The PT Chrysler is a retro-theme compact that was in production from 2001 to 2010. Including operations outside of the U.S., more than 1.35 million copies were built. Most remember the 5-door hatchback with the nostalgic look, but there was also a 2-door convertible like the seller’s car. It’s part of the Dream Cruiser Series and also comes with a turbocharged engine. But that powerplant has gone bad and the seller removed it from the car. The PT awaits someone to bring it back to life mechanically and cosmetically. From Tampa, Florida, this interesting Chrysler is available here on Barn Finds Classifieds for just $1,000.
When the styling of the PT Cruiser was developed, cars of the 1930s served as the designers’ inspiration. Much of the looks of the car was focused on the passenger compartment. The car was intended to be marketed as a Plymouth, but the demise of the division just after the turn of the century shifted it to be branded as a Chrysler, built in Mexico and Austria. The name PT, which I did not know before, stood for “Personal Transport.” As an FYI, the vehicle was classified as a truck in the U.S. to help raise the bar on Chrysler’s fuel efficiency ratings (I also didn’t know that).
The turbo PT came along in 2003 and the targa-like convertible in 2005, both of which include the seller’s Cruiser. PTs got a lot of initial hype and won awards, such as the Motor Trend Car of the Year in its first outing. The Dream Cruiser, like this one, was one of many “limited editions” that Chrysler would offer on the PT during its lifetime. It was known for its two-tone paint combination and the use of alloy wheels.
At more than 107,000 miles, this Cruiser is waiting for a rebirth. The engine overheated and ended up with no compression, so the engine and 5-speed manual transmission were pulled for troubleshooting. A bad head gasket was assumed, but it apparently goes beyond that. So, someone with knowledge of the mechanics of the turbo PT Cruiser will need to put their diagnosis skills to work.
This PT wears worn Cranberry Pearl paint (at least on the hood), and it’s complemented by black on the top. There is also a ding in the right door. Rust isn’t an issue, but the seller suggests a redo is in order. And the same would be true for the front seats of the “cashmere” interior. The seller has too many projects to work on, so this Chrysler has been priced to move along. The last photo is perhaps from happier days with the seller and the PT.
The other day there was a Sentra featured here. The year doesn’t really matter. but I was surprised by the positive feedback and memories. And now this. Also doesn’t matter to me what year it is or what features it has. I put these in the same category as Chevettes and Alliances.
My personal worst list. Although the Sentra definitely shines above them all. Which one would you like to be stuck behind on a two lane road? We all have a personal worst list and now you know mine. Please, note, I also respect your opinions, fellow BF readers. And yes I am glad we are not all the same.
They look nice, but that’s all they got.
I agree with you
The turbo models moved out pretty darn good for the day Dave. Quite the sleepers really.
Opinions, you say? There’s an invitation I can’t resist.You say same category as Chevettes and Alliance, like that’s a bad thing, what’s wrong with those cars? The Sentra I didn’t see, you know my feelings on those cars, but people had great luck with them, until they rusted. The Chevette was a good, not a great car, if it didn’t live in the shadow of the Vega, and the Alliance, okay, you have me there.
I thought the “PT” stood for Plymouth Truck, and it had a lot of minivan/K car parts, dependable in their own right. My son had a PT Cruiser, put a TON of miles on it, and loved the car.
And not to worry about being the same, I haven’t found too many like me,,
Howard, in my experience with the Alliance (only an Encore was worse) you overheat it and you’re looking at a head gasket. You could overheat a Honda all day long, no worries. US Renault was not a quality product.
I wanted a PT Cruiser very badly when they first came out. I liked it in that dark Washington blue all the way to the white cueball shift knob on the 5 speed. I remember Chrysler released some special catalogs when they were coming out, I somehow got some mailed to me. I think I wore them out looking at them.
I knew a guy that had one, he put a lot of miles on it and never gave him any trouble.
I had 3 of them one I bought new put over 200k miles not one problem had a turbo was quick and also a convertible
Russ, I had a PT Cruiser and was always led to believe that the PT stood for ‘Panel Truck’, if you open the rear doors and removed the adjustable height shelf you then opened the rear doors and removed the folding and sliding seats just at the pull of a lever, you then had a mini panel truck with only the two front seats and a heap of room in the back.
The reason I got rid of it at 135,000 Kms was because I was quoted $1,400 Aussie dollars to replace the $25.00 timing belt, apparently a 7 hour job where the body had to be lifted off the engine to get to the belt.
When these were released in Australia, I loved the retro look, went to the dealer, FWD? WTF? Nope sorry don’t want one now.
There’s now a huge demand here in Aus for converting them to RWD with the 5.7L hemi.
Side note, the prowler was never offered here, but the crossfire was, with a V6. Cheap Merc
We see some praise and lots of vitriol for the P/T Cruiser. They were fun, functional and affordable even with early MVAs. A true phenomenon on introduction with others scrambling to cash in on the retro look. GTs came with the HO turbo and delivered plenty of power. Watts linkage helped with handling. Arguably a modern day classic.
I paid 2500 bucks for a turbo convertible auto for my daughter. I did the suspension and tires, battery and starter. Had it for five years. Used it year round but kept it out of the snow and salt. It was largely never winter driven. Had 4600 into it and sold it for 4500. I think that’s $1.66 a month. Too funny. They were quick ish considering it’s competition. No turning radius. You could get trapped in a drive through.
No engine in this one? I gotta say it…
Put an LS in it… 😂
I’ve never driven one, but my mom rented one to take my daughter to Disney world. The PT was a new model then, and so popular, she paid a premium for a rental. They were so excited about that car when they drove off. I have no idea why, but upon return, they hated it and regretted renting it.
My wife bought a 2007 from a friend whose father had passed away. She paid $750 for it. When it ran,it was the cat’s meow. It would cruise 80-85 all day long. But, when there were problems,they were horrible. Coolant issues,oil leaks,valve seals, misfires,etc. Finally ended up junking it. She still misses it.
Ugly then, ugly now.
Especially ugly as a convertible, IMO. To each their own!
I have nothing against the PT Cruiser, but given the condition this is in and that it’s less than 20 years old, I have to wonder if there aren’t more interesting cars to fill the space on BF. I know I’ve sent in numerous cars that never were posted, yet this thing gets a writeup?
This is a reader’s car who sent it in as a classified. If you look at the specs though, it’s actually very interesting.
Don’t feel bad, Laddie, they never approved my motorized manure spreader either, but I got over it. Interesting vehicles and,,things, come through here all the time. It’s nice to see the staff includes vehicles like this, stuff we actually may have owned. A Lambo, not so much.
Had a 2005 Special Edition Turbo convertible. Only reason I bought it initially was my wife found it more comfortable to get in/out of over a Mustang we were looking at. Grew to hate that car. Don’t get me wrong, it was pristine in silver with black/grey interior, chrome 17″ wheels and a tasteful body kit – even won some car shows with it. Handled nicely and had plenty of power with a Stage 1 computer reprogram. The problem was it was so BRITTLE! Plastic pieces would literally crumble in my hand. Final straw was when I touched a curbstone and the entire front bumper broke off! And apparently replacement turbo bumpers are made of unobtainium. I wound up gluing the old one back together as best I could, and sent it down the road.
Have owned both the 5 door and the convertible. Both turbo’s. I actually liked the hardtop better. Lowered with a ground effects kit and the right wheels and it’s not ugly. The convertible seemed bulky and cumbersome driving it. Seemed heavier. Never checked whether it was or not. Kinda wish I would’ve kept the hardtop. Now I own an 06 Dodge Magnum with the little V6. Wondering what I could get out of it with a turbo. Or is it even worth it?
I cringe when I read comments about a PT Cruiser as they are usually not complementary, but I was pleasantly surprised as there are some positive comments expressed here. I will add another positive. My wife had a 91 PT Special Edition and we both loved it. It was a nice little vehicle and I think it was one of the best ever design for a car of it’s size. It had plenty of room in the rear for luggage, and the rear seats folded down to make more space if needed, and if even more space was needed the seats were removable, and had a handle on the side to carry them. We loved it for 140K miles until we gave it to our grand daughter. She added another 25 or 30K miles on it. It had a nice leather interior that virtually never showed wear at all and still looked great when it went to the junk yard after a tree fell on it. It had four wheel disk brakes which seems a little rare as most of the ones I have observed have rear drums. It always used a little oil but the transmission never gave any problems. It was a good little car IMO.
Yours had the available ABS giving you 4-wheel discs.
Pretty sure it’s basically a Neon rebodied, the retro craze kicked in and Chrysler did it with this model fairly cheap. Timing belt is a bit tough to replace as the hood space is limited. Neon was a decent small car, although I like the first generation Neon better, as they are lighter. Don’t even see them anymore.
Loved my 06, comfortable, handled and steering great, well designed interior. But to try to get money for a blown up one is nuts. Give it to the neighbor kid. OneNote, Chrysler lost money on every convertible.
I was an avid Chrysler Corp fan from owning a
1988 Plymouth Voyager to a 1996 Chrysler Town & Country and lastly a 2005 Chrysler Sebring. I remember going to my dealer from an invitation to see a new Crossfire. Nearby was a black PT Cruiser that was chrome laden with goodies. I wanted that car so badly that I asked my wife about buying it! She said the car was ugly and forget it! Later, I considered the Crossfire for a trade-in of my T&C with 212,500 miles. I realized it wasn’t practical as we needed more trunk space for traveling and bought the Sebring instead. Excellent car!
I bought a 2006 PT Crusier in 2013 with 98,000 miles. I loved that car. It was the 5 door Limited, 2.4 ltr with auto. Timing belts broke at 6 months at 104,000 miles. Cost $1,400 to repair. Car didn’t come with an owners. I was told by the mechanic who did the repair that the belts were recommended to be changed at 100,000 miles. Totalled it 2 months later. I loved and wish I had it now.
I had a new 2001 PT fully loaded wagon.Loved the car.Silver with blue -purple flames with custom Borla exhaust.Put 100,000 miles on it with no trouble.Could cruise 80 on the beltway all day long.My paint and chrome wheels all like new.
Car of the year doesn’t mean much. Plenty bad cars were awarded that title, including the Renualt Alliance, which my parents bought an 83 4dr. The Alliance would top out at 72mph going downhill. Although it was a reliable car (at least ours was), it had no guts. I remember my being with my father when he took a blind faith left hand turn on southbound 41 onto west Terry St ib Bonita, and we were broadsided by a full size LTD. Car spun twice, took out a sign and knocked my dad out cold. My head hit the trim above the passenger door and shattered the plastic, and hurt my head like hell! Talk about a headache. Was the end of that car fosho. I remember my mom crying, looking at it in the wrecker yard. As far as this car, I wouldn’t take one new. A 76, 7Monte or a 77 Grand Prix now, I’d give my left nut for all day. Meachanical and no computer junk in them. Those were the days. You wouldn’t be left on the roadside due to sensor or something else silly. Already on my 4th ECM on my 98 Dodge conversion van. But I learned over the years, and stopped doing business with the jamokes in Davie, once I found a company in NC who offers a lifetime warranty on their remanufactued ECM’s.
Wow…this one has been beat…I’ve owned a 2003 PT Cruiser now for 23 years .Non turbo…hit a deer with it 4 years ago..Rebuilt it with salvage yard hood, fender, and grille…Replaced electric fan unit and a/c condenser ..Has 168K on the clock…This was rated Consumer Reports Worse…When in fact Consumer Reports Rated the Ford Fusion the best..Well had 12 recalls on the Fusion .non on the PT .Power steering went out on Fusion (2010 ELECTRIC POWER STEERING)..the PT has been the best car for me .It’s my automotive swap meet parts hauler, junk yard find puller and..AND my DAILY DRIVER….and to think I traded a ’91 Chevy Lumina Z34 for it .best damn deal ever.. MOPAR STILL ROCKS IT .
I bought a 2003 new just sold it last year over 200k on the clock only real problem I had with it was the power door locks when I sold it it had been sitting for 3 plus years set of number cables it came to life great car
should be set of jumper cables
I am also surprised by the number of notes on this. Before I roll into my PT Cruiser tales I have to say I don’t understand the price expectation. I had 2 PT Cruisers, the second of which was a 2005 convertible. Ran perfectly for 10 years. I drove it some, my oldest daughter drove it at college for 2 years, came back and I drove it for another 6 I ultimately ended up with the same engine problem…lost compression. And the automatic top hydraulics went bad and that is a difficult expensive fix though you can manually still work the top. I had perfect car body and a like new interior and got $500. Not sure anyone would pay $1000 for the above listed car. I bought a 2001 PT Cruiser Limited Edition with 5 speed manual. The car drove and shifted like a Honda civic. Brakes lasted forever. As someone else listed, extremely versatile. Granted my kids had to put up with some jokes about how ugly it was but it truly ran great. All of my kids learned to drive in it and as such all three can drive manual cars. Unfortunately in 2010 I totaled it beyond repair. A sad day for me indeed. I drive a 2014 550I BMW as my daily and I really would just as well still be driving the PT Cruiser. I know that is sacrilege to state, but it is the way it is.
p.o.s.
period
had 3 of them only one was a convertible not bad cars