Buying a sporty coupe is almost always an exercise in left-brain/right-brain conflict.

Sure, you want snazzy good looks and lots of mile-eating performance, but you'd also

appreciate some comfort, fuel economy and civility as well. Including room in the back

for adult-size passengers. Is that too much to ask from one car?

Chrysler thinks not, and offers up its Sebring--and the near-identical Dodge

Avenger--sport coupes as proof. On the surface, they seem like the ideal

have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too cars; all gain, no pain. Sebring and Avenger suggest

that you can enjoy driving pleasure and distinctive styling without having to endure a

harsh ride or contort rear-seat passengers into pretzels.

Seen from this perspective, Sebring and Avenger seem to have no direct competition.

The Mazda MX-6 and Mitsubishi Eclipse (for example) are smaller, the Ford Thunderbird

and Chevy Monte Carlo are bigger. Others are faster but not as comfort-oriented.

This is a serious effort on Chrysler's part, but it's no bet-the-farm major gamble.

What you see on the outside is new, but Sebring and Avenger are based on familiar

hardware, mostly from Mitsubishi, and are built in the Normal, Illinois facility that

turns out Mitsubishi Galants and Eclipses, as well as Eagle Talons.

The Mitsubishi connection pays dividends in the area of quality. Simply stated,

Sebring and Avenger are the best-built Chrysler products we've encountered in recent

experience, displaying high levels of finish and material quality.

There are two models of Chrysler's cloned coupes--the Sebring LX and LXi, the base and

ES Avenger. As you'd expect, the more expensive Sebring lineup includes more standard

comfort and convenience features. The basic Avenger ($14,040) is a little less

hedonistic, though far from bare bones.

Our test car was a Sebring LXi.

Few current Chrysler products are lacking in visual drama. There's certainly plenty to

look at in this case, from the cab-forward basic form--a company trademark these

days--to the aggressive nose treatment.

Sebring differs from its Avenger stablemate in many details, but basic elements are

the same for both. The large sloping grill, with a larger air intake flanked by fog

lights below, is distinctive, and may be to more viewers' liking than the intake slats

on the Avenger.

In profile, the duo look very much alike, though the Sebring has full lower side

cladding (in body color except on white cars, where the plastic panels are in light

gray) covering the convex shapes found on the Avenger's all-steel flanks.

The proportions are unusual for the class, eschewing the traditional long hood-short

rear deck form for a compact minimal-overhang nose and long tail. Another element that

may take some getting used to is the sudden upsweep of the body that begins in the

middle of the doors and is carried all the way to the tail.

Rear views differ in detail; both are dominated by large taillights. The rump-rearward

design does have a practical side as it creates an unusually large cargo area for a

two-door coupe.

Individual reactions may vary, but there's no denying that Sebring and Avenger are

attention-getters. In our experience, most onlookers' reactions have been positive,

and that's one of the reasons folks buy sport coupes.

If you've seen the interior of a Mitsubishi Eclipse or Eagle Talon, you've seen much

of the Sebring's cabin hardware. The dashboard is carried over virtually intact,

complete with eye-catching shape and legible instrumentation. Not to mention dual

airbags.

Base model gauges include speedometer, tachometer, fuel level and coolant temperature;

V6 versions get an oil pressure gauge as well.

The key element missing in most small sport coupes is roominess, and the Sebring has

that in abundance. The cabin can hold four adults easily for short and medium-length

trips, or two adults plus two kids for any distance. None of the smaller sport coupes

can make this claim.

The seats are comfortable and adjust to fit almost all occupants. The front

passenger's seat has a one-touch slide-forward feature that substantially improves

access to the rear. On paper, the rear seat holds three people, but two is a more

realistic proposition.

Sebring is quiet inside, too. A combination of good aerodynamic design and plenty of

sound insulation keeps outside noises at bay, allowing occupants to enjoy the standard

AM/FM/cassette stereo sound system (with four speakers in LX, eight in LXi) without

interference.

Air conditioning is also standard on all models, whether entry-level (Sebring LX or

Avenger) or fancy (LXi or ES). Many of the upgrade model's standard features,

including power windows/mirrors/door locks, cruise control, cast-aluminum wheels,

remote keyless entry and a HomeLink 3-channel transmitter that can be programmed to

operate garage-door openers and two additional remote-control home features, can be

ordered for base versions. Leather interior trim is optional on LXi and EX models

only.

Options common to all Sebrings and Avengers are a power tilt/slide sunroof, power

driver's seat, and a smoker's kit that adds a lighter and ashtray to the center

console.

For the majority of drivers, those who spend a great deal of travel time on city

streets and interstate highways, the Sebring will do the job very well. It rides

smoothly, is quiet, and has enough power for passing or hill-climbing. If, that is,

the Sebring--or Avenger--in question has the Mitsubishi-built V6 engine. The smaller

Neon-derived inline-4 is less powerful and substantially louder. Although the Neon

4-cyl. is one of the most spirited engines in the world of compact cars, in

Sebring-Avenger applications it's pulling a car that's substantially heavier.

If the 4-cyl. powerplant holds any appeal, it is in the availability of a 5-speed

manual transmission; the V6 comes with 4-speed automatic only.

The Sebring's chassis is largely carried over from the Mitsubishi Galant sedan. It's

stiff, and has all the right pieces, including double-wishbone suspension front and

rear and ABS (V6 models have disc brakes all around, base versions use drums in back),

but suspension tuning has compromised handling in favor of a sedan-like ride. While

that's just fine for daily use, we'd have preferred a slightly stiffer setup that

would deliver more driving pleasure as well.

To its driver, the Sebring feels far heavier than the curb weight indicates. It is

reluctant to get into the spirit of back-road driving, leans more than we'd like, and

in general lacks the kind of precise behavior expected in a sporting car. The Honda

Prelude and Ford Probe, to name just two, are much stronger performers in this regard.

So are the Mitsubishi Eclipse and Eagle Talon.

One major drawback is the power steering which, like similar units that vary boost

based on engine speed, sometimes picks inopportune moments to reduce effort.

As practical, comfortable and stylish coupes, the Sebring and Avenger have few peers.

They are well-equipped, competitively priced and easy to live with. For many buyers

they might be a fine substitute for a compact sedan.

The emotions that drive sport coupe purchases are harder to quantify, but the Sebring

seems to fall short here, at least in our view. It's more a passenger's car than a

driving machine, regardless of which engine's under the hood. A manual transmission

for the V6 engine would modify this impression substantially, but that's an investment

Chrysler is unwilling, at this point, to make.