Background
Chrysler's trend-setting 300 'letter' Series represents the birth of the American muscle-car in one of its nascent incarnations.
A big 300 horsepower Hemi V8 was mated to a Torque Flite transmission.
The car was brutal and rapid. Thankfully, the brakes and steering were power-assisted.
First introduced in 1955 as part of Chrysler's all-new, Virgil Exner-designed, '100 Million Dollar Look', the first-of-the-line C-300 was intended for NASCAR racing.
The 300s were incredibly successful track cars, especially when driven by the Flock brothers and campaigned by Carl Kiekhaefer of Mercury Marine. Tim Flock won the championship by winning 18 out of 38 races and finishing in the top five no fewer than 32 times.
The hardtop coupé body style was that of the Chrysler New Yorker Newport complemented by an Imperial 'egg crate' grille, while the interior offered accommodation on a par with the best American manufacturers.
Restyled with handsome tail fins, Chrysler's luxury hot-rod became the 300-C for 1957, with a convertible joining the line-up for the first time.
There were only minor styling changes for '58, and the following year the 300 appeared with a 'wedge-head' V8 instead of the Hemi.
By 1961 Chrysler's 'letter' series hot-rod could be optioned with a 413.8ci (6.8-litre) V8 producing a mighty 390bhp. Production ceased in 1965, the 300-L being the last of this highly collectible family of high-performance coupés and convertibles.
The 300 remained at the top of the Chrysler food chain for years. They always had the biggest engines and the highest levels of trim.
No one could call them sports cars, but they were big, beautiful, high-quality brutes with thunderous engines offering loads of horsepower and tsunamis of torque.
In the 300’s DNA lay the genetic blueprint for every pony and muscle car that followed in its wake.
