Once ridiculed for their canted headlights and strange dimensions, the early 1960s big Mopars have somehow aged rather well in the last fifteen years. It doesn’t hurt that the “toilet seat” spare tire addition is long gone, but with this 1962 Chrysler 300H, one of only 570 cranked out by Chrysler in 1962, what the factory chose to do has all but been thrown out the window in lieu of what a gearhead would want. Subtle? Hardly, from the 540ci RB mill built by Indy Cylinder Engines to the air suspension that keeps the full-car Art Morrison 2×4 frame, this 300H is a full-on exercise in “look at me”.
You can’t miss the beast in it’s “Purple Pearl” paint, and the interior…well, it’s about the best compromise between custom and original you could expect. The Astra-Dome gauge package is one of the most unique designs for a gauge package that was ever affixed to a production automobile, and it’s electroluminescent lighting was nothing short of gorgeous. And that’s exactly how we’d love to see this car…cruising down the Interstate, with the glow from the gauges and the thrum from that big-block keeping us company as the cool breeze floats into the cabin from the vent window. She might be mean, but she still has an air of class about her.
My dad had a ’62 300 for years. I saw this beast at Bowling Green a couple of years ago, and it is a very well done car. Loose the wheelie bar (and if I remember, drag chute), and it’s a machine that could be taken seriously.