Auto Trends

No doubt you have been seeing these cars more and more over the past year… and their drivers are becoming more and more diverse. Everybody can find something to love about the Chrysler 300, from executive 30-somethings, college bound 20-somethings, muscle car era 40-somethings, on up to even wheelchair hot rodding 90-somethings.

20-Somethings:

Undoubtedly if you ask a 20-something what they liked best about their 300, they will probably mention the style, 22/24 wheel capability, and the word “Hemi” will probably be mixed somewhere in there as well.

The entire line of Chrysler 300’s are toting powerful engines, from their baseline V6 on up to their top of the line SRT-8. The base 300 ($23,000) has a 178-horsepower 2.7 liter V6 with a four-speed automatic transmission. The Touring and Limited ($27,000-$29,000) 300 have a 250 horsepower 3.5 liter V6, with a five-speed automatic transmission.

The top echelon 300 ”C” and 300C SRT-8 feature the infamous Hemi V8 engine. The 300C ($36,000) is good for 340 horsepower while the SRT-8 ($42,000) is even better at 425 horsepower. It is important however to realize that you are toting around a five-seat sedan upwards of 4,000 lbs, so as impressive as these numbers may seem, their 0-60 tells yet another story.

0-60 for the V-6 2.7 is around 10 seconds. The 3.5 gets there at 8 seconds. The 300C is just under 7 seconds, while the 300C SRT-8 can push you back in your seat at 6.1 seconds (Popular Mechanics). So, your going to have to shell out the big bucks (over $40,000) if you want to win any races (at the track of course).

30-Somethings:

The more family/business oriented 30-something crowd will enjoy the power of the 300 just as much as the 20-somethings, but on the practical side, the 300 is a very affordable “luxury/family” sedan. With the base 300 Touring you can get fog lamps, four-wheel disc (anti-lock) brakes, traction control, stability control, emergency brake assist, leather upholstery, and All-Wheel Drive, all for just a little under 30K in most cases.

40-Somethings:

With age and intelligence comes the knowledge that your most enjoyable time spent with a new car is inside of it, so you might as well make the most of it. There seems to be two sides to the 300’s interior… you will either love it or hate it.

For many, the large leather seats are very comfortable, while the chrome interior accents and white face gauges are pleasing and reminiscent of a performance oriented vehicle. The speedometer even goes to 160 to go along with the 300’s overall bulging presence and estimated 150+ speed capability.

Others say that the interior is full of cheap plastics that are not pleasing to either the look or touch. They say the arm rests are harsh, the vinyl material on the steering wheel is tacky, and the tortoise shell accents are unflattering.

Have a look and decide for yourself which side of the fence you fall…

Either way, the Chrysler 300 is a decent car for your dollar and offers something that just about anyone will enjoy!

While not exactly a Mustang, the Ford Interceptor Concept is Ford’s take on what a four-door Mustang should have been. Ford says the concept has the soul of a mustang with the elegant classy attitude of a classic 60’s Four-Door.

While many opinions on the Ford Four Door would differ somewhat from the words “classy” and “elegant”, the new Ford concept actually does cast the feelings of refined class, albeit in somewhat raw form.

Hidden within its clean body panels is somewhat of a subdued “shaker” hood, that would not be as noticeable on the open road. Overall, the Interceptor does a superb job of blending itself among other four doors, such as the Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger, but it does so in the classic form of an Interceptor.

If you think about it, the job of an interceptor has always been to blend well, yet outperform when duty calls. At first glance, few would expect to find a 400 horsepower 5.0 liter “cammer” engine lurking beneath the subtle, yet clean and mean shaker hood.

As this concept debuted, it found both immediate loyal followers as well as those who criticized it beyond human decency. Some called it “big and ugly”, while others implored Ford to “build it and they will buy it”.

What these folks may not realize is whether you love or hate the new design, you are basically looking at a well devised plan by new Ford CEO, Alan Mulally, to bring back the rear-wheel drive car onto North American soil and foster a new Ford heritage and popularity at the same time.

Rear-wheel-drive has been going extinct over the years, except for of course a handful of sports cars and SUV/truck platforms. If you consider the ancient live rear axle that many of them have been paired with, it is obvious why they were becoming as dated as the “in-line” telephone.

What Ford is able to come up with as far as the final rear-wheel-drive design, may be the straw that either breaks the back of Ford’s camel who has been struggling underneath the success of the Mustang, or feeds the appetite of the rear-drive conscience consumer.

For too long has Ford been criticized for its aging live rear axle set-up. Ford, it’s time to open up a brand new bag and pull out a few new tricks… and the Concept Interceptor looks like a great place to start!

It looks like we can look forward to another edition of the John Cooper Works MINI Cooper for 2009. The JCW (John Cooper Works) has been around for several years now, but this year MINI has said that they are in full control of the name badge and intend to use it to its fullest capacity… and indeed it looks like they have done just that…

The new JCW MINI Cooper S and Clubman editions ask the question, what you get when you mix a cuddly koala bear with a feisty Badger? About 207 turbocharged horsepower, 192 lb-ft torque, and less than 3,000 lbs of unsuspecting fury.

While this little beast is rated at 192 lb-ft torque, there is actually about 207 lbs at your disposal thanks to a nifty “overboost” function that can give the driver a quick punch of power when the situation calls for it. Such as when a R32 Volkswagen pulls up next to you at a red light.

Full torque can be reached at just around 1850 rpm, which is quite impressive for a little 1.6 liter powerplant. It is of course widely known that the quickest way to huge horsepower gains with the smallest amount of drag and wear on an engine is turbo, so it is surprising that it took MINI so long to ditch the supercharger and throw on a turbo.

For a brief history of how the 1.6 liter has evolved since the millennium…

The “New” MINI Cooper began its life as a normally aspirated 1.6 liter with 115 horsepower. This was quickly boosted by the Cooper S, which was supercharged to 160 horsepower in 2003. In 2004 the Cooper S was rated at 163 horsepower, then 168 horsepower in 2006, and finally the turbo rolled out in 2007 and unloaded close to 175 ponies onto the pavement.

But for 2009, MINI is using the long known equation in the performance industry…

BIG Turbo = Big Boost = More Horsepower (Approximately 32 more horsepower to be exact)…

Sounds fun??? Don’t you think!