It was a fun ride, and surprisingly affordable. It was aimed at young people who wanted something different but retro, I guess. It was pretty fun to drive, though a bit of a gas guzzler in the days of $4/gallon gasoline, which is why the folks at Enterprise probably offered it to me as an upgrade.
I'm always thinking of what my next car will be, not just in terms of dream car but in realistic terms of what I can afford. As a grad student whose wealth is mostly in Korean won, that's not a whole heck of a lot right now, unless I buy used.
If I were to buy new, I might actually consider a Hyundai Elantra like the one I rented this past Christmas. It was fun to drive, comfortable and zippy, and got great gas mileage. It had loads of buttons and whistles, too. And it didn't look like I was poor. That's bonus points when you're in the 30+ age bracket, since not everyone you pass knows you're a grad student.
I'm not sure if I would have bought a PT Cruiser, because I began to notice more than a few 50-or-over types who looked like they were trying to relive their youth. And although I have nearly the same physique I did when I was in college, I'm not so sure I want to be associated with that kind of Peter Panism.
Anyway, I'm disappointed to see the PT Cruiser go. Who knows? Maybe this anchor of Chrysler sales will make a comeback, much like the Ford Taurus, which will return later this year as a 2010 model. It's pictured below, with Peter Horbury, Ford's chief of design in North America.
Frankly, I think it looks kinda cool. If I trusted its quality (like if it had the long reputation of a Honda or Toyota or the uber-comprehensive warranty of a Hyundai or Kia) I might consider it, though if I were in the market for that kind of vehicle, I'd be looking primarily at the Honda Accord (but the sporty Coupe model), the Toyota Camry (which I almost bought in senior year of college, but opted instead for an Acura Integra), or the Hyundai Azera (or possibly the Hyundai Sonata).
Since I've lived in Seoul off and on since I was a teenager, I'm old enough to remember when the imported Ford Taurus was considered a luxury vehicle in Korea. That was for two reasons: back in the early 1990s Ford was considered to be more reliable than any Hyundai, Kia, Daewoo, or Ssangyong (Samsung wasn't around just yet), and the nearly 100% markup due to tariffs and other fees associated with foreign cars put it in the luxury price bracket.
Obama keeps harping on how Koreans (and Japanese) don't buy American cars, but one major reason is that there are so few cars from Detroit that fit into the Korean lifestyle. But I think that is changing. Smaller cars (that's hella important for the Korean and Japanese markets, Detroit!) with power and prestige are what a lot of slightly upscale buyers are looking for in a foreign car.
They want something different but recognizable as prestigious, not too big but with power. I think the Cadillac CTS commercials feature Kate Walsh from Grey's Anatomy are right on the money. I'm not in Korea at the moment, so I'm not sure if this isn't already in the works, but if General Motors if NOT selling the Cadillac CTS in Korea (and Japan) and running the Kate Walsh ads, get with it pronto.
What has been working to attract younger people to Buick and Cadillac will work with a large segment of the middle-class and middle-aged population in Korea. But make sure you don't get a verbatim L1 translation for Kate Walsh's text. "When you turn your car on, does it return the favor?" doesn't translate directly.
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