The 2008 Chrysler Sebring Convertible at first looks to be a twin of the '07 Sebring sedan, but with only two doors and a shortened, coupe-like greenhouse. And dimensionally, save for the convertible adding precisely 3.2 inches in overall length (front bumper to rear bumper), they are. Both ride on the same, 108.9-inch wheelbase (distance between the tires front to rear) and share the same, 61.8-inch front and rear track (distance between the tires side to side). Suspension design is also the same, four-wheel independent with struts in front and multi-link in back. Tires and wheels are interchangeable, too.

Thus, the differences are in balance, in proportion. And were this convertible the traditional type, just a soft top with, say, choice of fabric or color, we daresay it'd look better, more like its predecessor, the '06 Sebring Convertible. But it's that added length, and the reasons therefore that unsettle the '08 model.

Viewed head on, it's the '07 sedan, with that car's current rendition of the idiomatic Chrysler grille: egg crate with bright horizontal strips and topped by the brand's winged crest. Headlights fill the upper contours of the front fenders. A substantial, but otherwise unremarkable bumper tops a slim lower air intake bracketed by two, smaller, grille-like openings at the outer ends of which pods provide housings for fog lamps. Molded-in strakes patterned after those on the Crossfire, Chrysler's unappreciated sporty coupe, dress up the hood while adding structural rigidity.

From the side, everything looks quite proper and mostly pleasant back to and across the door. Maybe a little busy, or overwrought, just as with the '07 sedan, with the relatively high, angled beltline and deep undercut running across the upper door panel, but still of a piece. But it's the back half where the proportions come adrift. Simply put, the wheelbase is too long and there's too much of the hindquarters for a two-door. If the expanse of metal between the trailing edge of the door and the rear wheel well were halved, while leaving the door the same size, of course, then it'd fit.

But the problem is, there has to be some place to store large segments of an articulated, metal roof, along with the motors, pumps and sundry other hardware necessary to lower and raise it. And in the case of the new Sebring Convertible, this results in a bulbous back end, with a top surface area nearly the equal of the hood. Also, to allow the retracted roof to fit inside the rear quarters, the rearmost edges of the C-pillars (the part of the roof between the side glass and the rear window) must be drawn inward, awkwardly positioning the roof more on top of the rear fenders than smoothly flowing down into the side of the car.

The rear fascia, like the front, copies the '07 sedan. Large, multi-element taillights wrap around the rear fenders, crossing over into the trunk lid. A modest, molded-in lip outlines the upper trailing edge of the trunk lid. Which, by the way, opens like a normal trunk with any of the tops up or down. Only when a top is in motion does it hinge from the rear, opening like a clamshell to swallow or disgorge the top. License plate recess is centered in the bumper.