zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Buying
/
At $2,900, Will This 2006 Chrysler PT Cruiser Convertible Cruise To An Easy Win?
At $2,900, Will This 2006 Chrysler PT Cruiser Convertible Cruise To An Easy Win?-January 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:09:27

Nice Price or No Die 2006 Chrysler PT Cruiser

It’s true that PT Cruisers like today’s candidate have long been polarizing cars. Let’s find out which Cruise crowd you belong to and whether this low-mileage convertible’s price is equally polarizing.

I don’t know whether you actually watched the walk-around video of last Friday’s or simply fired up the torches and sharpened the pitchforks after just looking at the pictures. If the latter, then I think you may have missed the bigger picture of the car and the gentleman that built it. Was the end result to everyone’s taste? No. No, it was not. But it was undeniably a mad scientist effort and the dude in the video looks like someone I’d be happy to hoist a few beers with, which is my gauge of a project’s success. His acumen on both pricing and ad creation, however, was apparently lacking, as both came under attack in the comments. The $11,000 asking found little to no favor in the voting as well, dropping in a 73 percent No Dice loss.

Image for article titled At $2,900, Will This 2006 Chrysler PT Cruiser Convertible Cruise To An Easy Win?

As I noted mere seconds ago, Chrysler’s PT Cruiser is a car that people either love or hate. Some people actually love to hate them. Strangely, I’ve never met anyone who has admitted to hating to love them.

The funny thing is, PT Cruisers are not actually cars at all, as Chrysler got the government to classify them as light trucks. That was to help the company meet its Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) goals and, honestly, doesn’t mean diddly squat to owners or anyone else outside of the fine folks at Chrysler and a few NHTSA wonks.

Chrysler built the PT Cruiser on the well-regarded Neon platform, giving the car a modern FWD layout that was seemingly at odds with its cheeky retro styling. The model was originally going to be branded as a Plymouth but was adopted under the Chrysler marque when Plymouth was unceremoniously given the Old Yeller treatment.

Image for article titled At $2,900, Will This 2006 Chrysler PT Cruiser Convertible Cruise To An Easy Win?

Under the Chrysler badge, it may have seemed an odd duck in relation to the brand’s other models. The PT Cruiser, however, soon found fans in owners who appreciated the tall retro styling and the interior room afforded by that design. So successful was the five-door model that Chrysler appended it with a two-door convertible baby brother.That model carried the same retro themes and still was a truck.

This offers that roof for the tragically indecisive and, at 92,000, also reasonably low mileage. It looks to be decked out with pretty much all the standard accouterments you might expect as well — electric windows and locks, air-con, and an automatic transmission. That all should make it a reasonably comfortable cruiser, but there’s nothing exciting beyond that.

Image for article titled At $2,900, Will This 2006 Chrysler PT Cruiser Convertible Cruise To An Easy Win?

The thing about it is, for a lot of people, that’s all they ever need or really want. What this is not, by any stretch of the imagination, is an enthusiast’s car. Expecting it to be so will only end in disappointment and internalized fisticuffs for having made such a grave error in judgment.

For those with less of a need for speed or smoothness, the PT should serve just fine and its 150 horsepower DOHC inline-four and four-speed automatic powertrain will be reasonably economical. Add to that the low miles and a fairly decent presentation in the dealership’s ad and there’s a lot to like here. The title is clean and the seller says the car “Runs and drives excellent” and claims it to be “very mechanically sound” with “all maintenance up-to-date.” On top of that is (literally) a top that goes up and down coveringa roll bar that allows for proper seat belt mounts.

All this could be someone’s pride and joy (not yours, mind you, you crazy car nut) for a cost of $2,900.

What’s your take on this PT Cruiser convertible and that $2,900 price? Does that seem like a deal for a car you wouldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole? Or, is even that amount too much for any PT?

You decide!

Seattle, Washington, , or go if the ad disappears.

H/T to Don H. for the hookup!

Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up at and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your Kinja handle.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Buying
At $22,900 Canadian, Would You ‘RUF-It’ In This 2001 Porsche Boxster S?
At $22,900 Canadian, Would You ‘RUF-It’ In This 2001 Porsche Boxster S?
Germany’s RUF is a well-known Porsche tuner/carmaker, but it is less well known for piecemeal work on cars like today’s Boxster S. Could that obscurity make this Canadian RUF a smooth deal? Yesterday, torches were lit while pitchforks were sharpened and mobs were formed. All of that hustle-bustle was...
Jan 17, 2026
At $12,500, Could This 1990 Lexus ES 250 Drop You Into The Lap Of Luxury?
At $12,500, Could This 1990 Lexus ES 250 Drop You Into The Lap Of Luxury?
Entry-level luxury is an odd term but is epitomized by today’s Lexus ES 250. Could this well-preserved fancy Camry still have what it takes to command a near-premium price? It’s been a common mantra around here for quite a while to “Safari all the things!” That means to fit...
Jan 17, 2026
Americans Love The 2022 VW Tiguan's Lies
Americans Love The 2022 VW Tiguan's Lies
One of the chief complaints about the first-generation Volkswagen Tiguan compact crossover (from American owners) was that it was a little too compact. The second generation fixed that in 2017 by stretching the model out enough to offer a third-row seat. The refresh doesn’t change much, but it’s still...
Jan 17, 2026
This Vintage GM Coach Bus Is A Retro RV With A Mini Hot Tub
This Vintage GM Coach Bus Is A Retro RV With A Mini Hot Tub
Old buses make for an excellent blank slate s. This 1945 GM PD-3302 for sale on Facebook Marketplace for $ is a rare vintage bus with a sweet floors and even a walk-in hot tub. According to the , the GM PD-3302 is a rare coach bus. Built in...
Jan 17, 2026
Reminder: Your Car Is Not An Appreciating Asset
Reminder: Your Car Is Not An Appreciating Asset
The used market , very hot, leading some people to think that used cars might now be appreciating assets. Friends, I implore you: They are not. We know, of course, that almost every car , almost no matter what you do, but now, , used cars are gaining in...
Jan 17, 2026
Do The Automakers Really Care If Their Dealer Networks Are Bad?
Do The Automakers Really Care If Their Dealer Networks Are Bad?
As Jalopnik’s resident car-buying expert and a professional car shopper, I get emails. Lots of emails. I’ve picked a few of your questions and will try to help out. This week we are discussing how much intervention automakers do with poor dealers and “actual market value” coverage for insurance....
Jan 17, 2026
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved