Chrysler start selling Cruiser PT for the 2001 model year and the “vans“(yes, they’re considered trucks for American regulatory purposes) proved quite popular during at least the first half of the 2000s. A factory version with a convertible top appeared in 2005 (and then “winning” Worst Top Gear award for the past 20 years), but what about PT Cruiser shoppers who want prior to Later? Turned out after-sales got the solution: convert Newport Convertible Engineering, got new PT Cruisers and added a fully functioning convertible. Based on a discussion on Allpar54 of these conversions were made and I found one of them in a self-service patio in the Denver area last month.
Newport Convertible Engineering are still around, although these days they’re in Huntington Beach instead of Placentia. If you want a Tesla Model S or Range Rover convertiblethey will build it for you.
The NCE conversion for the PT Cruiser costs $9,900 (about $15,715 in 2022) plus the $17,000 sticker price of a new PT Cruiser, and includes the necessary chassis enhancement modifications and a shortened, hydraulically actuated rear hatch.
The materials used look pretty good, even after 20 years of abuse and neglect.
This one has a toggle mechanism that is closed in multiple places as I found it.
Naturally, I cut all those zippers to see if the roof mechanism still worked. It’s very, very stiff but proved to be semi-functional (zipties appear to be an attempt to keep a faulty latching mechanism from allowing the roof to open at a rapid rate). The roof assembly weighs a lot, though you can spend an extra $3,000 to get the electric powertrain from the NCE.
This taxi must have been extremely loud and noisy with its top-down speed, but so what? The convertible is great.
Mechanically, it’s a normal Travel version with neon The 2.4-liter four-cylinder makes 150 horsepower. You can get a PT Cruiser with a five-speed manual transmission and many people did, but this one has an automatic extra charge. Starting with the 2003 model year, 215 hp turbocharger become available.
Rare, but not valuable.
This trailer is for the factory convertible, but you get the idea.
