Question on PT Cruiser Bumpers

I have a 2001 Purple PT (actually cranberry by dc's name) with the gray bumper covers

I would like to have PURPLE ONES

you anywhere the coast of oregon?

-- snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com In the words of the IMMORTAL USED CAR DEALER: THERE IS AN ASS FOR EVERY SEAT!

No. Just, during the first 500 miles, you do not do a constant RPM on the motor. ie: don't take a 6 hour vacation to Tahoe right off the dealer's lot, where your driving 60Mph 5 of the hours.

And even then, that is almost a religious argument. Ring and cylinder liner materials are a lot better than they used to be, and the benefits of a proper break in are most likely small.

And of course, stay close to home at first. If someone forgot a bolt or some such in the engine, it's going to blow up then. You don't want to have to tow a new car a hundred miles back to the dealer.

Ted

re: break in miles,

I'm in the UK, just took delivery of an '04 to replace the '01, the manual says be gentle for the first couple of hundred miles, that's all.

I asked the owner of the garage that looks after our "fleet" (sounds real grand that, don't it) This guy is an engineer, not just a parts swapper.

His quote was that the dealer sends you away with the car and doesn't expect to see you again until the 6 month/7500 period is up (who don't get the business anyway 'cos the local garage does. The dealer is kewl with this as long as we use genuine Chrysler parts) The dealer didn't say otherwise. Modern engines (I have some old cars that require TLC) just work. The dealers attitude is that if it breaks, the warranty covers the recovery and hotel bills etc and gets it fixed. Consequently it has today spent a few hours at 4k+ rpm on the motorway to the drag races and back.

The dealer seems pretty confident in the car, or are they just relying on the warranty?

pottsy

Check the owners manual that came with the car for any specific reccomendations but I don't think there is really much that has to be done anymore. I would change the oil at 1k regardless of what the book says but other than that just drive it.

Seems like an awful lot of expense just to avoid maybe scratching the paint. The paint can be scratched on the standard bumpers just as easily (although I do agree that they wouldnt show scratches as bad). Check out

Steve B.

AS far as the bumpers go, I am sure someone, like me (With a 2001 Deep Cranberry Cruiser) or Nomen Nescio had written would exchange the bumpers in a heartbeat. I would love a matching bumper to the paint color. The grey bumpers don't show scratches that well, which is good. I put on a set of chrome bumper strips, front and rear, for extra protection. I got them on ebay for under $60 for the set and they attached with 3M auto adhesive two-sided tape. Worked well when I was tapped in the parking lot in the rear and once when a car pulled in front of me out of a blind drive and I hit the side of her car with the bumper, tapped is more like it. They have no scratches on them and the bumper is still scratch free.

As far as break-ins go. The owner's manual says to take it easy. I have had mechanics tell me to drive the car from the beginning like you intend to drive it for the rest of it's days in your possession. Let's face it, most used cars are previous rentals or lease cars and those renters I am sure don't drive them easily at first. My only new car was driven like I would normally do from fay one and it never gave me a problem in the engine or drive train or any way related to the break-in. But it is up to you. I do suggest NOT to abuse it.

Mark

Panther wrote: