Yanks Go Home?

Cruiser's new petrol motor fails to ignite.

CHRYSLER'S PT Cruiser, that car pigeon-holed into the compact-MPV sector but looking like it has just stepped out of a video by deep-south rockers ZZ Top, has gained a new 2.4-litre petrol engine to replace the previous 2.0-litre unit. All of which sounds like progress - except that you struggle to see exactly where the gains have been made.

Okay, well the new motor is EU4 emissions compliant. But this will bring precious little comfort in the environmental stakes, as this car chucks out 231g/km of CO2, in manual form, leaping to 251 if you go for the four-speed automatic version. So if you are thinking of running one as your company car, the Chancellor will gladly take either 30 or 34 per cent in benefit-in-kind tax - ouch.

The story doesn't get much better when you turn to fuel economy. This new motor is not exactly frugal, the manual just failing to break 30mpg on the combined cycle and the auto offering up 26.9mpg. This is fine in America where a litre of petrol costs less than 30p, but in the UK?

So the new motor must offer real performance, right? Well no actually. Under your right foot you have 143bhp and 158lbft of torque compared to the 134bhp and 139lbft of the outgoing 2.0-litre engine. This translates to a 0-60mph (in manual form) of 10.6 seconds and a potential top speed of 121mph. These are not in the least rocketship figures and while there's an argument that you wouldn't want rocketship from a people carrier, you end up asking yourself what is the point of this motor?

The PT Cruiser does redeem itself, to a degree, with its road manners. It doesn't look like a people-carrier and it doesn't offer the brick-like road progress of one either. It cruises serenely on the motorway and when pitched against more challenging roads it will leave MPV rivals trailing in its wake. It sits nice and upright and grips confidently at even high speeds, refusing to be unsettled by bumps.

Inside the driving position is efficient, the driving experience enjoyable and certainly different to the average MPV, particularly the way gear shifts are accomplished by a long chrome-topped stick. And of course this is one roomy beast. The big, curvy body translates to lots of interior space, both for occupants and, as your correspondent discovered on a road test to a French hypermarket, for cargo.

There is, by the way, a new special edition GT version of the PT Cruiser that has hit showrooms at the same time as the new engine. Based on the 2.4-litre Touring trim level, it adds a body coloured rear roof mounted spoiler, sports suspension and 17-inch GT alloy wheels.

Where the PT does finally score, however, is in price. If you do consider this a people-carrier (and admittedly the jury remains out on that one) it is one cheap people-carrier to buy. Prices start at £12,995 for which you get the Classic, and a standard equipment list including ABS brakes, four airbags, air conditioning, electric windows and mirrors. Most expensive is the £17,220 2.4 CRD Limited with its diesel powerplant and such niceties as leather seats, cruise control and extra chrome, while the GT comes in at £14,995.

Buy it for its distinctive looks, buy it for its interior space, but don't buy it for its green credentials or fuel economy.