Car Rental Review: 2014 Chrysler 300C AWD

2014 Chrysler 300C AWD

National's 2014 Chrysler 300C All-Wheel-Drive

• Rented From: Philadelphia 30th Street Station
• Car Class: Premium Special (PXAR)
• Miles Out: 20,359
• Miles In: 20,496
• Fuel Economy: 15 city, 23 highway with 5.7L Hemi V8 engine and 5 speed auto
• MSRP as rented: $40,195

Pros:

• Almost fully equipped...leather, heated and ventilated seats, heated and ventilated cup holders, heated mirrors and steering wheel, 10-way power driver seat with lumbar, Keyless ignition, the works.
• V8 engine is powerful, not too bad on gas.
• Garmin-based factory navigation is standard and sweet - also shows the next turn in the trip computer on the dash!
• Plush leather seats are comfortable.
• Roomy trunk.
• Working SiriusXM with Traffic! (Chrysler usually gives a 1 year trial subscription.)

Cons:

• While V8 was not too bad on gas, it's still thirsty with a 19 gallon tank.
• AWD makes vehicle a bit heavier. Can easily squeal rear tires in full RWD mode.
• No sunroof in this particular vehicle.
• Mileage was on the high side for the year only being half-over...it had Ohio plates so chances are it was one-wayed to the PHL area at some point.

"That thing got a Hemi?"

Why, yes it does!

Taking advantage of a Free Day I had, I figured I'd try to score one of these on a recent day trip to Philadelphia. National allows you to use a Free Day on a reservation up to a Premium (due to the way the Emerald Club works, the system downgrades the reservation to a Full Size, and then applies the Free Day coupon to that price.). When the girl at the counter offered a 300C, I immediately jumped at the chance....it's definitely a lot better than the last Premium rental I received there - which was a base trim Nissan Maxima.

The V8 was very, very peppy. The engine is still paired with an older 5-speed automatic (the 3.6L V6 version comes with a new 8-speed), but it doesn't impair performance too much.

This is one of the most technologically advanced cars out there. It has almost everything...and most of it is controlled from the 8.4 inch Uconnect screen on the dash. You can control things like the dual zone automatic climate control, radio, rear sunshade, the heated steering wheel, and lots of other stuff. It can actually get a bit overwhelming.

While I probably wouldn't pay to upgrade to this, I definitely wouldn't mind a free upgrade!