I'm back in MA for the holiday this week and I'm convinced that, knowing I'll be home eventually to tell them, none of my about-to-buy-a-car friends have read a single word on the current automotive landscape. Just yesterday a buddy came to me with this question, "Mike, I'm looking for a new car. It has to have at least four-doors. It has to be rear-wheel drive. It can't be German or Asian and from what I've heard Chrysler's interior's are terrible so it can't be one of those." He should've just said "What's the closest thing to my Caprice I can get that has a warranty and isn't rusting itself to the ground?"
I tried to explain that the current 300 is really, really nice (and has a killer user interface for the infotainment system) and pretty much his only option outside of the used market, a Tahoe or conning a salesmen into giving him a fleet-service Caprice. He wasn't having any of it and talked himself into keeping his car "one more year" to give GM a chance to win him back.
This is an unfortunately common occurrence for Chrysler and one they're not particularly thrilled with. Enter the 2012 Chrysler 300 Luxury Series. Expect to hear about this new 300's ultra-premium Poltrona Frau leather (which they claim was "once limited to some of the most exotic Italian luxury cars"), eight-speed automatic with paddle shifters, hand-sanded Natural Pore Mocha wood, and platinum chrome coated grille surround, mesh grille, mirror caps and door handle accents.
The Luxury edition starts at $40,145 for a rear-drive V6 and runs $45,245 for a 300C in AWD.
High res photos after the jump.
half_ton says:
12:54 PM, 12/27/11
The close up pics look NICE. For Chrysler's sake I hope the 300 sells well cause it appears to be a sweet ride. I think I still prefer the older front end styling over the new model and the mesh grill does NOTHING for me but maybe there is/will be an aftermarket solution for that.
By the way . . . the A8 wants it's shifter back.
audisport says:
02:21 PM, 12/27/11
I honestly like the looks of this. Alot. It's a ton of car for the money.
canddmeyer says:
03:21 PM, 12/27/11
Tell your buddy Hertz is selling the Caprice equivalent, the 2010 Grand Marquis, for about $14,500. Some are still under factory bumper-2-bumper warranty and those that aren't still qualify for Ford's ESP easily purchased online.
ghills says:
05:20 PM, 12/27/11
Whats the deal with the two different shifters?
The A8 ripoff shifter looks really good.
mrjost55 says:
10:41 PM, 12/27/11
The A8 shifter seems like a mistake by the IL staff. But it seems like Bentley also called, they want their steering wheel back.
threemopars says:
01:14 AM, 12/28/11
The shifter is a ZF design. Hence it comes in the 8 speed units.
bankerdanny says:
08:50 AM, 12/28/11
I've been a fan of of the RWD 300 since it came out. And it may be something of a cliche, but I really like the look of the Bentley style mesh grill. I'm not generally one for cosmetic upgrades other than wheels, but if I bought a 300 I would probably switch out the grill.
bodyblue says:
08:52 AM, 12/28/11
I cant figure out how the A8 interior looks 60K better than the 300.....oh thats right, it does not.
cr_driver says:
10:27 AM, 12/28/11
"By the way . . . the A8 wants it's shifter back."
+100
lostboyz says:
01:40 PM, 12/28/11
threemopars has it right. They share the same supplier, it's a ZF part. People need to learn how the industry works.
bodyblue says:
03:31 PM, 12/28/11
The interior is simply stunning....handsome and nicely assembled it seems. Amazing that Chrysler had it in them all along....they just had to get rid of the Germans and Venture Capitalists (Cerberus). Most of the changes were in the pipeline before Fiat bought them.....all they needed was money and the will to let them do the right thing.
explorerx4 says:
07:48 PM, 12/28/11
The climate control cluster needs the same bright trim around it as everything else.
Great Interior, it just needs that other 1%.
explorerx4 says:
07:52 PM, 12/28/11
A bargain choice, not too far away: http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp?tracktype=usedcc&csDlId=&csDgId=&listingId=76806452&listingRecNum=3&criteria=sf1Dir%3DASC%26mkId%3D20053%26stkTyp%3DU%26mdId%3D20805%26rd%3D100000%26crSrtFlds%3DstkTypId-feedSegId-mkId-mdId%26zc%3D06010%26rn%3D0%26PMmt%3D1-1-0%26stkTypId%3D28881%26sf2Dir%3DDESC%26sf1Nm%3Dlocation%26sf2Nm%3DmodelYear%26isDealerGrouping%3Dfalse%26rpp%3D50%26feedSegId%3D28705&aff=national&listType=1
litewerk says:
11:06 PM, 12/28/11
My thoughts and feelings on this Luxury Series trim on the 2012 Chrysler 300 very much echos that which was said by bodyblue. "What he said." I could not have said it any better. That is a darned nice interior. Love it!
bodyblue says:
05:53 AM, 12/29/11
explorerx...nice old Chevy! LOL I like it! Full size GM bodies from 77-87 were great cars. I had a 79 Bonneville.....
charleytampa says:
07:51 AM, 12/29/11
GORGEOUS. Wow. Finally a Chrysler product I would consider purchasing.
Seriously, who cares where the shifter came from anyway? If anything, that INCREASES my desire for this vehicle. I love the interior. Love it. I hate my Tundra's interior. It ticks me off every time I step inside the vehicle.
dougnash2009 says:
01:03 PM, 12/29/11
Just test drove a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland. While not quite as swank as that 300, above, still just mind-bending how nice it was. Real quality leather over every surface. Real wood trim. Not a single piece of flimsy, hard plastic to be found. Soft touch buttons everywhere. Thoughtful lighting in the cabin. Everything. I was very impressed with the effort they've clearly put into the new car. If you compare the price for the loaded V8 Jeep, it's still less than a loaded Explorer, or a button-happy MDX, and certainly all the German SUV's.
As a comparison, I had heard so many good things about what Ford was up to these days, that I also checked out the loaded Explorer. Total let-down. Tiny-sounding doors, cheap plastics, and the worst thing ever, that "Ford Touch' garbage.
bodyblue says:
11:01 AM, 12/30/11
I would like a car to car comparison of the 300 above to things like Audi, BMW and MB interiors.
jaeger1 says:
06:05 AM, 01/ 1/12
Not feeling that dull, lifeless wood at all. What's the point of using real wood if it looks like cardboard? I'm not saying a glossy finish is a must, but some nice grain / colour / figure would be nice.
Leather looks good, though.