Originally conceived as a Plymouth model, the PT Cruiser received the Chrysler nameplate on introduction in anticipation of the 2001 discontinuation of the Plymouth brand. The PT Cruiser was designed by Bryan Nesbitt, who later also styled the Chevrolet HHR.The name PT Cruiser includes the initialism PT, standing for "Personal Transport" and designating the car's platform as well as production code.
The convertible officially ceased production December 21, 2007, but the last 2007 convertibles were marketed as 2008 models. On January 12, 2009, Chrysler LLC, under the private equity Cerberus Capital Management investor, announced the gradual discontinuation of the main model.
On July 6, 2009, after reorganization into the "New Chrysler", the company changed plans to discontinue the model by specifying that it will do so for Canadian and Mexican markets only.[3] On July 9, 2010 the PT Cruiser ended production.Worldwide production totaled 1.35 million units
