Those who proudly drive vehicles with the Mopar M seem to march to the beat of their own drummer. Want an example? How about three race cars from the SCCA Time Trials Nationals at NCM Motorsports Park?
A virtually bone-stock, non-turbo Chrysler PT Cruiser.
A Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat.
A 1970 Dodge Challenger body on a Viper chassis with a Hellcat engine.
“We’re just better driving, better looking, overall cooler people,” says Robert Ellsworth, owner of the Challenger. “When we roll into the paddock, everyone’s just wishing they brought a Dodge. We just ooze cool.”
Mopar owners may not possess much humility, but a Mopar fan doesn’t just love their own car–they love other Mopars, too.
“That’s sweet,” Robert says of the PT Cruiser. “That’s an excellent piece of engineering right there. I don’t think anyone can hate on the PT Cruiser for what it is–it’s a good little car.”
Flower Power: Chrysler PT Cruiser
Photo by Tradd Slayton/Racing for ALS
Alan Lani wanted to go racing at the SCCA Time Trials Nats, so he borrowed his girlfriend Layla’s PT Cruiser. If you’re thinking he had a more typical time trials car in the works, think again: It was another PT Cruiser.
“If you remember when these came out, they were the hottest thing going,” Alan says. “Then, kind of like Nickelback, they got overplayed and overexposed. Then it became something that was very easy to hate on.”
The hate for PT Cruisers didn’t deter Alan, obviously. He installed a few go-fast parts on the car Layla uses for her gardening business. That included urethane bushings, KYB struts, Hawk brakes and Kumho tires. Other than that, and a few stickers, the car’s just like what Layla uses, including remnants of potting soil in the trunk.
Alan Lani. Photo by J.A. Ackley.
“Layla’s totally down with it,” says Alan. “That comes with a little disclaimer. I asked her, ‘Aren’t you afraid if something happens to it?’ Her response was, ‘Well, you’re leaving your F-150 with me while you’re gone. You get your truck back when I get my car back.’”
Hey, it’s just a Ford, Alan. However, did Layla’s PT Cruiser survive the Time Trials Nationals? Yes. Was it fast? No. Far from it. It timed last, with a 2:58.492 lap.
“The automatic transmission is a problem, so it doesn’t have detents, so you can even manually shift,”…
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