We baby boomers on the Edmund's staff remember with a certain fondness the family cars of our childhood days. Full-size cars such as Ford Galaxie 500s, Chevrolet Impalas and Plymouth Furys were typical of what one would find in the driveways of early-1970s suburbia. Unlike the kids of today, who sit in velour captain's chairs in mom's minivan and enjoy CD sound (and even video tapes), we boomers sat on flat, vinyl, bench seats and usually had only an AM radio for audio entertainment on long trips.
While there is no denying the popularity of minivans as the vehicle of choice for families, the full-size American family car lives on, albeit now with a lot more standard features and a higher price tag than those mainstays of our youth. Case in point: Chrysler's Concorde.
Available in base, LX and LXi trim levels, the Concorde is a well-equipped car. Even the base version has A/C (with ducts for the rear passengers), tilt wheel, cruise control, power everything (including driver's seat), keyless entry, a decent stereo with cassette, full gauges, and a 200-horsepower V6 engine. The LX adds a power passenger seat, upgraded stereo with eight speakers, a trip computer and larger (16-inch versus 15-inch) tires. The LXi ups the ante with antilock brakes, traction control, leather seating, alloy wheels, a CD deck in place of the cassette deck, and an anti-theft system. We tested a green LXi with beige leather interior and the optional 3.2-liter V6 sporting 225 horsepower.
The first thing we noticed about the Concorde is its stunning looks. This is a flat-out gorgeous car; from any angle the shapes flow together. And the egg-crate grille in front reminded a few of us of some Ferraris of the 1960s. Rent "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and you'll see what we mean. There are three other cars in Chrysler's stable that share this same platform: Dodge's Intrepid and the more upscale Chrysler LHS and 300M. The Intrepid is a near twin to the Concorde in terms of pricing and equipment levels, while the LHS and 300M are more expensive and both feature a 253-horsepower V6 not available on the Concorde or Intrepid. Ironically though, most of us preferred the style of the less costly cars to the LHS and 300M. One editor noted that "the Concorde is clean and tasteful where the 300M's front end is just plain bizzare."
And even with all that style, there is plenty of room for five adults to ride comfortably. The big trunk has a flat load floor, allowing the most to be made of its 19 cubic feet. The only negatives about the car's design concern blind spots created by the cheeky C-pillars and sloped rear window.
Inside the Concorde the no-nonsense theme continues with logical placement of the large controls that are easy to use with one exception: the stereo presets. We griped about this in our long-term Intrepid, which has an identical interior and stereo system. The problem is that in order to lock in a radio station one must first press a "set" button and then the appropriate numbered preset button, as opposed to the more common practice of simply pressing and holding the preset button until it beeps.
Driving this big sedan is a joy as the compliant suspension absorbs the bumps without ruining the handling. The soft ride made some of us anticipate sloppy handling when the car is pushed, but indeed, the Concorde LXi seemed to possess the same handling characteristics as our long-term Intrepid ES: precise turn-in and flat cornering composure. The overall effect is that the car is not as big as it really is, as it handles more like a midsize sport sedan than a car with a 113-inch wheelbase. We imagine that the base Concorde, which does without the bigger tires, would not be quite as sporty in the curves as our LXi tester.
With 25 more ponies and 35 more foot-pounds of torque than the base engine, the 3.2-liter V6 delivers peppy performance off the line and strong midrange passing power. The engine does growl noticeably when you put your foot into it, and though some of us liked this quality, others felt it was out of character for this type of car. A four-speed automatic is the only transmission, and if you want Chryler's "Autostick" slapstick-style shifter you'll have to look at the Intrepid as it's not available in the Concorde. As with our Intrepid, this powerteam delivers great mileage for a 225-horsepower, full-size sedan: we averaged over 24 mpg in over 500 miles that was mostly highway driving. The four-wheel disc brakes with antilock technology do a good job of reining in those horses, though some staffers complained that the pedal felt a bit spongy.
Overall, the Concorde displays a great combination of style, room, comfort, performance and fuel economy. And now that the Concorde is scoring higher in reliability ratings than in years past, this is a car we have no trouble recommending.
While there is no denying the popularity of minivans as the vehicle of choice for families, the full-size American family car lives on, albeit now with a lot more standard features and a higher price tag than those mainstays of our youth. Case in point: Chrysler's Concorde.
Available in base, LX and LXi trim levels, the Concorde is a well-equipped car. Even the base version has A/C (with ducts for the rear passengers), tilt wheel, cruise control, power everything (including driver's seat), keyless entry, a decent stereo with cassette, full gauges, and a 200-horsepower V6 engine. The LX adds a power passenger seat, upgraded stereo with eight speakers, a trip computer and larger (16-inch versus 15-inch) tires. The LXi ups the ante with antilock brakes, traction control, leather seating, alloy wheels, a CD deck in place of the cassette deck, and an anti-theft system. We tested a green LXi with beige leather interior and the optional 3.2-liter V6 sporting 225 horsepower.
The first thing we noticed about the Concorde is its stunning looks. This is a flat-out gorgeous car; from any angle the shapes flow together. And the egg-crate grille in front reminded a few of us of some Ferraris of the 1960s. Rent "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and you'll see what we mean. There are three other cars in Chrysler's stable that share this same platform: Dodge's Intrepid and the more upscale Chrysler LHS and 300M. The Intrepid is a near twin to the Concorde in terms of pricing and equipment levels, while the LHS and 300M are more expensive and both feature a 253-horsepower V6 not available on the Concorde or Intrepid. Ironically though, most of us preferred the style of the less costly cars to the LHS and 300M. One editor noted that "the Concorde is clean and tasteful where the 300M's front end is just plain bizzare."
And even with all that style, there is plenty of room for five adults to ride comfortably. The big trunk has a flat load floor, allowing the most to be made of its 19 cubic feet. The only negatives about the car's design concern blind spots created by the cheeky C-pillars and sloped rear window.
Inside the Concorde the no-nonsense theme continues with logical placement of the large controls that are easy to use with one exception: the stereo presets. We griped about this in our long-term Intrepid, which has an identical interior and stereo system. The problem is that in order to lock in a radio station one must first press a "set" button and then the appropriate numbered preset button, as opposed to the more common practice of simply pressing and holding the preset button until it beeps.
Driving this big sedan is a joy as the compliant suspension absorbs the bumps without ruining the handling. The soft ride made some of us anticipate sloppy handling when the car is pushed, but indeed, the Concorde LXi seemed to possess the same handling characteristics as our long-term Intrepid ES: precise turn-in and flat cornering composure. The overall effect is that the car is not as big as it really is, as it handles more like a midsize sport sedan than a car with a 113-inch wheelbase. We imagine that the base Concorde, which does without the bigger tires, would not be quite as sporty in the curves as our LXi tester.
With 25 more ponies and 35 more foot-pounds of torque than the base engine, the 3.2-liter V6 delivers peppy performance off the line and strong midrange passing power. The engine does growl noticeably when you put your foot into it, and though some of us liked this quality, others felt it was out of character for this type of car. A four-speed automatic is the only transmission, and if you want Chryler's "Autostick" slapstick-style shifter you'll have to look at the Intrepid as it's not available in the Concorde. As with our Intrepid, this powerteam delivers great mileage for a 225-horsepower, full-size sedan: we averaged over 24 mpg in over 500 miles that was mostly highway driving. The four-wheel disc brakes with antilock technology do a good job of reining in those horses, though some staffers complained that the pedal felt a bit spongy.
Overall, the Concorde displays a great combination of style, room, comfort, performance and fuel economy. And now that the Concorde is scoring higher in reliability ratings than in years past, this is a car we have no trouble recommending.
Add A Comment »