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December 6, 2006
the hot-rod body was first in tro
duced. You know it's a turbo be
cause o f the telltale w hine as it
spools up. though chambers in the
P o r ii am i O b se rv e r
A u f© R e v u
Auto Review: 2006 Chrysler PT
Cruiser GT Turbo Convertible
by
K ai hi ken C arr
In 2 0 0 1. the insightful designers
at C hrysler captured A m erica’ s at
tention w ith the release o f the PT
Cruiser. The challenge o f a retrocar
like the P T C ru ise risin maintaining
the cool quotient after being on the
market fo r five years.
The PT C ruiser vaguely re
sembles a panel truck o f the 1930s,
overlaid w ith street-rod styling from
the 1950s. B ulging fenders, fender-
mounted headlights and taillights,
and a tall- wide g rille helps give the
PT C ruiser its unique look. Another
d is tin c tiv e feature is its basic
stance, w hich makes the wagon
look like it ’ s leaning forward. T o
tweak the ‘ W o w ’ effect o f the 2006
P I Cruiser, it gets a make over in
side and out w ith updated front and
rear fascias. a new larger, low er
g rille w ith a C hryslers w inged
badge, new headlights and round
fog lamps. We drove the G T con
vertible, w hich is a tw o-door and
sits three inches low er than the
sedans. W ith the top up the con
v e rtib le lo o k s lik e a c u s to m
chopped-rod, com plim ented w ith a
large-diameter chrome exhaust tip
and 17-inch 15-spoke chrome-clad
wheels. D rop the top and the “ gang-
ster-mobi le" turns into a “ chick car” .
The interior has a new instrument
panel w ith larger gauges, new seat
materials, a Chrysler signature ana
log clock, a new center console
w ith sliding armrest and MP3 play
capability fo r all audio systems.
The audio controls are mounted
higher in the center stack and a
SPECS: 2.4-liter, 4-cylinder engine, high output turbocharged at
2 3 0 hp.; 4 Speed AutoStick' automatic transmission: $31.500
MSRP. MPG is 19 City / 2 6 Highway * Premium Fuel Only
passenger grab-handle is added for
Chrysler firmed up the suspension
easier entry and exit.
The P I C ruiser is fun to drive,
but i t ’ s not a sports car. In essence
this is a tall practical economy car.
New fo r 2006. tf e P r C ruiser G T
adds fire under the hood w ith all the
slick go-fast hardware that makes
this particular model a jo y to drive.
C hrysler tweaked the engine out
put to 230 horsepower and 245-lbs,
o f torque for the High-O utput Turbo
engine in the P r Cruiser G T. A ccel
eration w ith the two-turbocharged
engines is quick. The turbo engine
re a lly is a k ic k , even w ith the
A utostick transmission, w hich lets
to provide more control. A rum bly
exhaust makes the G T sound more
like w hat hot-rodders wanted when
operate and the "sm art glass" w in
dows drop a b it-o r all the way, de
pending on w hich detent yo u ’ ve
activated. Engineers took away tw o
intake m anifold act as sou«djjam j>-,f o f the hatchback doors, leaving
ers. The G T can get to RUFAfpli in) tw o long doors instead. T h e y
about 7 seconds, w hich Is decent. strengthened the rear seat struc
The G T acts more like a muscle car ture and redesigned the novel
than its body says it is.
sports bar that extends, w in g -like ,
The most impressive part o f the above the rear seat area. T his looks
PT convertible is the solid ride. I tight and offers rear seat passen
looked fo r the characteristic ragtop gers less w ind buffeting.
shutter as I traversed road bumps
The 20061*1 T u rb o G T appeals
and found precious little evidence Io people o f al I ages and life style s
o f it. Ragtops are notoriously bad w ith its w h im sica l-g a n g ste r-m o
fo r w ind noise w hile cruising but bile retro design. Let the top dow n,
C hrysler has handled this issue as k ic k in the tu rb o and take her fo r
w ell. T he convertible top is easy to a spin!
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In The Market For a Vehicle?
9 Billboards for R&B Diva
Tired of being taken advantage of
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Mary J. Blige
dominates awards
( A P) - M ary J. B lige won big at
this year’s Billboard M usic Awards
as her chart-topping comeback a l
bum "The Breakthrough" landed
the R & B diva a leading nine hon
ors.
Am ong the awards the 35-year-
old singer claimed Monday night
were R & B /H ip -H o p artist o f the
year, female R & B artist o f the year
and R & B /H ip -H o p album o f the
year.
"The Breakthrough" shot to No.
1 after it debuted on the B illboard
charts in December 2005 and has
sold 2.6 m illio n copies since.
B lige, in w hite go-go boots and
a sparkly mini-dress, rocked the fu 11
house by belting out a medley o f
her "Enough C ryin g " and "Take
Me As I A m ” during the two-hour
show aired live from the M G M Grand
in Las Vegas.
B lige said she's already reached
the pinnacle o f hercareerby endur
ing personal struggles that once
led her to sing hopefully about
having "no more drama" in her life.
"I've realized i f I don't (love)
m yself, nobody w ill. Nobody is
going to love me more than I do,"
B lige told reporters after the show.
C h ris B ro w n , a 17-year-old
lothario who calls his music "H ip -
Hop w ith a swagger," won new
artist o f the year, male o f artist o f the
year and artist o f the year awards.
"I'm 17. That’s crazy, it's m ind-
boggling," said Brow n. "M y mom,
she still keeps me humble. She tells
me to take out the trash, ya know,
clean my room ."
Newcomers Rihanna and idol-
tu r n e d -c o u n tr y
sta r
C a rrie
Underwood also walked away w ith
high honors.
Baseball
Honors Civil
Rights
Movement
(A P ) - M a jo r league baseball
w ill pay tribute to the c iv il rights
movement w ith an exhibition game
between the W orld Series cham
pion St. Louis Cardinals and the
C leveland Indians in M em phis,
A lso planned fo r the tribute is a
five-m inute documentary by Spike
Lee on c iv il rights pioneers and
baseball's role in the movement.
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U 5 IC r
Mary J. Blige poses with her awards Monday at the Billboard
Music Awards in Las Vegas. (AP photo)
The 18-year-old from Barbados
edged out B lige and Beyonce fo r
the top songstress honor.
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W ith the game, w hich w ould be
repeated annually, baseball officials
hope to attract more young blacks
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