1996 Chrysler Sebring Convertible Fresh air never looked better than this. By Mike Knepper, New Car Test Drive .com

Chrysler single-handedly brought the convertible back to the automotive scene in

the mid-'80s, when Lido Iacocca realized he had a really good thing in the K-car, and

could use its basic bones to make just about anything, short of a school bus. He had

noticed a tiny little blip on the automotive continuum caused by a couple of shops in

California that were turning out more and more convertible conversions on such

vehicles as the Celica. Ever the shrewd marketer, Iacocca sensed a niche emerging and

jumped in. Since then, Chrysler has been the leading seller of convertibles in a

slowly expanding market.

The LeBaron convertible, the last survivor from Chrysler's K-car era, led the

segment for a decade, an astonishing record.

We think the new Sebring convertible could very well match that record, and

perhaps even beat it.