Bad boy gone good

MANILA, Philippines -  I’ve always been a huge fan of Chrysler’s 300C. Who wouldn’t be? The first-generation 300C was one of the brightest stars of the Chrysler galaxy. That Mafioso sedan was the perfect poor man’s Bentley. It kicked @$$ and rode brilliantly, thanks to the platform it borrowed from an earlier-generation Mercedes E-class.

And now the 2nd-gen 300C is here. It still kicks butt, and then some. The high beltline – now with a more rakish angle – and the thick C-pillars are still there. More importantly, the bad-@$$ chrome grille and beady headlamps make a comeback, albeit with a more aerodynamic slant (and with the now-de rigeur LED park lights).

My style verdict? Gangsta rapper in a three-piece suit. There’s still that bad-boy aura, but it’s concealed beneath a veneer of finishing school civility. The big egg-crate grille has been replaced by more subdued – and more elegant – horizontal chrome strips. It’s nice and I’m sure a lot of buyers will like it, but I still prefer more bad than good – at least for this car. (If I had one, I’d slap on an aftermarket Bentley-style billet aluminum mesh grille right away.) It’s in the headlamp treatment where I felt the most disappointed. Sure it’s got nice, brilliant xenon lamps and those cool LEDs, but the mean-looking quad headlamps of the previous model have been replaced by dual round headlamps, which massively take away from the bad-boy points. What gives? BMW knows well enough never to toy around with its trademark quads. They just look so good. In fairness, the new 300C’s lamps deliver excellent road illumination.

Inside, there is even more refinement and luxury. (Bear in mind that my test unit was the 3.5 V6, not the range-topping AMG- and M3-baiting 300C with the 5.7-liter HEMI V8.) Noteworthy features include a 10-speaker subwoofer-equipped Bluetooth/USB-enabled audio system with voice activation, an 8.4-inch touchscreen display, reversing camera, ventilated front seats, auto-dimming rear view mirror with a built-in mic for hands-free calling, power rear sunshade, power adjustable pedals, remote-operated window power-down, tire pressure monitor, heated seats and steering wheel (which will probably only be used in Baguio), and my personal favorite, console cup holders with heater and cooler. The cup holders light up red when they’re being heated and blue when been cooled. How cool is that?!

Interior build quality is right up there with the best from Japan and Europe (which is saying a lot). The leather is nice, smooth, and supple. Cabin space is generous, front and rear. The doors slam with a satisfying thunk.

On the road, the 300C drives with near-Mercedes solidity, even on rough roads. It’s not much more noticeably solid than its predecessor, but that’s more a testament to the previous model’s overachievement than the successor’s failing. Acceleration is strong, thanks to the muscular 3.5-liter V6 (which delivers 292 hp at a high 6,350 rpm and 353 Nm of torque at 4,800 rpm). Gearshifts from the 5-speed automatic are smooth and reasonably responsive. Cornering is delightfully confidence-inspiring and almost Germanic, thanks to the rigid chassis, electro-hydraulic power steering (which gives much better feedback than those new-fangled full-electric power steering found in a growing number of cars), judicious suspension tuning, and the big, fat 245/45R tires on 20-inch (yes, 20!) rims.

Yet another strength of this big Chrysler is its formidable array of safety features. Aside from the now-common dual front airbags and ABS, the 300C adds knee-bolster airbags, front seat side airbags, Brake Assist, Electronic Stability Control, Traction Control, Hill Start Assist, Ready Alert Braking, Forward Collision Warning, Blind Spot and Rear Cross Path Detection, rain-sensing wipers, proximity keyless system with remote start, among many others.

The best part is, all this goodness and style is yours for a relatively palatable P2.85 million. Remember that the 300C is a large car, bigger than, say, a BMW 5-series or Mercedes E-class, both of which cost double the 300C. I’ve driven all three luxury sedans – guess which one turned the most heads? In the world of high fashion and high style, that kind of public reaction can only be described as priceless. Besides, you don’t buy a Chrysler 300C to keep a low profile!

The Good

• Head-turning bad-@$$ styling

• Tons of cool, useful, high-tech features

• Lots of safety features

• Impressively high build quality, inside and out

• Accomplished driving dynamics

• Surprisingly good value for money

The Bad

• Bad-@$$ styling just a tad too refined

• Guzzles gas to the tune of sub-5-kpl figures

The Verdict

• The bad boy grows up, for better or for worse (but mostly for the better).