Chrysler 300C Diesel: Road Test

Price Guide: (recommended price before statutory and delivery charges): $56,000
Options fitted: (not included in above price): N/A
Crash rating: Five-star (based on EuroNCAP testing of Lancia Thema)
Fuel: Diesel
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 7.2
CO2 emissions (g/km): 191g/km
Also consider: Audi A6 TDI (from $78,900); BMW 520d (from $81,300); Mercedes-Benz E220 CDI ($84,800); Jaguar XF Diesel (from $69,900)

The second version of Chrysler’s very macho 300 sedan was always going to be an interesting exercise.

Priced to appeal and styled with a refreshing serve of early American bravado, the original 300C gained traction in the Australian market with surprising speed.

Now we have the second-generation big Chrysler and the company has chosen a path that treads carefully between evolving the original design and making it identifiably a product of the times.

Perhaps a bit too carefully.

The 300 Chrysler, while retaining an instantly identifiable visual profile, has been subjected to a general softening of the previously hard edges that made the car what it was.

The conservative, horizontally slatted grille, more-wedgy profile and simplified rear deck tend towards a more generic look than the boldly drawn lines of the original.

Of course the latest Chrysler 300 is about more than just its looks. It is unquestionably a more refined car, with more comfort, more features and better figures -- and even more aggressive pricing than the first examples from 2005.

The 300’s safety systems embrace seven airbags, electronic pedestrian protection and a surfeit of present-day electronic aids including Rain Brake Support, Ready Alert Braking and, higher up the pecking order, Blind Spot Monitoring, Rear Cross Path Detection (when reversing), Adaptive Cruise Control and Forward Vision Warning which is a step towards the fully-intervening collision prevention systems used by brands such as Volvo.

And there is a new 3.0-litre turbo-diesel, produced by VM Motorii in Italy, which produces 176kW at a casual 4000rpm, grunts out 550Nm of torque at 1800rpm and --- when fitted with “little” 18-inch wheels -- sips fuel at the rate of 7.1L/100km. This goes up slightly, to 7.2L/100km (exactly the figure we recorded in our Luxury-spec 300C test car), with 20-inch wheels. CO2 emissions are 185g/km and 191g/km respectively.

New technology pays off: Even though the Luxury diesel version weighs a heavy 2042kg, it is more economical than the original 300C’s 3.5-litre Benz-sourced turbo-diesel, which quoted 8.2L/100km. It scoots quite briskly off the line too, reaching 100km/h in 7.8 seconds (By comparison, the slightly quicker eight-speed auto Pentastar petrol V6 version reaches 100km/h in 7.0 seconds, but swallows fuel at the rate of 9.7L/100km and -- with 18-inch wheels -- emits 219g/km of CO2).

The bottom line is that the turbo-diesel detracts little from performance but jumps ahead of the petrol engine in terms of fuel economy and exhaust cleanliness. The penalty is a price jump of $5000 over the Pentastar V6.

If we thought the Benz-sourced diesel from the previous Chrysler was impressive, the VM Motori V6 more than ever blurs the line separating oilers from petrol engines.

Truly, from initial startup to general driving, the traditional diesel sound is so subdued most passengers are unlikely to detect it. Maybe helped by the smaller 3.0-litre capacity, the iron-block, alloy-headed 60-degree V6 diesel is smooth, quiet and unobtrusive to an outstanding degree.

Yet with that solid 550Nm of torque it makes itself felt in a reassuring way when cruising the freeway, or surging away from the traffic lights -- even if it makes do with a five-speed auto rather than the petrol V6’s flash eight-speed box. Small diesel engine, heavyweight body, incompatible? Not in any way.

And the car steers well, if a little heavily, via a substantial, thick-rimmed wheel that spins from lock to lock in a quick 2.6 turns. The two-tonne bulk of the 300C is always obvious, although it sticks resolutely to the road on a series of tight, left-to-right, right-to-left corners.

The 300C Luxury diesel’s ride, though improved over the previous model, is still not class leading. Large bumps are cushioned better than small ones, which are telegraphed through to the interior via the 20-inch wheels with their low profile 245/45 tyres. The car is more competent than the original 300C but still lacks the fluid refinement of the E-Class Benz on which the suspension was based.

In fact, if the top-spec 300C’s firmness of ride is too much for some customers, it is possible to wind back on the purposefulness of the regular sports-tuned suspension via smaller 18-inch wheels with proportionately more absorbent rubber.

In 300C Luxury form the diesel is well fitted out: The 20-inch wheels are standard, as are a “touring-tuned” version of the second generation suspension system, heated, eight-way power front seats, touch-screen navigation and 506-Watt, 10-speaker audio (a 13-speaker 900-Watt system is optional). Options send the pricing on a steep trajectory and include a “Safety Tec” pack with Forward Collision Warning, Adaptive Speed Control and power folding exterior mirrors.

Perhaps the trickiest question is what to compare the latest Chrysler 300C with: Particularly in diesel form, there are no clear competitors apart from notably higher-priced Germans. The 300C makes a reasonable fist of competing, even if it lacks the ultimate refinement and road manners that are standard issue with Benz, BMW, Audi -- and even Jaguar.

The other question concerns whether or not the latest 300C manages to build on the irresistible appeal of the original.

In terms of eyeball impact, that is an arguable question. Admittedly the first 300C, visually, was always going to be a hard act to follow. The car is undoubtedly more refined than before, and even more attractively priced, but it still lacks some of the visual wow factor that so inspired many Australian car-buyers when the original was introduced in 2005.

Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site