Chrysler PT Cruiser (Motorbooks ColorTech)

Author: Matt, DeLorenzo and John Lamm, ISBN: 9780760309889, Paperback, Published in 2000

A few cars become icons over time, but once in a great while, a car becomes an icon the moment it's introduced. Chrysler's PT Cruiser just might be one of those lucky few.

Introduced in May of 2000 as a 2001 model, the PT Cruiser defies categorization—is it a truck, a car, a minivan, an SUV? But that same pigeon-hole resistant quality is exactly what makes the car appeal to nearly everyone. Soccer moms think it's a cute SUV. Hip, urban twenty-somethings see it as a distinctive, affordable urban transporter. And gearheads of all stripes see a funky daily driver begging to be customized.

In Chrysler PT Cruiser, Matt DeLorenzo introduces you to the process and the people that created the PT Cruiser, from the earliest design sketches to the beginning of production in Chrysler's sprawling Toluca, Mexico, plant. The book also looks at the PT's future, including future production possibilities and the aftermarket's take on the PT. The entire story is illustrated with John Lamm's stunning photographs, giving you the inside scoop on the first hot new car of the millenium: the Chrysler PT Cruiser.