Looking at a 2003 PT Cruiser for the kid

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I'm looking for a inexpensive car for my son. I found a 2003 PT Cruiser with the non-turbo engine and a manual transmission with less than 50k miles. Any known issues or things to look for?
 
Better be really inexpensive. It's a terrible car all around-- appearance, comfort, performance, gas mileage, longevity. Thus an ideal first car.
 
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How experienced is the kid? Also how tall?

The visibility may not be OK for a newbie driver. (Big A-pillars + back-window visibility)

disclaimer: Last I drove one of those it was 2009 and it was an automatic.

It has a lot of space inside. I think the HHR cousin has a better reputation.

Now, generally they have a bad reputation, but I would look at the chrysler PT cruiser forums first. The guys there found some aftermarket replacements for some problems (motor mounts), or better procedures than some OEM (replacing back sparkplugs?)

Even with the bad reputation, I still see some running around here in rust territory.

How many miles? (belt replacement?)
 
I can agree on the sentiment that a first car doesn't need to be great.. and most kids nowadays are.. meh they're kids.

But driving a PT Cruiser is a prophylactic in itself.. and OK yeah maybe that is also the intent here. LOL


But man.. I'd rather be seen in a Kia Soul than a PT Cruiser.
 
PT Cruiser engines are an interference engine, which means if the timing belt breaks the pistons will hit the valves that are open. The timing belt generally breaks somewhere between 80 K miles and 95 K miles if it is not replaced before then. Doing the timing belt on a PT Cruiser is a major job that cost a lot.

If the timing belt breaks the damage to the engine is so severe that the cost to replace the broken parts is more than the vehicle is worth.

So if you get a PT Cruiser replace the timing belt every 80 K miles.
 
Guys, anybody missed, the OP wants to get the kid in a stick-shift/standard car as the first car?
I think is pretty good for momentum, gears, just drive with no other distractions....

OP, is this also meant as a mechanical learning first car?

Please type "pt cruiser site:bobistheoilguy.com" in google for everything pt cruiser on BITOG over the years.

Also my thread asking about them: here
 
Originally Posted By: pandus13
Guys, anybody missed, the OP wants to get the kid in a stick-shift/standard car as the first car?
I think is pretty good for momentum, gears, just drive with no other distractions....

OP, is this also meant as a mechanical learning first car?

Please type "pt cruiser site:bobistheoilguy.com" in google for everything pt cruiser on BITOG over the years.

Also my thread asking about them: here


Basically an inexpensive car to get him from point A to point B. He will be learning to do his own maintenance on it. Yes, it looks ugly. But, it is less than $3k, has new tires, recent tune up, manual tranny, and under 50k miles.
 
My son had a lady run a red light into his Civic about a month ago. Airbags deployed, alot of front damage but cockpit remained intact. He was fine. The young lady in a PT had to have the FD remove her from the PT and helicopter her to hospital. Cockpit crumbled on her. This is just my take on it. I'm glad my son was in a civic when I saw the 2 vehicles. PT has a bad safety record and safety is a priority with young drivers. Just my take!
 
Rebodied neon design IIRC. Poor design all around. Almost as bad as the new Dodge Dart.

Get a mid seventies dodge or chevy pickup. Something that can be fixed with JY parts on the cheap.
 
Do NOT buy a PT. Just don't. They're horrid cars on every level.

It's not even worth elaboration. Just... Don't.
 
I think it's perfect.

I assume this is your son's first car. If it runs, drives, and the price is right, then it's the correct vehicle to buy. It will likely be used as basic transportation, treated less than ideally, probably accumulate some parking lot-type bumps and bruises, and PT Cruiser or not, won't be worth anything when he wants to replace it.

As far as longevity, it really shouldn't be a concern. How many kids put more than a few ten-thousand miles on their first car before replacing/upgrading? This isn't a long term decision where you should expect to get 20 years and 200k miles out of it.

Besides, if you're buying it for him, he has NOTHING to complain about. It's a free car.
 
Terrible car. Ugly, unreliable, pricey parts, difficult to work on, [censored] interior, not sure about safety but it's a Chrysler product, probably subpar. so NOOOO
 
I was a handed a PT Cruiser as a rental once in Seattle. If I had one, I would burn it. In fact, I wouldn't even drive it to the burn pit. I'd pay to have it flat bed trucked to the burn pit. And then I'd burn it.
grin.gif
 
PTC's with poor reputation across the board. And tossing in a manual trans for a car to learn on only seems to make things a lot worse. Any info on previous owner on how they treated the clutch/transmission? How often did they change fluids? Better chances of getting a good used car if it's from the original owner where you can at least query them on what they did to it.

How "inexpensive" is the car? I would think most sellers would be asking a sizable premium for a low 50K miles. I'd rather get a 2003 Crown Vic/Grand Marquis with 50K miles than a Cruiser. My neighbor had a 2003 Nissan Frontier 5 speed with only 38K miles. It was sold with 38K miles two years ago. As nice as the low mileage sounds, it was on its 3rd clutch due to the sloppy shifting habits of the original owner. low miles isn't a guarantee.
 
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