The same improvement applies to the interior finish. The leather package, in particular, has a rich appearance, given the Cruiser's price, with suede inserts in the doors and along the lower cushion edges.

The front seats have a reasonable amount of bolster to keep driver and passenger from sliding side to side. Perhaps more important, the seating position is upright, with a fairly high, commanding view ahead, much like a sport-utility vehicle or minivan. And with 120.2 cubic feet of interior volume, there's no premium on space in the PT Cruiser. The government's standard for defining a large car, like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class or Lincoln Town Car, is 120 cubic feet.

All that space is largely a function of the Cruiser's height. Its roof rises toward the rear, and its rear seat bottoms are higher than those in front are. The front seats are mounted on tall boxes, leaving plenty of room for rear passengers to stretch their legs underneath. An auto critic who stands six feet-nine-inches tall fit comfortably front or rear, in his preferred upright seating position.

Chrysler claims the PT Cruiser's cabin can be configured 26 different ways. We didn't count, but there are clearly a lot of options. This flexibility stems from three features: a 65/35 split rear bench that can be folded flat, tumbled forward or removed, a movable parcel shelf, and an available front passenger seat that folds flat. The rear seats are anchored with quick-release attachments, and fitted with suitcase-style handles for lifting and steel wheels for rolling. The smaller section weighs 35 pounds, and the larger, 65. The load floor measures 40 inches between the wheel wells. The rear cabin has lots of tie-downs, including a pair on the center pillars that can be used with various seat configurations.

The parcel shelf and front passenger seat increase hauling options. The shelf can be positioned at the top of the rear seatbacks for a standard privacy cover over the cargo hold. It can be lowered to a level that creates a flat floor when the rear seat backs are folded forward. In can be installed vertically across the width of the cabin to divide the cargo hold, or hung out of the tailgate as a small table. It can also be turned over so its hard-plastic underside acts like a large tray, containing drops from dripping paint cans or mud from work boots.

With the front passenger seatback folded flat onto the bottom cushion, there's a table next to the driver and in front of the rear passengers. Even better, there can be more than 8 feet of flat surface between the dashboard and the tailgate. So the Cruiser can accommodate a tall stepladder or a load of two-by-fours within its cabin.