1957 Chrysler 300C

The Story

Chrysler's letter-series 300 cars were the muscle cars before the term existed, and the 1957 300C was the most dramatic yet. Styled under Virgil Exner, it married soaring tailfins and a bold trapezoidal grille to a chassis tuned for genuine high-speed work. Contemporaries called it the 'beautiful brute,' and few descriptions have ever fit a car so well.

The heart of the matter was the 392-cubic-inch FirePower Hemi, breathing through twin four-barrel carburetors and producing 375 horsepower — with a 390-horsepower version available for those who wanted more. This was among the most powerful American production engines of its day, and the 300C used it to dominate NASCAR's flying mile and stock-car ovals, cementing a fearsome competition reputation.

On the road the 300C felt unlike any other big Chrysler: firmer, faster and more purposeful, a luxury coupe that could embarrass sports cars in a straight line. It was expensive, exclusive and aimed squarely at the affluent enthusiast who wanted refinement and ferocity in equal measure.

Scarcity defines its collectibility. Just 484 convertibles were built, and these now bring well into six figures, while the more numerous hardtops remain comparatively attainable entries into letter-series ownership. The 300C endures as the patrician ancestor of the American performance car.