(first posted 11/2/2015) Regardless of profitability and quality of its vehicles in the long-term, there’s no denying the feeling of hope and optimism surrounding the Chrysler Corporation in the mid-1990s. After more than a decade of generally competent but mostly unemotional K-cars, Chrysler finally appeared ready for the future, replacing the outdated K boxes with an expanding portfolio of highly-styled, significantly modernized vehicles.
Instead of minor evolutions of the Aries/Reliant, new Chrysler products from 1992-onward largely owed their styling to concept cars, resulting in their highly expressive looks. The 1992 Dodge Viper, 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee, and 1993 LH sedans (Chrysler Concorde, Dodge Intrepid, Eagle Vison) were the first production models of Chrysler’s “Renaissance”, the latter of which were the first to actually replace K-car variants, the “C-body” New Yorker and Dynasty.
The next step in Chrysler’s de-K-ification was to replace the “P-body” Dodge Shadow/Plymouth Sundance compacts, which had been sold with minimal changes since the 1987 model year. The underlying goals for the P’s successor (internally codenamed “PL”) were naturally to create a compact that was affordable to own, efficient on fuel, and spacious. Atypical of an economy car from this era, Chrysler also sought to create an entry-level car that was stylish and fun-to-drive.
It should be noted that the PL was ultimately sold under only one nameplate, regardless of brand. Dodge and Plymouth had been sharing badge-engineered designs for years, but this was the first time their vehicles shared the same name. Along with identical grilles and taillight clusters, this move was an easy way to cut down on production and marketing costs. Apart from the tiny respective brand logos glued to the hood and rear brand badging (if it was even included, and if so, was usually just a decal), the Neon was indistinguishable in Dodge and Plymouth guises.
Export-market Chrysler-badged Neons were also virtually identical, aside from market-specific regulatory modifications. While selling all versions of this car under the same name may have been a questionable move, for better or worse, it allowed the model to gain more publicity and notoriety by its model name. Also, because it was largely referred to as simply “Neon”, it took on a somewhat separate identity from its “establishment” parent company and brands.
At the time of the Neon’s launch, Bob Lutz was famously quoted in stating, “There’s an old saying in Detroit: ‘Good, fast or cheap. Pick any two.’ We refuse to accept that.” Lutz went on to say, “We think the Neon will be one of the first small cars people will want to buy instead of have to buy.” With Chrysler’s new concept of platform teams, having a dedicated small car platform team exclusively working on the PL body helped ensure that these bold plans for the Neon weren’t just a bunch of PR fluff.
The goal of making a stylish compact dictated that the Neon was to look nothing like its predecessors, nor anything else in its class. The Neon’s styling was initially previewed with a 1991 concept car of the same name. Apart from the interesting sliding doors, most of the concept’s basic styling made it into the production Neon with few drastic changes. In fact, the concept’s round headlights, in particular, became the production Neon’s most distinctive styling feature and a trait it would stick with until its demise in 2005.
As the second interpretation of Chrysler’s “Cab Forward” design language, which was first seen in production form on the LH sedans, the Neon shared its general design characteristics with its larger siblings. This meant it similarly featured a long wheelbase with short overhangs, expansive windshields, and a windswept, arching silhouette. Despite unchanged length and width over the Shadow/Sundance, the Neon rode on a seven-inch longer wheelbase, making for increased interior space and superior handling.
Wide doors and an expansive greenhouse gave the Neon’s cabin a very open, spacious feel. B-pillars were especially thin, as the Neon’s door glass was in fact frameless, uncommon for its class. Instrument panels looked somewhat like shrunken down versions of the LH’s, meaning a very purposeful layout with a rounded upper dash and a squared-off center stack. Wraparound style armrests were integrated into the door panels, with the optional front power window switches jutting out on their own little pods (curiously, power rear windows were never available).
Although styling may have been somewhat derived from earlier concepts and the production LH, unlike its predecessors, the Neon’s body, platform, and most mechanics were completely new and unrelated to other Chrysler products.
Two completely new engines were offered, both among the highest output in the compact class. The base engine was a SOHC 2.0L inline-4, making 132 horsepower and 129 lb-ft torque. Optional, was a DOHC version of this engine, bumping horsepower and torque up to 150 and 133, respectively. A 5-speed manual was standard, and at the time of its introduction, the 5-speed Neon posted the quickest 0-60 sprint of any modern production Chrysler-built vehicle after the Viper. For those preferring a self-shifter, a rather antiquated 3-speed TorqueFlite automatic was available, and really, the Neon’s only blemish in terms of powertrain.
All Neons featured four-wheel independent suspensions, using MacPherson struts up front and a multi-link setup in the rear. Brakes consisted of standard front discs and rear drums, with anti-lock brakes optional. Substantial measures were also taken to keep the Neon’s weight down, making for better performance and fuel efficiency.
Numerous components, including body panels, hinges, brake, suspension, and engine components, were made from lightweight materials. Fascias were engineered to be supported by the wheel arches, requiring no additional support framework. Base curb weight was down some 300 pounds over the Sundance and Shadow to a svelte 2338 pounds. Combined with the car’s higher output engines, the Neon boasted a best-in-class weight to power ratio of 17.1 to 1.
Early branding of the Neon heavily played upon the car’s fun personality and decidedly cute looks, with playful advertisements and a very expressive color palate, featuring many bright “neon” colors, including our featured car’s officially-named “Magenta”.
Instead of traditional chrome, neon shades of color were used for the exterior badging, and several eye-popping wheel designs were available to choose from. Interiors were not forgotten about either, with several whimsical upholstery patterns available to match the rest of the car’s fun theme.
Over time, however, the Neon grew up some, with advertisements, colors, and trim all becoming more conventional and somewhat less playful. 1998 brought the Style Package to Plymouth Neon sedans, that exuded a somewhat young professional vibe, with more subdued exterior color choices, body-colored door handles, power windows, power sunroof, CD changer, and an exclusive tan-colored interior among its standard features.
Contemporary reviews generally praised the Neon’s styling, driving dynamics, and overall refinement, all things Chrysler engineers set out to accomplish. The Neon was not without its immediate faults, as engine and wind noise were commonly cited as negative by most reviewers and many consumers. Over time, several common reliability issues surfaced, most notably the car’s early proneness to blow head gaskets, which Chrysler repaired for owners under warranty. The car’s frameless windows also proved problematic, as too much force when closing the door screwed with their alignment, worsening wind noise.
The Neon had by no means a perfect track record, but it did have many victories, most notably being the first American small car in years to make a profit. A triumph of cross-functional platform teams, the Neon production began a relatively quick 31 months after project approval. Including the new engines and renovations to existing assembly plants, total development cost for the entire Neon program was only $1.3 billon. This was roughly the same figure as for the Shadow/Sundance, and less than one-quarter the development costs of the Ford Mondeo/Contour/Mystique program.
It was by all means a success in regards to sales, with nearly 1.2 million first generation Dodge and Plymouth versions sold in the United States. Due to the high demand, Neon sales were not dependent on the typical steep discounts and rebates, with Neons usually selling for sticker price or even above in some circumstances. Sales of the Dodge Neon totaled over 720,000 units, which was within 40,000 to that achieved by the Shadow, a car sold for three years longer. Even in its worst single-year, the Dodge Neon topped the Shadow’s best.
Comparing Plymouth Neon sales to the Sundance is a bit unfair, as sales of all Plymouth models sharply fell in the late-90s due to Plymouth’s starving lineup and circulating rumors of its discontinuation. Despite this, Plymouth still sold a healthy 458,290 first-generation Neons over the course of five model years, compared to the 633,310 Sundances it sold over eight model years.
The first generation Neon was sold through the 1999 model year, by that point it had become a decidedly more grown up car. The maturity was continued with the second generation Neon that was introduced for 2000. Slightly larger with less eccentricities, the car had evolved into a far more mainstream compact sedan both inside and out. The welcoming round headlights remained, but exuded a slightly more formal “Hello” as opposed to “Hi”.
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They were Chryslers out here panned by the Aussie motoring press when new I dont know how well they sold but I havent seen one in quite a while they just disappeared in NZ.
Chryslers in the UK also. They were seen as a step up from Korean cars but not as good as European or Japanese cars. The price was a lot less than the opposition and they came loaded with extras so they sold fairly well here. A lot of old people bought them, like Bryce said they vanished here as well.
If I recall correctly, the UK-market Neon was sold only with automatic, at least in the upper of the two trim levels. That was a bizarre decision for a European-market car, since the three-speed auto was hardly the Neon’s best feature.
I think you’re right about most of them being automatics. There was a manual R/T which wasn’t as popular. I found the Neon to be a pretty good car, like most American cars you got a lot of car for not much money. I liked the friendly frog like face of the originals.
My brother had one for a winter runabout a few years ago ( he’s a biker but too old for UK winter riding). His girlfriend told him a lady at Church was selling her late husband’s Neon so he bought it.No problems despite it being 12 years old.
After driving the klunky 5 speed manual tranny I decided that the smooth but slower 3 speed automatic wasn’t so bad after all.
That “neon star” badge on the side looks like packaging from a 1980s Mattel girl’s toy! Talk about cheap and cheerful ☺. As I recall, these early Neons had a lot of exhaust sealing problems as well.
If it weren’t for that pathetic 3 speed Auto, I would have considered buying one used. They are such fun cars with personality, that signified a breakthrough for Chrysler, in terms of what a ‘cheap’ car can be.
I remember driving a couple of these, and thinking they handle beautifully, the dash and seats are well designed and the interior space was really impressive. All in all, a car that makes you feel happy.
I think Chrysler screwed themselves out of long-term profitability by spending millions on warranty claims for the gaskets, when they should have ignored the bean-counters in the first place, and fitted better gaskets at the factory.
Let me tell you, I purchased one of these Dodge Neons, new, in 1998. Fun and well engineered, are not words that come to my mind! Noisy, rough engine, poor quality, poor fit and finish, awful dependability, and relatively poor fuel economy are the word that come to my mind. My mom had a Kia Sephia, and it was a much smoother vehicle, had superior fit and finish, and was far more reliable. The only place I can give the Neon a win over the Sephia, is the HVAC. At the time, this was pretty much the case when it came to domestics vs imports. It seems back in the day, we Americans valued our summertime comfort more than our fellow human beings living in other areas of the world. Beyond cooler summertime comfort, the Kia won, hands down!
These were reasonably popular (for an American car) in Israel and Austria but disappeared without a trace. At the time they were seen as an alternative for the Koreans or VW’s poverty marques (Skoda and Seat) – cheap and shoddy, boomy and thrashy was the image but I actually think Chrysler was on to something and it’s actually a good pointer for the kind of vehicle Fiat needs to climb out of the current low; were a diesel available its success would have been greater.
This is a car I’ve always wanted to drive but have never so much as even ridden in. Any left all seem to have been beat to hell.
Late in the 1996 model year, my now wife was shopping for a new car to replace her quarter-million mile 1985 Ford Escort. She had it narrowed down between a Neon and a winding down of the generation Ford Escort. For the same money she was finding a completely stripped Neon or a rather nicely equipped Escort. No contest for Mrs. Jason; she bought the Ford.
My sister-in-law did have an early Neon. She put like 240,000 miles on it before selling it. I’m thinking the head gasket may have gone kaput at that point.
In the late summer of ’93, I was visiting my sister in Hoboken. Right by the station was a white Neon, the first one I’d seen in the flesh. A couple of months later, Automobile magazine’s review came out with a photo shoot partially in Hoboken – that’s what I’d stumbled on.
I finally rented one in Traverse City in the summer of ’94. Had the base engine and Torque-Flite. Really wanted to like it, but it came across as very rough and cheaply finished especially compared to the ’88 Honda i’d had a few years earlier My dad’s ’97 Cirrus, on the other hand, felt more substantial with a somewhat higher level of finish..
That was a lot of money on Sundance!
What amused me about the playful ads was that there were so many angry young men driving these cars. Some even painted the headlights to give them a frowning countenance. It was as if they had the cars thrust upon them by cruel circumstance and resented its emasculating friendliness.
This was definitely an optimistic time for Chrysler, and I always thought the Neons were very nicely designed and interesting for small cars. The Achilles Heel of the Neons seemed to be that they just weren’t as refined or long lasting as competitors like the dowdier Civic and Corolla. I do think they were miles ahead of any other domestic small car at the time, though. Neons are also an example of a car that used to be pretty common on the roads and now seem to have disappeared.
There are still a few of them around now where I live. Not as numerous as Cavaliers. The Neon also gained a reputation here for being easy to steal. This is why so many owners use the ‘club’ on the steering wheel when parking them at any time of the day.
Nice writeup on a fairly significant car. It’s interesting to contrast the highly successful Neon launch with that for the new-generation Dart, which as far as I know has been a resounding flop in the marketplace. And let’s not even speak of the Caliber, which seemed to seriously miss the mark in about every way possible.
I drove several first and second-gen Neons as rentals and would take them any day over contemporary Cavaliers and Escorts due to their significantly better drivability and handling. On the other hand, they indeed were rather flimsy things: first-gen Neons seem to have pretty much disappeared, even in low-rust environments, and even second-gen examples seem to be getting pretty rare.
I’ll leave the last word to my friend Ed, whose immediate response on my showing up one day in a white Neon rental was: “insufficiently macho.”
It seems like such a shame that the Dart has flopped. It is such an attractive small car. I like its looks better than anything it competes with.
I wouldnt call the Dart a ‘flop’. Theyre selling, just not in the numbers that theyd hoped. I was dating a girl who had one with the 1.4 turbo and automatic. Nice little car for what it is (compact sedan) but underpowered and well…its just another sedan. Itd take a coupe or hatch with a turbo 4 nudging 300 hp stock to get my interest.
I love my Dart… Loaded and almost $8k off sticker? Yes please. Although it is a s-l-u-g.
Very nice writeup. I recall reading when these came out that Chrysler designed them to make money, rather than treating them as loss leaders from day one. The frameless doors were supposed to provide a manufacturing efficiency due to their small size and the way more could be bundled for transport to assembly.
I also read that the Neon was finishing development as Bob Eaton took over, and that the head gasket issue was due to a cost cutting edict from the new boss.
I knew a guy who owned one just like the feature car. I always wondered how a guy had picked it, and one day he told me. He was looking for a cheap new car, and color didn’t matter because he was colorblind. The salesman told him over the phone that he could cut him a real deal on one in magenta. When asked “what’s magenta?”, the salesman replied “it’s a kind of red.”
Magenta! He didn’t notice or care, but you everyone else at least noticed!
That magenta was also available on Sport- trimmed Wranglers and Dakotas for 1997. It was ghastly on those, but ona compact beebop sedan it sorta makes sense. I guess.
I remember seeing Dakotas in that color. “Ghastly” is exactly how I’d describe it.
I’ve had one (1) experience with the original Neon: rental, northern California, my now-ex’s aunt’s sheep ranch. We drove it to Lassen Peak.
GOD what an uncomfortable front seat. I mean, PUNISHING.
Zippy, nimble, frugal. But my BACK. My TAILBONE. I have never been so happy to turn in a rental, and that includes the just awful in every way 2006 Malibu I rented in Dallas once.
I still say the Daimler deal struck the New Chrysler Motors down in the prime of life.
Indeed it did. Eaton deserves to be hung
+1
Having had three, a ’96, a ’98 and a ’01, all five speeds, they turned out to be durable, easy-to-repair, fun-to-drive, very economical (36-38 mpg) inexpensive transportation. What more could one ask?
True, they had their deficits: early MY head gasket failures, rear brakes prone to sticking to the drums (here in the humid northeast), structural rust as they aged and ultimately, owing to their popularity, image as the poor peoples jalopies. Still, with reasonable maintenance and realistic driving expectations, they were decent, dependable, economical little cars, just what they were designed to be.
Stationed at Camp Pendleton, I reserved a rental car, and upon arriving I noticed a car hauler FULL of refrigerator white Neons. I was thinking, Oh, no! But then when I walked out to my rental, it only had 7 miles on it! In essence, I was the first “owner”! I stated to think then that “white is good!” Was a nice car for the time that I had it, and weirdly, everyone always thought that it was a two door car! 🙂
My brother and one of my employees have 1st gen Neons as winter beaters–basic transportation and they do the job. I see some New Beatle in that profile picture of the Neon concept car—don’t forget about the ACR pkg offered for road racing, I was at the Mopar Nationals the year they gave one away–bright green.
One of the couples who helped with the youth group I went to had a dark green Neon, named Neo. Had good memories with that car.
I am going to assume that Neon Star is a dealer made up trim level, but correct me if I am wrong. This Plymouth looks really good for a New England car and even the paint has mostly held up. I rode in a 1st gen Neon a few times back in 2011 and I agree it was on the noisy side and definitely not something I would want to drive across country. The floor seemed thin and the Neon did not feel as substantial as my 87 Caprice or 95 Voyager. Interesting enough my 03 Caravan has that DOHC 2.4 Litre 4 Cylinder under its hood which is a bit surprising since it weighs about 3,800 Lbs. I would not mind that Magenta and other bright colors were spread across more of the lineup, I like them.
I have always felt like the first generation Neon was the automotive equivalent to a Lisa Frank trapper keeper.
Nick W, you’ve won the internet for the day 🙂
What do I win?? 😀
But seriously is there a car that better represents the mid 90’s general aesthetic and optimism than the Neon? Also, like the aforementioned trapper keeper they all seemed to be loved and used hard for 3 years and then discarded in shabby condition and covered in stickers.
That sort of commitment to efficiency and producing a good, profitable small car should be text book reading for designers today. The manufacturers have thrown in the towel again over the past two or so decades.
Looks like Mitsubishi tried with the Mirage but left out the fun part if the car hacks are to be believed.
Purpose designed, purpose built with simplicity,economy and ease of repair in mind and an interesting choice of colors. What a concept in a silver and white world of “premium” intending small cars.
There was amazing room in these. What Eaton did to them via bean counting on the head gaskets was criminal. 98% failure rate according to Allpar.
I sat in one at the LA Auto Show, though and hated the seat upholstery: it was like fabric used for a pair of no iron polyester pants. From the 70s. Awful to the touch. The looks weren’t much better.
Wonderful write up. Interesting to read about the reason for frameless door glass though it’s still a stupid idea.
I considered an 05 when deciding on a car to replace my totalled former ride. By then the reliability record, crash tests and low resale value had put it on some “worst new car to own” lists. It never bothered me with the new Cavalier I bought in 99,I guess Chrysler’s “reputation” tipped the scales and was what held me back.
Chrysler was aiming for Honda with those cars and was serious about it. They werent quite Civic quality but I still see a lot of them on the road with 150K+ so theyre not terrible cars. A friend of mine buys used Neons, refurbishes them and sells them and usually has buyers before they are done so theres still a market for them.
The only Neon Ive gotten serious seat time in was an 04 SRT so I dont know if thats a good example for comparison. Ive rented a few over the years though and dont remember anything remarkable about them but Im not a fan of small, FWD cars. I remember they had neon keys too.
When I first met my partner, he had a 2005 Neon. I made the same cracks about it everyone else did, but then I actually drove it. It was a surprisingly good car! It handled really well, was pretty zippy, and even with the automatic was good for 33 mpg on the freeway at 75 mile per hour. The only problem that car ever had was a Camshaft Position Sensor that kicked the car into limp mode. A $56 sensor and 15 minutes with a box wrench sorted it perfectly. He put over 90,000 miles on it in two years driving between Chicago and Detroit sometimes twice per week, and that car was brilliant. It had 140,000 miles on it by 2010, so he decided it was time to move onto the next.
He liked the 1995 Neon that he had prior to the 2005 Neon so much that he bought a 2005 Neon. I didn’t know him then, but he speaks glowingly about the first Neon, a car that allegedly spent its entire life having the shit beaten out of it in Chicago and provided him 10 years of trouble-free and enjoyable motoring. I mean, if he liked the first car enough to, 10 years later, replace it with another of the same model, it must have been good.
Honda and Toyota were a bit nervous about the Neon, as they wondered if maybe the Americans had finally come up with a competitive small car, after numerous strike outs. As I read somewhere, when one of those companies (Honda, I think) got a hold of one and took it apart, they quickly stopped worrying.
These, like all of the Chrysler cab-forward cars, were a good idea in principle, and had some dynamic qualities, but the rampant cost-cutting made them stylish tin cans. There’s a reason these have become quite rare, while old Civics and Corollas of the same vintage (and older) are everywhere.
Once again, the Big Three missed the boat, in terms of what folks were most of all wanting in a small car: reliable, solid, transportation. The Neon was a cute ans stylish flash in the (tin)pan, and the Japanese quickly realized they had nothing to worry about.
You’re on the West Coast, though, which judging from my travels there seems to be filled with rampant hatred of anything American. A drive down I-5 from Portland to Springfield and earlier this year gave me an opportunity to count the number of Fords I saw. 250 miles of driving in a rental Camry with Washington plates (maybe that’s how I blew past that Oregon state trooper doing the better part of 90), and the answer was nine (the eighth was that trooper’s Crown Vic). That includes F-150s, which are the best-selling vehicles in the United States. So of course you haven’t seen any of these in years. There were probably three sold in the entire State of Oregon during the entire 1995-2005 production run of the Neon. Conversely, I haven’t seen a ’90s Civic or Accord in years. The last early 2000s Accord I saw looked like it was on fire, and that was two years ago.
Come to Michigan. There’s a shocking number of first-gen Neons still running the roads here, and second-gen Neons are a daily sight. That’s in spite of our love of road salt, use of road salt in lieu of actually plowing, drivers that are completely comfortable doing freeway speeds on bald all-seasons in anything less than six inches of snow, and a lack of vehicle inspections that means the only thing required to register and drive a car is the ability to sign “State of Michigan” on a check (oh, and a 7-day insurance policy conveniently available at Look Insurance right next door to the Secretary of State’s office).
Well, if Oregon is un-representative, than Michigan is even more so! 🙂
Actually, the Neon sold pretty well on the West Coast. There were a slew of them here, especially the gen2 version, which was for a number of years just about the cheapest car on the market (due to heavy discounts). My son’s GF bought one new. She had lots of issues with it, including burning oil and a leak in the trunk from the hatch that could never be stopped. That got to be a real problem here in rainy Oregon. She finally dumped it for an Impreza.
My comment was specifically based on the noted drop-off of these on the streets, as they had been quite common. But then anecdotal evidence is hardly the last word.
Let’s face it, these may still be running as beaters in Michigan, but they have not developed a rep as being a good choice for someone wanting cheap and reliable used transportation. Unlike the Corolla and Civic.
The Aussie motoring press compare the Neon to the Corolla as they did with everything small, the Neon didnt stack up well on price, driveability, comfort it was like Chrysler had built a Hyundai Excel at twice the price and as you say old Corollas are all over the place even old Hyundais outnumber neons by a huge margin.
Actually, the PNW seems much more Mopar-heavy than other areas. Particularly the southeast where I grew up. Its GM all the way back there, with Ford having a decent showing as well.
For all their tarnished image, Ive driven a handful of Neons and even with the bark beaten off of them, theyre durable cars. A girl I was seeing had a ’01 with 220K on the clock. The speed sensor had gone out, so the tach was the only way you could guage your speed. And the shifter bushings had turned to goo, meaning that it was rough finding the gates (booger bushings has urethane replacements that are WELL worth the $20). Other than a lack of power in the SOHC versions, and coupes being near impossible to find, theyre good little cars.
Id LOVE to find a 1st gen coupe in R/T trim (DOHC engine) and manual. Trouble is, they suffer from cheap fast car syndrome, meaning every idiot who has seen the Fast n Furous movies thinks he’s Paul Walker and so theyre thin on the ground. The 1st gens will easily accept SRT-4 drivetrains, and thats a popular swap on the coupes.
1990’s era Japanese compacts have literally disappeared off the streets in Upstate, NY so they are certainly not still everywhere. In fact I often frequent many areas of PA including Hershey, Scranton, Warren and Carlisle. Surprise! Corollas and Civics from the 90’s are scarce there too. We make it a point to spot anything from the 90’s or even before used as a daily driver and there are more Panther, GM W/A/H body and older trucks cited still on the road and fewer Asian cars of this time era. It apparently depends heavily on where your located.
These cars were VERY popular out here in California when they first came out. In fact my first car was very nearly a brand new 1996 Neon. Payments were right around 100 bucks a month for me but I ended up buying my 1965 Cutlass for 2k in cash instead. These cars were dirt cheap on the used market because they were pretty much disposable. Not as long lived and cockroachlike as the Cavalier but certainly a 5speed dohc equipped car was a blast and an autocross darling for a long time.
Agreed on the Cavaliers. We still sell them when we can find a good well cared for unit at the dealership. A local competing southern dealer always seems to have 2-3 on his lot as well in the 1999-2005 years often with 100-200k miles. The best ones were the 2002-05 Ecotec 2.2 engines tied to the 4 speed overdrive transaxle which was introduced as std fare on 1996 Cavalier LS and optional Z-24 and base models. It took Chrysler until 2001 I believe to introduce a 4 speed on the Neon so they were well behind the curve on that front.
I had a 99 Cavalier. First new car. I would still have it if it hadn’t been rear ended while I was sitting in the left turn lane at a red light.
By that time the 4 speed auto, which mine had, also included traction control. Bodywork was nothing to brag about, but the interior was neatly assembled. Comparing it to the assembly of the ION built in the vaunted Spring Hill plant, the Cavalier was every bit as well built. For GM small cars.
That concept vehicle was a stunner – too bad Chrysler didn’t put that into production (with conventional doors of course).
In late 1996 I found myself shopping for a new commuter for my then 60 mile one-way commute through punishing traffic in northern New Jersey. I test drove nearly every car in the Neon’s class, and was quite close to closing the deal on one, as with two small kids and a stretched budget it felt like about as much fun as I was apt to get from my daily endurance run. In the end though I was lucky enough (yes, I consider it divine intervention) not to be able to find one with a 5-speed. I ended up with a leftover ’96 Sentra GXE in December of that year for $11,999 out the door. With power windows and locks, cruise control and the 5-speed I longed for not to mention a timing chain as opposed to a belt I counted my blessings 5 years and 200,000 miles later when I realized I’d done nothing to that Sentra but change the oil, tires and brakes. I probably would have had more fun with a Neon when it was running, had I found one equipped the way I wanted it, but at the time I would certainly have paid $14k+, and most surely wouldn’t have sold that Neon 5 years later with its original clutch and battery for $800 on eBay. Funny thing, I really wanted a Neon in ’96, but in 2001 I sure was glad I had “settled” for the sewing machine 1.6 litre 4 in that tinny little Sentra. Best ” compromise” I ever made!
The last car I ever owned. And even if it is not, it was the last Chrysler. POS car thru and thru. Shitty A/C, tranny, electrical problems…driving this car in a rainstorm, the sound of the water splashing against the transmission tunnel sounded like the car was running over marbles…never again. F&&k Mopar, and I say it with love. The last decent cars they built were in the 70s.
Chrysler has had this reputation since the 57s. There, I’ve said it. They had a reputation for superior engineering for years, but lost that with the UltraDrive, 2.7 V6 and of course the Neon head gasket problems.
Deserved or not, that reputation has hung over Chrysler for decades. Of course individual experiences vary. I’m not engaging in Chrysler “bashing” because this has become “common knowledge” among potential buyers, something “everyone knows” and am only commenting on it.
Still a big perception problem with Mopar to this day. Read anything from the period [CR, Popular Mechanics Owners Reports, the car rags of the time], there’s a common thread.
I say the 70s because my grandparents had a 71 Fury III coupe that ran like stink, but the gas crisis forced them to get rid of it in 77. It was like a tank and I loved the purple paint job and the hi-backed front seats. My uncle had a 70 Coronet 440 sedan for the better part of a decade. They are my memories of good Mopar cars.
Only Neon I had any contact with belonged to a coworker.
The auto tranny in his 96 Escort died at a bit over 200,000. Rather than toss in a junkyard trans, he traded the Escort in on an 03 Neon (this was in 04). By the time the Neon had 200,000 on it, he had replaced both the auto trans and the engine.
Is this one of Chrysler`s deadly sins? If not, it should be. This car defines the word “garbage”.
1995-1997 versions especially. We sold a great number of these during the late 90’s only to have them coming back with oodles of complaints starting with leaking or bad head gaskets, trans axle failures, bad sensors and axle shafts, wind and water leaks on those lovely frame less doors, bad front window regulators and power lock actuators and lets not forget the brake issues. They were also quite loud on the highway and the basic 2 liter engine was throb induced at idle and made a racket with the 3 speed trans.
A deadly sin for sure but one that sold in reasonable numbers.
I’ve never been sure why some cars only have power front windows. The Neon was one of the few U.S. examples, but I’ve since found a bunch of ’80s and ’90s British-market cars did the same thing. In a four-door sedan, power rear windows are if anything more useful than power fronts, especially in combination with a switch to disable the rear windows from the driver’s controls so that your children and/or clever pets don’t hurl themselves into traffic from the back seat.
Can’t speak for any of the others, but having driven and ridden in a few Neons I always found that perplexing too. I came to suspect that it would have been a challenge to fit the motors and mechanisms into the oddly shaped doors and still have adequate clearance. I seem to recall that the rear windows rolled down at a slant also, which might have added some complications to designing a somewhat workable system without a bit of engineering (which Chrysler clearly wasn’t going to plunge any pennies into, considering the other corners they cut in this car).
The same was done for the second generation Neon though, which had more conventional rear windows. I imagine it was some odd cost cutting measure, though definitely one of the most peculiar ones.
I assume it was cost-cutting also, although I was surprised to see how common that was on ’80s and ’90s British cars (Mk5 Escort, for instance). From a U.S. perspective, it’s just odd, and a weird sort of cheaping out. Power windows were optional on those models anyway — if you’re making the buyer pay extra anyway, why not power all four side windows?
This issue was also a bit retro. Front only power windows, sometimes with no option for power in the rear, were commonly available in the early 1950s. Cars as mainstream as the standard Chevrolet had this until about 1954.
Cost cutting, since a lot of folks would have thought nothing of coughing up an extra $100 bucks or so to pay for them, seems unlikely. It makes me wonder if the door is just too narrow to support the standard window motor Chrysler was using at the time.
As you noted, it’s just odd.
Yeah, power rear windows really do come in handy from the driver’s perspective. The main use that I’ve found is compensating for wind buffeting when the front windows, or even sunroof, are opened. Cracking the rear windows open from the driver’s seat is amazingly effective in reducing, even eliminating, the pressure buffeting that comes from just opening the front windows and/or sunroof on a warm (but not hot) day.
It’s also handy if you have passengers who forget to roll up their windows — e.g., you take your visiting family members to the airport after a holiday, then get on the freeway to go home and realize they’ve left the rear windows open. If you don’t have power rear windows, the only way to deal with it is to actually pull over and get out of the car, which is exactly the sort of minor inconvenience that people pay extra money to avoid.
Neons were decent performers, and popular in SCCA racing. The Neon ACR (for American Club Racer) was sold specifically for that purpose. It was stripped of accessories to save weight and had beefed up suspension and brakes.
With the possible exception of Volkswagen, no one has had more success with whimsical domestic marketing than Chrysler. In fact, I’d go so far as lumping the Neon in with Chrysler products like the original Plymouth Road Runner and Duster. The Neon itself might not have so great (head gasket issues, no power rear windows, antiquated 3-speed automatic, to name a few), but the whole “Hi.” marketing campaign surely sold a lot of consumers on the car. Like the VW Beetle, the Neon just looked ‘distinctive’ (‘cute’ seems a bit too strong), and I’m sure a lot of people (mostly young females) bought the car on that rationale, alone.
+1
I owned 2 of ’em–early production 1995 Sport (which we had to trade in when my now-ex wife was pregnant with triplets in 1997) and a 1998 Highline (bought used in 2000 when I was going through Neon withdrawl). Both were 5-speeds and both were a blast to drive. Neither had head gasket problems, although the 1995 had the classic turn signal lever that sometimes would stick and leave the right-side turn signal lit.. I had no complaints about the seats (the 1995 Sport was a little bit more bolstered to my liking, though).Gas mileage was great, performance was decent (especially in the upper RPM ranges), and they were nimble handlers. I wasn’t fond of the frameless door glass (my 1998 was broken into a couple of times). I must’ve been lucky to get a couple of decent Neons-no disasterous problems like some of the other posters have noted. I guess if it doesn’t have the magic ‘H’ or ‘T’ badge, then it obviously is a POS…NOT!
I remember a story on the TV news a few years ago (in Australia) that recomended 2nd hand cars that performed well in crash tests, the Neon was one of them.
When I was in school, I talked to another student who had had a work term at an auto parts supplier. He told me that he had toured the factory where the Neon was assembled. There was no adjustment on the door hinges. At the end of the line they would check door fitment, and if the door didn’t close properly, there was a guy with a long prybar who would pry on the door until it closed properly. Some were bad enough that you could hear spotwelds inside the door breaking as it was being “adjusted”.
The Neon was an important part of the ’90s renaissance at Chrysler. Even if you weren’t in the market for a compact at the time, it was a distinctive and forward thinking design sitting alongside the LH and Cloud cars in showrooms.
It was part of what got me into Chrysler products for the first time – and three consecutive times at that – 1995 Concorde, 1999 Town and Country and 2002 Durango.
The Daimler deal mostly messed up their string of hits.
I was not aware of the head gasket issue on these. For all the things Chrysler did right in the 1990s, you just want to strangle them for some of the stupid things they were still capable of.
I owned two ACR coupes. Great cars. Never had any issues with either one of them. My sister owned a non-ACR sedan. She did have the head gasket issue but it was cover nicely by the dealership. The ACR had to have been the best dollar vs smile car out there. The ACR’s got decent gas mileage, 33-35 highway, 25 in town, but not as good as the 40 mpg my sister could get on the highway. It was mostly a result of having a lower final drive and 5th gear in the ACR. Taking a long road trip in the ACRs was tough. They did not have radios and a bunch of sound deadening was pulled out also the ride with the Koni shocks was stiff. The optional American National Champion package added nice seats, leather wrapped wheel and shifter. They are great cars to enjoy.
I seem to recall that some classic SAAB 900 sedans had power front/manual rear windows. More odd engineering…
Don’t recall seeing many 1st gen neons lately, other than a black one with ugly chrome hubcaps.
Ah, the Neon. Can’t say I blame anyone for hating these cars. Some of them were built quite badly. But those cases are rare from everything I’ve heard. I’ve had personal long-term contact with not one, but two first generation Neons. One a Dodge, the other a Plymouth. One was owned by my then-stepmother, a woman who I became very close with. It was a 1998 Dodge Neon with absolutely no power options she won new in a drawing. While at first I thought that it was kind of a bad car due to it being already five years old by the time I first saw it, I soon learned that it was possibly the best car we could’ve owned given circumstances at the time. Blue, with the odd early 90s rainbow zigzag shape interior cloth and a manual transmission. It was the first car I really learned how to drive in, my stepmother allowing me to drive it around parking lots and the empty field behind our house. It may have felt cheap on the inside, but it survived everything from breaking the speedometer needle as we sped our way to an emergency to scraping the underside through muddy backroads in bumtuck nowhere. Years later we traded the car for a ’99 Chrysler 300M and I immediately regretted it. Although the 300 was bigger inside and looked a bit more premium, the rear suspension broke and sagged almost right away, and the car was magnitudes slower than the Neon. Both bad and good memories of the car are there, but the good memories seem to win out in my mind.
I fondly remember my aunt having a red plymouth version of this car and remembering how it had the weird tan zigzag confetti print seats and the manual windows and pillar less doors, she loved that neon until one of my cousins borrowed it and i believed it suffered the head gasket issue. It got scrapped and she ended up getting 98′ V8 Explorer. Years later I befriended a girl in college who owned a 2003 Base model neon that recent was scrapped as well
IMO the biggest problem with the Neon was Mopar’s “Bi-Polar” quality control (or lack of).
I recommended the Neon to 3 friends of me…..with varying success.
One former friend is still not speaking to me because of his POS Neon.
I haven’t seen a Neon on the streets here in years. Not one. They seem to have been fragile enough that when something broke in the 2010s they got scrapped. Most unDartlike as I saw a Dart near my house two weeks ago.
Before and after there was the Plymouth/Dodge Neon, these were the predecessors: Plymouth Horizon/Horizon TC-3/Dodge Omni/Omni 024, Plymouth Sundance/Dodge Shadow. After the two generations of Neons, There was the Dodge Caliber and finally the Dodge Dart/Chrysler 200. It goes without saying that the Neon’s predecessors were small compact and subcompact cars. It’s successors were the larger Dodge Dart/Chrysler 200 compact cars.