1955 Chrysler C-300
America’s first mass-produced 300-horsepower car was the
legendary 1955 Chrysler C-300 coupe, which many consider
America’s first high-performance auto for the general public.
Only the limited-production, custom-body 1930s Duesenberg, built for
the very wealthy, had provided such power.
It’s difficult today to realize what a sensation a
300-horsepower auto was in 1955. That was a car-crazy year for
Americans, who welcomed radically new, unexpected body styles.
For 1955, General Motors offered its racy Chevrolet Corvette V-8 sports
car and Ford introduced its sporty Thunderbird V-8 two-seater. Chrysler
Corp. had spent $100 milllion—than a huge sum—to
dramatically restyle its 1955 models and had no money or time to
develop a two-seater.
The 300’s V-8 easier outpowered the Corvette and Thunderbird
V-8s—not to mention the costly Cadillac’s top V-8,
which had 270 horsepower.The C-300 arrived when the fastest, most
powerful American mass-produced cars were still mostly costly,
full-size models. The Corvette and Thunderbird were generally
considered frivolous, as were two-seat foreign sports cars.
The big, gorgeous new 1955 Chrysler model was officially called the
C-300, with the “C” likely standing for
“Chrysler.” But it soon was just referred to as the
“300” to prevent confusion because the second 300
was the 1956 300B, which had 340-355 horsepower. Subsequent 300s
carried the letters C through L, except the “I”
designation was skipped to avoid confusion with the number
“1.” They’re all Chrysler
Corp.’s prized collector “letter cars.”
The C-300 underscored Chrysler Corp.’s outstanding
engineering reputation and was essentially a showroom attention-getter
that helped sell lesser Chrysler models. But it found 1,725 buyers,
which was a respectable number for a specialized model. It outsold the
Chrysler New Yorker Deluxe convertible, which cost $3,924 and attracted
946 buyers.
The C-300 had a race-style version of Chrysler Corp.’s then
fairly new “Hemi” V-8.
That engine got its nickname from its hemispherical combustion
chambers. A Hemi had been put in a few tamer upscale Chryslers after
arriving for 1951 with a 331.1-cubic-inch displacement and
180 horsepower—a high number that year. It provided great
volumetric efficiency for superb performance. And its lower compression
ratio let it use lower-octane fuel than non-Hemis, although it produced
more power than comparably sized engines.
The 1955 Hemi 300’s 331.1-cubic-inch Hemi was modified like
Hemi V-8s used in successful early 1950s race cars, with such
power-enhancing items as two four-barrel carburetors, a competition
camshaft and solid valve lifters. Solid lifters were more efficient
than the hydraulic ones used in other Chrysler V-8s, but were noisier.
The camshaft also caused a rather rough engine idle, although not an
intolerable one. The exhaust system generated a rumbling sound. It soon
became clear that this was no car to mess with.
An unusually firm suspension for a Chrysler model provided the
excellent handling and flat cornering expected only from sports cars.
Some of the first buyers of the 1955 300 just wanted to own the most
powerful car in America, but soon found it was louder and had a rougher
ride than other top-line Chryslers. They soon traded it in for a tamer
upper-line Chrysler.
The 1955 300 had a Chrysler New Yorker Newport hardtop body and smooth
Chrysler Windsor side trim and rear-quarter body panels. There was
subtle “300” badging on the body and hubcaps, but
the 300 shared the classy “twin tower” taillights
of other large Chryslers.Up front was a large Chrysler Imperial
“eggcrate” grille.
At $4,110, the new 300 was the second most costly Chrysler brand auto.
Only the big $4,209 Town & Country station wagon cost more.
The price, alone, signaled that this was no car for kids. It was a hot
rod luxury model for generally older affluent folks who liked fast
cars. Veteran national auto writer Tom McCahill said the new 300 was a
“hardboiled, magnificent piece of semi-competition
transportation, built for the real automotive connoisseur.”
The 1955 300 was virtually unbeatable in competition that year, winning
its first NASCAR Grand National race. It took the checkered flag at 37
NASCAR and AAA races of more than 100 miles.
The 300 had a lavish interior featuring gorgeous “Natural
Cowhide” leather upholstery and the top-line Chrysler
Imperial’s dashboard, although the Imperial speedometer was
changed to read up to 150 mph.
The dashboard had no space for a tachometer. But one wasn’t
really needed because the only transmission was Chrysler’s
new two-speed Powerflite automatic, which was a heavy duty unit that
could handle the Hemi’s power and torque. After all, a 300
buyer wasn’t expected to be bothered with shifting gears.
Only red, white and black paint was available, and the few extras
included a radio, heater and power steering. Also offered were a clock,
tinted glass, wire wheels and power seats, brakes and windows. No air
conditioning was offered, which didn’t seem unusual because
few cars had “air.”
The 300 came as both a coupe and convertible, starting in 1957, and was
built through 1965, when the 360-horsepower 300L became the last of the
classic 300 “letter-series” cars.
The first-generation Hemi V-8 was dropped in 1959 because it was a
complicated engine that was costly to
make. The 1959-65 300s
thus had big, conventional, high-horsepower V-8s.
The most-prized 300s are the 1955-58 models because they had the Hemi.
A second version of the Hemi V-8 came in the 1960s for some Chrysler
Corp. cars to keep the automaker among the hottest contenders in that
decade’s muscle-car race. But they were totally different
types of cars than the glamorous 1950s 300 Hemi models.
The 1957-58 300C/300D looked sleeker and was more powerful than the
1955 C-300, but there’s no topping the 1955 300 because
there’s no topping an original.