- The 2002 Chrysler 300M Special was the most performance-oriented of the LH cars.
- The Special isn’t much more powerful than the standard 300M, though, with just five more horsepower and three more pound-feet of torque, but the overall package stands out.
- This well-preserved example is up for sale on Bring a Trailer, and the auction ends on March 26.
When Chrysler released the 2002 Chrysler 300M Special, our foredrivers felt it was an obvious effort to win back their adulation after our affection for the 300Ms began to wane. The model made our 10Best list in 1999 and 2000, then fell off as more potent competitors appeared on the scene. The Special’s smidge of extra horsepower and torque weren’t quite enough to totally do the trick, however. Still, the 300M’s “cab-forward” design was advanced for its time, and it’s aged well. This fine-looking example, currently up for auction on Bring a Trailer (which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos), could turn heads even today.
As recounted by one of the commenters, the 300M was a last-minute addition to the Chrysler brand’s LH lineup. Supposedly, the car was designed as the second-gen Eagle Vision, but when the Eagle division was dropped, Chrysler ended up with the model, to sell alongside the Concorde and the LHS. Compared to those two, the 300M was a more tidy, international size, at just five meters long.
Chrysler put a slightly more powerful version of the 3.5-liter SOHC V6 engine in the Special than it did in the standard 300M. The Special version produced up to 255 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque, compared to 250 and 255, respectively, in the standard 300M. The Chrysler 300M Special also came with a stiffer suspension, and the four-speed automatic transmission had a shorter final-drive ratio (3.89 compared to 3.66). There was also a Special-specific dual exhaust system. And, unusual for a front-wheel-drive car, the engine was mounted longitudinally in the 300M, which helped create a roomy and comfortable interior.
This car features a retro-tastic four-disc in-dash CD player and a factory cassette stereo, and its Light Taupe leather interior appears in fine shape. This Chrysler is also equipped with a power sunroof, heated and power-adjustable front seats with position memory, and HID headlights. The exterior is painted in Bright Silver Metallic, and the car has 18-inch alloy wheels with 245/45 Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 3 tires.
The example up for auction has seen some use, with around 60,000 miles on the odometer and a repainted front bumper cover. It was originally sold in California and has a Pennsylvania title. It also has a clean CarFax record, but there is some corrosion on the exhaust and suspension components. At the time of their debut, the LH cars were a big deal, and even the second-generation models were well ahead of their domestic competition, at least in terms of design. This car is the sportiest of the bunch and would have been a stylin’ ride in the post-Y2K era.
Contributing Editor
Sebastian Blanco has been writing about electric vehicles, hybrids, and hydrogen cars since 2006. His articles and car reviews have appeared in the New York Times, Automotive News, Reuters, SAE, Autoblog, InsideEVs, Trucks.com, Car Talk, and other outlets. His first green-car media event was the launch of the Tesla Roadster, and since then he has been tracking the shift away from gasoline-powered vehicles and discovering the new technology’s importance not just for the auto industry, but for the world as a whole. Throw in the recent shift to autonomous vehicles, and there are more interesting changes happening now than most people can wrap their heads around. You can find him on Twitter or, on good days, behind the wheel of a new EV.
