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PG on Wheels: Sebring's style evokes the '50s
Friday, October 20, 2000 By Don Hammonds, Post-Gazette Auto Reviewer
Did you ever know anybody who's got it all?
You know -- the woman down the street who can manage a career, keep her home and her family running like a top and still come to work looking terrific? Or how about the guy with looks to die for, a fabulous career and a wife everyone adores, and who is a wonderful dad and a terrific friend?
Of course, all of us remember these also were the goody two-shoes who had their hands up in the air and left them there while you were still stumped for answers during high school science class.
They also were the star football players, the homecoming queens and the student council leaders.
Well, to many of its competitors, Chrysler, the American arm of DaimlerChrysler, probably seems a bit like the aforementioned -- an underachiever's worst nightmare. Here's a car company that's like the belle of the ball -- good-looking, with a winning personality and dressed to kill.
While other car companies have produced autos that have been "OK," "so-so" or "pretty good," Chrysler keeps the pacesetter stuff rolling, one win right after another. Think about it: Dodge Viper. Dodge Ram truck. Chrysler Concorde. Plymouth Prowler. Chrysler 300M. Chrysler LHS. And of course, the much-coveted PT Cruiser.
This one's for you ... if nothing but an all-American coupe will do for you. I'm assuming you don't have a big family to cart around, and that you are style conscious and into wanting the latest thing -- all of which means the Sebring will more than fill the bill. It looks much better than its competitors, is more contemporary, has more class and is generally a bargain for what it costs.
What's the Buzz? Pretty favorable, generally. Edmunds.com., the Web site for the Edmunds series of auto consumer guides, says the new Sebrings "will make boomers happier than an inside tip on an Internet stock."
As for styling, it said the sedan "looks sleek, elegant and speedy, the coupe looks sexy, raw and fast."
The CarConnection.com says the Sebring "delivers good performance at a decent value." It also notes that the new models feel noticeably stiffer, enabling the handling to feel a bit more direct.
Consumer Reports has not yet weighed in because the Sebring is a redesigned model and it typically waits until new models build a record. The coupe is rated at 19 miles per gallon in the city and 27 on the highway.
In a Family Way? If yours is a childless family or if you have one or two small children, the Sebring should do just fine, though like all coupes, you'll really have a tussle getting the car seat installed for baby.
But the Sebring does have more back seat room than most coupes, and the trunk is nice and roomy too. It has all the requisite safety equipment, so that should not be a concern for you either.
If you own any of the 2001 new generation of Chrysler or Dodge minivans, a 2000 or 2001 Cadillac Seville, a 2001 Lexus IS-300, a new 2001 Mercedes C Class or a 2000 or 2001 Oldsmobile Silhouette, let us hear from you. One of the most popular features in our column is the feedback from owners, but our letter file is pretty low. We know the 2001s are just hitting the road, so feel free to talk to us if you have the 2000 versions of any of the above cars. We also would appreciate any suggestions, comments or ideas about something you'd like to see. Write Don at dhammonds@post-gazette.com or the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 34 Blvd. of the Allies, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.
And styling? Well, the other American car companies that are still putting out look-alike cars would prefer that we just not even "go there."
Historically, Detroit's Big Three have gone through cycles when each seemed to have design leadership all to themselves.
General Motors' peak time, I would argue, was during the 1960s, and they haven't done much that's striking since except the usual Corvettes, the Pontiac Grand Prix, the current Oldsmobile lineup and the new Cadillac DeVille.
Chrysler, meanwhile, was ahead of the pack in the '50s with the "Million Dollar Look" 1955s and the "Forward Look" 1957 lineups that stunned the automotive world. Now their time seems to have come back around.
Case in point is this week's test car, the 2001 Chrysler Sebring Coupe. Mind you, the previous Sebring was no slouch in the looks department. But this one is a whole new bucket of bolts. It's beautiful. That's the only way to describe it.
Chrysler's designers managed to keep the very best of the last generation of Sebrings while making the car even more sleek and elegant.
But there's a touch of Ferrari in the grille, and old-timers will see elements of Chrysler's much acclaimed fabulous '50s show cars in the new Sebring's lines. I'm talking about 1951's Chrysler K-310 coupe, the Chrysler C-200 convertible of 1952 and especially the 1953 Chrysler Special. These were designed by Ghia, a well-known auto style house, and to this day, these cars are gorgeous and contemporary.
Our Sebring was a beautiful silver color with leather interior to match, and judging from the number of people who stopped in their tracks, turned around and gawked, I'd say Chrysler's got a winner here.
Base price for this model is $21,475, and it has a pretty extensive list of standard equipment, including front air bags, air conditioning, CD, Infinity speakers, leather-wrapped steering wheel, power outlets, halogen headlights and other good stuff. Adding automatic transmission, anti-lock brakes, leather interior group, sunroof, aluminum wheels and other equipment brings it to $26,270.
By the way, Chrysler also makes a Sebring Sedan, which also was heavily redesigned and has a completely different instrument panel and seat appearance, as well as other varying features.
The two cars are made from different platforms and even built in separate factories.
The coupe, however, draws heavily from the Mitsubishi Eclipse, and that's pretty evident in terms of the dashboard design and the roof line. That's not a bad thing; the Eclipse is a real looker.
For comparison's sake, I drove a 2000 Chrysler Sebring to appreciate the differences, and they are substantial. The new model, for instance, is quieter and feels much more "tight" as you drive it.
Thus, the car has a more sporty feel and look to it than last year's model. I'm told this is appropriate since Chrysler is marketing the Sebring as the Euro version of the corporate coupe design, while sibling Dodge Stratus Coupe is more aggressive-looking and is aimed at the performance crowd.
Let's step inside and take look around. The first thing I know you're going to notice is that you sit w-a-a-a-y low in this car. Hey, you're driving a sports model. What did you expect?
Not that it's uncomfortable. The leather seats are comfortable, and done in the "wrinkled" surface style that seems to be fashionable with auto designers these days. Ours was a nice grayish, clay color, which contrasted nicely with the black trim in the car.
Now look at the dashboard. Pretty voluptuous looking, no? There's not a flat surface anywhere, with rounded spaces for instruments, air vents and other necessities. Even the glove box has this rounded, plump shape to it that is kind of different -- and neat looking.
The sides of the interior, however, are a bit disappointing. The door panels are more stark and plain than the 2000 version. On the plus side, the sedan model looks more rich with wood accents.
One thing Chrysler did do right for sure was to move the CD player inside the dash system, though its operation is still confusing and tough to get used to. The number of steps it takes to load, unload and play a CD seems way more complicated and extensive than it needs to be.
Now look at the back seat. Granted, there's the usual awkwardness in getting into the back -- that's normal for a two-door model of any car. But once you're there, you can stretch right out and make yourself at home. The Seb-ring Coupe is a lot roomier in the back than you might think. That was true of the old model too.
It surprised me when I rode in my first Sebring a number of months ago, and the sensation is even greater this time around, with the front interior feeling even more snug and cozy.
The new Sebring also is quite peppy, thanks to a 200 horsepower 3.0 liter V-6 designed by Mitsubishi. It's quiet in operation, though, so you don't get the same audible "oomph" that makes fast driving fun for many.
But it is plenty fast to keep you out of trouble on entrance and exit ramps and when passing on the highway. Handling has always been a Chrysler strong point, and Sebring Coupe is no different. It holds the road and has little body lean.
The body redesign also reinforced it and made it more rigid, making for a much tighter, quieter ride.
The one question I had about the Sebring Coupe was its relationship to the 300M. While they are for two separate markets, the back end of the Sebring and some of its other design elements are so similar to the 300M that I'm wondering if Chrysler doesn't need to do something now to make the 300M even more distinctive and separate from the rest of the line.
I know that manufacturers like to go for family resemblances, but given the unique marketing and flavor that Chrysler is going for in the 300M, its engineers might want to consider how to make it less like some of its more mainstream models, particularly the Sebring.
Of course, the same is true for Chrysler's Concorde and LHS, though to my eye, the LHS is a bit better looking than the Concorde.
Having said that, Chrysler has done itself proud, styling wise, with all its cars, and it looks as if the other manufacturers will continue to play catch-up for some time.
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