Italian nous puts the hoods’ car back on road

CHRYSLER’S 300C was the saloon that 21st century hoodlums might have designed – a solid chunk, low roof, narrow windows, huge face – sometimes embellished with a Bentley-esque grille. If you were really tough there was the SRT-8 (as in Street Racing Technology) with a 425 horse power 6.1 litre V8.

Lots of fun while it lasted, then Chrysler hit a brick wall in the fall-out from its short-sighted merger with Daimler Benz in 1998. Ten years later they were breaking up.

To the rescue came FIAT and with Italian nous the Chrysler marque was revived. The 300C flagship is back, launched last year in the US and here next month. The gangster profile has been retained.

Chrysler is claiming “European-style quality and finesse, coupled with American-style comfort and high levels of equipment as standard” for this US-built car. Prices start at £35,995 which brings heated front and rear seats, self levelling suspension and height control, LED daytime running lamps, electronic stability control, hill start assist, active head restraints, and curtain, side, front and rear airbags.

The UK launch engine is FIAT’s 236bhp 3-litre diesel V6 rated at 39.8mpg and from 185g/km of CO2. There are no plans for an estate version this time around.