By Truman Lewis
ConsumerAffairs.com
What's in a name? Maybe not much. The Chrysler Sebring, a sedate if not downright dowdy sedan, has never conjured up any memories of the Sebring International Raceway, so it might as well be called something generic like, say, the Chrysler 200.
Chrysler must have had the same thought because, sure enough, the company says its redesigned mid-sized sedan will henceforth be known as the Chrysler 200.
The last time we drove a Sebring was in Los Angeles a year or so ago, when we found ourselves at the airport while our Mini was at home, 40 miles away. We rented a Sebring convertible from Hertz and felt that we'd been taken back in time to the 1960s. The interior looked like our grandmother's living room and the thing rocked its way around turns as though it had rocking chairs where the suspension should have been.
It had all the excitement of an afternoon in Burbank, although any droptop is always pleasing as one cruises up the PCH.
The company showed the slightly reworked car to dealers at a meeting in Orlando yesterday and said it would be arriving in showrooms later this year. There were no reports of dealers swooning with enthusiasm, though it has been so long since Chrysler has rolled out any new models that any change at all is no doubt welcome.
The 200 will be available with the new Chrysler Pentastar V-6 engine and a six-speed automatic transmission or with a 2.4-liter I-4 engine and a four- or six-speed automatic. It will also feature a stiffer body, new suspension, a new rear sway bar and much-needed attention to noise and vibration.
So, the origin of the Sebring name was clear enough, even though the car was about as far from a sports or racing car as anyone could imagine. So where does the 200 come from?
Well, yes, it is smaller than the Chrysler 300. But the company insists the 200 comes from the electric-powered concept car that Chrysler displayed at the 2009 Detroit auto show. You know, the one that was never built.
