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This USA Today article by Sharon Carty looked into the PT’s rise and fall, noting ptcruizer.com. Detroit News listed ptcruizer.com in its chronology of the PT Cruiser, and Chris Theodore wrote in a comment to the News:
Stephen Williams covered the last PT Cruiser for the New York Times, and also mentioned ptcruizer.com (using a link to the site). He pointed to the redesign as a turning point. (Another article was in the U.K.’s Telegraph.) The end comes over a million cars and one decade after the beginning. PT Cruiser demand stayed high until the 2006 redesign, which included cheapened, hardened seats, a cheaper air dam, and a more generic interior. Insiders say the Cruiser was originally meant to be a Plymouth. It followed the styling of the Plymouth Prowler, and was to have been followed by a retro minivan and car, making Plymouth more unique and desirable. DaimlerChrysler decided, instead, to drop the Plymouth name, move Chrysler into Plymouth's spot, and make the PT Cruiser into a Chrysler by swapping logos and nameplates.
Executives frequently denigrated the PT in front of reporters, playing it as a fad, unworthy of the attention. While highly profitable, it did not conform to the Daimler strategy of using Mitsubishi designs for smaller vehicles and Mercedes designs for larger ones, and had numerous rounds of de-contenting even in the first generation. Even as Chrysler cheapened the PT, it managed to be one of the brand's biggest sellers - and highest quality cars. With the loss of the PT Cruiser comes the end of the final car ever to be designed as a Plymouth - even if it was never sold as one. Pictured above is the PT honoring Chrysler engineer Allen B. “Tobe” Couture. The car includes two-tone paint, chrome exterior touches and gauge rings, and new red leather (or existing dark gray) seats, and costs less than $20,000, including destination. In an Automotive News interview, Bryan Nesbitt said, “I didn’t like the update they did when they [altered] the headlights. But I find it interesting that Chrysler decided to keep it in production. I believe it is the most profitable small car in Chrysler’s history. ... I’ve always liked the way it looks. I think it looks better when it is lowered two inches with 18 inch wheels.” Chrysler PT Cruiser informationThe first PT Cruiser was loved for its ease of parking, use of space, ride and handling, and personality. New Beetle owners swarmed to dealerships to trade in their bugs for PTs. The Chrysler PT Cruiser has good handling, fits in a small parking space, and holds full-sized adults and their luggage in comfort. With attractive pricing and high reported reliability, the PT is a great car for a great price. The reverse-Watts suspension packs a lot of cornering and ride quality into a small space — a space smaller than a Neon on the outside, with more cargo space than many mid-sized cars on the inside. (2008 PT Cruiser review)
The PT was launched with great fanfare, but some executives frequently referred to it as a "fad," implying they didn't expect it to continue on its merits (aside from exterior styling). A 2006 redesign reduced wind noise but increased vent noise, and while some appreciated the larger gauges many disliked the scalloped headlights, cheaper air dam, and interior changes including cheaper seats and a "towel bar" above the glove compartment. Sales of the PT Cruiser fell dramatically in 2008 and 2009, and the sales mix changed dramatically from heavily loaded Limited and Touring models to inexpensive base models. 1,304,702 PT Cruisers were made between February 2000 and July 2008. The January 2001 issue of Motor Trend named the PT Cruiser the Car of the Year. The base PT went from 0 to 60 mph in 8.6 seconds, nearly a half second faster than the Honda Civic EX, and nearly the same as the Volvo V70 T5 Cross Country. Braking was good, with the Cruiser going from 60 to 0 in 120 feet - lower than most other tested vehicles (the Civic required over fifteen more feet). The skidpad and slalom rating were identical to the Civic EX and the skidpad was close (within .02 g) to the Audi AllRoad Quattro, Elantra GLS, Lexus LS 430, and Volvo V70 T5 Cross Country. See our 2008 Sunset Boulevard Edition PT Cruiser review / test drive and video!
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The pink smoke: David Turnbole gave us permission to run his photo, from the Central New York PT Cruiser Owners’ Club site; the car is owned by Ken Mulder and driven by Jason Mulder, of Ringwood, New Jersey. It’s a 2002 Series II Dream Cruiser with the Stage One turbocharger upgrade and other tuning upgrades, and is shown at the staging area at ESTA drag strip in Cicero, New York during the club’s show in Verona. Please read our terms of service / privacy policy. Copyright © 2000-2010, Allpar LLC. PTCruizer.com is not related to Chrysler but this site is dedicated to Chrysler's PT Cruiser. |
The final PT Cruiser was made on July 9, 2010. 
