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Comparable cars in this class: Pontiac Bonneville SSEi, Oldsmobile Aurora, Ford Taurus SHO This is the first in a series of
road tests with a slightly different slant than those offered by the typical car enthusiast
publication. We know
that selecting a car, whether new or used, is a serious decision, so we have designed
roadtests that will provide information to help you find the vehicle that will suit your
needs and enhance your driving experience. We address ourselves to those of you who are
more concerned about how a car rides and performs, how it fits your lifestyle, than the
details of its rack & pinion steering and multi-port fuel injection. With this
in mind, we view each vehicle from three different perspectives:.
- The Conservative Approach: Conservative drivers want to get from point A to point B
safely and comfortably. They avoid excess G forces when accelerating, braking and
turning. Speed limits are important to them, but they keep up with the flow of
traffic as long as that does not take them over the posted limits by more than 10
mph. Passengers are most comfortable with these drivers (unless the passenger is in
a hurry).
- The Sporty Style
Sporty drivers enjoy being on the road. They appreciate the feel of
control that a good road machine delivers. They like feeling G forces from time to
time, but not at the expense of safety: they know their limits and the limits of the car
and stay well within them. Sporty drivers may make a conservative passenger nervous,
especially if that passenger is also a driver. They tend to move a bit faster than
the prevailing traffic, but they stay at a safe speed for current conditions and are
careful not to disrupt traffic, making sure to signal and to keep a respectful distance
when executing lane changes.
- The Fast-Lane Perspective. When I speak of fast drivers, I do
not mean inconsiderate roadhogs who jeopardize everyone around them. No, the fast
drivers I am describing like to explore the limits
of their machine, but maintain control and never put others
at risk. On a
deserted road, they may see how fast they can take a corner before the tires start to
break loose, naturally leaving a generous margin for error. When alone on a completely
clear stretch, they may try to see how the auto feels at speed, but they are extremely
alert to their surroundings and sensitive to the idiosyncrasies of the vehicle. When
chauffeuring passengers, considerate "fast" drivers revert to the Sporty mode.
Most drivers fit one of these descriptions. You know who
you are. At the end of each road test article, we will give you our opinion of how
well the car accommodates each driving style.
 The 300M is Chrysler's
attempt to resurrect the magic of the original 300 Letter series cars manufactured from
1955 to 1965. The problem is, the original 300 was a limited
production model that was produced at the rate of about a thousand per year, making them quite exclusive,
(and expensive) while this new Chrysler 300M is a regular production car, built
in large numbers to meet the demands of a much wider audience.
The original 1955 Chrysler "300" got its name
from being the first production car to boast 300 horsepower.
These were no-nonsense cars that combined luxury with performance. Back then, car
enthusiasts felt lucky just to see one go by.
Superb styling and leather trimmed interiors set the Chrysler
300's apart as did their highly refined, powerful engines that would quickly burn the
rubber off their old-style four ply tires. Two prime examples are the 1957 300C pictured
here and the 1960 300F. The 300C's custom hood and grill projected a powerful and
aggressive look and, with 375 horsepower, it put its money where its mouth was.
Around 2400 of these cars were built in 1957, including fewer than 500 convertibles.
The 1960 Chrysler 300F was the first American car to sport four individual bucket
seats and a full length console. Approximately 1200 were built in 1960. Back
then, the
300 series was as special to the Chrysler line as the M5 (a limited-production BMW with
special interior and a 400 HP engine) is to BMW today.
Note: you can click on
all the pictures below for a larger view.
 While the new 300M is not the exclusive, groundbreaking trend-setter that its
predecessors were, I can tell you that after spending a week with this car in Southern
California, driving on freeways and on the winding mountain roads that snake around LA, I
was impressed.
The styling is aggressive yet tasteful, a combination rarely
achieved. The handling is balanced and inspires confidence without compromising ride
quality.
Under most conditions, this car is very quiet. Accelerating at
about half throttle, the engine emits a pleasing, muffled growl while pulling away
strongly; although at full throttle the engine screams as it approaches its 6800 RPM
redline.
Standing start to 60 MPH acceleration takes place in a quick 7.8
seconds. If you are cruising at around 30 MPH with some conservative passengers in
the back seat and you floor the throttle to merge into fast traffic, you will be greeted
with a firm kick-down to first gear and some startled passengers as the car leaps into the
flow of traffic. This may produce a wide grin on your face just before you feel the
swat on the back of your head.
 Releasing the throttle when you reached the desired
speed causes the transmission to smoothly shift up to a higher gear, a great improvement
over the Chrysler LHS that I tested a few years ago which violently snapped out of first
when I relaxed the throttle. In fact, this 300M transmission seemed to do everything
right. Extremely smooth shifts when driving conservatively, solid and responsive when
pushing it. If I had any nits to pick, it would be the way the transmission kicks if
I hit the gas just before the car comes to a complete stop.
Then there is the AutoStick feature. Pull the shifter past ‘D’
to where you would normally find 'L' and you have full manual control
over gear selection. Slap the shifter left (toward you) and the transmission downshifts to
the next lower gear, slap it right and it upshifts. In manual mode, the selected gear is
displayed on the dash to eliminate guesswork.. I used this feature extensively while
driving through winding mountain roads and found it to be a delight, giving me the control
of a standard shift when I wanted it without condemning me to shifting my way through the
LA traffic jams. The AutoStick is not 100% manual. First off, there’s no clutch
pedal, good for maintaining equal-sized leg muscles. It will not allow you to start off in
4th gear (you can start in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd),
and it shifts back down to 1st gear on its own when you come to a stop . It
also will not let you over-rev the engine by not allowing moves like shifting to 1st
while you are going 65 MPH.
The ride is smooth and controlled over most road surfaces, even
with a full load of 5 people aboard. The car is quiet on blacktop, with little noise
intruding into the passenger compartment, either from the road or wind. On the LA
freeways, however, the grooved concrete pavement produced some road noise. Generally, its
rigid body structure produces a solid feel with no squeaks, groans or drumming sounds on
bad roads or when driving over railroad tracks. Instead of a "thump-thump"
when hitting an expansion joint on the highway, you might hear "thip-thip" or no
sound at all.
This car is in its element snaking through the canyon roads outside of L.A. The
steering is light and responsive and puts the car exactly where you want it.
Handling around these winding mountain roads is flat and balanced under moderately sporty
driving, but for aggressive driving, the tires are not up to the task. The standard tires
are P225/55TR17 Goodyear Eagle LS. This is a very low-profile size for a family
sedan. They rode well and were quiet under normal driving but they started
protesting before you came anywhere near the handling potential of this car. There is an
optional "Performance Handling Group" that includes special wheels, P225/60VR16
Michelin performance tires, better brakes and performance tuned steering and suspension.
(Yes, you read right. 16" performance tires and 17" standard tires. For those of
you who are not car buffs, it is usually the other way around.) This $500.00 option gives
you a slightly choppier ride and allows more road noise to enter the cabin. The
"Performance Handling Group" is standard on 300M’s sold in Europe but in
America, many people prefer a softer ride, so Chrysler lets you choose.
 This
car requires 37½ feet to execute a U-turn which is good for a car of this size
(197.8" overall length). You must be careful, however, when approaching driveway
ramps as this car's long front overhang makes it susceptible to scraping bottom.
The 300M interior is spacious and comfortable. Perforated leather seats
are standard, as are electrically heated 8-way power seats for the driver and front seat
passenger. The manual lumbar adjustment is well-positioned. The driver's seat
allows two different drivers to pre-set their seat and mirror positions, as well as radio
station preferences, and recall them by pressing a button either on the seat or on the
security system remote control. The driver's seat also automatically moves back about
2 ½ " when you shut off the car to allow easier exiting. The seat returns to its original position
when the car starts. This feature and others can be disabled if they don't appeal to
you.
The driving position is very comfortable with generally good visibility,
although you can’t see the front of the car past the base of the windshield (or the
rear for that matter). The rear seat has lots of legroom and the seatback folds down to
allow access to a large trunk. The rear seatback is split 60/40 to fit up to two people in
the back even with part of the seat folded to allow for long items in the trunk.
There is a small overhead console that contains some interesting features, notably a
compass. Other features include a HomeLink garage door opener, an outside temperature
display and a trip computer that shows miles per gallon, distance till empty, etc.
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