...but its still a neon

[DMattern]

okay. i've been a dodge mechanic for a number of years and one of the things that bothers me the most is when the big 3 try and compete with the cars in the import scene. now, i've driven a few of these new srt-4s, and i'll admit that they've got some getup to them. but guess what, it's still a FREAKING DODGE NEON!!! you know the ones: clutches and pressure plates that flew apart with less than 10k miles on them. I had to replace a torque converter that imploded on an 04 neon with less than 200 MILES ON IT!!!! not to mention the fact that the engines just cannot hold up to any kind of hard driving. i think that dodge is fighting a losing battle by trying to beef up a crap car like the neon. they sould take a look at the cobalt ss sometime (or should i call it the new and improved crapelier). on top of that, if their going to beef up a motor, try doing something like subaru did with the STI. This is a car with a 2.0 L four cylinder with all wheel drive that gets between 25 and 30 mpg and still has over 300hp. now that's import muscle. But dodge, please stop taking neon craps and calling it horsepower. or even competitive for that matter.

[hemi_dakota94]

:huh: :huh:

Whats with all the Mopar bashing on a Dodge site lately?

I'll gladly take an SRT-4 anyday instead of some lump of Jap steel. :gr_patrio

[Andy]

Smells like... Troll :rck:


While the lack of knowledge in this almost unintelligible rambling is clear. Just think... If infact this guy is a "Dodge tech" which is questionable at this point, and in hope I doubt, this is the guy working on your car at the dealer! No surprise of the dealership horror stories and hatred.


Because there's so many problems running rampant in the SRT-4 community as far as reliability or taking abuse... Haha, or not. :gr_patrio

[05Dakota]

Dont get me wrong I realize that they are still "neons" but if I could fit my fat ass in those seats I would be an owner...:)

[Daytona_Dan]

Bad day at the office???

Breath Deeply.. Inhale...... Exhale.......

[kud]

bored troll trying to start shit :gr_patrio i love it :WHT:

[Ninja-Matic]

I was hexed! I read this troll and now my "Bee" classic playing card just fell out of the spokes of my BMX !! It only has 5 miles on it!!! WTF! What a cheap piece of crap! Sigh...

[elchicoyes]

The only thing he probably works on is a coffee machine for those who do the real work at the shop.

Yes it is still a neon but what a great neon it is! American performance I salute you! Ooh rah! :gr_patrio

[Joey0480]

wow, this guy sounds like a real douchebag

[Daytona_Dan]

:thatfunny

[hemi_dakota94]

Agreed, guys!! :gr_patrio

It may be "just a Neon" but the best Neon ever produced by far!! IMO the SRT-4 brought some life back into the whole Neon lineup. Just look at the later SXT's.. they had SRT-looking rims, a mini SRT spoiler, silver painted dash bezel and shift gate, etc..

[DMattern]

now, don't get me wrong guys, i'm as big a mopar man as the next guy. i'm just saying they should continue focusing on the developement and production of the cars and powertrains that made them famous. the new hemi motors are excellent, the charger, magnum, and c series are just a blast to drive, and nothing will ever stand up to a dodge truck. its just that i'm a little disappointed that they used the neon platform to build a performance car. i think they would have been much better off if they had designed it off of the intrepid. a v6 turbo would kick a$$!!!

[hemi_dakota94]

now, don't get me wrong guys, i'm as big a mopar man as the next guy. i'm just saying they should continue focusing on the developement and production of the cars and powertrains that made them famous. the new hemi motors are excellent, the charger, magnum, and c series are just a blast to drive, and nothing will ever stand up to a dodge truck. its just that i'm a little disappointed that they used the neon platform to build a performance car. i think they would have been much better off if they had designed it off of the intrepid. a v6 turbo would kick a$$!!!

I thought I was the only one that wanted a hi-po Intrepid!! :D

I understand what you're saying though. But the SRT-4 was a great car and handles like its a go-kart, mostly due to its light weight and very small size, thats a big part of what they were going for with the car. Can't wait to see about the Caliber SRT-4. Just curious on how it compares to a Neon SRT-4's handling since its a bit bigger and certainly alot taller.

[Daytona_Dan]

Isnt the caliber get engine and other items from the neon???? if so wouldnt that make it and updated pt pooper?


Now dont go off on me now.. I just havent had time to look into the Caiber thingy yet... :)

[hemi_dakota94]

nah, the engines are DCX's new world engines co-developed with mitsu and hyundai. The new Caliber SRT-4 will have a nice round 300 horses and 260 lb-ft. Many models have a CVT transmission and all that jazz too. Can't recall what the platform is though. Probably Mitsu though. </shrug>

I don't think it has any common parts with the Neon. But who knows what other mechanical stuff is carried over.

[Daytona_Dan]

Great.. That means I actually learned something today.. :)

[rice_eater]

okay. i've been a dodge mechanic for a number of years and one of the things that bothers me the most is when the big 3 try and compete with the cars in the import scene. now, i've driven a few of these new srt-4s, and i'll admit that they've got some getup to them. but guess what, it's still a FREAKING DODGE NEON!!! you know the ones: clutches and pressure plates that flew apart with less than 10k miles on them. I had to replace a torque converter that imploded on an 04 neon with less than 200 MILES ON IT!!!! not to mention the fact that the engines just cannot hold up to any kind of hard driving. i think that dodge is fighting a losing battle by trying to beef up a crap car like the neon. they sould take a look at the cobalt ss sometime (or should i call it the new and improved crapelier). on top of that, if their going to beef up a motor, try doing something like subaru did with the STI. This is a car with a 2.0 L four cylinder with all wheel drive that gets between 25 and 30 mpg and still has over 300hp. now that's import muscle. But dodge, please stop taking neon craps and calling it horsepower. or even competitive for that matter.
I'll go easy on you since you've already received quite a bashing for this post. But if I may ask, what exactly is Dodge supposed to learn from looking at the Cobalt SS? How to make the worlds most pointless sport compact ever made? No LSD, a supercharger on a 4 cylinder (that almost makes sense), Crap quality, cheap interior.... I mean come on, your right, its just the next Generation Crapalier under a different badge. My second question for you is, where's your proof that SRT-4's cannot take a beating? When you find it.. Let us know :D

Ok, now you clearly need to be schooled on Subaru. For one, You'll never see 30mpg with the STi... 25mpg on the highway if your lucky. Those cars get high teens in the city and low 20's highway. Next point, that 300hp comes at a nice hefty price tag (mid $30k if i'm not mistaken), where you can get an SRT-4 for around $20k with an advertised 230hp (actually closer to 250hp-270hp, but we'll go with advertised numbers for now). The STi's AWD is great at the autocross track, but it comes at a price... 25%-30% drivetrain loss vs. the SRT-4's 15% drivetrain loss. No big though, both cars are easily modded for more power... Oh except the SRT upgrades are cheaper. I also hate to break this to you, but it was the 227hp WRX that has the 2.0L , STi's have the 300hp 2.5L H4... Did i miss anything? I hope not, If you have any more questions on your subarus, just ask :D

[elchicoyes]

rice_eater meant the cobalt ss I think...but yeah. We should just stop this thread. Most of the time these trolls look at how long these threads can go. :gr_patrio

[DMattern]

see, you guys are getting me all wrong. i'm guessing that everyone in here thinks that the chevy cavelier and its spinoff, the cobalt, are complete crap. Well, in my opinion, the neon is just dodge's version of that car. So when dodge starts beefing up a car off of a bad platform, it seems to me like they're going the route of the pt gt. now, like i said earlier, the new srt4's are a lot of fun to drive. They've got a lot of getup and go, but i have to wonder about their lasting power. I understand that if you do a lot of modifications to them, you can turn them into great cars, but, i don't think they stand up stock to some of their stock competitors (not including cobalt ss. a stock srt would run the doors off a modded cobalt all day long).
as far as your wanting proof, rice_eater, my opinions come from the number of neons i've had to work on. my shop works on both dodge and subaru, and neons make up the vast majority of work that my dodge department does. and, unfortunately, most of that work is not maintenance. Dually, I have a number of friends who own srts, a few of which have a few modifications. One in particular had a downpipe, exhaust, and intake done to it. Very few mods, understandably, but he took it to the track and right when he passed the 1/8 mile, the clutch and pressure plate exploded through the bellhousing and into the cab of the car. Now, you might say, "that's only one occurence," but no. In the past year, we've had at least three srts in the shop with similar problems. Now, much of this might be driver error, BUT, if DODGE, not the owner, is going to build a car that aims its demographic at people like these, they should build a car that can handle it. The STI's platform, as i said, was designed and built from the factory as a performance race car. The suspension, motor, tranny, everything, is geared towards drivers who will put a beating on it, and the car is designed to handle it. I don't think the neon platform was ever designed as a car that could take a beating. I'm just saying that if dodge was going to build a performance compact, they should have revived the avenger or built it off of the platform of the intrepid.

[DMattern]

and as far as the caliber is concerned, how can you all call yourselves mopar fans when the car and powertrain are designed and built by JAPANESE AND KOREAN COMPANIES. where's your loyalty?

[Joey0480]

I think you just burned your bridges there troll. Maybe thought you were coming around, but you are still acting like a douchebag.

[Joey0480]

the last post you made you really can't come into a dodge forum and start questioning one specific vehicle, the neon, when a lot of members have them. i know quite a few people that own the srt4 and have had no problems. You know a few that have had problems. Not every vehicle will function perfectly, so, maybe you just happened to see the darker side of things when it has come to the neon.
Regardless, this is a dodge entusiast site....make sense?

[Andy]

lol another "tech" thinking they know anything

[DMattern]

and what exactly do you knowhttp://www.dodgetalk.com/forums/misc.php?do=getsmilies&wysiwyg=0&forumid=153#
Play Nice andy? stop trolling. :pnice:

[DMattern]

listen, as far as the srt4 is concerned, like i said, its a cool car when its new. i love dodge, but i don't think that the neon is one of their better cars. in fact, i think it is one of their poorer creations. now, yes, the srt4 did bring new life back into the neon lineup (albeit some MUCH needed life), but i just think they should have done it with a different platform. they should have just let the neon stay as a base-model economy car, and focused their budget on a better car.

[Joey0480]

ok, that is your opinion but remember you are voicing this in a SRT-4 forum and you are not going to be welcomed with open arms like that
How about you drop this whole thing and discuss something else

[DMattern]

sounds good to me. i really never meant to start any kind of argument like this.

[DMattern]

my bad :D

[Joey0480]

all cool, we all step on toes here and there

[Andy]

listen, as far as the srt4 is concerned, like i said, its a cool car when its new. i love dodge, but i don't think that the neon is one of their better cars. in fact, i think it is one of their poorer creations. now, yes, the srt4 did bring new life back into the neon lineup (albeit some MUCH needed life), but i just think they should have done it with a different platform. they should have just let the neon stay as a base-model economy car, and focused their budget on a better car.HELLO! Have you not seen or heard of the SRT lineup. The Neon or SRT-4 has never been the focus of Dodge. I mean lets use some brain power here - they made less than 25K SRT-4s over the course of three years. That's not very much resources out of DC, and considering they can sell every one and have thousands of people linning up to buy their aftermarket parts and bringing thousands of new young buyers into the Dodge company who would never have looked at a Dodge otherwise. It was a great move for DC.

[Daytona_Dan]

Damn I go to sleep and look at what I missed... damn!!!

[rice_eater]

rice_eater meant the cobalt ss I think...but yeah. We should just stop this thread. Most of the time these trolls look at how long these threads can go. :gr_patrio
LOL yes i did... oops misprint.

[Ninja-Matic]

I'll say this about the SRT-4 vs other cars. I've had mostly Stangs throughout me life... 89 notch (the only good fox-body), 66 fastback, 65 coupe, 92 z28 etc... mostly rear wheel hogs... I've had plenty of fun the past 10 years of building and breaking. My friend told me about the SRT-4 and how he wants one in his garage next to his 65 galaxy (tricked out 390) and his Magnum... i'm like... ??? a neon? you MUST be on crack. So he took me to the dealer on a tuesday evening last year... i walked out with a black srt-4 on wednesday.

I think it's a BLAST to drive... and the fact that it has an AMERICAN :gr_patrio name behind it makes it that much better. Sure it's different that some other slingshots, but think about this... the price difference between an srt-4 and other sports cars is fantastic... you can take HALF the difference (most of the time) add a few parts and smack almost any stock car for LESS than the purchase price of that vehicle. That is friggin kick arse in my book.

Not to mention, i never thought i'd hear a 4-clicker sound as good as an SRT-4. :rck:

- Ninja

[mopartodd]

All I have to say is that my 96 Neon base model was one of the best cars I ever owned. I beat the hell outta that car and it just kept taking it. Gas, tires, and oil is all it ever needed until I sold it with 100K on it.

As far as the Hemi is concerned, yeah it's a good motor, but it will never get good fuel mileage due to it's size.

I don't really view the SRT-4 as an import-ish car. To me it was a natural progression from the 80's-90's turbo cars.

Are you sure your a Mopar tech??? You seem to be confused about who's buttering your bread.

[PSI Chick]

and people wonder why i refuse to bring my car to dodge for work...lol

let's think about this here smart guy....you're a dodge TECH. that means that you see cars when they BREAK. so you saw three exploded clutches...out of how many srt's that are out there? not dodge's fault that your friend there can't launch the car or drive stick and blew his clutch. this car is aimed at the 16-25yr old demographic, but the assumption is that they know how to drive. plus dodge never said that you can take it to a track, beat the crap out of it, and there will be no problems. neither does chevy or subaru last time i checked. in fact, last i heard subaru was screwing their customers over with that whole thing.

the srt-4 can't really be compared to a regular neon. all it shares with it is the chasis, some body pannels, and a few other odds and ends. all the major stuff is different. so the issues that are inherent on base neons are not seen in srt-4's for the most part because they do not share the same parts. as a dodge tech you should know that. but then again this seems like a case of a "tech" not knowing a damn thing....sounds a lot like my dealership.......

[Ninja-Matic]

Guys... i think the OP is just pissed because he's a 35 year old Tech... a LUBE RACK TECH! LOL Drain N Fill guy! LOF and a rotate PLZ! Can you check my tires? .3 hours for an oil change BOOKED, baby! On his way to becoming the 40 year old apprentice tech! :rck:

[Dodge_Locked]

okay. i've been a dodge mechanic for a number of years and one of the things that bothers me the most is when the big 3 try and compete with the cars in the import scene. now, i've driven a few of these new srt-4s, and i'll admit that they've got some getup to them. but guess what, it's still a FREAKING DODGE NEON!!! you know the ones: clutches and pressure plates that flew apart with less than 10k miles on them. I had to replace a torque converter that imploded on an 04 neon with less than 200 MILES ON IT!!!! not to mention the fact that the engines just cannot hold up to any kind of hard driving. i think that dodge is fighting a losing battle by trying to beef up a crap car like the neon. they sould take a look at the cobalt ss sometime (or should i call it the new and improved crapelier). on top of that, if their going to beef up a motor, try doing something like subaru did with the STI. This is a car with a 2.0 L four cylinder with all wheel drive that gets between 25 and 30 mpg and still has over 300hp. now that's import muscle. But dodge, please stop taking neon craps and calling it horsepower. or even competitive for that matter.



thats all fine and dandy there jackass, but the other guys right, (1) as a mechanic all your every gonna see is peoples f-ups, and since your at a dealership, people who mod out their cars usually dont take em to you. I mean, my friends and i are in a group (club if you must) that get together and work on our shit together.

Thats all besides the point that ur posting an anti-srt4 thread in an srt4 enthusiast forum. Either your just being a jackass and trolling or your reeeeaaaaaalllllly stupid. I mean, come on. wtf

[Dodge_Locked]

what, y'all just gonna stop talking when i walk in the room. c'mon guys, you weren't talkin bout me now were ya

[Ninja-Matic]

as a mechanic all your every gonna see is peoples f-ups That's too true. Gimme 10 mi... no wait...5 MINUTES with any car and I guarantee when I'm done it'll be asking for the dealership. I used to work for Lincoln / Mercury... I remember one issue when I prepped a brand new Lincoln LS... when I test drove it, I was getting a growling noise from the rear end... like the ring and pinion was waaay out of spec... turns out... it came from the factory with NO GEAR OIL. I've had more than one like that... had door panels fall off when I opened the door, air chambers break on suspension after less than 1k miles on them, etc. No vehicle is perfect. The owner's son had a brand new 99 cobra get towed into the shop with a shattered clutch... the same day the kid picked it up...

You know something... all makes and models suck! Screw you damned srt-4 drivers... i'm going BMX!

BMX 4-EVAH! (not really... but I'd sure look funny)

- Jack

[elchicoyes]

LOL yes i did... oops misprint.
:thatfunny I got yo back homeboy!

But yeah I tottaly agree that not all cars are going to be perfect. Infact, when I had just bought my srt, the power steering belt came off. I guess it wasn't tightened that well when it came from the factory and I bought it at 11m. So every one is bound to have something wrong.
I drive my car hard all the time and it has never given me problems so far.
BTW I killed a G35 yesterday. Yay for me! :gr_patrio

[MChat]

it's still a FREAKING DODGE NEON!!!

Yup, and I'm thinking about putting a license plate frame on mine:

"If it's just a Neon
Then why are you losing?"


the fact that the engines just cannot hold up to any kind of hard driving.

Yea, the stock SRT-4 engines are absolute crap. They're only good for 450 to 500whp. Even fully built the engines are only good for up to 1300whp. :grum: :whackit: :GET:

they sould take a look at the cobalt ss sometime

You can't be serious. Cobalt SS's are having problems with their clutches slipping on practically STOCK cars. And the engines are only good to about 350whp or so before needing to upgrade the internals.

[MChat]

Very few mods, understandably, but he took it to the track and right when he passed the 1/8 mile, the clutch and pressure plate exploded through the bellhousing and into the cab of the car. Now, you might say, "that's only one occurence," but no. In the past year, we've had at least three srts in the shop with similar problems.

I've hung around on SRT Forums quite a bit. The only clutches I've heard about "exploding" are aftermarket ones.

[elchicoyes]

[QUOTE=MChat]Yup, and I'm thinking about putting a license plate frame on mine:

"If it's just a Neon
Then why are you losing?"




Yea, the stock SRT-4 engines are absolute crap. They're only good for 450 to 500whp. Even fully built the engines are only good for up to 1300whp. :grum: :whackit: :GET:
[QUOTE]

I know huh, crapy ass neon! They should have called it a pee on...*sniffle and tear*...now if you'll excuse me I have to outside and apolagize to my baby. :gr_patrio

[Ninja-Matic]

I know huh, crapy ass neon! They should have called it a pee on...*sniffle and tear*...now if you'll excuse me I have to outside and apolagize to my baby. :gr_patrio
Crap ass pieces of TRASH! Dang! BRB I gotta go hug my front clip and massage the shifter... um... I mean... seats... (crickets) ... um... go Bears!