My recent week with the hotrod version of Chrysler’s excellent 300C SRT8 was colored with a measure of poignancy, as the company had just announced it was falling into bankruptcy.

When this brash and beautiful beast debuted four years ago, the skeptics among us who felt the whole Mercedes ‘merger’ was really a takeover of Chrysler were (temporarily) silenced. Using the solid chassis structure or the outgoing E-Class, the 300 seemed a bright new beginning.

It was totally suited to America. Large enough to be accommodating to those used to SUVs, well built and reliable, and just oozing character from its slab-sided, chopped roof form, it sold like hotcakes. But the combined company squandered any resultant goodwill with a string of mediocre follow-ups like the undercooked Sebring, the Jeep Liberty, and the Dodge Caliber—which has the dubious distinction of being simply the worst new car I’ve driven this century. So it was no real surprise when the company began to founder; a few great vehicles were never going to be enough in such competitive times.

But such depressing ruminations were blown away every time I tromped the 300C’s loud pedal and the glorious 6.1-liter Hemi unleashed its 425 galloping steeds to the accompaniment of one of the baddest exhaust bellows ever to emerge from a four door.

0-60 was routinely dispatched in the low six-second range (noteworthy for an atmo engine in Denver’s thin air) as the tight shifting Benz-sourced gearbox made the most of the 420lb-ft of torque, hurling the Chrysler down the road with abandon. It also helps the engine loaf along under light load, contributing to a very reasonable 19mpg average through a week’s driving. The tranny’s only real shortcoming is that its last-gen software doesn’t rev-match downshifts, making for some chassis upset when entering a corner hotly.

That wouldn’t matter much if the SRT8 didn’t handle so durn well for such a large barge. But its chassis setup is stellar, combining a tolerable ride with tied-down body motions and a benign-to-neutral cornering stance that can be turned into gratuitous oversteer at the poke of a right foot. Contributing to this are tweaks to the suspension knuckles and a lower ride, along with recalibrations to the ESP software that make it less intrusive during on-the-limit shenanigans.

Less successful are changes to the big Brembo brakes, which despite ‘anti knock-back’ software upgrades, vary in feel and firmness when used in anger. While driver confidence takes a hit, ultimate stopping power isn’t affected.

The wonderfully supportive SRT8 seats sure help you exploit the edge of the performance envelope, but the bus-sized steering wheel still annoys. At least it now has a powered adjustment, helping to tailor an excellent driving position for a wide range of physiques. There a few other annoying shortcomings that cropped up in my time with the 300C, most aggravating being issues with its infotainment system. Not only is its control logic anything but (push the ‘up’ arrow to go down track lists; errr…), but any CD it swallowed kept playing for a random amount of time—even when you were listening to the radio or had turned the system off to answer a phone call.

But overall, these are minor flaws in the undeniably engaging character of the Chrysler. Friends were quite surprised by how much I raved about it, especially as I’m blessed enough to drive so many more expensive and seemingly much more desirable cars. But this version of the 300 suits my tastes, and makes me feel a bit of pride as an American, too.

As a package, this 300C offers a tremendous amount of unadulterated pleasure without compromising its practicality. Now, if the New Chrysler is to succeed, it’s going to have to deliver other cars and trucks of equal excellence to this SRT8. Here’s hoping they get the chance.

Price as tested: $50,220

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