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As a ‘real’ enthusiast, you might think I shouldn’t be advocating a car like the ‘SRT Design’ Chrysler 300C. And yet it’s exactly the kind of thing that makes sense – who doesn’t want to look good while they’re doing just over the speed limit? Don’t most people buy the performance cars for the wheels and lower body cladding anyway?

In other countries, they’ll sell you what you want, but here product planners have gotten into the greedy, grubby habit of forcing you towards the larger engine wherever possible. With fuel prices where they are, that has to change.

Let’s be frank – if you are looking for handling, even the ‘real’ SRT-8 is not the ideal place to start. So what’s the problem with making the 300C look better and ride on a wheel size and offset that won’t throw everything else horribly off kilter, a la most 300Cs you see rolling around on SUV dubs?

Indeed the 300C points to what I have been predicting will be an emerging trend – cars that look fast but don’t ride and guzzle like a fast car does.

Bring on the 3.0L common rail diesel engined SRT design, the TRD Prius!

But don’t despair – there’s another way to do it, and I’ll be damned if I didn’t suggest this to anyone who would listen over the past 5 years: cars that have the handling you want and ‘make do’ with the standard engines. If BMW brings out the tii models that automobile recently reported might be in the works, you won’t have to suffer a BMW that’s too heavy if you want a trick differential or an exhaust system that sings. (Think a more extreme E46 330i Performance Package -like models, cars that emphasise subjective over objective measures).

The last fuel crisis left us with junk – thankfully this time it’s spurring manufacturers to come up with fresh ideas, desirable ones even.

Don’t worry – you won’t be forced to give up the luxuries or the room you’re used to – manufacturers are realizing that they can earn a profit if they let you option up small cars like they’ve usually reserved for large cars – a la the MINI. If we’re lucky, people will be reminded of how clumsy and awkward the average car had become as it piled on layers of fat that come with middle age.

Vote with your dollars for more emotional design and more interesting cars will make it to the market!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 13th, 2008 at 1:42 am and is filed under Chrysler, best of.