making its way into the mountains and even proving rather entertaining.
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| HEMI V8 can shut down some cylinders at low speeds |
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The engine line-up is nonetheless US-influenced: star powerplant is the 5.7-litre HEMI V8, named for its hemispherical combustion chambers, a Chrysler engineering trademark. This delivers 340bhp, 387lb ft of torque and 0-60mph acceleration in 6.4 seconds. Fuel consumption? Final ratified Euro-test figures haven't been confirmed yet, but it should be a relatively manageable 23-23.5mpg, aided by a so-called multi-displacement system which imperceptibly shuts down four of the eight cylinders when the car is cruising. Also joining the range - launched in mainland Europe and the UK in left-hand-drive form imminently, and in RHD form in October 2005 - will be the Mercedes-sourced 3.5-litre V6 (253bhp, 250lb ft) and 2.7 V6 (193bhp, 190lb ft), though the latter is unlikely to get offered to UK buyers. On the way too is a diesel: a Chrysler spokesman reckoned this would be an all-new, Mercedes-developed 3.0-litre six-cylinder unit, also to feature in the E-Class and other M-B ranges, which could even make some sense to company car buyers, especially in the upcoming Touring estate variants.
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