2017 Chrysler 300S V-6 RWD Review

2017 Chrysler 300S V-6 RWD Review, Sixty-two years ago, Chrysler kicked off its now famous 300 model line using the introduction in the C-300 coupe. Armed that has a 300-hp five.4-liter V-8 engine, the C-300 became an immediate NASCAR icon. Through the near in the 1955 NASCAR season, the C-300 had taken residence 23 checkered flags-13 a lot more than second-best-finisher Oldsmobile.

2017 Chrysler 300S V-6 RWD Review

How instances change. Chrysler long ago traded the C-300’s stately two-door styling and racing pedigree to the square-jawed looks and sedan entire body fashion that have marked the modern day 300 for greater than a decade. And whereas the unique C-300 was unavailable with luxuries such as air conditioning, the 2017 Chrysler 300 embraces its part because the brand’s flagship sedan. Even the entry-level 300 Restricted comes conventional with functions such as leather upholstery, powered and heated front seats, a proximity vital with push-button start out, and dual-zone automated climate management.

People looking for a 300 with greater driver engagement will ought to step as much as the $36,770 300S. It is denoted by a menacing blacked-out grille and decrease fascia, black headlamp bezels, and attractive 20-inch wheels. The car also comes equipped by using a firmer suspension as well as a specially tuned variant of Chrysler’s 3.6-liter V-6 engine that makes 300 horsepower and 264 lb-ft of torque (gains of eight horses and four lb-ft in excess of other V-6 300s). A typical eight-speed automated transmission with steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters channels the 300S’s output on the rear wheels. All-wheel drive is really a $2500 alternative, and $3000 buys an upgrade for the 363-hp five.7-liter V-8-but you can not mix the two.

Whilst the V-6 inside the 300S will not win this significant brick any drag races, the 300-hp engine provides sufficient grunt to move the two-ton-plus sedan off the line with self-confidence. Our 4089-pound check automobile charged to 60 mph in six.three seconds and with the quarter-mile in 15.0 flat at 96 mph, besting a 300 with all the 292-hp V-6 by 0.2 and 0.one second.

2017 Chrysler 300S V-6 RWD Review - Interior:

Though the eight-speed automatic swapped cogs using the alacrity of an exceptionally competent old-time switchboard operator, the transmission’s eagerness to achieve prime gear harm the 300S’s passing performance. The Chrysler needed four.9 seconds to accelerate from 50 to 70 mph-a full 2nd longer than the Nissan Maxima. Push the dashboard-mounted Sport button as well as the transmission holds gears longer; it also cuts shift occasions from a claimed 400 milliseconds to a snappy 250 milliseconds. Also, Sport mode companies up the steering and quickens throttle response.

Even in Sport mode, even though, the 300S never thoroughly seduces the driver. Even though our check car’s Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar summer tires-a steal at $95-helped the sizable sedan pull an impressive-for-its-class 0.88 g all around our 300-foot skidpad, the Chrysler feels extra at home cruising around the highway than it does tackling twisty two-lanes.

Sadly, this model’s stiffer suspension setup results in a rougher ride over pockmarked pavement compared with its softer-sprung stablemates. We’d strongly look at sacrificing the 300S’s additional ponies to the far more refined trip from the lesser 300 Constrained V-6 or the luxury-lined 300C, the latter of which may be optioned together with the Hemi V-8, too.

Regardless of trim, just about every rear-wheel-drive 300 V-6 earns the same EPA ratings of 19 mpg city and 30 mpg highway. In the course of our time with the 300S V-6 we recorded 23 mpg total, matching the EPA’s mixed figure. Likewise, our 75-mph highway fuel-economy check resulted in thirty mpg, again spot on the EPA quantity.

2017 Chrysler 300S V-6 RWD Review - Features:

Despite its rather staid styling, the 300S’s cabin is usually a fine spot to although away the miles, with its well-cushioned front bucket and rear bench seats. Our test motor vehicle allow in just 69 decibels of noise at 70 mph, creating its cabin as quiet as that of your significantly pricier Volvo S90 T5. Every single 2017 Chrysler 300 also advantages from Chrysler’s most current Uconnect four infotainment software program. It capabilities the prior Uconnect system’s logical menu framework, standard ease of use, and 8.4-inch display but adds sharper graphics, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay capability, in addition to a host of new touchscreen functions, which include the capability to pinch to zoom in or out to the optional $995 navigation system’s map.

We’d gladly do without the need of the 300S-specific piano-black trim that may be a magnet for fingerprints, and we’d probably skip our check car’s $1795 panoramic sunroof, as it cuts front-seat headroom by 1.seven inches and rear-seat headroom by 1.0 inch.

Notably missing from our $39,655 300S V-6 test auto was the $2995 SafetyTec Plus bundle that involves active-safety products this kind of as adaptive cruise manage, automated high-beams, automated emergency braking, a blind-spot check, and lane-departure warning. Likewise, our Optimum Steel gray test auto also lacked the new-for-2017 S Model Appearance bundle for $1295, which adds aggressive exterior cues such like a decklid spoiler in addition to a front fascia taken through the 300 SRT that is readily available in other markets.

While the Chrysler 300 nameplate has legitimate racing heritage, the sporting overtones of the 2017 Chrysler 300S seem counter on the sedan’s modern-day mission like a luxury cruiser. Individuals looking for a somewhat reasonably priced, high-performance full-size sedan can be much better served by the 300’s Dodge-branded sibling: the Dodge Charger R/T, which comes standard using a 5.7-liter Hemi V-8 and, at $35,990, charges $780 less compared to the V-6-powered 300S.