Once a joint venture with Mitsubishi, Chrysler (Diamond Star) sold all its interest in its plant in Normal, Illinois to its partner, Mitsubishi. Mitsubishi continued the production of the Chrysler Sebring and are now known as transplants since they are produced by another company. The similar Dodge Avenger is also assembled in this plant. The 4 cylinder, which is no longer available, is manufactured by Chrysler, and is basically the same engine used in the Neon, with some effort devoted to reducing noise. Fascinatingly, the majority of the road tests in the major car magazines indicate that the 4 cylinder accelerates a bit faster than the V6, but the V6 has an edge in smoothness. The 4 cylinder, but not the V-6, is available with a five-speed manual transmission, similar to the Stratus situation. There were only minor changes in the Sebring for the model year 1996. The 1995 model year was short, since the car was introduced in April of 1995. The reason it had the 1995 model designation is that the Avenger had been introduced the previous fall, so dealers could not be selling 1995 Avengers alongside 1996 Sebring's. Legally, however, all Sebring's could have been called 1996 models. For the 1996 model the changes were; the horsepower of the V6 was amplified from 155 to 163 hp. There are no externally visible changes in the engines between the 1995 and 1996 models, and Chrysler has been reluctant to reveal where the horsepower boost came from. Either the same engine was simply re-rated or perhaps there was perhaps some transformation in the electronics that control fuel management. Chrysler Sebring's have captured the hearts of many motorists. Many Sebring's have come out in different makes and models to fulfill every whim, wants and needs and they cater to all kind of people.