1964 Chrysler 300

Chrysler had two 300 series models in its lineup during the early 1960s, the 300 'non-letter' Series and the 300 'letter series.' The 'letter series' was introduced in 1955 as a high-performance personal luxury vehicle that came standard with a 300 horsepower V8 engine that made it the most powerful automobile of the year. The 1955 model was known as the 300, and the 1956 version was designated 300B. The next letter of the alphabet was applied each successive model year, skipping 'i', until reaching 300L by 1965, after which the model sequence was discontinued.

The 'non-letter' series was introduced in 1962 and continued through 1971 and served as a replacement for the 1961 Chrysler Windsor. It was lower priced than its 300 'letter series' sibling and its styling was similar, with a wider range of body styles that included a hardtop coupe, hardtop sedan, convertible, and sedan. In comparison, the performance 300H of 1962 was available as a hardtop coupe and convertible. The 300 Sport came equipped with a 383 CID V8 with 305 horsepower while the 300H used a 413.3 CID V8 with 380 horsepower.

The 1963 Chrysler 300 Sport was similar to the previous year, except for the addition of the Pace Setter Series later in the model year, commemorating the use of a 300 as the Pace Car for the Indianapolis 500-mile race. The 383 CID V8 continued to produce 305 hp but the 413.8 CID V8 in the 300J had Ram-Tube Induction manifolds, and the previous Model 3251S carburetor was replaced by a Model 3505S, with horsepower now reaching 390 bhp.

Styling for the 1964 'letter' and 'non-letter' 300 was similar, although the interior of the 300K was much more luxurious. Both were available as a hardtop coupe or convertible, with the 300 Series adding a hardtop sedan or sedan. New for 1964 was the removal of the word 'Sport' from the 300 designations. A star-shaped insignia could be found on the C-pillar on hardtop body styles and the back part of the front fender on convertibles. Power was from an overhead valve V8 engine displacing 383 cubic inches and offering just over 300 horsepower. It had overhead valves, a 10.0:1 compression ratio, a Carter two-barrel carburetor, hydraulic valve lifters, and five main bearings. It was backed by a three-speed manual floor-mounted transmission with non-synchromesh on the first gear.

The two-door hardtop coupe had a base price of $3,445 and the four-door hardtop sedan listed for $3,520. The sedan was priced at $3,370 and the convertible was $3,800. The most popular body style was the hardtop coupe with 13,401 examples built, followed by 11,460 of the hardtop sedan, and 2,026 of the convertible.

By Daniel Vaughan | Jul 2015