Chrysler 300 vs Zeekr 7X

What's the difference?

The Chrysler 300 SRT is a big, fast, well-equipped and super-comfortable point-to-point tourer that’s also able to soak up the stresses of a city commute with ease. It’s also showing its age in terms of design, obscenely thirsty, dynamically flawed, and offered with a bottom-of-the-class ownership package. A fun place to visit but make sure you’re ready for permanent residency.

Not the most comprehensive of tests, I'm afraid. But early signs are good for the Zeekr 7X, which ticks plenty of on-paper boxes, looks sleek and fresh and feels sorted from behind the wheel.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.

The NSW Highway Patrol has adopted the 300 SRT as its weapon of choice, and psychologically I reckon they’re onto a winner.

A high waistline, small glasshouse and big 20-inch rims combine to give the 300 a chunky, take-no-prisoners stance. And this intimidating beast filling the mirrors is enough to make even the most determined speedster drop their bundle.

Except for the SRT badge at the back, the exterior is a chrome-free zone, with black finish on the big honeycomb grille, window frames, and dark chrome wheels dialing up the overall air of menace.

The rear view is similarly imposing, with a large slab of almost right-angular boot lid topped by a pronounced body-colour spoiler.

At this point, we have to call out less than perfect panel fit. On our test car for example the intersection of the bonnet and front clip above the headlights was messy with inconsistent shut lines and poor alignment.

Inside not much has changed over the current 300’s seven years on sale, and the design lacks the integrated approach of more modern competitors.

An 8.4-inch colour media touchscreen sits in the centre of a squared oval panel between the central air vents and under an analogue clock, that shape bearing no resemblance to the form of the heating and ventilation control panel below it or the instrument binnacle alongside.

A mass of buttons confronts the driver across the centre stack, steering wheel and door, while genuine carbon fibre inserts add a racy if slightly ironic touch in a close to 2.0-tonne car.

Leather and suede sports front seats look (and feel) the business, and the strongly illuminated gauges are divided by a 7.0-inch multifunction display including a clear digital speed read-out. Which is just as well, because the fussy increments on the analogue dial are hard to read.

It’s a sleek-looking SUV, the 7X, and is nowhere near as boundary-pushing as its stablemate sibling, the Polestar 4, which rides on the same platform. For one, the Zeekr has a rear windscreen.

Zeekr calls it 'hidden energy' design language, which I take to mean, at least partly, that you can’t immediately tell what’s powering it. It could pass as an internal-combustion car, a hybrid, PHEV or EV; at least until you look closely.

There are light bars front and back, but sadly we miss out on what the brand calls its 'Light Curtain' - a pixel-filled bar of light that spans the entire front end. Apparently it fell victim to the ANCAP crash-test requirements and has been replaced by a black cover.

Even without it, I dig the 7X’s athletic stance. It looks good in the metal, especially finished in deep green paint.

Inside, it’s a pretty plush-feeling cabin, without being revolutionary, and the big central screen and digital dash are bright and clear. The addition of a camera to monitor back seat passengers without having to turn around is a clever touch, too.

At just under 5.1m long, 1.9m wide and close to 1.5m tall the 300 SRT is a sizeable machine, so it’s no surprise there’s plenty of room inside.

Those up front are provided with a pair of cupholders in the centre console (complete with heating or cooling at the press of a button), storage bins and medium-size bottle holders in the doors, a long oddments tray and a small storage cubby (with 12-volt outlet) near the gear shifter, as well as a sunglasses holder in the overhead console and a big glove box.

There’s also a lidded storage box between the seats, complete with sliding tray, two USB ports, an ‘aux-in’ jack and a 12-volt outlet. Even old school nicotine enthusiasts are catered for with an ashtray insert ready to slip into one of the cupholders and a cigarette lighter to drop into the main 12-volt socket.

Rear seat passengers pick up a fold-down centre armrest with two cupholders and a lidded oddments box, decent door bins with bottle holders, as well adjustable vents at the back of the centre console, two USB ports, and switches for the standard heated rear seats.

Sitting behind the driver’s seat set for my 183cm position I had ample legroom but only adequate headroom. There’s enough shoulder room for three adults across the rear, but the broad transmission tunnel throws a spanner in the works when it comes to centre foot room.

The fully-lined boot is nicely trimmed, with a pair of flip-out bag hooks (22kg capacity), load tie-down anchors, and useful lighting included.

Volume is 462 litres, enough to fit our three-piece hard suitcase set (35, 68 and 105 litres) lying flat on the floor, or the CarsGuide pram, with heaps of room to spare. A 60/40 split-folding rear seat adds extra space and flexibility.

In the case of a flat tyre your only option is a repair/inflator kit, and it’s worth noting towing capacity for the SRT is the same 450kg for a braked or unbraked trailer, where the standard V6-powered 300C can tow a 1724kg braked trailer.

The 7X stretches 4787mm in length, 1930mm in width, 1650mm in height and rides on a 2900mm wheelbase.

As is pretty typical of electric SUVs, interior space is great, especially for backseat riders. I'm 175cm and have heaps of knee and headroom behind the driver's seat set to my position.

Storage space is good, too, with a deep bin between the front seats, a pull-down divider in the back row and pull-out draws beneath the back seat which mean you can hide laptops or valuables when you lock the car.

One key quirk, though, is the location of the USB charge ports in the back, which are accessed through the pulldown seat divider. It means that, should there be three passengers in the back, you won't be charging any devices.

The boot is 539 litres of flat, wide space – though that number grows when you drop the 60/40 split-folding back row. Rear-drive models also get a 62-litre 'frunk'.

There are three ways into the 7X, with two rear-drive models and one AWD Performance completing the trilogy.

That story begins with the 7X Rear-Drive, which gets the smallest battery and lists at $57,900, before on-road costs. Next is the Long-Range at $63,900, which is also a rear-drive model but nabs a bigger battery and a longer driving range.

Finally, the Performance is $72,900, and is the only twin-motor model. It scores the same 100kWh battery as the Long Range, but significantly ups the performance, which in turn dramatically lowers the zero to 100km/h time.

Standard kit is pretty impressive across the board, with the entry-level model scoring 19-inch alloys, LED lighting all around, a powered tailgate, a glass roof (with powered shade) and ambient interior lighting.

Tech is handled buy a 16-inch central touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and there are two 50W wireless charge pads. You also get a digital dash, tri-zone climate and a 10-speaker stereo.

The Long Range model adds a better 21-speaker stereo and a head-up display, while the flagship Performance gets trick auto-opening and closing doors (you just push a button in the pillar to open and step on the brake to close), as well as genuine Nappa leather trim, 21-inch alloys and very good adaptive air suspension.

Forget hybrid, forget turbos, the Chrysler 300 SRT is powered by 392 cubic-inches of Detroit iron… although the 6.4-litre ‘Apache’ V8 is actually built in Mexico.

The engine’s block is indeed cast iron although the heads are aluminium, with the ‘Hemi’ name derived from its hemispherical combustion chamber design.

It’s naturally aspirated, direct fuel-injected and produces 350kW (470hp) at 6150rpm and no less than 637Nm of torque at 4250rpm.

Drive goes through an eight-speed automatic transmission to the rear wheels with a limited-slip diff standard.

The two rear-drive ZX models share the same rear motor producing 310kW and 440Nm. Not stratospheric numbers but the powertrain delivers plenty of useable, real-world grunt, with both variants reporting a zero to 100km/h time of 6.0 seconds.

The AWD Performance model really ups the grunt, though, adding a second electric motor at the front axle lifting total outputs to 475kW and 710Nm and dropping the 0-100km/h run to a crazy-brisk 3.8 seconds. It’s also the only model to ride on the very good adaptive air suspension as standard.

A model of fuel efficiency this car is not. Claimed economy for the combined (ADR 81/02 - urban, extra-urban) cycle is 13.0L/100km, the 300 SRT emitting 303g/km of CO2 in the process.

Over roughly 300km of city, suburban and freeway running we recorded 18.5L/100km (at the bowser), and the on-board computer threw up some horrifying short-term numbers as we explored the car’s performance potential.

Minimum fuel requirement is 95 RON premium unleaded and you’ll need 70 litres of it to fill the tank… regularly.

The cheapest 7X variant scores a 75kWh LFP battery, while the Long Range and Performance nab a 100kWh NCM unit. All have an 800V electronic architecture, allowing for mega charging speeds of up to 450kW DC charging (actually 420kW on the 100kW battery).

Now, I don’t think we have chargers capable of pushing that much juice in Australia, but even using our 350kW chargers Zeekr promises you’ll go from 10 to 80 percent charged in 16 minutes or less. AC charging is up to 22kW, too.

In terms of driving range, you can expect 480km in the rear-drive, 615km in the Long Range and 543km in the Performance, all on the WLTP cycle.

Roll onto a smooth, dry surface, engage the SRT’s standard launch control function and you’ve dialled in the ability to storm from 0-100km/h in a ludicrously rapid 4.5sec.

Unlike smaller capacity turbo engines, the big atmo Hemi takes a while to develop maximum torque (637Nm), hitting peak pulling power at 4250rpm. Keep the throttle pinned and full power (350kW) is achieved on the cusp of the rev limiter at 6150rpm.

All this fire and fury is accompanied by a beautifully brutal V8 roar courtesy of an active exhaust which tweaks the pulsing note it produces according to drive mode and throttle position. It’s hard not to love it, complete with rude pops and crackles on the over-run.

Beware though, this car is relatively loud all the time, so you’ve got to hope the love affair is a long-term one.

Suspension is by a short and long arm (SLA) and upper A-arms at the front, with a five-link set-up at the rear, and Bilstein adaptive dampers all around.

The switch between Comfort and Sport is swift and marked, with the latter best kept for billiard tables and race circuits. Around town ride in the more compliant setting is agreeably smooth.

Push the big 300 along your favourite backroad and you know you’re asking two tonnes of metal, rubber and glass to move against its will.

The eight-speed auto responds well in manual mode (with wheel-mounted paddles), and the grippy sports front seats do decent job of keeping their occupants stable and balanced, but the sheer mass of this car means you’re never going to get a corner-carving hot hatch-like experience.

And despite a chunky, leather-trimmed sports wheel, the hydraulically-assisted ‘SRT Tuned’ steering isn’t exactly the last word in road feel or sharp response.

Having said that, the fat 20-inch (245/45) Goodyear Eagle F1 rubber grips hard with minimal impact on ride quality, and in a more relaxed mode the SRT is a stress-free and comfortable tourer.

Big acceleration is balanced by big brakes, with beefy ventilated rotors (360mm fr / 350mm rr) clamped by Brembo four-piston calipers front and rear.

The system’s outright power is impressive but can be abrupt on initial application at around town speeds, until you get used to greasing the pedal pressure in.

‘SRT Performance Pages’ allows you to scroll through multiple real-time data screens (timers, G-force, engine performance, etc), which is fun, with outputs downloadable to a USB stick or SD card. The 19-speaker harman/kardon audio system absolutely cranks, and the active cruise control works intuitively, without the frustrating conservatism (taking forever to pick up the throttle) of some other systems

The 7X is very much the vehicle Zeekr has been waiting for in Australia, so expectation weighs heavy on its metallic shoulders. Happily, and not to spoil the ending, it largely lives up to those expectations with our taste test revealing an electric SUV that shines in most areas.

Our drive experience took place at one of Australia’s longest and fastest race circuits, The Bend outside Adelaide. And not in the AWD Performance version, but in the less-powerful Long Range model. Not exactly the natural environment of a circa 2.5-tonne electric SUV, then.

And while the rear-drive Zeekr is no out-and-out performance car, the 310kW and 440Nm served up from that rear-axle motor is plenty to get the 7X up and moving, with the power arriving in a steady and unbroken stream that saw us pretty easily push to 200km/h on one of the track’s lengthier straights.

I’d argue that’s more than enough grunt to satisfy most, if not all, Zeekr owners without them having to dig deep for the Performance model. But there’s no escaping the fact this is a heavy vehicle, and one inspired by efficiency, not the red mist of racing.

So, things start to drop away a bit when the lesser 7X is really pushed, with an off-putting kind of buffeting movement at speed and sometimes spongey-feeling dynamics a reminder that this is a vehicle more at home on public roads.

The AWD Performance, however, sharpens things up considerably, helped by its adaptive air suspension and all-paw grip. It feels far tighter, grippier and more composed through corners. Sadly, by the time I jumped in, my lead-footed colleagues had drained the battery to the point where I could only accelerate at 50 per cent capacity, which made the AWD slower on the straights than then RWD model, but it made up plenty of lost ground in the way it corners.

All of this is, of course, is likely to be of little relevance to any 7X customers, who are more likely to find themselves on the moon than they are the main straight of a race track, and so my opinion hasn’t changed — the AWD is faster and more technically advanced, but when you boil it down to the actual life a mid-size electric SUV will live, I think the smart money is on the Long Range AWD model.

Side note: We also did some pretty serious off-roading (again, something no owner is likely to do) in the AWD model, and I can report that the softest suspension, steering and accelerator settings add a cosseting comfort to the drive experience on rough roads, and that there is some genuine of-road capability on board.

How it drives on actual roads? For that, you’ll have to wait just a little longer. But early signs are good for Zeekr’s most important model.

The 7X wears a maximum five-star Euro NCAP assessment and I want to point out a pretty wild feature. Standard across all trims is a high-def camera in the B-pillar aimed at the rear seats. You can cover it, if you’d like, but the idea is that anyone up front can hit a button near the central screen that will pull up a high-def feed of what’s happening in the back seat. So, no more having to turn around to see what the kids are up to in the back seat.

Happily, all 7X models get the same safety suite, which includes a 360-degree camera, autonomous parking and 15 ADAS functions.

The warranty world has moved significantly in recent months, and the 300 SRT’s three year/100,000km warranty is now well off the pace.

Yes, it includes corrosion cover and 24-hour roadside assistance, but with the likes of Ford, Holden, Honda, Mazda, and Toyota now at five years/unlimited km, Chrysler is way behind.

Kia moved to seven years/unlimited km in 2014, and there are whispers of the Korean brand shifting to 10 years sooner rather than later.

Service is required every 12 months/12,000km, and no capped price servicing program is currently offered.

With the caveat that labour rates will inevitably vary between dealerships, Chrysler Australia estimates five year standard servicing cost at $2590 (including GST).

The Zeekr 7X is covered by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, while the battery is covered for eight years or 160,000km. There’s five years' roadside assistance thrown in, too.

Servicing is recommended every two years or 40,000km, with what the brand describes as optional health checks in years one, three and five (the first one's on the house).

Go for all the services, including the optional ones, and you’re looking at $2415 over the first five years. Skip the optional ones, and it’s more like $1755.