OPTIONS AND ACCESSORIES:
12 Volt Accessory Plug , 3 Point Rear Seatbelts , 60/40 Seats , AM/FM Stereo & CD Player Adjustable Head Rests , Air Conditioning , Auxiliary Audio Input , Beverage Holder (s) Carpeting , Center Arm Rest , Cloth Upholstery , Console Courtesy Lights , Door Pockets , Dual Air Bags , Dual Side View Mirrors Front Bucket Seats , Interval Wipers , Map Lights , Power Brakes Power Door Locks , Power Steering , Power Windows , Quality Analog Clock in Front Rear Defroster , Rear Window Wiper , Reclining Seats , Remote Keyless Entry w/Panic Button Tachometer , Tilt Steering Wheel , Trip Odometer , Vanity Mirror Wheel Covers

MEDIA REVIEWS:
The PT Cruiser pulls its exterior styling themes into the cabin, although here, too, the retro theme is tempered a bit by a very modern-looking center stack that visually splits the vintage-styled dashboard. The driver faces three white-faced gauges set in individual cylinders, with speedometer center, tachometer right, and fuel and water temperature left. Accessory switches are concentrated in the center panel, with radial-type climate control dials at the bottom. Window switches are high in the center stack, inconvenient for quick operation, forcing the driver to search for them. The door levers have a nice action, and the switches operate with good tactile feel, though they're not world class. The standard stereo sounds tinny; we haven't tried the Boston Accoustics system. Also, there's a separate Set button for the station presets, fussier than simply holding the preset down. A bonus of the Cruiser's tall profile is its upright seating position, with a fairly high view ahead, somewhat like a sport-utility vehicle or minivan. The front seats in the three lower-line models have a reasonable amount of bolstering to keep driver and passenger from sliding side to side. The leather package offers a rich appearance given the Cruiser's price, with suede inserts in the doors and along the lower cushion edges. The GT gets sportier seats with more padding in its side bolsters to hold you firmly in place in corners. The GT also features a leather wrapped steering wheel with satin-silver spokes, and bright accents on the pedals. The center console incorporates a sliding armrest, replacing the seat-mounted armrests provided previously. The PT's console also includes a covered tray for concealing small items, a storage bin that holds six CDs, a coin holder and fold-out cup holders for rear-seat coffee consumers. A cell-phone charger is optional. Roominess is a virtue in the Cruiser. The sedan's 120.5 cubic feet of interior volume is comparable to that of large cars such as the Mercedes-Benz S-Class or Lincoln Town Car, though it certainly doesn't have the ambience of those cars. Much of that space is a function of the Cruiser's height. To take advantage of this, the rear seat bottoms are higher than those in front; called theater seating, it affords the back-seat passengers a better view forward. Rear passengers also can stretch their legs underneath the front seats, which are mounted on tall boxes. A six-foot, nine-inch passenger can fit comfortably in the front or rear seats. The cabin of the PT Cruiser sedan can be configured 26 different ways. This flexibility stems from three features: a 65/35 split rear bench that can be folded flat, tumbled forward or removed, a movable parcel shelf in the cargo bay, and a front passenger seat that folds flat. The rear seats are anchored with quick-release attachments for easy removal. Suitcase handles and steel wheels make it easier to stash the rear seats in the garage and move them about. The smaller seat weighs 35 pounds, but the larger section weighs a hefty 65 pounds. With both rear seats out, the Cruiser provides 64 cubic feet of cargo volume. A mountain bike fits with the rear seats removed; take the front wheel of the bike and you can leave the rear seats in place. The load floor measures 40 inches between the wheel wells, not wide enough for four-foot building materials, but still enormously useful. Folding the front passenger seatback flat forms a table next to the driver, or makes room for an eight-foot stepladder or a load of two-by-fours. The convertible doesn't stand as tall as the sedan. It offers just 84.3 cubic feet of interior volume (compared with 120.5 for the sedan). Head room and hip room are significantly reduced, front and rear. It's fine up front, though. The convertibles get the sport seats from the GT across the board, which is nice. The chair-like rear seats in the convertible have lots of leg room. The Chrysler PT Cruiser blends the retro look of a late-1930s or early 1940s American sedan with new-age styling cues such as dual-beam flush headlights and teardrop-shaped taillight lenses. The look was refined beginning with the 2006 models, but not drastically changed. The horizontal-themed grille does not extend below the bumper as on older models and it's topped by a prominent Chrysler eagle and flanked by gently scalloped headlamps. Round foglights frame a horizontal slot in the bumper. Around back, a body-color spoiler on the liftgate is said to improve aerodynamic efficiency. In terms of exterior dimensions, the PT Cruiser is quite compact. It's shorter in overall length than most compact sedans, but it's relatively tall. Measuring 63 inches from the pavement to the highest point of its roof, it's nearly as tall as a minivan. That height is a crucial element of the PT Cruiser's design. The design of the convertible is quite a bit different from that of the sedan. For starters, it's a two-door rather than a four-door. The convertible looks shorter than the sedan, but it isn't; maybe it's the single long door on each side that creates this illusion. It's lower, however, by almost three inches, which certainly alters the looks. But there's a lot more to it than that: close examination reveals that the windshield is raked more radically and uses a different A-pillar design. With the top up, the convertible looks like a custom chopped-top hot rod. And it looks pretty cool. Drop the top and the gangstermobile turns into a chick car. With its top down, the PT Cruiser convertible's high tail and integrated sport bar remind us of the old Volkswagen Cabrio. But where the VW's side windows sealed against its sport bar, the Chrysler's windows seal against each other for a more modern convertible profile. Its slightly narrower and color-keyed sport bar sits behind the windows, inside the car, and is aerodynamically designed to minimize wind noise. A nice boot is provided that dresses up the appearance with the top down. Retrowagon, and gangster convertible. The PT Cruiser is fun to drive, but it's not a sports car. In essence, it's a tall, practical economy car that goes relatively quickly. The standard engine is rated 150 horsepower and 165 pound-feet of torque, enough to propel the Cruiser from 0 to 60 mph in about 8.5 seconds and down the quarter-mile drag strip in about 16.7 seconds. We call that peppy. Big four-cylinder engines have a natural tendency to idle roughly, so Chrysler's 2.4-liter engine uses a counter-rotating balance shaft to smooth things out. The PT Cruiser offers both a five-speed manual and four-speed automatic transmission. The manual gearbox is surprisingly precise, not sports-car grade, but not bad for a unit with a longer-throw gate and foot-long shifter. Working the gears to get the most from the base engine is enjoyable. The automatic isn't as effective as the five-speed at getting the base Cruiser cruising, because the engine's power is biased toward higher rpm, which is not where automatics work best. The engine's peak torque is reached at a relatively high 4,000 rpm. (Torque is that force that propels the car from intersections and up steep hills). On the other hand, kickdown shifts come fairly quickly. With properly timed dips of the accelerator, there's enough power for safe, clean overtaking on two-lane roads. In short, we like the manual better than the automatic. The 180-horsepower turbocharged engine that's optional on Limited sedans and Touring convertibles produces a healthy 210 pound-feet of torque, starting at 2800 rpm and holding steady to 4000. That improves performance with the automatic considerably. The quickest Cruiser is the GT, which develops 245 pound-feet of torque at 2400-4500 rpm. That makes the 230-horsepower High Output turbo feel like a bigger engine, even though it isn't. A rumbly exhaust makes the GT sound more like what hot-rodders wanted when the hot-rod body was first introduced. You know it's a turbo because of the telltale whine when it spools up, though chambers in the intake manifold act as sound dampers. The GT can get to 60 mph in about seven seconds, which is decent but not rocket-like acceleration. Driving the GT around town, you'll likely forget to downshift, since the engine pulls strongly at 2500 rpm in any gear. Once you decide to go quicker, the GT acts a little more like the muscle car its body says it is. The standard gearbox in the GT is a five-speed manual built by Getrag in Germany. We also drove a GT with Chrysler's AutoStick transmission, an automatic that has a semi-manual shift feature. It works well, with a tall shifter reminiscent of an old-fashioned hot-rod setup. Stand on it at low rpm and there's a little lag as the turbo gets into the boost, but once it spools up it takes off decisively. Even the base PT Cruiser handles more like a sedan than a minivan, maintaining its composure in the corners. With its big 17-inch wheels and tires, the GT hustles like a sports sedan, though it lacks precision. Body lean is well controlled. The rear suspension design maximizes cargo space, but the twist-beam rear axle bounces a bit on rough pavement and the chassis does not feel rigid. In quick, hard, slalom-type maneuvers the PT Cruiser starts to feel top heavy, even with the GT's stiffer suspension and big wheels. You can almost feel the high mass of the car try to continue in one direction as the front wheels turn in the other. It feels tentative when turning in for high-speed corners and does not inspire confidence. It's more composed than the typical sport-utility or minivan in sudden lane-change maneuvers, but it really is more of a cruiser than a sports machine. In spite of its height, we did not find the Cruiser to be particularly susceptible to cross winds at high speeds. There is little wind noise, almost no tire or road noise, and a just-audible whine from the drivetrain. The Chrysler PT Cruiser appeals to people of all ages and lifestyles with its whimsical, retro design. Its affordability increases its appeal. It's also practical, with a roomy, versatile interior. It isn't particularly refined, however. The GT models deliver strong acceleration performance and bring hot-rod credibility to the Cruiser's hot rod image. The convertible offers genuine open-air fun and is great for carrying four people, but isn't practical for hauling cargo. The lower-priced models offer the best value and we think they make the most sense. NewCarTestDrive editor Mitch McCullough filed this report from Los Angeles, with Jeff Vettraino and Phil Berg reporting from Detroit. SHOW MORE REVIEWS

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