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What is this discussion about? Dodge Neon, Plymouth Neon, Sedan

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#830 of 1758 Got It by zapatista2000 Sep 24, 2001 (1:11 pm)
Thanks for the detailed how-to. I'll give it a shot when it stops raining and report back.
#831 of 1758 My 2001 Neon ES by silverneon Sep 26, 2001 (9:19 pm)
Since this is my first post, I'll just stick to what I know. As the title shows, I own a 2001 Neon ES. 5 speed, of course. Doubt i could have made it with a 3-speed auto. Just over 8000 miles since I bought it on May 23. Anyway, Three problems I've had....One of which I've solved myself. 1. Bolt-on wheel covers make an annoying clicking/rubbing noise when the car is in motion. I believe the wheel covers rub against the wheel itself or the tire. Tightening didn't help in my situation. I solved this with a set of $40 wheel covers from Wal-Mart. Yes, Wal-Mart.... 2. Either the clutch slips or the engine hesitates every now and then. I was very suprised when my dealer couldn't duplicate the problem. I'm suprised they're able to muddle their way through oil changes. I've more or less decided to live with the problem until it does it frequently enough for me to demonstrate it to them myself. I know that if I tried it now, The car would refuse to play along. They seem to be tempermental like that. 3. It seems to like to attempt to stall or, on two occasions, to actually stall. The conditions were different in every instance of the problem. I tried a procedure from neon.org to use the on-board diagnostics to get stored computer error codes, but none had been stored. Interesting. After my previous 3 vehicles, I realize that all vehicles are going to have problems. I'm not one of those who whould sit here and refuse to buy another DC vehicle for the rest of my life for two reasons. The first being it's damned foolish to say, and second of all, I've "lurked" around this board for some time, and I've seen what is said about those who act so foolishly. I look forward to seeing if any of you have had, or have heard about, either of the last two problems. I've checked all recalls and TSB's, and I don't believe there are any concerning these problems. There are, however some things on the NHTSA site posted by owners about the stalling and, in part, the hesitation, clutch.   Sorry for the lengthy post. I didn't realize that I'm probably in the contention for a record.
#832 of 1758 Scratch that....... by silverneon Sep 26, 2001 (9:49 pm)
My neon is an SE model, not an ES. I basically have a base neon. No a/c, no cruise, no inside trunk release, only the essentials. The way I see it, there's less to break that way! See Ya Around
#833 of 1758 I think Dodge might have screwed up the '02s... by buoyant Sep 27, 2001 (2:44 pm)
From what I have gathered thus far from various research, I think Dodge has screwed up the '02 model line for consumers like me (YOU may be different).   Someone please correct me if this info is wrong, but here's what I've ascertained so far:   You can no longer get the ES without the spoiler (which is ass-ugly IMHO) or without the less-than-stunning alloy wheels. Also, the color Cinnamon is not available on the ES this year, it is replaced by almond.   You CAN get an '02 SE in Cinnamon still (don't ask me why) and if you do go the SE route, you don't have to tolerate the iwannabeastreetracer spoiler on the back. You also get the old ES' standard 5-spoke wheel covers on the new SE (I like those better than the over-styled '02 ES alloys), but then you're stuck with the old base model's rather blase velour interior (and no upmarket diamond weave bezels on the dash or chrome interior door pulls) and the fog lights aren't even an option.   So basically...if you want a Neon with an upscale interior now, you have to learn to live with the spoiler and alloys (both of which make the car look a bit too overdone for my conservative J.Crew tastes).   Ugh!!!   I guess if I really had my heart set on a Neon (I sure used to), I COULD get an ES and have the spoiler removed at a body shop and more attractive aftermarket 5-spokes put on to replace the factory ones, but it just isn't worth the hassle - or the added cost - to me.   Personally, I've always felt that the reason for buying new over used was because you could get the car just the way you wanted it (color, transmission, options, etc.). If I didn't care about getting exactly what I wanted, I'd just go out and buy another used car - they certainly make more sense financially.   I'd been planning on ordering a new Neon as soon as the Ultradrive on my current car finally crapped out, but I'm rethinking that now.   One of the things I used to love so much about the Neon before was the ala carte option menu (e.g., I wouldn't be forced into buying leather or boy-racer plastic Pontiacesque tack-ons to get to options I really want - like the in-dash disc changer and the sunroof).   With that gone, the Neon has dropped a couple places on my shopping list (from first to third to be exact). It's still a nice little car, but unfortunately, I can no longer get it done "my way". And that makes all the difference to me.
#834 of 1758 2002 ordering by hersbird Sep 29, 2001 (5:43 pm)
well in a quick trip to www.4adodge.com it looks like the spoiler is standard on the ES still but the wheels look the same as before. The R/T wheels look different, (nice IMO) maybe it's just that the alloys are standard on the ES now and they were optional before. I agree with you about ordering it your way, I think if it's an option on the line somewhere then it should be able to be ordered that way. If you want a red interior on a blue car then by god, it's your money (the dealer should just insist on a 50% deposit or something. If you want hubcaps and no spoiler on your R/T and paint the whole thing Cinnamon then you should be able to order it. They used to do whatever in 60's and 70's. The option lists were a mile long, you could chose between 20 colors in various two-tones and vinal tops which made literally hundreds of exterior appearance options possible. There were often 5-10 differnt motors and 3 different transmission choices. Them were the days, you can probably thank the imports for bringing the 'have it OUR way' package bundles to the commonplace. It is just to hard to have a car built to order overseas and then shipped here, it would take so long they would lose customers in the 3-6 month wait.
#835 of 1758 You can say that again by dweezil Sep 30, 2001 (8:38 am)
What if you only want cruise control but NOT power windows,brakes,locks and a bunch of other junk??? More small cars are coming STD. with those. Hopefully with the growth of Internet buying and ordering, the public can make it's needs known, eh?
#836 of 1758 RE: You can say that...... by majorthomecho Sep 30, 2001 (10:09 am)
I think we will see where more and more cars (even the low end ones) come with power windows and possibly with roll down windows not even available. It depends on the pre-production costs.   If you offer only one kind of window system (or only one kind of any system), your development costs are less.
#837 of 1758 That blasted Mickey-Mouse spoiler! by buoyant Sep 30, 2001 (10:22 am)
I can certainly understand why they wouldn't offer 10 engine choices (namely the huge cost), but this spoiler thing really frustrates me. So much so that it will drive me into a different showroom when I'm ready for my next vehicle.   At least on the old R/T (pre-2000) you could delete those goofy looking stripes that ran down the top of the car. So in my mind, you should be able to delete off the goofy looking spoiler on this new ES.   IMO the new Neon design looks MUCH better without the spoiler, and I'd bet I'm not the only consumer with this opinion.   What totally baffles me is why everyone is so nuts about spoilers nowadays. They serve no function on passenger cars (which don't go fast enough to benefit from them) and they add weight. The fact that Kia is slapping them on their crapboxes should tell you something. They are today's vinyl woodgrain applique - only there because some people think they look "neat."   I was hoping that Chrysler would actually IMPROVE the Neon ES for '02. You know...more noise insulation, a tweaked engine with an extra 5 ponies, standard side airbags...something like that. They should've just left the damn thing alone.   Regards,   I.M. Upset
#838 of 1758 Spoilers and Neons and bears, oh my by 71charger Sep 30, 2001 (11:59 am)
Frankly when I bought mine I didn't get a spoiler and didn't even think about it. None of the ones on the lot had them. I think I've only seen factory spoilers on the Plymouths in 2000. Although, much to my surprise, my wife was disappointed I didn't get one. She even suggested I look into getting one installed. It would be a boring world if we all liked the same things. Although I agree you shouldn't be forced to take it except perhaps on R/Ts, ACRs and such specialty models. Maybe four inch exhaust tips will be next.
#839 of 1758 Me and my '96 ACR coupe by bruticus Oct 01, 2001 (4:17 pm)
Love this car. I bought it in July 1998; the dealer (the son of a man my father worked for in the early 70s, but the dealer and my father aren't really friends) had brought the car in for his daughter in 1996; she drove 2500 miles and said she didn't want it, so it sat in the showroom/under the roof until my father saw it and recommended it to me.   I just tipped over 60K miles with no mechanical problems yet except two: 1: a couple years ago the odometer got borked somehow and started running too fast, and unfortunately there's no way to find out the real, correct mileage anymore, so the 60K showing on the numbers is almost certainly high. It doesn't matter to me, as I intend to keep the car until one of my younger sisters is old enough to drive. Either that or until I'm absolutely positive that getting a new car (wanna 2002 WRX) is the right thing. I can afford it right now, and interest rates are GREAT, but I work for a technology company, and you can all probably fill in the rest.   2: Lately, the gauges have been mis-behaving. I'll be driving along and suddenly the speedometer quits registering, and the odometer stops turning (thereby making up some of the false miles!). If I keep driving, eventually the tacho starts acting up, and if I'm driving a LONG time the temp gauge will go haywire and run up to the top peg. I took it to a mechanic I trust (how many of THOSE are left?) who said that, as the car ages, the dashboard isn't fitting as tightly as it should, and there isn't enough "give" in the connections for the gauge pack to compensate. Anybody have any advice on this?   Other than that, no complaints. Original engine, exhaust (altho the muffler is looking a little blistered lately), brakes, etc. I baby this car, with clockwork oil-changes and frequent vacuuming/washing/waxing.   My father, who's an auto shop teacher, frequently attends car shows, and once ran into a Chrysler man who said ("off the record" of course!) that Neons are the epitome of the bipolar car: if you get one and put 10K or 15K miles on with no problems, you have a winner. If you suffer any major mechanical problem (alternator, head gasket, brakes, clutch) in that time period, you should trade it IMMEDIATELY, as the car is a bum-build.   DjB Replies to this message: flightofone (Aug 04, 2005 7:01 am) meximelt2007 (Jun 18, 2008 2:52 pm) akjeffery (Jun 18, 2008 6:58 pm)

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