Hey, I used to own one of those. Your friends are spot on about the vacuum leak. A major indication is your cruise control Is not working. Careful with these at that mileage mark, see if the timing belt/chain has been done. 100k is when they usually explode. Nice late night car though and back in the day those were faster then a stock mustang 🤣. As far as electrical, all of my past experiences were directly related to heat and the under hood fuse box. Good luck and enjoy it, they're going up in value too 👍. The side GT badge is not stock. Maybe add the 5th wheel kit to the rear to REALLY have a show car 👌. Engine mounts are cheap, but a pita because Chrysler gives you ZERO space. If you want to talk more I'm in JR discord 🥂
My wife purchased a 2005 PTC convertible touring edition with 2.5 turbo in 2006 with 27000 miles on it. She drove that car to 240000 miles with very little problems. We had a blast with it and fully enjoyed it. Drove good and would blow the doors of other little rice burners, The blow by on the turbo is more than likely a hole in the pipe. They are good cars an a lot of fun to drive.
When these things first came out, a friend of mine from Wichita traded his perfect 1963 Corvette for one of these. Every time I see a PT Cruiser I think of how much he must regret that trade.
This starts out strong. Picture quality, sound quality, and making it look good in your backyard (🙃) Keep doing whatever you just did. (You somehow made a PT look good).
@@erikasauer4140 I think the PTs look like a nice little 70's style car. I don't think they look bad if they are physically customized well. I have achieved a nice classy look with mine and it doesn't look that bad. They are just pieces of shit to drive. They break down every chance they get. Believe me, I know. I have a 2005 PT.
The wheels are ok.......... The rest, Eugh,, I confess, I wouldn't know how to make it worse, but the previous owner of this one excelled, that back window crowns off the turd well, SO ugly and awkward, it kinda fits! 😂👌🤔🪦
Its so bad, its brilliant. I remember in 2003, I had some cash and bought a Brabus Mercedes (here in the UK). It went in for some work at the dealers and being somewhat stupid, assumed my courtesy car would be a Mercedes at least. The sheepish tech who dealt with me profusely apologised for the courtesy car he was about to give me for a few days..... A feckin PT Cruiser. What an absolute pile of dogs excrement I thought. I was right but it taught me a lesson in Life Never go to a Mercedes dealer with a Chrysler franchise attached to it pmsl. Seriously love the car Jake. Its a brilliant addition to the channel. I almost bought one for shits & giggles but my wife smacked me to my senses. Can't wait to see the next chapter on this one.
I had a 2008 Chevy HHR and it was a great car. I’m at that age that I couldn’t care less about how a car looks as long as it’s comfortable for me to get in and out of!
This. I'm 6'5", 250 lbs with a bad back. My Corvette days are over, sadly so are more practical but small or lower cars. My favorite semi-daily is my 2006 TBSS because I can get in and out without pain. Not my best car, but no pain = favorite.
I have had a 03 PTC since virtually new here in the UK. I am a home mechanic and it is fairly easy to work on. Your suspension issues are more than likely to be the rubber inner track control arm bushes which are total rubbish and failed on my car within 15K miles. I replaced them with plastic Energy Suspension bushes and they lasted 60k miles, well worth the upgrade. Where I live in South London we have loads of speed humps and pot holes so the suspension gets a hammering. Changing the timing belt was quite a challenge after the water pump failed, jammed and stripped the belt at about 70K miles but no engine damage. It's not the belt that goes on these engines it's the pump, always change it out when replacing the belt. The front wheel bearings fail quickly as well but it is a fairly straight forward job but you need a press, they are well in there!
Possibly the best thumbnail on the internet in all 2022. You win the internet! Having reviewed a bone stock low miler, I can say I see and like what the designers were trying to do - the concept drawings were cool - and with some subtle changes could make it cool. But not these changes. And the factory suspension, steering, brakes, transmission (auto or manual) and interior plastics all need sorting. But that table is amazing
I am unashamed to say I love this car. Pt cruisers are weird looking lemons but someone made this car theirs, and I like to imagine they had the time of their lives putting the miles on it.
There is a shift linkage bushing kit available which is easy to install for not a lot of money which tightens up and improves the shifting by a lot. A very worthwhile upgrade.
I like the sun visor, rear window cover, and roll pan. Black steelies would be perfect. It sounds like you will get a lot of wrenching videos out of this thing.
We had 2 brand new red pt cruisers for our wedding day....to and from the church, plus party hall afterward... wife and I and the wedding party....8 people all dolled up...both rentals. Cars hold a special place in my heart.
I have a 2001 PT cruiser limited edition I got it for $2800 and I got it from the original owner only had 107,000 miles on it Now I put some mileage on it car works good I love it fun car to drive. PT in the PT cruiser means Plymouth truck
I have a 2002 limited. Bought it off the showroom floor and still running strong. It has 123,000 miles. Always kept it garaged, so it still looks new. I did have some terrible vibration felt in the steering wheel at higher speeds. I changed the tie rod ends as well as the upper and lower engine mounts. It did reduce the vibration a lot. Its winter now so come spring I will change the lower control arms and sway bar bushings. I’m hoping that will get the front suspension feeling like new again. Still love driving it.
Hey man, totally off-topic, but you've got a great voice for radio, podcasts, voiceovers, etc, and of course, your TH-cam videos. Keep up the good work bro!
oh boy this brings back nightmares of memories.lol between my family owning them, and working at them at the shop. i couldnt hate a vehicle more, aside from any equinox. lol
My sister had a PT and loved it because, as you said, they are easy to get in and out of and it was comfortable to drive. I hated it because I was the one that kept it running, bad transmission, struts, head gasket, radiator and a few electrical problems. And some problems I'm sure I'm forgetting. Also the timing belt was a PITA. Looking forward to seeing what you do with this car. 👍
I love the project and look forward to the updates. As a token older guy who had one of these years ago, all I can say was they were stylish at the time! :-)
Hey Jake, master tech here. If you don't have paperwork for the timing belt, I strongly suggest you do it. This does have an interference engine. Cheers
Primewell tires are actually phenomenal tires. I've ran them on tons of my cars and I've gotten 65-70k miles out of them before. They are not just some cheap crap tire. Firestone makes them. And most of them have a 40-50k Mike warranty, something you don't get with cheap crap tires
I bought a 2005 GT Turbo 'Dream Cruiser' convertable with 278,000 km last summer and absolutely love it. It has a manual shift and goes like a bat out of hell - well maybe a Canadian Goose out of hell. I did some body work and added a K&N air intake and had the timing belt change. Otherwise it is my daily driver and yes I am a boomer still working full time at 71.
PT Cruisers were pretty popular when first introduced but quality problems gave them a bad reputations pretty quick. Yours looks like what I imagine a Wichita pimp mobile would look like. So glad you keep buying cars like this. Much better than watching about exotics no one can afford.
The car had a table for tailgating the rear seats fold back and gives you a place to sit from the rear hatch. Also I think there is a place for bottled water in the glove box
Hi Jake, fan from Romania here. You are a master of narration! Please keep making these videos, the cheap crappy cars are excellent subjects! Thumbs up and stay healthy!
Dear Jake don't give up on this PT Cruiser because there are easily to work on and the parts are everywhere and also cheap to maintain , good little car to do earrings
Yo. I just picked one of these up in summer 2021. I have been modifying it as the budget allows. Your going to like the results. I have added a downpipe and fixed a miss and a few other things. Definitely fun and fast for what it is. I have been out hurting pride all winter. Cheers bud.
Old people loved PT Cruisers because they got excited at the idea of modifying them like the old cars. Personally if I had a garage I'd love a $500 PT Cruiser and just chop everything on it and practice welding on it.
I have been looking for one to do stupid things to, but there are almost none for sale here anymore, and those that do come up are priced as collectors items lol
It is not a great car but at least you can differentiate it from the zillion 2 box crossovers since then. The split window and front shade seem to be pretty well done even if not in the best of taste. Being able to dust fox body mustangs would make it all worthwhile.
Glad I’m not the only one who appreciates the brims, I have a factory installed one still on my ‘98 ZR2. Love the PT Cruiser, has lots of potential for sure.
Shaking: check the upper and lower torque struts on the passenger side of the motor (accessible thru the wheel well). Sometimes sold as motor mounts at autoparts stores.
I had a PT Cruiser for 12 years. All those problems you mentioned (tie rods; motor mounts; electronic issues) were standard problems with that car. The vacuum leak near the turbo was probably because of the ridiculous mod that has. After that PT Cruiser I had, I will never ever ever ever...ever buy a Chrysler again. I got a 2020 Camry in 2020 and will never look back!
I’m not in love with the bolt-on ornamentation, but if you keep it on for the irony of it, I’ll play along. Especially if you go with steelies with dog-dishes. That said, the sunroof wind deflector and the back door only wind deflectors are super cringey IMHO. I’m also super conflicted about the hatch window cover. It does add something, but at the expense of, yanno, being able to see anything. Also, where I stopped the video, it looks like a giant pair of cartoon eyes looking at you through a tunnel. Scooby-doo-ish. Keep up the good work. This car was on my shopping list for a long time.
When my 95 Neon coupe finally died I was seriously looking for one of those, a turbo at least. It has a SRT4 engine in a clown car body. It's also a hell of a lot cheaper than a SRT4 too. I liked my Neon a lot, it drove and handled great and parts were cheap and easy to find. The PT is a basically a re bodied Neon with a slightly bigger motor. I didn't get one because I ended up with lil sisters 06 Charger RT for a family price with a 90k instead. I'd still get one just to play with and save gas if I clear out some of the fleet and family leftovers we recently acquired, including our late moms 08 PT Cruiser with 60k on it. Nice little do everything car that gets decent mpg and drives pretty good for what it is. Sister will probably end up with it once she gets tired of the 99 300m she has now.
Hey Jake I'm really looking forward to watching the videos on this PT cruiser I recently came into a PT cruiser for free my sister bought it brand new in 2002 she drove it for a long while and then about 3 years ago something happened and she parked it in her backyard and a few weeks ago she was going to send it to the junkyard but I said what the heck I'll take it home and see what could be done with it so I'm looking forward to these videos thanks buddy
For the Shifter vagueness, get some poly bushings from Booger racing. That Hurst Shifter is fine, but the rubber bushings in the Shifter and on the trans side are probably done.
It seems to have completely different looking cables on the trans side than what I see in pictures. I wonder if the Hurst shifter came with special cables? Regardless; no play on either end.
@@100PercentJake nope. We've got the Hurst Shifter and it dropped right in. Are both ends plastic? There were a couple people offering metal ends/heim joints if the plastic end broke (which could happen with stiffer bushings and/or if the Hurst Shifter wasn't adjusted properly). Only the entire cable was available from Chrysler which is a PITA.
My mom bought an 04 GT brand new for 30k as the turbo engine. Cam sensors and crank sensors go out often. Hers only has 120,000. Crank sensors been done two times and it's just above the starter so it's a bear to get to. Cam sensors been done four times stick with OEM sensors. Front wheel bearings twice. Front control arm bushings twice. And when those control arm bolts break off you have to cut holes in the floor in the foot Wells to get to the welded nut but Chrysler put a nice round indent where those are located. The Watts Link in the rear three times. Tie rod ends once. Power steering pump once. New rims because the Chrysler ones corroded and wouldn't hold air. Back doors you can open them but you won't get them shut again ever since the thing was 4 years old because all the road grime and everything gets into the latches and seizes them up. Timing belt once. That really should be an engine out job trust me. Lower passenger side engine mount twice. Enjoy. It's a fun car to drive but it sucks to work on.
There is a company called booger racing that makes solid replacement shift bushings for these, they're $23 for all 4, it will definitely improve the shift quality. Also, check to make sure the cooling fan works, it's a notorious problem.
Came here from the car wizard! Here in Australia, we don’t have Chrysler as a brand but, importers. I love the shape of the PT Cruiser, but unfortunately, a large percentage of all pt cruisers and 300’s were fundamentally broken. The workshops generally had them more than the owners. Sad! I wish a lot of the USA vehicles were cheaper over here, but because they have to be converterd to right hand drive, the price is so expensive! The gmc and dodge pickups are well over $100,000.
Excellent commentary. Am in australia where we could only get the naturally aspirated motors, 2 and 2.4 litre. We had a 2 litre auto for about 10 years. Bought it to keep the Mrs. happy. By time we got rid of it I was in love with it. My findings on the 2 litre limited, Heavy on fuel, most comfortable car on a long trip I have driven, including top of the line Holdens and fords and the odd Mercedes. For an everyday driver, it got up and boogied very well once you were over 40 kmh. Handling on the great ocean road was extremely good. The elephant in the room, the turning circle ! As I said to the wife, I could turn a 40 foot bus in less area !! Also, as I said, ours was a limited and the seats were powered in all directions. Enjoyed your vid, please bring more on the underated cruiser. Alex
Really the best thing about these is Ultra High Quality plastics they used in them. Not cheap or shoddy at all. I don't believe you could tell the difference between this interior and that of say a Bentley... Needs half moon war time headlights mirror coating tho....
My friend's daughter had a pt cruiser, and the insurance for just pl and pd was over 800$ every six month's back in 2013. She bought a new car, and the insurance went down by half. She asked her agent why it would cost so much more for the pt cruiser. The guy said that if you get in a wreck in either the pt cruiser, or a neon, you have a much higher chance of death, or great bodily harm because of all the crash results. Hopefully you won't need to worry about this happening to you. God bless.
Dang BMW gauge cluster for the intro? And a PT cruiser, the universal least favorite car of car people everywhere? AND another Kansan?? You're a legend. Subbing! Looking forward to more content.
GT package in 2003 got you (besides the turbo engine with intercooler) the sport suspension, bigger brakes (and guaranteed 4 wheel disk) and 17" wheels.
I had/have an 06 PT GT turbo, Ii love the way i looks, sits. drives. Very fast for the time. 5 spd. The interior was much improved in the 06 version, same old Chrysler "reliability" though
Close friend of mine has one (he hates it!) and when he drives it with me as a passenger, I always felt like it was like riding a pickup truck: firm suspension and ride, feeling every bump in the road.
Steelies with half moon hub caps would finish off the look nicely. Yeah, that car was someone's pride and joy in the early 2000s. A lot of money was put into it. My guess is that the next owner didn't care about that and just drove the cr@p out of that PT Cruiser. Would be nice to bring it back to its former glory, with all of the period-correct aftermarket accessories. Why not go all out and put on fake woodgrain sides too!
Very neat video, and a nifty car. The mother of a friend loves her PT Cruiser. She got the 2003 Dream Cruiser in burnt orange. Everything the GT has plus a few additions. Yes, hers is both a turbo and manual transmission. She loves the thing. My buddy has a PT Turbo convertible automatic that he has rigged up as a snow plow. The car doesn't seem to mind. Where he is located, in the foothills of the Rocky Mountain, means the Orange Peril sees a lot of country
Hi, it looks really sharper with the attachments, until a few weeks ago we had a CRD Limited with a 2.2L diesel engine (Mercedes Benz). Unfortunately, after 20 years, the frame had rusted through and chassis parts had to be replaced every 2 years. The turning circle of 12.5 meters should not be underestimated either. Otherwise it was really pleasant to drive, the auxiliary heating was great, everything electrical worked, but we probably won't buy another one again. greetings from Germany
My mom bought a brand new electric blue PT Cruiser GT turbo in 2004 but in automatic. She absolutely loved the car. She passed away in 2012 and I inherited the car with 35k miles on it. I will say, it was a pretty nice car. It’s actually pretty fast for what it is. Was overall reliable and I used it as a daily until 2019. The only thing I ever had to do to it was a coil, front and rear brakes, motor mounts, and tires. Tried to give it to my daughter when she got her license but she hated it so I sold it. The guy who bought it flew out from New Orleans to San Diego where I live because the car was the most original low mileage cheapest one he could find after a 6 month search. When I met my wife in 2014 she laughed that I drove a PT Cruiser. 🤣 surprised she ever married me.
I'd say in addition to working out the issues of this thing, swap the Alloys for some 15 or 16" Steelies with Mooncaps, remove the sideskirts and slam it.
I love any quirky car that others think is weird or ugly, I've never watched one of your videos but i will watch all of these. Better than any exotic in my opinion
I live in the junction city area and bought an 06 pt gt from a friend. Pretty nice car actually and I hated the pt’s….. it sucks on gas and grinds in second bc of the shift cables and cable adjustment. Other than that, it has 101k and zero blemishes…….
I had a 2007 HHR. I beg to differ. It sucked so bad I strongly considered never owning a GM product again (I still think Mary Barra owes me some money)...and didn't until picking up a Chevy Suburban...
Minus the tacky add ons, I like this car. The packaging was excellent in these, offering room and practicality, which is baked in and can't be "enhanced', like performance and handling can by simple add ons/mods. I dunno about reliability...I almost bought one of these when new, but picked up a Honda CR-V instead, as I was downsizing the fleet and needed just one super reliable kid hauler for a few years. Probably a smarter buy...
PT,s are ace car had 2 2.2crd versions (I'm in the UK) both worked great until the Mercedes injectors failed and jammed in which took ages to extract and replace.
Hate to see them reusable air filters especially on turbo cars, maintained or not they cause extra ware. I had a Subaru recently come in and the turbo looks like it was sand blasted. My area and climate PT cruisers have held up well and their are still tons on the road, haven't saw an HHR in ages.
Black cars do look better in the shade. This PT should only come out at night, middle of the week during a storm while wearing a disguise. That said those motors done up proper hook up good. There was a neon race class up here at one time and they were a lot of fun to watch all using that basic motor. Cheers 🇨🇦
As a PT Cruiser owner (yes my picture on here is my PT), I'd say also check our your sway bar bushings, and lower control arm bushings. Also for wheels you may want to look at Wheel Vintiques. Can't say 100% certain that their wheels for the PT will fit a GT (they should though). I'd also say to ditch that body kit not doing anything any favors.
Immediately spotted that this is a 2003 by the side mirrors and the fact that it doesn't have a rear spoiler. Yes, I'm a bit of a PT Cruiser geek. Had 4 at one point. We're down to only have my wife's highly modified 2003 GT manual. (and the 2003 horsepower is 215, which went up to 220 in 2004 with the bigger injectors and 230 in 2006 with the plastic intake manifold)
In its defense, you’re probably 95% less likely to be exposed to bubonic plague, anthrax, or flesh-eating bacteria in this vehicle than you are in your Ranger.
Jake, finally a car that could be interesting ! Go for it and do the stage II . This car is really not horrible, so get it somewhat sorted and take us along for the journey !
Possibly minor correction: I keep calling it a “GT Turbo” but GT and Turbo are actually two different trim levels 😁
It definitely needs a bigger turbo.
Hey, I used to own one of those. Your friends are spot on about the vacuum leak. A major indication is your cruise control Is not working. Careful with these at that mileage mark, see if the timing belt/chain has been done. 100k is when they usually explode. Nice late night car though and back in the day those were faster then a stock mustang 🤣. As far as electrical, all of my past experiences were directly related to heat and the under hood fuse box.
Good luck and enjoy it, they're going up in value too 👍. The side GT badge is not stock. Maybe add the 5th wheel kit to the rear to REALLY have a show car 👌. Engine mounts are cheap, but a pita because Chrysler gives you ZERO space. If you want to talk more I'm in JR discord 🥂
Oh. Paint the center cap on those rims black, cheap and easy
that isnt the lowest mile vehicle you own unless you really get around in the ducati lol
Currently swapping the drive train from one of those into my first gen neon
My wife purchased a 2005 PTC convertible touring edition with 2.5 turbo in 2006 with 27000 miles on it. She drove that car to 240000 miles with very little problems. We had a blast with it and fully enjoyed it. Drove good and would blow the doors of other little rice burners, The blow by on the turbo is more than likely a hole in the pipe. They are good cars an a lot of fun to drive.
Don't ever trash one!!!
When these things first came out, a friend of mine from Wichita traded his perfect 1963 Corvette for one of these. Every time I see a PT Cruiser I think of how much he must regret that trade.
Yikes! Wow your friend isn't very smart lol. Ouch
What was he smoking??!!!
Bullshit.
I happen to be a Mopar guy , but I highly doubt that anyone would be stupid enough to trade a 63 vette for a PT Cruiser .
@@tatialo37 the real good stuff.
This starts out strong. Picture quality, sound quality, and making it look good in your backyard (🙃) Keep doing whatever you just did. (You somehow made a PT look good).
Only one thing wrong with that statement. No, nothing can make a PT look good!
@@erikasauer4140 I think the PTs look like a nice little 70's style car. I don't think they look bad if they are physically customized well. I have achieved a nice classy look with mine and it doesn't look that bad. They are just pieces of shit to drive. They break down every chance they get. Believe me, I know. I have a 2005 PT.
Wow Jake, you knocked it out of the park with this one. This car, fixed, would decimate my Volvo.
I like the wheels.... The only mod I don't care for is the rear window covering. I'm looking forward to seeing you work on this car!
The wheels are ok..........
The rest, Eugh,, I confess, I wouldn't know how to make it worse, but the previous owner of this one excelled, that back window crowns off the turd well, SO ugly and awkward, it kinda fits! 😂👌🤔🪦
That rear window treatment is my favorite part
Its so bad, its brilliant. I remember in 2003, I had some cash and bought a Brabus Mercedes (here in the UK). It went in for some work at the dealers and being somewhat stupid, assumed my courtesy car would be a Mercedes at least. The sheepish tech who dealt with me profusely apologised for the courtesy car he was about to give me for a few days..... A feckin PT Cruiser. What an absolute pile of dogs excrement I thought. I was right but it taught me a lesson in Life Never go to a Mercedes dealer with a Chrysler franchise attached to it pmsl. Seriously love the car Jake. Its a brilliant addition to the channel. I almost bought one for shits & giggles but my wife smacked me to my senses. Can't wait to see the next chapter on this one.
I had a 2008 Chevy HHR and it was a great car. I’m at that age that I couldn’t care less about how a car looks as long as it’s comfortable for me to get in and out of!
This. I'm 6'5", 250 lbs with a bad back. My Corvette days are over, sadly so are more practical but small or lower cars. My favorite semi-daily is my 2006 TBSS because I can get in and out without pain. Not my best car, but no pain = favorite.
I have had a 03 PTC since virtually new here in the UK. I am a home mechanic and it is fairly easy to work on. Your suspension issues are more than likely to be the rubber inner track control arm bushes which are total rubbish and failed on my car within 15K miles. I replaced them with plastic Energy Suspension bushes and they lasted 60k miles, well worth the upgrade. Where I live in South London we have loads of speed humps and pot holes so the suspension gets a hammering. Changing the timing belt was quite a challenge after the water pump failed, jammed and stripped the belt at about 70K miles but no engine damage. It's not the belt that goes on these engines it's the pump, always change it out when replacing the belt. The front wheel bearings fail quickly as well but it is a fairly straight forward job but you need a press, they are well in there!
DON'T TRASH IT!!!
DON'T TRASH IT OR I WILL FORCE YOU TO GIVE IT TO ME
Possibly the best thumbnail on the internet in all 2022. You win the internet!
Having reviewed a bone stock low miler, I can say I see and like what the designers were trying to do - the concept drawings were cool - and with some subtle changes could make it cool. But not these changes. And the factory suspension, steering, brakes, transmission (auto or manual) and interior plastics all need sorting.
But that table is amazing
I am unashamed to say I love this car. Pt cruisers are weird looking lemons but someone made this car theirs, and I like to imagine they had the time of their lives putting the miles on it.
There is a shift linkage bushing kit available which is easy to install for not a lot of money which tightens up and improves the shifting by a lot. A very worthwhile upgrade.
From modern performance, it’s only $20
This is why we come to 100PercentJake.
I like the sun visor, rear window cover, and roll pan. Black steelies would be perfect. It sounds like you will get a lot of wrenching videos out of this thing.
rear window cover is horrendous. the rest is ok for laughs.
The only people that don't like PT's are the people that haven't driven one. (especially a manual) They are a blast to drive and are really practical.
I have driven 2. They suck.
So do you!! 😈 @@cpscps2679
Exactly. People are more pos than these poor innocent cars ever will be
We had 2 brand new red pt cruisers for our wedding day....to and from the church, plus party hall afterward... wife and I and the wedding party....8 people all dolled up...both rentals. Cars hold a special place in my heart.
I have a 2001 PT cruiser limited edition I got it for $2800 and I got it from the original owner only had 107,000 miles on it Now I put some mileage on it car works good I love it fun car to drive. PT in the PT cruiser means Plymouth truck
I thought it was Personal Transport. 🤷🏻
I have a 2002 limited. Bought it off the showroom floor and still running strong. It has 123,000 miles. Always kept it garaged, so it still looks new. I did have some terrible vibration felt in the steering wheel at higher speeds. I changed the tie rod ends as well as the upper and lower engine mounts. It did reduce the vibration a lot. Its winter now so come spring I will change the lower control arms and sway bar bushings. I’m hoping that will get the front suspension feeling like new again. Still love driving it.
Also check that cat. Could be clogged killing up power as well.
Hey man, totally off-topic, but you've got a great voice for radio, podcasts, voiceovers, etc, and of course, your TH-cam videos. Keep up the good work bro!
oh boy this brings back nightmares of memories.lol between my family owning them, and working at them at the shop. i couldnt hate a vehicle more, aside from any equinox. lol
LOL
You trash them, I'll trash you
The YT Car Channel Equation is Terrible cars =Great Content , on that basis I'm looking forward to some marvellous content - brilliant Video!
My sister had a PT and loved it because, as you said, they are easy to get in and out of and it was comfortable to drive. I hated it because I was the one that kept it running, bad transmission, struts, head gasket, radiator and a few electrical problems. And some problems I'm sure I'm forgetting. Also the timing belt was a PITA. Looking forward to seeing what you do with this car. 👍
I love the project and look forward to the updates. As a token older guy who had one of these years ago, all I can say was they were stylish at the time! :-)
I like the PT cruiser. I suggest you remove the plastic rear,window cover. Also,would make sure the rear doors open. This should be a fun build.
Hey Jake, master tech here. If you don't have paperwork for the timing belt, I strongly suggest you do it. This does have an interference engine. Cheers
You might want to take it to John Ross's shop and put it on the lift. Besides, I think he'd get a kick out of it.
Primewell tires are actually phenomenal tires. I've ran them on tons of my cars and I've gotten 65-70k miles out of them before. They are not just some cheap crap tire. Firestone makes them. And most of them have a 40-50k Mike warranty, something you don't get with cheap crap tires
I bought a 2005 GT Turbo 'Dream Cruiser' convertable with 278,000 km last summer and absolutely love it. It has a manual shift and goes like a bat out of hell - well maybe a Canadian Goose out of hell. I did some body work and added a K&N air intake and had the timing belt change.
Otherwise it is my daily driver and yes I am a boomer still working full time at 71.
PT Cruisers were pretty popular when first introduced but quality problems gave them a bad reputations pretty quick. Yours looks like what I imagine a Wichita pimp mobile would look like. So glad you keep buying cars like this. Much better than watching about exotics no one can afford.
The rear window treatment is my wife, and I's favorite part
The car had a table for tailgating the rear seats fold back and gives you a place to sit from the rear hatch. Also I think there is a place for bottled water in the glove box
As best I can tell, the front bumper cover, side skirts, and rear roll pan are APC, and I think that hood was made by Suncoast.
Hi Jake, fan from Romania here. You are a master of narration! Please keep making these videos, the cheap crappy cars are excellent subjects! Thumbs up and stay healthy!
They are not crappy cars! But your attitude and language is! Quit judging!!!
Honestly, I don't completely hate how it looks. It DEFINITELY needs the baby half-moons with some RWL or whitewall tires.
Jake this thing is insanely cool, I think it would blow your channel up!
Dear Jake don't give up on this PT Cruiser because there are easily to work on and the parts are everywhere and also cheap to maintain , good little car to do earrings
100%Jake: “I don’t have a problem.”
Me: “You have a PT Cruiser now......you have a thousand problems!”
Yo. I just picked one of these up in summer 2021. I have been modifying it as the budget allows. Your going to like the results. I have added a downpipe and fixed a miss and a few other things. Definitely fun and fast for what it is. I have been out hurting pride all winter. Cheers bud.
Old people loved PT Cruisers because they got excited at the idea of modifying them like the old cars. Personally if I had a garage I'd love a $500 PT Cruiser and just chop everything on it and practice welding on it.
I have been looking for one to do stupid things to, but there are almost none for sale here anymore, and those that do come up are priced as collectors items lol
Me: Those wheels are the best part!
Jake: I don't like them, they need to go
It is not a great car but at least you can differentiate it from the zillion 2 box crossovers since then. The split window and front shade seem to be pretty well done even if not in the best of taste. Being able to dust fox body mustangs would make it all worthwhile.
Glad I’m not the only one who appreciates the brims, I have a factory installed one still on my ‘98 ZR2. Love the PT Cruiser, has lots of potential for sure.
Came from Mr Wizard's channel, new sub !
Had a 2006 and it was great in the snow and, yes, built like a tank. Once you get the suspension and turbo sorted it should be a great car for you!
Shaking: check the upper and lower torque struts on the passenger side of the motor (accessible thru the wheel well). Sometimes sold as motor mounts at autoparts stores.
I had a PT Cruiser for 12 years. All those problems you mentioned (tie rods; motor mounts; electronic issues) were standard problems with that car. The vacuum leak near the turbo was probably because of the ridiculous mod that has. After that PT Cruiser I had, I will never ever ever ever...ever buy a Chrysler again. I got a 2020 Camry in 2020 and will never look back!
I’m not in love with the bolt-on ornamentation, but if you keep it on for the irony of it, I’ll play along. Especially if you go with steelies with dog-dishes.
That said, the sunroof wind deflector and the back door only wind deflectors are super cringey IMHO.
I’m also super conflicted about the hatch window cover. It does add something, but at the expense of, yanno, being able to see anything. Also, where I stopped the video, it looks like a giant pair of cartoon eyes looking at you through a tunnel. Scooby-doo-ish.
Keep up the good work. This car was on my shopping list for a long time.
When my 95 Neon coupe finally died I was seriously looking for one of those, a turbo at least. It has a SRT4 engine in a clown car body. It's also a hell of a lot cheaper than a SRT4 too. I liked my Neon a lot, it drove and handled great and parts were cheap and easy to find. The PT is a basically a re bodied Neon with a slightly bigger motor. I didn't get one because I ended up with lil sisters 06 Charger RT for a family price with a 90k instead. I'd still get one just to play with and save gas if I clear out some of the fleet and family leftovers we recently acquired, including our late moms 08 PT Cruiser with 60k on it. Nice little do everything car that gets decent mpg and drives pretty good for what it is. Sister will probably end up with it once she gets tired of the 99 300m she has now.
Hey Jake I'm really looking forward to watching the videos on this PT cruiser I recently came into a PT cruiser for free my sister bought it brand new in 2002 she drove it for a long while and then about 3 years ago something happened and she parked it in her backyard and a few weeks ago she was going to send it to the junkyard but I said what the heck I'll take it home and see what could be done with it so I'm looking forward to these videos thanks buddy
Jake, good show. PTs were considered trucks by the feds. They therefore enabled the sale of many Ram pickups. Clever regulatory move by Chrysler......
My Mom had a 2 door 05/06 convertible, it was fun to borrow when I visited her in Florida and I was able to put the top down.
Just got my GT Auto running. Great timing for this video. Gives me motivation to clean mine up.
For the Shifter vagueness, get some poly bushings from Booger racing. That Hurst Shifter is fine, but the rubber bushings in the Shifter and on the trans side are probably done.
It seems to have completely different looking cables on the trans side than what I see in pictures. I wonder if the Hurst shifter came with special cables? Regardless; no play on either end.
@@100PercentJake nope. We've got the Hurst Shifter and it dropped right in. Are both ends plastic? There were a couple people offering metal ends/heim joints if the plastic end broke (which could happen with stiffer bushings and/or if the Hurst Shifter wasn't adjusted properly). Only the entire cable was available from Chrysler which is a PITA.
My mom bought an 04 GT brand new for 30k as the turbo engine. Cam sensors and crank sensors go out often. Hers only has 120,000. Crank sensors been done two times and it's just above the starter so it's a bear to get to. Cam sensors been done four times stick with OEM sensors. Front wheel bearings twice. Front control arm bushings twice. And when those control arm bolts break off you have to cut holes in the floor in the foot Wells to get to the welded nut but Chrysler put a nice round indent where those are located. The Watts Link in the rear three times. Tie rod ends once. Power steering pump once. New rims because the Chrysler ones corroded and wouldn't hold air. Back doors you can open them but you won't get them shut again ever since the thing was 4 years old because all the road grime and everything gets into the latches and seizes them up. Timing belt once. That really should be an engine out job trust me. Lower passenger side engine mount twice. Enjoy. It's a fun car to drive but it sucks to work on.
There is a company called booger racing that makes solid replacement shift bushings for these, they're $23 for all 4, it will definitely improve the shift quality. Also, check to make sure the cooling fan works, it's a notorious problem.
Came here from the car wizard! Here in Australia, we don’t have Chrysler as a brand but, importers. I love the shape of the PT Cruiser, but unfortunately, a large percentage of all pt cruisers and 300’s were fundamentally broken. The workshops generally had them more than the owners. Sad!
I wish a lot of the USA vehicles were cheaper over here, but because they have to be converterd to right hand drive, the price is so expensive! The gmc and dodge pickups are well over $100,000.
Excellent commentary. Am in australia where we could only get the naturally aspirated motors, 2 and 2.4 litre. We had a 2 litre auto for about 10 years. Bought it to keep the Mrs. happy. By time we got rid of it I was in love with it. My findings on the 2 litre limited, Heavy on fuel, most comfortable car on a long trip I have driven, including top of the line Holdens and fords and the odd Mercedes. For an everyday driver, it got up and boogied very well once you were over 40 kmh. Handling on the great ocean road was extremely good. The elephant in the room, the turning circle ! As I said to the wife, I could turn a 40 foot bus in less area !! Also, as I said, ours was a limited and the seats were powered in all directions. Enjoyed your vid, please bring more on the underated cruiser. Alex
Really the best thing about these is Ultra High Quality plastics they used in them. Not cheap or shoddy at all. I don't believe you could tell the difference between this interior and that of say a Bentley... Needs half moon war time headlights mirror coating tho....
Red steelies to match the stripe.
My friend's daughter had a pt cruiser, and the insurance for just pl and pd was over 800$ every six month's back in 2013. She bought a new car, and the insurance went down by half. She asked her agent why it would cost so much more for the pt cruiser. The guy said that if you get in a wreck in either the pt cruiser, or a neon, you have a much higher chance of death, or great bodily harm because of all the crash results. Hopefully you won't need to worry about this happening to you. God bless.
Oh! I might retract my comment about maybe getting one!
A friend died in a neon. They are crap.
Dang BMW gauge cluster for the intro? And a PT cruiser, the universal least favorite car of car people everywhere? AND another Kansan?? You're a legend. Subbing! Looking forward to more content.
GT package in 2003 got you (besides the turbo engine with intercooler) the sport suspension, bigger brakes (and guaranteed 4 wheel disk) and 17" wheels.
Been waiting all week for this video
I had/have an 06 PT GT turbo, Ii love the way i looks, sits. drives. Very fast for the time. 5 spd. The interior was much improved in the 06 version, same old Chrysler "reliability" though
Close friend of mine has one (he hates it!) and when he drives it with me as a passenger, I always felt like it was like riding a pickup truck: firm suspension and ride, feeling every bump in the road.
Steelies with half moon hub caps would finish off the look nicely. Yeah, that car was someone's pride and joy in the early 2000s. A lot of money was put into it. My guess is that the next owner didn't care about that and just drove the cr@p out of that PT Cruiser. Would be nice to bring it back to its former glory, with all of the period-correct aftermarket accessories. Why not go all out and put on fake woodgrain sides too!
Very neat video, and a nifty car. The mother of a friend loves her PT Cruiser. She got the 2003 Dream Cruiser in burnt orange. Everything the GT has plus a few additions. Yes, hers is both a turbo and manual transmission. She loves the thing. My buddy has a PT Turbo convertible automatic that he has rigged up as a snow plow. The car doesn't seem to mind. Where he is located, in the foothills of the Rocky Mountain, means the Orange Peril sees a lot of country
I like it. Make no apologies. One of the few cars that can be laughed up or taken seriously. Either way equals fun.
At first I was like “oh nooooo, not a PT Cruiser”, but I hung in till the end and I LOVE the plan. Looking forward to seeing this on the drag strip.
Hi, it looks really sharper with the attachments, until a few weeks ago we had a CRD Limited with a 2.2L diesel engine (Mercedes Benz). Unfortunately, after 20 years, the frame had rusted through and chassis parts had to be replaced every 2 years. The turning circle of 12.5 meters should not be underestimated either. Otherwise it was really pleasant to drive, the auxiliary heating was great, everything electrical worked, but we probably won't buy another one again. greetings from Germany
My mom bought a brand new electric blue PT Cruiser GT turbo in 2004 but in automatic. She absolutely loved the car. She passed away in 2012 and I inherited the car with 35k miles on it. I will say, it was a pretty nice car. It’s actually pretty fast for what it is. Was overall reliable and I used it as a daily until 2019. The only thing I ever had to do to it was a coil, front and rear brakes, motor mounts, and tires. Tried to give it to my daughter when she got her license but she hated it so I sold it. The guy who bought it flew out from New Orleans to San Diego where I live because the car was the most original low mileage cheapest one he could find after a 6 month search. When I met my wife in 2014 she laughed that I drove a PT Cruiser. 🤣 surprised she ever married me.
I'd say in addition to working out the issues of this thing, swap the Alloys for some 15 or 16" Steelies with Mooncaps, remove the sideskirts and slam it.
I love any quirky car that others think is weird or ugly, I've never watched one of your videos but i will watch all of these. Better than any exotic in my opinion
I live in the junction city area and bought an 06 pt gt from a friend. Pretty nice car actually and I hated the pt’s….. it sucks on gas and grinds in second bc of the shift cables and cable adjustment. Other than that, it has 101k and zero blemishes…….
I'd call that the Refried Bean!
It's a car easily found in Planeview next to over accessorized Escalades and trucks at low income housing.
I’m very excited to see you build this car. Those mods are absolutely absurd i love It
I had a 2007 HHR. I beg to differ. It sucked so bad I strongly considered never owning a GM product again (I still think Mary Barra owes me some money)...and didn't until picking up a Chevy Suburban...
I love it, I’m not kidding. My mom had one, I’ve always wanted a turbo 5 speed. Peanut butter and jelly.
My daughter had two PT Cruisers and they were both pretty good. I think this will be an interesting build. Good luck.
Looks like a fun little project. I'm excited for the videos.
Today's video was quite a surprise with the PT Cruiser find!! It actually is a cool looking vehicle. Fun, fun, fun!! Cheers!!
This is gonna be great. Love me some PT content.
Minus the tacky add ons, I like this car. The packaging was excellent in these, offering room and practicality, which is baked in and can't be "enhanced', like performance and handling can by simple add ons/mods. I dunno about reliability...I almost bought one of these when new, but picked up a Honda CR-V instead, as I was downsizing the fleet and needed just one super reliable kid hauler for a few years. Probably a smarter buy...
PT,s are ace car had 2 2.2crd versions (I'm in the UK) both worked great until the Mercedes injectors failed and jammed in which took ages to extract and replace.
I rented a PT Cruiser years ago. I thought the analog style clock was kinds cool, but that was the only memorable feature.
Hate to see them reusable air filters especially on turbo cars, maintained or not they cause extra ware. I had a Subaru recently come in and the turbo looks like it was sand blasted. My area and climate PT cruisers have held up well and their are still tons on the road, haven't saw an HHR in ages.
Black cars do look better in the shade.
This PT should only come out at night, middle of the week during a storm while wearing a disguise.
That said those motors done up proper hook up good. There was a neon race class up here at one time and they were a lot of fun to watch all using that basic motor.
Cheers 🇨🇦
As a PT Cruiser owner (yes my picture on here is my PT), I'd say also check our your sway bar bushings, and lower control arm bushings. Also for wheels you may want to look at Wheel Vintiques. Can't say 100% certain that their wheels for the PT will fit a GT (they should though). I'd also say to ditch that body kit not doing anything any favors.
That Cruzer is the most loved PT in the world !
JC Whitney: Select All Options
Love the pt cruiser my mom had a 2003 pt gt turbo it was a fast little car... I had a hhr that car was a basket case
Hey, I dig it and currently own 5 PTs and 2 HHRs. Looking forward to this series.
Can’t wait to watch more of the videos watching you fix it up.
Awesome video, I really liked the opening!
Immediately spotted that this is a 2003 by the side mirrors and the fact that it doesn't have a rear spoiler. Yes, I'm a bit of a PT Cruiser geek. Had 4 at one point. We're down to only have my wife's highly modified 2003 GT manual. (and the 2003 horsepower is 215, which went up to 220 in 2004 with the bigger injectors and 230 in 2006 with the plastic intake manifold)
I like the look of that PTC, can't wait for your next video
Lovin' my PT GT (3rd PT I've owned). Looking forward to your mods... E85 and proper boost should be sweet!
In its defense, you’re probably 95% less likely to be exposed to bubonic plague, anthrax, or flesh-eating bacteria in this vehicle than you are in your Ranger.
Jake, finally a car that could be interesting ! Go for it and do the stage II . This car is really not horrible, so get it somewhat sorted and take us along for the journey !
Love that Jake is a manual transmission man!