Improving on the sedan, but is it good enough?  by Keith Buglewicz

Chrysler Sebring Convertible – First Drive: Chrysler’s new 2008 Sebring Convertible lives in a world of make-believe, trying to be a luxury car but ultimately failing. On one hand it has luxury lines inside and out, with chrome cues and art deco styling that grabs the eye no matter your opinion of its style. It offers features that rank well against luxury cars. Then you get closer and see that this diamond is really rhinestone: even Pontiac’s G6 convertible doesn’t have this car’s hard plastics, weak engines and uninspiring driving experience. Then there’s price: Sebring convertibles start at $26,000, but only for the four-cylinder base model. With the features you expect, you’ll pay nearly $10,000 more, and for that money it shouldn’t be pretending about anything.

The Sebring coupe was originally a reengineered Mitsubishi Eclipse, and built in the same factory. But the convertible has always been built off the sedan’s platform, despite the existence of a perfectly good Eclipse convertible. Whatever the genealogy, the original Sebring drop top was a good looking, comfy convertible for buyers who needed a real back seat. Empty nesters (and rental fleets) voted with their checkbooks, making it the best-selling drop top in the U.S. for seven of the past 11 years. For 2008, the Sebring Convertible offers a retractable hardtop for the first time alongside vinyl and cloth tops, and new features like the MyGIG entertainment system might bring in younger buyers, too.

The Sebring Convertible lives in a world of threes: three trim levels, three different kinds of tops, three interior themes and three different engines. All Sebring convertibles are built alongside the sedan and share a reinforced version of that car’s structure to reduce cowl shake, the annoying body quivers many convertibles suffer when going over bumps. Vinyl tops are standard on the base and Touring models; Limiteds get a cloth top. Touring models can opt for cloth, and like the Limiteds can also get the hard top. The base model’s 2.4-liter four cylinder and the Touring’s 2.7-liter V6 come with a four-speed automatic transmission, while the 3.5-liter V6 in the Limited has a six-speed automatic with Chrysler’s AutoStick manual shift feature.

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