Intended use: Daily driver
Model year range: 2005-present
Pros: Styling, size
Cons: Chrysler lack of reliability, thirsty
Any major mechanical issues? Any years to avoid?
Intended use: Daily driver
Model year range: 2005-present
Pros: Styling, size
Cons: Chrysler lack of reliability, thirsty
Any major mechanical issues? Any years to avoid?
Which drivetrain?
It makes a huge difference in the answer(s).
Probably leaning v6, but is the v8 with cylinder deactivation nearly as efficient?
I'd probably consider any and all, depending on the particular example. Heavily favor the 2011-up for general new-ness.
It's as big as a whale.....I think....
Datsun240ZGuy said:It's as big as a whale.....I think...
Yeah, but it seats about 20...
We had a 300s rental car the other week. It was quite solid. One of the better rental car driving experiences I've had. Can't speak to the reliability.
Didn't really measure, but the fuel economy ended up being better than I expected from something that big. >20 in mixed driving.
Had a couple of really nit-picky critiques
Nothing but "con" from me.
That being said if I found an SRT8 300 that was not totally ragged out, I would consider getting it and ragging it out myself.
In reply to Beer Baron :
Has anyone got their jukebox money tho?
I can only comment on the earlier 3.5L engine that it will be worth double checking on timing belt health as they *should* still be interference engines so a snapped belt due to a lack of maintenance turns it into driveway artwork really quick. Other than that, I don't see as many of the earlier styles in the junkyards locally, very rarely see the newer redesigns at all.
They don't age well. Being a Alfa tech I get stick with other stellantis crap and the interior always seems to fall apart on them. The 3.6 isn't a terrible engine, just not particularly good at anything (power, fuel mileage, etc), the 5.7 and 6.4 cars are all ruined by the burnout kids.
Don't forget that apparently 2.7 V6 300's were built for some time. I don't understand why this happened but it did and I would avoid that.
Beer Baron said:Datsun240ZGuy said:It's as big as a whale.....I think...
Yeah, but it seats about 20...
I was so disappointed when I realized that line wasn't "...and it's a 440!"
Not sure if it was called a 300 , but I do like the station wagon ones....
nice style and not the Drug dealer vibe
In reply to californiamilleghia :
That's the Magnum, same thing basically
For us, the 300 works well. I'm on my second 300. The first, a 2016, was totalled in a wreck with trees that left my wife with little more than a seatbelt bruise. We replaced it with a 2021, also with the V6.
I'm not sure what "thirsty" means in previous posts. We get 30+ MPG at 75 with the AC on, on our frequent 420-mile round trips with over 2000' of elevation change. It is a little better on flatter trips. I don't consider that particularly bad for a full-size sedan.
It is not a track car. It is competent on the highway with very good passing capability.
We needed a car that can carry a knock-down mobility scooter and moderate luggage in the trunk, and can seat four adults for a couple of hours at a time. The 300 does that as well as anything I've owned.
The '16 had one issue with the interior: The door lining tended to curl and uh-adhere after some Texas summers. The '21 hasn't shown any sign of that yet.
The '21 has the taller rims, and a slightly harsher ride because of it. I don't have a problem with seeing out, at least not compared to other modern cars.
slantvaliant (Forum Supporter) said:I'm not sure what "thirsty" means in previous posts. We get 30+ MPG at 75 with the AC on, on our frequent 420-mile round trips with over 2000' of elevation change. It is a little better on flatter trips. I don't consider that particularly bad for a full-size sedan.
Fuelly says one can expect closer to 20 MPG in mixed driving and that is closer to my experience. I think I got around 18 MPG on a few rentals but I drive them like an shiny happy person because...rental car.
https://www.fuelly.com/car/chrysler/300
In reply to slantvaliant (Forum Supporter) :
Thanks for your actual review. It was refreshing after hearing the wisecracks from the people who drive Miatas and think of the BMW 5-series as a "large" car. 
Pro- it's not a hideous looking charger.
Most of every issue on this platform comes down to that Chrysler financed everyone with a pulse. 90% didn't even deserve an Altima.
Edit- I worked on them from 07-09 or so.... 3.5's ate rocker arm shafts which is not a hard repair. 2.7's enough said. 5.7's we're not awful. I did do one 5.7 engine replacement on a car that didn't deserve it and had the replacement engine lock up on the initial test drive. Never really had big issues with the nag1/722.8 transmission. Electrical connector above the pan would leak always.
Ranger50 said:Pro- it's not a hideous looking charger.
Exactly. But I should mention that both the Challenger and Charger are likely to be considered also. I've always felt that the 300 had a formal, sophisticated, almost Bentley-esque thing going for it that sedans in that price range simply don't have.
Every time you guys make Altima memes, I apply 300/Charger, and it works better around here.
Too many German control arms, but a reasonably sturdy car.
Don't forget your vape pen, flat brim and white sunglasses.
ShawnG said:Don't forget your vape pen, flat brim and white sunglasses.
It like a slightly less off-putting subaru lol
I happen to like the 300's current looks, minus the dark wheels. The "formal" roof line does give it more headroom for passengers in the back seat than the Charger. The trunk is reasonable for my uses, although longer objects (popup shades, some guncases, etc) can take a little planning to load around other objects.
If your budget allows, get one with the ZF 8 speed.
A few years back I got one as a rental, because I really liked the car and wanted to see if I could love it enough to own it. A weekend with that thing put me off them forever. IMHO an abysmal, uncomfortable car. Obviously others have had better experiences. It was bad enough for me that I had a "No 300s" note put in my Enterprise profile (I traveled a lot at the time)
In reply to JThw8 :
Do you recall specifically any of the things you didn't like about the car? Uncomfortable ride? Seats? Ergonomics?
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