Today is

By: Ikedi Ani-okoye.

Chrysler 300c

This is weird. I'm driving along a dual carriageway on the outskirts of Edinburgh in the afternoon rush hour. Despite the heavy traffic, everyone is moving over the moment they spot me in the mirror. As I'm not driving aggressively at all - in fact, all's well with the world and I'm just pottering along - I'm a little confused.

Then l spot that the chap following me has also moved over... and he's let through the meanest mother of a car Vve ever seen. And then it dawns on me. The car now behind me is a Chrysler 300C Touring. It's being driven by a colleague who, like me, is up in Scotland to test this latest Chrysler. In other words, what I'm seeing in my mirror is just what's been scaring the locals as I hove into view.

Their sense of concern is understandable, for the Chrysler is a seriously imposing piece of kit. In the States, where's it been on sale for a year or so, it's the car of choice for gangstas, rappers, hip hop stars and other such luminaries.

Built on the same platform as the outgoing Mercedes-Benz E-class estate LM-B owns Chrysler, remember), the 300C is a riwal to such cars as the Audi A6 Avant, BMW 5-Series estate  and of course, the Merc But alongside those sober, conservative and frankly traditional machines, the Chrysler is an outspoken American brat (even though all right-hand-drive examples are actually made in Austria). Remember when a young John McEnroe shook up Wimbledon with his wild hair and equally wild attitude? Opinions were split right down the middle as to whether he was a good thing or a bad thing for tennis.

That's the Chrysler: you'll either love it or loathe it. l love it. I'm a sucker for cars that are different, and the Chrysler is certainly that. The styling is a tour de force: the front is dominated by a huge square grille that is somehow ever bigger than that found on a Bentley, while the wildly sloping profile makes it look almost like a coupi... not a bad achievement For an estates are narrow, the waistline high to cocoon the occupants while the upright slab-like dashboard is as in your face as the exterior styling.

Fortunately there's more to the car than trick styling, for it is seriously practical too. This is a big car with ample passenger space and a large boot. Access to the boot is fine, despite the slope of the rooflike: the tailgate is deep and takes a third of the roof with it when opened.

Chrysler reckons that with the rear seats folded, the 300C has more load space than the Audi A6 or Saab 9-5 estate. Although there are petrol versions available (a rather dull 3.5-litre V6 and a manically thirsty 5.7-litre V8 Hemi), the engine of choice is a reasonably powerful and economic 3.0-litre Mercedes VE common rail diesel Developing 218hp and coupled to a standard five speed automatic transmission gives a brisk rather than storming performance, but it's perfectly in keeping with the rest of the car. Thanks to extensive chassis reworking to suit our tastes, the Chrysler is far stiffer than most Yank barges... but alongside a typical European rival it's still better seen as soft-riding tourer.

Truth be told, it doesn't really stack up in terms of outright quality, either. Some of the materials found in the Chrysler look and feel cheap when compared with the woods and leather found in bee Audi, say. But then, the Chrysler doesn't coat an awn and a leg. Indeed, you pay pretty much the same for the 300C as you would for the smaller Audi A4 and BOW 3-series. The Chrysler is loaded with kit, too.

Standard features include Electronic Stability Programme LESP) and an all-speed Traction Control System, iront and rear side-curtain airbags, xenon headlamps, rain-sensing windscreen wipers and a rear park assist system. Air conditioning and heated leather driver and front passenger seats also come as standard You get it all for just £27,250 - a mere £1,500 more than Chrysler asks for the 300C saloon. And with only a few thousand due on our shores, it'll be a whole lot rarer than the Audi, BMW and Mew. Shrinking violets need not apply though.