Backseat Driver
The Fate Of An Icon
Jerry Flint, 08.22.06, 6:00 AM ET

Detroit has a terrible reputation for turning victory into disaster. Think
Ford's Taurus or General Motors' entire Oldsmobile division. Today, the
question is whether Chrysler will do the same thing to its PT Cruiser.

The PT Cruiser was one of Chrysler's triumphs before Daimler took over the
company to form DaimlerChrysler (nyse: DCX - news - people ). PT sales
currently total more than 800,000 units, and the 1 million mark is possible
by the end of next year.

You are almost certainly aware of the PT (which I believe stands for
Personal Transportation) because of its unique look. Until the Chevrolet HHR
came on the market last July, the PT was all alone with its retro truck
styling.

     Year Sales
     2000 91,996
     2001 144,717
     2002 138,260
     2003 107,759
     2004 115,955
     2005 133,740
     2006* 79,887

* 7 months

Source: Automotive News

The PT is available in two body styles. The four-door small wagon grabs 90%
of PT sales, but 10% now go to the convertible, which Chrysler introduced
early in 2004. Through July of this year, with sales of 79,887 against
78,625 units through the same seven-month period in 2005, the PT is the only
Chrysler product with volume ahead of last year (excluding the
Mercedes-built Dodge Sprinter van and new vehicles that Chrysler did not
have on sale in the first part of last year). The PT is one of only four
Chrysler/Dodge vehicles that are on Consumer Reports' recommended list.

So how can Chrysler screw it up? At last report, the company is trying to
decide whether to add a V-6 in the next re-do. The current PT is a
four-cylinder. Adding a V-6 would make it bigger and heavier, more expensive
and thirstier for gasoline. That does not seem like the right thing to do
today.

Such a move would be bad enough, but here's worse news (and I am quoting
Automotive News, which usually gets its facts straight): "Another issue is
styling. Retro and cutesy are out of fashion. Expect the next-generation PT
Cruiser to be more of a straight-up Toyota RAV4 fighter with the retro
elements played down."

The word is that Chrysler may even be thinking about changing the name on
the new model, which is due in three or four years.

If all this is true, we are talking about wrecking the most original and
successful vehicle seen in Detroit in years. It is no secret that designers
hate retro. They think that borrowing from the past is an insult to their
sensitive talents. Cute is also a problem, because when companies get
successful, they believe they are too serious and too important to have cars
that look "cute."

The best example of this was Chrysler's own Neon small car. The first model
was a huge success--cute as a bug, too. When they redid it, the Chrysler
team spent more time designing out the cuteness than correcting the
engineering flaws. The redone Neon never came close to the sales of the
first-generation model. Now they are thinking about murdering the PT the
same way.

What distinguishes the PT from all the other small wagons-- Mazda Motor's
(other-otc: MZDAF - news - people ) Mazda5, Honda's (nyse: HMC - news -
people ) CRV, GM's (nyse: GM - news - people ) Pontiac Vibe, Toyota Motor's
(nyse: TM - news - people ) Matrix or the Ford Focus--is that look. Take it
away, and the PT Cruiser is just another small wagon. The truth is, Toyota
and Honda still build them better than Chrysler. Eliminate the great look,
and the PT--or whatever Chrysler will call it--becomes a second-rater.

What should Chrysler do with the PT?

Improve the economy and performance. Forget about a V-6. Do not make it
bigger and heavier; make it lighter and stingier on fuel. Give the PT a
level of engineering and fit and finish on par with the Japanese. This is a
key vehicle in Chrysler's lineup, and Chrysler already has plenty of bigger,
thirstier models.

I have another suggestion: Broaden the lineup. What about a small PT panel
truck? The wagon body style is easily adaptable to a small truck. Or how
about a flashy two-door? Chrysler's designers actually made prototypes of
both models years ago (see images), but they never built them. Today's
Chrysler has a knack for manufacturing multiple vehicles off the same
platform, so why not use that talent on the next-generation PT?

When the idea for the original PT was forming at Chrysler (before the German
takeover), Robert Lutz was Chrysler's president, and Tom Gale was the design
chief. They were both terrific auto men, but they disagreed on the PT
concept.

"Lutz wants to build a '27 Plymouth," Gale griped to me.

"Every time I see a new drawing, it looks more like a VW Golf," Lutz said.

The two fought hard, but when they finally arrived at the design that became
the PT, they both knew that they had a winner.

Today's PT is indeed a winner. Chrysler should refine it, not turn it into
another copycat small wagon.