Thought I had last night that I already hate myself for even having, lol

Okay, so, the SRT-4 is considered to be a halfway decent little car, with a good amount of aftermarket, and the ability to have the boost cranked up to the point of embarassing a lot of modern pony cars.

The PT Cruiser (ugh, I know) uses the neon chassis, right? It's basically a neon with a thyroid problem?

There was a turbo version of the PT, the PT GT.... (regulars will know where I'm heading already)

How different underneath are the PT GT and the SRT4? I assume the PT motor is mildly detuned, but will SRT4 "stage 73!!1!" kits work? Is the suspension interchangable?

For as ugly as the PT is, and how bad the interior might be, it seems like it'd be a significantly cheaper way to get one's hands on an SRT4 chassis, and you'd get wagon points plus double granny stealth bonus.

Hey, then you could deal with the ugliness by dropping a SRT-4 body on it!

there was a grm article about good hop ups for the ol neon which included the ptgt motor but i woudnt go for the actual car. i remember spotting a solid rear beam on one not long ago which leads me to believe the chassis is not the same. take my words witha grain of salt though cuz im just spinning this off the top of my head

bravenrace wrote: Hey, then you could deal with the ugliness by dropping a SRT-4 body on it!

unibody

as for performance though, i do believe a ptgt could be a good straight line sleeper

I've seen a few of them built, so I know it happens. I think the biggest problem is the lack of space in the front end compared to SRT-4's.....

The PT has a different intake manifold to fit in the tight confines of the engine bay. And it also sports a beam axle in the rear for a lower floor for more cargo space. I believe the front suspension bits are the same, but check out a neon forum for the real swappable parts. My mom had a PT with the 5 speed, and it was alright for all intended purposes. I think HOTROD dropped the 3.0 V6 into a PT. I know someone did anyway.

What's the point of this again? I mean I see the challenge and the Dare to be Different factor but this seems pretty lame.

Want a sleeper, do up a Cloud car with the SRT-4 motor & throw chassis bits at that, a PT Cruiser seems really hamstrung in every possible way in comparison.

Why hate yourself? The SRT-4 can make stupid power, and the PT has some practical benefits. I think Dodge was practically begging people to do exactly that when they came out with the PT GT.

Heh, the cloud car community is big into doing this. Before we got the SRT motor stateside, they'd drive down to mexico and buy up wrecked clouds- because they came with the boosted lump already in em, and some of em were even cop package cars with uprated shocks and whatnot. Interesting group, the cloud guys.

grimmelshanks wrote:

bravenrace wrote: Hey, then you could deal with the ugliness by dropping a SRT-4 body on it!

unibody as for performance though, i do believe a ptgt could be a good straight line sleeper

It. Was. A. Joke.

Cloud guys?

In reply to pinchvalve:

Have you ever ridden in one of these? I think Dodge was practically begging people to overlook all of the inherent flaws in these cars to take one home.

bravenrace wrote: Cloud guys?

Enthusiasts of the Dodge Stratus / Chrysler Cirrus / Plymouth Breeze family of badge engineered cars.

Can't help with you question but I do know that at my local auto-x there is a guy that runs a PT GT.

That thing makes some sounds like God never intended, and I mean that in a good way.

pres589 wrote: What's the point of this again? I mean I see the challenge and the Dare to be Different factor but this seems pretty lame.

Point was just verification of if in fact the PT GT shared it's important bits with the SRT4, thus making it a low-buck alternative for your turbo torque steering needs.

Sounds like the answer is "not enough to be worth it".

pres589 wrote:

bravenrace wrote: Cloud guys?

Enthusiasts of the Dodge Stratus / Chrysler Cirrus / Plymouth Breeze family of badge engineered cars.

That explains why I never heard that term before....

ReverendDexter wrote:

pres589 wrote: What's the point of this again? I mean I see the challenge and the Dare to be Different factor but this seems pretty lame.

Point was just verification of if in fact the PT GT shared it's important bits with the SRT4, thus making it a low-buck alternative for your turbo torque steering needs. Sounds like the answer is "not enough to be worth it".

I've a coworker that has a PT Turbo and while it seems quick enough to be interesting when going straight, it's just not that nice to be in. Tall and pitchy on stock suspension & tires, the interior feels cheap and they aren't really that roomy either. It seems like there are other platforms that can take that powertrain just as well or better and be a lot nicer in other ways.

Much like the SRT-4 Caliber, to me it seems like a decent power train looking for a decent car, instead of a dorky weird van that has to be given steep discounts to move off of dealer lots. Poor resale values, junky seats, et cetera. I'm sure these things have their fans, I'm not one of them. Meanwhile I've seen Status's that actually look non-horrible (although I've never actually been in one) and the height to width ratio alone makes me think it will be a nicer thing to drive than a PT.

A co-worker picked one of these up earlier this year. It was plum, automatic, & a convertible. His man-card was pulled & he sold it shortly after.

This was not the 1st time his card was pulled. We had to pull it a few years back when he got a New Beetle Turbo cabriolet in yellow/white. His card was pulled by 2 Miata owners.

Hahaha - I've never seen a guy driving a New Beetle convertible, except for my old boss when it was the loaner car given to him while his 740iL was in the shop.

I drove a new beetle once, though it wasn't a turbo. It was actually kind of a fun little car to hoon around in. I'd consider one if it wasn't for the utter lack of reliability.

I actually like the PT we have - middling fuel economy, but otherwise solid. Don't try that timing belt though, ick.

ReverendDexter wrote: Hahaha - I've never seen a guy driving a New Beetle convertible, except for my old boss when it was the loaner car given to him while his 740iL was in the shop.

And I'm sure you put your job in jeopardy by laughing at him, or is that why it was your old job?

MA$$hole wrote: And I'm sure you put your job in jeopardy by laughing at him, or is that why it was your old job?

Oh, of course I laughed. It even had the flower wheels and chrome flower cut-out taillight covers.

FWIW, I try not to work for people that can't handle being laughed at. He was good sport about it.

one of my co-workers has a Stage 2 Mopar kit on his PTGT. Mainly because the first engine exploded only 3000 miles out of warranty.

pres589 wrote:

bravenrace wrote: Cloud guys?

Enthusiasts of the Dodge Stratus / Chrysler Cirrus / Plymouth Breeze family of badge engineered cars.

There are enthusiasts of those cars...