Chrysler Nassau Concept Drops in Motown

DETROIT — Chrysler says its Nassau concept "explores a new expression of the brand" and hints that some of the design cues could find their way into the next-generation 300C that's due after 2010.

The four-passenger Nassau rides on an ample 120-inch wheelbase but looks more compact dimensionally than today's 300C. Chrysler describes the car as a "four-door luxury coupe," but in fact it has more in common with the pillarless four-door hardtops of the 1950s, with full retracting front and rear side glass. The curvy silhouette of the greenhouse appears to have been adapted from the Mercedes-Benz CLS.

The Nassau has a fairly conventional face, with an update on the brand's evolving signature egg-crate grille done in chrome and satin aluminum, flanked by browlike headlamps that sweep back into the fenders.

The car's most distinctive exterior design feature is the "boattail" rear end and wraparound rear glass, both of which bear a vague resemblance to the Renault Vel Satis. The rear hatch is steeply raked and buttressed by oversize LED taillamps.

The Nassau rides on 21-inch wheels and tires.

Chrysler poured a lot of attention into the interior details, including a sculpted instrument panel said to be inspired by the work of the sculptor Brancusi and an instrument cluster designed to look like an expensive timepiece.

The cabin is fitted with four bucket seats trimmed in cream-colored leather with bamboo-textured suede accents. There are chrome accents through the cabin, which also boasts twin longitudinal skylights, a pair of flush-mounted video screens in the rear, and console-mounted joystick controls.

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