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First I was looking at Civics, but I really cannot afford them.
I did find a 1999 Dodge Neon Sport, 2 door, 5spd, DOHC with 52,000 miles. I ran a carfax which shows 1 owner and a clean title. Now I know of the headgasket and other various problems. But I was wondering would you other Neon owners recommend this car? I only plan on keeping it about 2 years or so until I can afford something alittle better.
By the way, it is extremely hard to find any first generation 5spd Neons. Seems like most Neon owners opted for the archaic 3spd auto.
Thanks for your help
From further research I have concluded that 1998 and 1999 models were much better as far as "refinement" goes compared to earlier models.
71charger: Would you recommend the first gen Neon?
How did the Spectra hold up in the accident? Were you in it, or was it parked?
The Neons are nice cars, but I just am leary about American cars myself because I have had pretty bad experiences. That's just me though.
Good luck in whatever you get.
The drivers side door lock has some issue where you have to hold the key in the unlock position while opening it (the used car dealership said they would go ahead and fix that). The passengers side window does not even come in contact with the window gasket and it sounds like the drive belts need to be replaced.
The drive/ride were great. It felt nearly as powerful as the 1997 Integra GSR I used to drive, for interior noise it was again similar to the Integra.
The gearbox/clutch were smooth. But I will say the accelerator pedal is quite odd in that its travel is very small and it feels like its already pushed halfway down when it really isnt.
I went ahead and applied for financing (they wont have a reply until Monday). Once it is approved I am going to go down and have the car looked at by the Dodge dealership to see if there are any major problems (headgasket for example) that I should know of. If there are any minor problem I may still get the car as it is a real steal.
The second problem is that something keeps shorting out the #1 O2 sensor. I'm on my 3rd one in the past year. It will work for about 3 months then I get a check engine light and the code comes up for the sensor. The mechanic I use can't figure out the problem. The last time it happened he didn't change the sensor but he reset the codes so when it comes on again I could take it to the dealer. The light came on again about a month later and when I was on my way to the dealer the light went out. Bugger!
Any ideas?
Second, there was an earlier post complaining about electric shocks getting in and out of the car. These are often caused by static buildup and can be quite strong. There is probably nothing wrong with the electrical system.
The following link goes into great detail on static generation in the car.
http://cartalk.cars.com/Mail/Letters/1999/05.29/1.html
PS Also make sure you touch the car and ground yourself before you pump gas. That little static charge packs a lot of punch when mixed with a fresh tank of gas.
I am very happy with the car. The build quality is outstanding, as far as NVH it is much better then the 2000 Honda Civic EX Coupe I test drove.
The drivetrain is very moody though. It starts real rough compared to other fuel injected vehicles I have driven. Also it does suffer from the hesitation/stumbling feature which comes standard on all 1995 to current Neons. It seems to be a huge problem according a Neon forum on the internet.
Other then that its a great car. The frameless windows seal pretty good (the drivers window did get sucked away from the seal when I was driving in the draft of a 18 wheeler), there are absolutely no squeaks or rattles, the handling is outstanding and it can move.
I did get the most recent headgasket design too. Apparently the most recent headgasket was introduced in Nov. 98, my car was built in Jan. 99.
This car is way too much fun, it is actually more fun to drive my Neon then my Integra. Its more mature, but still just as fun.
My 99 Neon has 53k miles and there are no oil leaks to speak of. It also has the MLS headgasket so I am not really that worried about it springing any leaks anytime soon.
The SR-T seems like a real butt-kicker, and with a low price to boot.
Also, the 2.0 is a little smaller than the 2.2, so maybe there isn't a way to get more power without increasing the size of the motor. I remember the Shelby Z models had the 224hp 2.2 engines in them back in '92 or so.
I know the WRX is designed to keep coolant flowing after the car is turned off, Subaru techs specifically mention that no turbo cooldown is needed. Certainly doesn't hurt on it or any other turbo car.
-B
Many knuckledraggers on there that think anything less than a V8 isn't worth mentioning. All I know is the slowest time I've seen listed for the SRT is faster than the fastest my big block 71 has ever run.
You could drive the car and suddenly it was dead.
Yes no energy at all, after a couple of minutes the energy was back and several more times.
It visited the dealer SEVERAL times and the dealer changed the battery three times, I have to tell you that while performing several tests to the battery no faulty codes were observed, but since lately Chrysler is having trouble with batteries we decided to change it, but it wasn't the solution.
Well chrysler ASKED US FOR MORE TIME to repair the vehicle, (The car was back at the dealer since july, so until last week they kept asking us FOR MORE TIME!!!).
Well they finally decided to change the MAIN FUSE BOX with all the harness, they also replaced the starter and baterry harness plus the PCM, now the car is running with no problems, BUT I had to take it to ANOTHER DEALER, so they would place all the harnesses where they should be, put all the screws and clips, etc..etc... of which many were missing.
I hope the car will NOW work fine, because my son drives it a lot on the highway, and when it dies there is no power steering or brakes, and no energy at all!!
We know now this is not the first Neon with such a problem, but Chrysler service dept. Plus customer relations dept. at Chrysler STINK!!
I own a 96 Plymouth Neon and it has about 80,000 miles on it. Bought it brand new and we have had nothing but problems. Thank goodness we got an extended warranty.
We have had the head gasket replaced about 5 times, the A/C replaced, the radio replaced, the front suspension replaced and the EGR replace a handfull of times. Only to mention a few things.
A/C from 94 to 96 or so was problematic in many cars as it was early in the learning curve in the shift from R12 for the manufacturers.
EGR a number of times? Sounds to me as if there is a root cause somewhere else that just isn't getting found causing the EGR to fail.
80000 miles and one front suspension isn't bad really. Unless it had to be replaced very early on. Define front suspension. Struts? Struts and ball joints? Struts, ball joints, and tie rod ends? The struts definitely should have worn out. Ball joints and tie rod ends are more dependent on how it gets used. A lot of pot holes and curb smacking will wear them out faster than long trips on a fairly smooth interstate.
You're right about manual transmission in the R/T and Sport editions in 97/98, since most of cars were built with the crappy auto trans. that didn't take advantage of the power.
I only paid $12,000 in April 98 for my sport coupe. The 2003 edition of the same car doesn't have the coupe (only sedan), no DOHC, weighs 400 lbs. more, and cost's $18,000+
The residual value on my lease is $ 4,800 but current trade-in value is about $ 3,500. If I turn the car in at end of lease, the lease company eat's the difference. Naturally, they are offering me special deals to buy the car. I love it so much that I may take their best offer.
If a buyer didn't care about performance, s(he) should have bought the standard edition which cost several hundred bucks less than the sport way back in 1998.
I prefer manual's, it's a guy thing (love to play with sticks) :-)
Thanks for your help.
If you thought you had this figured out, let me add something else. After the car has been driven just a few minutes with everything heated up, all atx shifts occure promptly and quickly. You'd never know that there was any problem at all. This has me confused. My wife is afraid to drive the car for fear that the atx will die and leave her stranded (without a cell phone).
Thanks in advance for you input from a new member to the board.
G.
What's the replacement procedure for this? Is it just a bulb or the entire unit? How do I go about making certain the new light, once installed, is aimed correctly?
I should be able to get to the car-parts store this week, but not Monday as the whole state's likely to be shut down (16-22 inches of snow expected, so it'll be a DVD day!)
Thanks
DjB
My aunt has a 97 neon and within the past two months the car has randomly not started. They'll tow it in, tinker with it, send it back and ultimatley it will do the same thing all over again.
The last time it was in the shop they replaced the computer. Today the car didn't start again... until my aunt put the auto. tranny in neutral. Then it started.
Now correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't this sound like the transmission safety switch? I recommended to her next time it won't start wiggle the shifter. If it still doesn't start try neutral again. If it does it must be the safety switch.
Any other ideas on what it could be? Thanks.
I just got the car back from the shop, and they inform me that the "Direct Clutch Lip Seal" was the culprit, and would cost about 900-1100 for him to rebuild. The vehicle currently runs ok, it just takes awhile to shift into third when cold. After driving a few miles, all additional shifts seem to be just fine.
My question is this:
The Edmunds Private Party value on this 95 Highline w/97K, dark green, under rough condition (bad tranny) is $1571. Same car under Average condition is $1805. Same car under Clean condition is $2151 (not attainable due to a few kisses and some rust on the hood).
Can anybody tell me why I should fix this vehicle and keep driving it?
I'm still considering my options, but as this is my wife's car and we have a 2yr old, I'm beginning to think about buying a 2 year old sedan (probably a size larger than the neon), then I'll drive the neon in its current condition until it either gives out completely, or until I can sell it for at least $600(1805 average condition - 1100 estimate tranny repairs - 100 other repairs = 605).
Currently I drive a 93 Dodge Grand Voyager with 152K. So while I'm driving the neon for a few months or so, I can extend the life of the Voyager a bit more before it needs replaced too.
Also when driving at speeds of 65mph on highways...my neon seems to fish tail. Is this normal the tires are fairly new and in good condition.
third, when driving in recent snow it seems like my front right brake would lock up...I took it in but they couldn't find anything.
um..I've been having problems with my neon stalling...for example driving down a road going 40-45mph steady pressure on the gas I try to pass someone on the left. The car goes forward...and then I feel like the tranny or something is slipping and bang! the car shuts off....has happened on the highway also. any suggestions?
What you mean by "the car shuts off", power goes off or you feel that way? If power goes off literally, take it to qualified dealer asap. If you feel car is starving for power then get your fuel filter changed.
Wire from bat. to alt. has good resistance. Car was dripping wet from melting slush so i quit until i could do some more research. Besides, too cold to be on a creeper today.
Since the alternator looks like it was the first thing put into the car(buried pretty deep), I was wondering if it came out from the side after the pass. tire and plastic shield was removed. Anyone ever taken one out?
Also, I called one after market shop for a price check and was told '95 was to new for a rebuilt. Yeh right.
Does anyone know where the regulator is? My old '91 Die-nasty had its built into the ECM. Is this the case with the neon?
Is there any ongoing problems with this cars alternator that has already been discussed? Or has any body else had a similar issue?
Appreciate any ones input or expertise on this neon.
Thanks
moonshadow