Sam Leman Chrysler Jeep Dodge Peoria

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Driving Impressions

There's more pleasure to be found from behind the wheel of the Chrysler Sebring than first impressions might suggest. Yes, it's primarily a mainstream, middle-of-the-road commuter, but even in their most basic forms both the sedan and convertible are enjoyable to drive.

The Sebring convertible is nice for a leisurely drive on a sunny day and pulls duty as a regular commuter with a fun side, but it's less sporty than the sedan. It's fully 400 pounds heavier, and that weight affects handling and engine performance. While we found the 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine reasonably responsive in the sedan, even the 2.7-liter V6 seemed to struggle in the convertible, sounding very busy while not getting much done. The weight of the convertible also drops fuel economy.

An antiquated four-speed automatic transmission hurts the performance of the base and Touring models (which come with the 2.4-liter and 2.7-liter engines). The four-speed automatic is more responsive in the sedan, but in terms of quality and sophistication, let alone absolute performance, it falls woefully short of what we expect in a modern car. Shifting lacks smoothness and precision. The transmission hunts endlessly for the proper gear on mild grades, whether up or down, often shifting up at exactly the wrong moment.

The larger, 3.5-liter V6 comes with a modern six-speed automatic that delivers the level of performance many expect in a car with the Sebring's aspirations. In the sedan, the 3.5-liter V6 provides fine power, though it is outperformed by the V6s offered by Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Saturn, and Pontiac.

Inside the sedan, road, tire and wind noise are noticeable, but they don't interrupt conversation. The Toyota Camry and Hyundai Sonata are quieter.

The Sebring convertible isn't as quiet as the sedan, of course, but it isn't noisy underway. Of the two convertibles, the soft or hard top, road noise is best suppressed by the retractable hardtop. At freeway speeds with the top down, voices needn't be raised for conversation between front seat passengers. The optional wind blocker helps keep hair and dangly earrings from being mussed too much. The soft tops flutter lightly at freeway speeds. Integrating the front seatbelt's shoulder strap into the seatback keeps it from flapping in the wind when the window is down, a nice feature.

For commuting, every Sebring rides smoothly, with good balance between the front and rear suspensions over uneven pavement. Rough pavement produces some cowl shake in the convertible, less with the top up; the hardtop quells the shudders best.

Steering feel is confident, both on and off-center. Cornering is surprisingly well mannered in the sedan, allowing minimal body roll. Compared to the sedan, the convertible is less responsive at turning into sharp, fast corners. Directional stability is good in both body styles, though the convertible feels unbalanced in quick left-right-left transitions; our guess is this may result from much of the weight from the convertible top's hardware and some of the added bracing being positioned relatively high behind the rear seat. At elevated speeds, there's a touch of wallow before the suspension takes a set, but then the car is stable. When cornering loads have compressed the suspension, it tracks cleanly through fast corners. There's also some float at speed on an interstate, but not to an unsettling extent. While not quite as at home in non-commute environs, the Sebring is not all that flustered by a twisty, two-lane country road. The sizeable footprint of the available low-profile tires delivers precise turn-in and above-average grip through tight turns.

Against the competition, the Sebring rates about middle of the road for handling and ride quality. The ride isn't as sophisticated as that of the Toyota Camry, and the Honda Accord and Saturn Aura handle noticeably better.

The four-wheel disc brakes in the V6-powered models have a firm pedal feel, while the disc/drum brakes that come with the four-cylinder could use a stouter pedal.

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