My father would put OPP boss Julian Fantino – defender of road safety – to shame. Yes, the province's speed limits were strictly enforced by dear old dad riding shotgun as we drove north in a Chrysler Sebring Limited. "Easy, boy, easy!" my 82-year-old father would say if the speed crept up to 120 km/h. And so we took it easy, on a 600-kilometre round trip to close the cottage for the winter, a sedate journey that played to the strengths of a car best left on cruise control. In the end, I thought, "Hmm. Not bad." And then checked to see if I was wearing white patent leather shoes. The Sebring, named for a famous endurance race course, is hardly a sports car, but it does project a certain breeziness as a convertible – available this year for the first time as a retractable hardtop with a base price of $38,995. Unlike the Pontiac G6 hardtop convertible, the Chrysler's hardtop is constructed of three panel sections rather than two, and folds more compactly to maintain usable trunk space. The Sebring top can also retract without the engine running, activated by a remote on the key fob. The roof seals tight and is free of the squeaks and rattles that plague the G6. We had some golden moments, my dad and I, with the roof down – driving through a late-autumn burst of brilliant sunshine, warmth and colourful foliage en route to the lake. But it took some time to warm to the car itself. My hesitation was prompted by the exterior, whose frumpy hindquarters are the price paid to accommodate the folding hardtop. And then there's the interior, which offers faux luxury ambience with tortoiseshell veneer trim. It's clean looking, yet plasticky, and my elbows seemed to find frequent contact with hard edges. The heated leather seats are pillowy and offer power adjustments on the driver's side. But set for my average height, the front seat reduced back-seat passenger legroom to zero. Sebring models are available with a 2.4 L four, a 2.7 L V6 or in Limited form with a 3.5 L V6 producing 235 hp and 232 lb.-ft. of torque. The bigger engine mated to a six-speed automatic offers a smooth and relatively seamless spread of power, but with a utilitarian drone from the twin rear exhausts. It consumed a modest 8.0 L/100 km on our highway trip. The combination of a bumpy road, cornering stress and a heavy right foot can produce a queasy inconsistency in the Sebring's handling, but that was before dad got in. Once he was on board, the car's more stately reserve – and its capacity for floating gently over bumps – became more noticeable. A little senior supervision is all it takes, although failing that, the car is equipped with an electronic stability control as a $525 option. While the Sebring made me think I was retired and living in Florida, it did impress me with the optional MyGIG multimedia system, which provides a 20 GB hard drive for music files or digital images. The display screen for the GPS navigation system can also be used to play DVDs, though mercifully not while the car is being driven. Satellite radio is pre-installed, as is hands-free cellphone connectivity. Our Sebring was equipped with a luxury package: heated and cooled cupholders, the MyGIG system ($2,000), the hardtop ($2,300), 18-inch alloy chrome wheels ($575) and some other tidbits, for a total price of $46,695. That's not uncompetitive for a four-seat convertible, but the Sebring Limited suffers from being merely okay in a category that should deliver some panache. Sometimes, though, putting the top down is all it takes to make you forget the compromise. Freelance auto reviewer Bruce Reeve can be reached at brucereeve@sympatico.ca |