By
EWAN KENNEDY
26 June 2006
If you thought Chrysler's PT Cruiser looked radical before, just
look at it now. Because the PT Cruiser hatchback has been joined by one
of the most fascinating cabriolets on the road today.
This is a Fun car with a capital ‘F’.
It still follows the typical extrovert look that many love in the
Cruiser. But there are now two wide doors, instead of five regular
units. The bar over the centre of the PT Cruiser Cabriolet means that
less underfloor strengthening was needed than is normal in a
convertible. Chrysler's engineers have managing to keep the weight gain
to a mere 20 kilograms.
The roof is a soft-top and is power
operated. All you have to do is manually unfasten a centre catch in the
windscreen header rail, then push a button. The car does the rest for
you. A tonneau cover is supplied but is time consuming to fit. In any
case, the Cabrio can be driven without the tonneau in place. The roof
may look a little untidy when you do this, but somehow it adds to the
knockabout character of this fun vehicle.
The PT Cruiser in soft-top format is
virtually a full four-seater for adults. The folding roof mechanism has
taken some width from the rear seat, hence its no longer a five-seater.
And the rear legroom isn’t quite as good as before. There's plenty of
headroom with the roof closed as this is a much taller than average
vehicle for this class – and you will find there's infinite headroom
with the roof open!
Luggage space is impressive for a vehicle
of this type. Obviously not as good as in the hatchback variant, but you
can get a couple of decent sized suitcases in there. Soft luggage is
often the best option in a vehicle of this nature.
Steering and handling are competent
enough, though some may find the steering feel slightly vague in the
straight-ahead position. Ride comfort is good and the PT Cruiser
Cabriolet can handle typical Australian B-grade roads with confidence.
Noise levels are generally subdued thanks to the sophisticated roof
design.
There's some wind noise from the area of
the front pillars and door mirrors, but most owners won’t find it
objectionable. Tyre noise intrusion under certain circumstances can be
irritating, but this isn’t unusual in imported cars that aren't
designed with Australia roads in mind.
When launched in Australia in July 2000,
the PT Cruiser came with a 2.0-litre unit. Since late 2004, a 2.4-litre
powerplant has been used in all models and that’s been carried across
to the Cabriolet. Torque is good and the engine is willing to rev when
asked to do so. It’s not the most powerful unit around, though and it’s
necessary to use the gearbox to keep the engine in its torque band. More
so in the Cabrio than the hatch as the open-top car weighs 55 kg more.
The manual gearbox has a good change for
its class, though you wouldn’t call it a sporting model. The automatic
takes a little away from the performance but most drivers will still be
happy with the overall result. The 2.4-litre engine is smooth and
refined and certainly pleasant to sit behind.
From just $35,890 ($37,890 auto) the new
Chrysler PT Cruiser provides a huge amount of enjoyment, whether it be
for the driver or one of the three other smiling occupants.
