Re: [Chrysler300] 300G and silly season GARBAGE?!
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Re: [Chrysler300] 300G and silly season GARBAGE?!



"Holy batwings" and website talk of "bids from the chandeliers"?! - it must be the (christmas) silly season already over in the US as well as here, and never mind our (Australian) summer bushfires, there are indeed a worse than usual crop of bad drivers lane changing suddenly and other accident causing things enough to leave the 300s garaged for a while - over here the latest rage/scourge is new micro mini imported 'bubblecar' size cars for being slow speed road hogs - unfortunately to often driven by asian looking drivers - don't know what that makes them nationality wise?

Recent talk/debate re auctions/auctioneeers running up (300?) prices is I think not a new practice, and it certainly not restricted to just cars. And they never fool people/prices for too long, eventually either prices become the stupid figures they tout, or else it becomes a future talikng point about how stupid someone was to believe their hype?!

And (car hobby/300) reality is that 'things change' whether we like it or not - like hello. gas is no longer priced 20c a gallon - and if we look in the mirror, we likely look older than we did 20 years ago, and hey, likely restoring a 300 is way dearer than it was 20/10/5 years ago, but then likely/luckily?! our 300s are maybe also worth more?!

Some of us may own a 300 to 'one up others', others may own them to 'make money' - (please contact me off line with ways to do this repeateddly with no hardship or grief those who have perfected this!!!??), and some of us own 300s for the pleasure they give no matter be they the 'holy300 grail', or 'humble 300 pie' !?

Over here until a few weeks ago where a (lowly) 1968 327 Holden Bathurst Monaro sold for $220,000 Australians were pretty sensible about prices paid for (collector) cars - since the auction, insurance companies are apparently allowing all (remaiining) 1000 (likely soon to be 2000, rather than likely circa 500) of this model be 'upvalued' for insurance value - so now in Australia we must either adjust to a most common car albeit in a 2 door form now being valued more than most every other better built, better looking, rarer car/cars - so is the world indeed going crazy?!!

Usually before this, it was only cars *high performance', (which 300s just scrape in as ?!) with a race history that bought mega bucks - and Mecum are about to sell one of what would be Shelby's AC Cobra's 'holy grails' - one of the most winning drag Cobras a "Dragonsnake". Sadly re 300s racing history/heritage, the Exner Forward Look that started in 1957 with the 300C, effectively ended Nascar, high speed competition, and drag wise, the twin carb 300s were near immediately (from 56/300B) only courtesy of NHRA etc allowed to compete in/against the 'Altered Coupes' Gas classifcation, which meant that had to run against lightweight near full competition lightweights - no real contest here then ?!

Exner's brilliant styling can never be faulted, but it only took Mr Mercury Carl K a seeming most brief watch of the begining of 1957 Daytona Beach Flying Mile proceedings to announce there he would not be competing anymore - that jutted forward 300 hood/grille was a massive air brake at speeds over 130 mph, and that is what I believe ended circuit racing 300s, no Nascar edict/ban, which came months later, coincidentally as Ford started serious producrtion of it's supercharged 57 sedans and TBirds ?! Correct me if I am wrong re how the 300 Mercury Team Daytona announcement came about, but if my supercharged 300C with near 500hp (albeit likely below this here/then due to the still unsolved fuel starve problems) could only crack 150mph in front of (likely/cetainly watching/hearing) Mr K, how fast were his unsuperchaged 300s going to be? (And my car apparently was not running in the ordinary person off the street "Century Club" category, but the one reserved for fastest 'non factory' Flying Mile entry, which was sponsored by main Daytona Beach backer PURE (gasolne)) And further proof was how factory 300Cs wewre slower than 1956 300s?

Anyhow enough for now, comment all those who know more than me on why 300s suddenly in mid Feb 1957 fade from competition months before any May ban, and likewise when they lost that raked front around 1962 - 1964, suddenly Chrysler/Mopar were seroius/interested in racing again?!

Christopher in Australia, trying not to be too silly, yet still enjoy a good fast car - in the Northern Territory on New Years Day, Australia loses the only one remaining place you can drive a 300, any car, over 70mph without being booked, losing points/licence - already locals are stealing all the old signs as keepsakes, momentos - bugger that things must change, especially that one that we must get older each year !!? As for talk about 'stick 300Gs' and 'other sticks', others far more qualified can complete this topic, which is intersting re all the different potential perspectives already raised.




From: Andy Mikonis <r41hp@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [Chrysler300] 300G manual trans promo GARBAGE
Date: Sun, 17 Dec 2006 11:14:14 -0800 (PST)

Well, you can't blame a guy for some creative
marketing.  Shill bidding is another story.  This
$160K scenario seems a little dubious.

I'd agree the 375hp/3-speed 300G is one of those "rare
but not desireable" autos.  I've been looking over
300G road tests this morning and the 3-speed is
universally panned from a driveability standpoint,
mostly due to the long throw from first to second, and
the non-synchro first gear, which some said was
especially problematic with the G engine's
characteristics.

On the other hand, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss
this transmission itself for a sheer performance
application, i.e. a 400-hp 300G at Daytona.  Granted
this is a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT animal than the car we
were talking about, but let's look at the trans, it's
the same.  It was a new transmission for '61 and
called and considered a "heavy-duty" unit.  I've
personally never heard any reliability reports on this
trans, which I believe is the A745.  It was standard
on Newports and Windsors, but it appears all 300G's
got a larger clutch - same size a the 4-speed F's.

Performance in the Flying Mile?  Both transmissions
are 1:1 in top gear so there's no advantage there.
Indeed, Bud Faubel's 400hp/3-speed 300G outran
Zeigler's 300F/4-speed's record run from the year
before 145.9 vs. 144.9 mph, but was DQ'ed because a
trim strip came off.  Zeigler's 300G won the class in
'61 at 143.0, but didn't break the 300F's record.

Okay, so, the long 1-2 upshift is going to kill the G
in the Standing Start Mile, right?  Well,
actually, Ken Fermoyle wrote in Popular Science that
he thought the Pont-A-Mousson's first gear was "too
low," and that when shifting in to the widely-spaced
second gear "engine revolutions drop off
substantially."  Second and third are rather close
together in the Pont-A-Mousson, and the A745's second
is right in between.  What happened on the sand?
Looks like Fauble's 300G won the class in '61 at 90.7
mph, besting Brewster Shaw's 300F's second-place
finish in 1960 at 88.2 mph. Huh.

Andy Mikonis
(Love debating this stuff.  Maybe the "all-american"
400hp 300G is the true "Holy Grail" of letter cars!
Ha ha, just yankin' your chain, Wayne.  But I do
think people would look at G's a little differently if
that Flying Mile record stood.)


--- Wayne Graefen <wgraefen@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> The Feb. '07 issue of Hemmings Classic Car has a
> plug in its p. 100 Auction News about a 3 speed
> manual trans 300G hardtop coming up at World Wide
> Group's Houston auction next May.  I have to assume
> that this article is a press release from
> www.thewwg.com auction company.
>
> I went to their website to send them a comment on
> the overwhelming falsehood with which they are
> promoting this car.   On their site, the car is
> presented as "Mopar's Holy Grail!".   There are NO
> email links in WWG's web site and no phone numbers
> for the company.  There are links to forms and
> nothing else.  They give no way of contacting them
> other than to consign your car or purchase a $50
> catalog!
>
> In the Hemmings car/auction promo, it says that the
> car was "virtual bid" to $160,000 while not even
> present at their Hilton Head, SC, auction in early
> November and that "you can throw your value guide
> out the window for this one".
>
> This is totally ridiculous.  It is shameless.  This
> is auction company shenanigans at their worst and
> severely damages the hobby when believed and acted
> upon.
>
> A stick 300G is absolutely no big deal.  Granted
> they only built 14 but because no one wanted them.
> A stick G has a standard 375HP engine.  The manual
> trans was grossly inadequate for the HP and torque
> of that engine and probable to break.  The only
> thing desirable about the particular car promoted is
> that it is red, if you like red, and I wonder
> whether even that documents as original.  A lot of
> cars get painted non-authentic "Resale Red" to
> attract attention at auctions.
>
> I would hope that every reader of this post
> understands there is a great deal of shill bidding
> that goes on at auctions.  Bids with no real money
> behind them.  Phony bids.  Bids placed by people who
> work for the auction companies in MANY cases.  I've
> watched many auctions in person and I would estimate
> 40-50 percent of the bids taken by the auctioneer
> are completely false and are used strictly to pump
> up the price until it meets reserve so the car can
> sell or to pump it up to the level the auctioneer
> feels the car deserves to sell at.  Phone bidding is
> the most obvious questionable practice!  Or shill
> bids are placed by friends of the seller or the
> seller himself!  Most states allow and protect the
> use of shill bidding under law!
>
> Yes, I could look up the company's phone number and
> try talking to them.  They have negated their
> integrity in print.  I'd rather inform you of the
> problems with this auction company and car so that
> you can tell your friends and this car can miss its
> reserve by $100,000 or more with a suitable bid for
> what the car truly is - just another G among many.
>
> Be an informed buyer at any place and any time that
> you make an offer or bid on a car.  To not do so can
> have dire financial consequences.
>
> Wayne Graefen
> (Owner of a documented 300F Special with 400HP and
> Pont-a-Mousson full synchro 4speed manual trans that
> truly is rare (1 of 9) and is truly considered by
> many to be "the holy grail" among Chrysler 300
> Letter Car collectors)
>
> Sent to the Chrysler 300 Club Intl and ForwardLook
> email lists and a few friends
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
> removed]
>
>


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