2020 Honda Civic Hatchback vs 2021 Chrysler 300

Half a decade ago, Honda redesigned the Civic, positioning it against competitors like the Subaru Impreza and Toyota Corolla. For 2020, Honda made subtle tweaks to the Civic Hatchback's styling, including new body-color crossbars on the air intakes, a refreshed grille, and smoked headlights. The Sport Touring trim, with its Platinum White Pearl paint and glossy black detailing, garnered admiration from onlookers, who mistook it for a Type R. Inside, the Sport Touring trim featured stitched leather on the steering wheel, soft surfaces, and quality materials, though hard plastics were still present. The six-speed manual gearbox, previously exclusive to the Sport trim, was now available in the Sport Touring trim, bringing the price to $28,980, including the destination charge.

In contrast, the 2021 Chrysler 300 retained its classic "three-box design" since its major facelift in 2014. The 300's design was straightforward and reminiscent of an earlier era, appealing to those who appreciated its timeless look. The 2021 model featured bi-xenon halogen projector lamps with LED driving lamps on lower trims, while higher trims offered adaptive HID lamps. The grille options varied between black and chrome, maintaining a tough, no-nonsense appearance. Wheel sizes ranged from 17-inch silver alloys on the base trim to 20-inch Black Noise wheels on the 300S. The interior quality of the 300 rivaled more expensive cars, with Nappa leather upholstery standard on higher trims and heated front seats available on the top two trims.

The 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback, equipped with a turbocharged 1.5-liter 4-cylinder engine, produced 174 horsepower in LX, EX, and EX-L trims, and 180 horsepower in Sport and Sport Touring trims. Torque measured 162 pound-feet with the CVT and 177 lb-ft with the six-speed manual transmission. The front-wheel-drive Civic Hatchback offered a refined and quiet engine, though the transmission's clutch travel and gearbox throws were long. The Civic Si, in comparison, was tighter and more powerful, but the Civic Hatchback Sport and Sport Touring provided a more comfortable daily driving experience with a softer ride, wider seats, and a quieter cabin. The EPA rated the test car at 32 mpg in combined driving, and it achieved 32.7 mpg during testing.

The 2021 Chrysler 300, with its 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 engine, delivered 292 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque in the 300 Touring and 300 Touring L, and 300 hp and 264 lb-ft in the 300S. The 300S also offered a 5.7-liter V8 option with 363 hp and 394 lb-ft of torque. Both engines came with an eight-speed automatic transmission, with paddle shifters on the 300S. The 300 provided a quiet and comfortable ride, especially in the AWD Touring L trim, which offered a traditional luxury driving experience. The V8 power in the 300S added excitement, though it wasn't as powerful as the higher-displacement engines in its Dodge Charger sibling.

The 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback offered 25.2 cubic feet of cargo space, slightly more than the Honda HR-V Touring's 23.2 cubic feet. While the HR-V had more maximum volume, the Civic Hatchback's better acceleration and fuel efficiency made it a more appealing choice. The Civic's low driver's seat wasn't as easy to get into as the HR-V, but the Sport Touring's heated leather front seats provided ample thigh support. The center console storage area was versatile, with a sliding armrest, tray, and cupholders. Rear seat comfort and legroom were good, though the lack of air-conditioning vents and dark tinted rear glass made the back seats less comfortable in hot weather.

The 2021 Chrysler 300 offered generous front and rear legroom, with 41.8 inches in the front and 40.1 inches in the back, surpassing competitors like the Lexus ES350. The 300 provided 106.3 cubic feet of passenger volume, beating the Genesis G70 and Lexus ES350. Trunk volume was also strong, with 16.3 cubic feet of cargo space, enough to accommodate four large suitcases.

The 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback featured a stylish dashboard with digital instrumentation and a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system in all but the LX trim. The Sport Touring trim included Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, satellite radio, text-messaging support, a navigation system, a quick-charging USB port, and a 12-speaker premium sound system. However, the Civic lacked a tuning knob, a larger screen, and reliable voice-recognition technology. Automatic climate control and Smart Entry with Walk Away Auto Lock were standard, providing keyless entry and peace of mind.

The 2021 Chrysler 300 retained its simple and informative instrument panel and center stack, featuring the Uconnect 4C infotainment system with an 8.4-inch touchscreen. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto were standard across the lineup. The $3,495 Popular Equipment Group added a 506-watt amp, nine premium Alpine speakers, GPS navigation, SiriusXM Traffic Plus, surround sound, a trunk-mounted subwoofer, and a dual-pane sunroof, enhancing the 300's technology offerings.

The 2020 Honda Civic Hatchback included the Honda Sensing suite of advanced driving-assistance and collision-avoidance features as standard. This suite comprised forward-collision warning with automatic emergency braking, automatic high-beam headlights, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, and Road Departure Mitigation. Adaptive cruise control with low-speed following capability was also standard. However, the lane-keeping assist lacked smoothness, and the adaptive cruise control occasionally braked for no reason. The Civic lacked a blind-spot monitoring system and rear cross-traffic alert, relying on LaneWatch for the right-side blind spot. The 2020 Civic Hatchback did not earn a Top Safety Pick rating from the IIHS due to Poor headlight performance, though it received top marks for crash-test performance.

The 2021 Chrysler 300 received top "Good" scores in most IIHS crash tests, except for "Marginal" in small overlap tests and "Poor" for headlights. The NHTSA awarded the 300 a four-star overall crash test rating, with four-star driver and passenger side crash test ratings, and a four-star rollover rating. It received a five-star rating for NHTSA's combined side barrier and side pole crash test. The 300 included active head restraints, airbags, traction and stability control, brake assist, rain brake support, ready alert braking, and hill start assist. Advanced safety features were available on higher trims and packages, such as blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, automatic high beams, lane departure warning, and rain-sensing wipers.