YOU can count the number of big hits that Chrysler has had in Australia over the last 50 years on one hand: Valiant - 1962 Charger - 1971 Sigma - 1977 Jeep XJ Cherokee - 1994 300C - 2005. So when it came to giving the last one a refresh, the Americans thought long and hard about what to change. In the end, with the Series II upon us, it isn’t much: more safety and equipment a dash of higher-quality trim a stronger value message and virtually unaltered styling. Now with Ford’s Fairlane gone and only the Holden WM Statesman around to give the 300C some competition, it will be interesting to see if the big Chrysler still has what it takes to keep the US styling icon popular.
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Chrysler 300C
Released: Nov 2005
Ended: Feb 2008
Family Tree: 300CAn unexpected big hit in Australia, the 300C married brash American styling with the most sober of German vehicular architectures – the W210 E-class-derived rear-wheel drive platform from one-time Chrysler overlord Mercedes-Benz. So while the 300C looks like it would fall apart in the first corner, the fact is it has a solid and competent (if not inspiring) dynamic ability to match the muscular styling. Four models were offered in sedan and (from mid-2006) Touring wagon shapes: a base 183kW/340Nm 3.5-litre V6 petrol 160kW/510Nm 3.0-litre V6 CRD diesel 250kW/525Nm 5.7-litre Hemi V8 petrol with MDS Multi Displacement System cylinder cut-out and a high-performance SRT8 version fitted with a 317kW/569Nm 6.1-litre Hemi V8. All 300Cs use a Mercedes-Benz designed five-speed automatic.
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