2004 Dodge Neon SRT 4 ROCKS!
I bought this car new in 2004. It has been the most reliable car I've owned. Cost of repairs and maintenance has been very minimal, as most of the repairs I've been able to do myself. I've changed the oil every 3 to 4 thousand miles, and have hit 253,980 as of Dec of 2018. This car is easy to fix, and parts are readily available from dealers, local shops, and Rockauto. The performance is awesome...0 to 60 in 5.4 seconds, corners well, great gas mileage, and is a great platform to modify to add horsepower and performance. Stock horsepower levels were awesome to begin with...230 HP. Some owners have modified their SRTs to 3 or 4 hundred horsepower. The SRT 4 is a lot of fun to drive. The one thing I could say is the engine noise level is a little high, as their is no muffler, just resonators. Shifting is ok, although you will need a new clutch about every 50 to 70K miles, even if you take it easy the whole time. If you buy a used one, be careful...many have been owned by young drivers who have ruined them by lack of maintenance and racing.
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Neon not safe
I keep hearing about the Dodeg Neon that it's a fun, safe little car. Well, I'm here to tell you that's it's not. Anyone who thinks that this car is safe, needs to listen to me. My girlfriend was driving a Neon when she was T boned hit broadside on the passanger side when she was driving, and she was killed instantly. The car crumbled up like a tin car. The biggest piece of crap that was ever made. The unsafest car ever made, period!
FAST
Bought this car site unseen on the recommendation of Mopar God Rick Ehrenberg. Huge leap of faith that paid off BIG TIME. Never regretted anything. Except maybe the upgrade to Goodyear Asymmetric tires, because the car is now twice as fast in corners and the fun factor is diminished. Need to drive at extremely dangerous speeds for same thrill. Car will accept full throttle upshifts without problems. Wonderful warranty. Minor turbo problem resulted in complete assembly replacement. Worn syncros, likely due to excessive driver exuberance and fatigue, resulted in warranty rebuild. Total cost of this service? $100! No better warranty possible! CV joints remain in good condition despite abuse.
Great Car for little over 10K
Went from old 91 honda Civic to this. Wasn't sure about the car. But few friends had one so I gave it a try. Now I am still driving it with 145,000 miles on it. All I have had to do was scheduled maintenance and has been great. To me there is nothing wrong with the American Cars. They just got a bad rep and is hard to shake. I wish they still made the Neon would get a new one over the caliber.
'Meh' is the best description
Honestly, I read the posts about how great this car is and I'm surprised. The car has given me issues since I bought it. Being a naive buyer, I got my car off craigslist. I got it at around 92k miles and I feel like everything has broken and need replaced. The oil pans keep leaking. The heater core broke and cost 3k to replace. Engine mounts broke. The list goes on. I owned this car through college and that is as far as it will go. I think it would be better if I didn't buy it off craigslist.
- Safety
- Technology
- Performance
- Interior
- Comfort
- Reliability
- Value