Well, they both have that wagony look to them but no the thought never occurred to me that the same guy designed both. Has he (thought it might have been a she) designed other cars as well? The company I work for uses the hhr for some of their company cars, its custom painted and doesn't look too bad. It seems to be a fuller, boxier design than the Cruiser. Would not be my first choice as a drag racing car. Besides the 300, the design of Chrysler cars for the last 10+ years or so has been awful. On the other hand, I have seen the new Charger and its going to be very interesting.

He, Bryan Nesbitt, also designed the 7th generation Malibu, and contributed to quite a few other GM projects. Bryan Nesbitt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wow a lot of "heat" in a thread about a car. Seem odd *shrug*

Only time I ever drove one was a rental and it was roomy but lacked any get up and go, so to speak. If you race them are they modified? Ddi they come with different sport package engine configs?

I will say it handled well.

I liked the retro look of the PT when it first came out, then I drove one and it was like driving a milk truck only less comfortable, louder, and with less power.

Had they put some thought into the comfort of the driver and the engine under the hood, it might not have been so bad.

He even designed the Saturn Sky. Not a car for everyone, but a roadster in the spirit of the Vauxhall VX, for sure.

What you drove was a basic automatic transmission.
Racing would be a total waste of time with that.
The 5speed, on the other hand, is much faster and, with some mods, can be raced at a resepctable 12-15 @ 85 on the 1/4.(it had been rated at 18 on the 1/4 as stock-My lowest ET was 17 @81 and never left 3rd gear).
The gearbox was designed to handle in both "normal" shifting conditions and "speed shift". In speed shift, it anticipates the climbing rate of the RPMs, allowing the driver to upshift at higher intervals-doing 81 in 3rd, for instance. First gear is a bit doggish, but 2nd is where the speed shifting really kicks in.

They handle extremely well for their size-mine has gotten me out of some serious situations without having to correct too much-but the first year, the turning radius sucked. In snow, they shine with the manual tranny.
Not sure how you were sitting and the car seats are closer to minivans than sedans, but ours are very comfortable. The higher positioning takes getting used to, but I can not drive a sedan anymore-kills my back. The largest member of spouse's car club weighs about 400lbs and is over 6' tall and he has no problems.

Louder? Hardly, although the little 4cyl automatic does whine when pushed. The sound insulation on a PT (hearing outside noises) is not something someone used to a cushy sedan would like.

Renting any car is not going to be the same as buying for yourself. I've rented PT's and much prefer my own. Mine is now approaching 10 years and my other cars have lasted me 11 and 13. I have no intentions of getting rid of this one any time soon. She still looks great, I love driving her, now my daughter has learned to drive her and loves shifting.

You're the only person I've heard say anything even remotely positive about the handling.

I found the handling to be adequate for the class of vehicle that it is. It's not a sports car, and it's not a compact car. I found it comfortable and fun to drive the twisty roads of the Pachecho Pass in No. Cal.

:orly: :rolleyes:

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Doesn't the PT have a slightly larger version of the Neon engine? If you factor in the several hundred pounds more weight, maybe it's a nearly equal tradeoff.

It shared components from other Chrysler cars, including the Jeep and Neon.
The Neon rumors started when the car was being touted at shows in 1998-99 and it hadn't hit production yet-elements of the chassis and engine were borrowed from the Neon line.
Yea, "racing" my particular car seems like a lesson in stupidity compared to true racers, but modded PT's have been raced and done well, as have modded Neon's, et al.
I'm the first person to say something positive about its handling? How many have you asked, exactly? Fact is, most PT clubs are still going strong, it's pretty hard to find a used one or, more importantly, a wrecked one to get parts from. Most of the people I know that own PT's own more than one-after the first they bought more, including us.

I take umbrage at the title of this thread because the existence of any car, machine, etc., that does not directly affect one's own life shouldn't be of any concern as to whether its existence continues or not. "Thank god"? So now you can move about in public freely without fear of coming across one?:rolleyes:
We happen to enjoy what we have and not being able to replace it when the time comes is not a happy thought. I wouldn't begrudge someone their enjoyment or liking of something just because I find it unappealing-don't be so smug as to think you can.

I don't think it's stupid at all. It's all about how you and your car can do against other cars of the same class.... i.e., power-to-weight ratio. Who cares if a PT Cruiser can't beat a Corvette in a drag race?

Back in the day I was more involved with competitive drag racing, this is what the classes were all about, the level of modification (or none) dictated the category: Stock, Modified Production, Gas, Altered, Dragster etc. and the subdivisions of each category (A, B, C...) were divided by power-to-weight ratio.

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and the HHR is different in what way? car brand and model are much like clothing fashion only you drive around in it instead of wearing it . furthermore do you really think one company is more interested in the value of our dollar than the other ? or is that why theyre " value priced"? maybe i missed something.