Chrysler's 300 is getting a new factory-built option that gives it more aggressive styling and a performance boost. Designed and engineered by Mopar, Chrysler says it'll achieve better acceleration times than the regular 300C.
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The Mopar 300's bold exterior design cues include black paint and blue-striped 20-inch wheels, beltline and hood. Black leather trims the interior and blue stitching dots the surfaces in the cabin.
Chrysler celebrated the 75th anniversary of its Mopar accessories division by bringing four custom vehicles to the Chicago Auto Show: a 2012 Chrysler 300C, 2013 Dodge Dart, 2012 Fiat 500 and 2012 Jeep Compass. The Mopar-accessorized, rear-wheel-drive 300C will be available from the factory this summer for around $49,000 -- about $3,000 more than a loaded rear-drive 300C. The others are available with assorted parts from Mopar’s catalog, and I checked out all four.
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True to its factory-rollout status, the Mopar 300C looks like the sleeper of the bunch, with subtle blue stripes and matching wheels. Pop the hood, and Chrysler's 5.7-liter V-8 has blue etching. Thanks to a 3.91 rear axle ratio -- compared with 3.06 for the standard 300C -- the Mopar car should hit 60 mph in close to 5 seconds, Chrysler says. The automaker doesn't cite an exact zero-to-60 time on the regular 300C, except to say it’s "under 6 seconds." The tradeoff is the engine running at higher, mileage-killing rpm on the interstate, but I doubt any Mopar owner will care. I'm not as wild about the custom interior. It gets a cool, palm-sized automatic shifter but trades the 300's upscale Nappa leather for blue-accented Katzkin leather seats. They feel like too much aftermarket cowhide: shiny and, well, cheap.
The 2012 Chrysler 300 sedan is the latest vehicle to join the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's five-star safety club. It earned an overall five stars out of five in NHTSA's crash tests.
The Chrysler 300's composite score was composed of mostly five stars across the different areas of testing, but it did earn four stars in the driver safety column and in the rollover test. The sedan earned fives in frontal, side barrier and side pole crashes.
NHTSA recently adopted more stringent guidelines and rigorous testing practices, so it's harder for vehicles to get five stars. Chrysler's largest sedan is the ninth vehicle to be awarded NHTSA's highest combined star rating for the 2012 model year. Other five-star vehicles include the Cadillac CTS, Cadillac SRX, Chevrolet Camaro, Chevrolet Sonic, Saab 9-4X, Toyota Camry, Volkswagen Passat and Volvo S60.
A highly customized Chrysler 300 sedan — designed and engineered by Mopar to achieve better acceleration times than the regular 300C — will be unveiled at the 2012 Chicago Auto Show in early February.
The factory-built model, called the Mopar '12 300, will offer the same styling enhancements as the Chrysler 300S but with additional performance enhancements.
Additions include a boosted final-drive ratio on the rear differential, which helps to increase acceleration times to the low-five-second mark. It's still slower than the 300 SRT8 version, but presumably this model goes after a different demographic. The Mopar '12 300 features 42% stiffer front and 23% stiffer rear spring rates compared to a regular 300, and it also comes with high-performance all-season tires and beefed-up brake linings for better stopping power.
Dodge is recalling certain versions of its performance-oriented SRT8 sedans because of a glitch in the tire pressure monitoring system, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The systems in 303 SRT8 versions of the 2012 Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger don't warn drivers when tire pressure falls 25% below the recommended level. The affected vehicles notify drivers when the pressure reaches 22 pounds per square inch instead of the required 24 psi. Underinflated tires could result in tire overloading and overheating, leading to a possible blowout or crash.
Vehicles in the recall were manufactured from May 2 through Nov. 17, 2011. (You can find the vehicle's build date on a label affixed to the driver-side doorjamb.) Dealers will reprogram the TPMS for free. Owners will be notified next month. For more info, owners can call Chrysler at 800-853-1403 or NHTSA's vehicle safety hotline at 888-327-4236.
Chrysler's had a very successful year overall, with sales up 25% through November. Part of that has to do with the automaker's redesigned and refreshed vehicles, and part of it has to do with Chrysler's seemingly eternal and robust incentive spending. The end of the year is no different. Under Chrysler's cross-branded “Big Finish 2011” sales event, there are plenty of attractive financing and cash-back deals to be had.
Starting with the Chrysler brand — which has the most aggressive incentive offers – there are 0% financing deals on the 2012 Chrysler Town & Country and 2012 Chrysler 200 sedan for 60 months and for 60 to 72 months on all 2011 Chrysler brand models. The Town & Country ($1,250), 200 ($2,500), 300 ($1,500) and 200 convertible ($1,000) also have generous cash-back offers.
Parents are often searching for the automotive holy grail: a car that's not a minivan and can fit three child-safety seats across the backseat. It's a short list. In the nearly two years that Cars.com editor Kelsey Mays, Cars.com photographer Ian Merritt and I have been installing car seats into test vehicles, we've come across only a handful of cars that can hold three car seats across a backseat.
We recently tested the 2012 Mercedes-Benz M-Class and it fit three car seats in it. To be considered a fit, there must be enough room between the booster seat and infant-safety seat for a child's hand to reach the seat belt buckle.
The refreshed-for-2011 Chrysler 300 sedan earned major points for its much-improved interior. For 2012, Chrysler is adding even more premium materials and upping the fancy factor of its flagship sedan.
Chrysler is adding a new top-line trim level to the 300, called the Luxury Series. It joins the Limited, 300C, S series and high-performance SRT8. It features a leather-wrapped steering wheel and instrument panel, Nappa leather seats and armrests, 12-way power-adjustable driver and passenger seats, die-cast paddle shifters and a cabin accented with hand-sanded matte wood trim. Exterior upgrades include platinum chrome mirror caps and door handles and a platinum chrome mesh grille. Rear-wheel-drive versions ride on 20-inch painted aluminum wheels; all-wheel-drive models use 19s.
Parents, grandparents and caretakers know what a pain it can be to install child-safety seats into a car. Imagine doing it over and over and over again. That's what our Car Seat Check team does nearly every week as it tests new cars to find out how easy it is to use the Latch system.
Car Seat Checks are performed by Cars.com editor Kelsey Mays, Cars.com photographer Ian Merritt and Cars.com editor and certified car-seat technician Jennifer Newman.
The redesigned 2011 Chrysler 300C wowed Cars.com Family contributor Sara Lacey and her family. From its Hemi V-8 engine to its heated front and rear rows, this full-size sedan whisked her family around town in style and luxury. The 300C also impressed with its ability to fit three child-safety seats across its ample backseat.
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