Originally Posted By: 2010_FX4
It has been a whirlwind year with my FX4 having gone from North to South and East to West in these grand United States, but in the process I have racked up almost 42K miles (at least 45% of these commuting to work and running around town).
I am considering picking up a PT Cruiser as a daily driver--no particular reason other than I like them and they are in the 4-6K range in the Houston area for a 3 year old with less than 75K miles on them (tons of these around).
Does anyone have any experience to share about them? I have rented these a few times for work and liked them. But I am wondering if there are any inherent problems (engine, transmission, etc.) before I dive into one of them.
Thanks in advance for any thoughts on the matter.
My wife LOVES her 2005 PT, and I have to admit that its one of the most creatively laid out and functional vehicles I've ever owned, from an INTERIOR point of view. I can move bigger things in the PT than I can in the Cherokees- you can literally get a dishwasher in the back of the PT by removing the rear seats. Its also very, very comfortable.
I will also say that while I had my doubts about it being assembled in Mexico, it is actually extremely well put-together. The fit and finish are really top notch. We bought this one with 30k miles on it and are now over 60k and I've literally done nothing but change the oil. I do need to change plugs and coolant soon, and that's going to be a minor challenge. The upper intake plenum has to come off for the plugs, and by the looks of things just prying off the lower radiator hose would be easier than trying to actually get at and open the radiator drain petcock...
Waiting for the other shoe to drop? Here it is: the engine is just flat shoehorned into that retro-styled front end. Its significantly harder to work on than other vehicles I've owned, although I doubt that its really harder than some Hondas that are really packed in tight for better interior ergonomics. Don't get me wrong- ROUTINE stuff like oil/filter changes couldn't be easier. Its the less-routine stuff like belts and tensioners, plugs as mentioned above, and (God help me when the time comes...) timing belts that are tough.
Other quirks- the automatic transmission (41TE) is plenty reliable in the later years (I'd say 2002 and up), but nothing can help the bad spacing of ratios. A stick PT, even normally aspirated, is a fun and frisky-enough car even if it won't win many races. A turbo PT stick is a BEAST. An automatic normally-aspirated PT seems to fall on its face when it hits 3rd gear. But its fine for folks like my wife who just don't care about that. My final gripe about it is that the non-turbo versions get massively unequal-length half-shafts, whereas the turbo and diesel models got an idler bearing and much more nearly equal length halfshafts. Most people wouldn't notice or care, but every time I feel that little vibration under hard acceleration, I mutter at them cutting that corner.
People always ding them for poor economy, and to a degree its true. A little car like that, you'd think, should get low 30s. But they're heavier than they look and not super aerodynamic. We get a solid and reliable 27 highway, and about 20 around town. Not bad for as little as we paid for the car up front and how very comfortable it is.
