The IT Nerd

I’m going to do something very unusual here. The Chrysler 200s AWD has one of the better interiors I’ve seen in the mid-sized class that I’ve seen. Here’s why:

The seats are a mix of cloth and leather. They’re well bolstered and kept me in place during spirited driving. The Front seats are heated.

The chrome door handles don’t feel cheap and are a very nice touch.

All the controls for the door locks, windows and side mirrors are on the armrest on the door.

The tunes are handled by a sweet sounding Alpine audio system.

All the controls for the interior and exterior lights are to the left of the steering wheel. the trunk release is there too.

The pedals are kind of plain given the other appointments that the 200s AWD comes with. It does have a dead pedal which is welcome. Suggestion to Chrysler: Some aluminum sport pedals would really look nice.

The steering wheel is leather wrapped and has redundant controls for the infotainment system on it. It feels really nice in my hands. It’s also heated.

The instrument panel is very cool looking. The gauges are easy to read and the centre portion can be customized to show the info that you want to see. Plus navigation instructions from the infotainment system are replicated here.

You get paddle shifters that work regardless of what position the shifter is in.

Speaking of the shifter, here’s the centre console. The shifter for the transmission isn’t a lever. It’s a dial. To the right is the electronic parking brake. Above it are the HVAC controls and the controls for the infotainment system. There are clear advantages using a knob for the transmission can be seen in a few areas….

Underneath the centre console is this storage space which is very handy….

You get great cup holders….

….That hold a Starbucks Venti sized drink with ease. But these cup holders have one trick….

…. as underneath them is this storage space that has a USB port, aux jack, and a 12V outlet…..

…. Plus it has a hole to fish USB or other cables through to the storage area underneath the centre console. That’s a great idea!

Under the arm rest is another storage space (which is lit by the way).

There’s an 8.4″ touchscreen on the dash that was visible in any lighting condition.

There’s a lit glovebox that is HUGE. Someone I gave a ride to was able to fit a iPad Mini in there without an issue.

The front passenger gets a 12V outlet for themselves. I think this is the first car that I’ve ever seen this feature in. It’s a very welcome addition.

You get a massive dual pane panoramic sunroof.

The back seats will fit two comfortably. A third person in the middle will have to deal with the protrusion for the driveshaft. Leg room is fine. But because of the sloping roofline, the very tall might be challenged. Also, exiting and entering might be interesting for the same reason. The seats can be flipped down in a 60/40 split.

If you don’t need the middle seat, you can flip it down to get some cup holders…..

…..as well as some storage…..

….Or you can utilize the ski pass through.

The trunk is HUGE. You’ll have no problem carrying whatever you need. Though I will note that the hinges are exposed. Thus they can crush anything that is under them.

To illustrate how big this trunk is, here’s the usual picture of our groceries in the trunk. As you can see, there’s tons of space left over.

Everything is laid out logically and easy to reach. Most surfaces are soft and everything is well put together. Though I have some minor quibbles, this interior is significantly better than any mid-sized car that I’ve seen lately. I think that when you see it, you’ll be impressed with it.

Part four of this review will cover the technology in the car. There’s a lot of it to cover so stay tuned.

This entry was posted on September 24, 2014 at 7:00 am and is filed under Products with tags Chrysler. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.