Help me pick a good used car

[coolred]

I need a new car and the Neons seem to be pretty cheap and that is about my only requirement as i don't have much money. I have seen these selling for around 2000.00 for anything from a '95 to a '97. Those would put my '89 Olds and my girlfriends '86 Topaz to shame. I know one person that has a neon and he loves it, said they are cheap, get good gas mileage and he has never had a problem with his. They were originally manufactured by Plymouth, right? Is there any differance between the dodge and plymouth versions or did they just change the name? Any reasons to avoid them?

 

[jfall]

I leased a 2000 for 3 years.. I didn't really have any problems with it.. the car itself didn't look too bad, handled alright etc.. didn't mind it at all... although, I believe some of the earlier models had some problems.. especially with the breaks and head gaskets I believe.

 

[lebe0024]

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO. FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY! DON"T BUY THAT CAR.


Ok, now seriously, don't get that car. I worked as a detailer/lot boy at a dodge dealership for a while, and I can tell you that car is CRAP. The engines in them are horrible. The mechanics at the dealership were always complaining about them, because custumers are bringing them in all the time to be fixed. If you can get the car for a buck, do it. Otherwise, run.

 

[b0mbrman]

Yeah. In that price range, your best bet is going Japanese

Another thread about neons

 

[AzNmAnJLH]

neons? are you serious? they're like expensive bumper cars

 

[amdskip]

yeah, stay away from them

 

[coolred]

well what else should I look for then?

 

[Soybomb]

Hehe asking here is like asking at the honda dealership. You'd think alot of these people get a comission. I know alot of people with neons who are quite happy. As with just about any car the later the model year the smoother overall it will be. Have it checked out by a good mechanic and you should be good.

 

[HappyPuppy]

No! Don't even touch it. They have been POS since their inception.

 

[thedarkwolf]

I think everybody is being a little overly hard on them. The first couple years had problems with headgaskets and I think auto transmissions but they are extremely cheap. If the headgasket was going to fail it probably already has and has been replaced by a nondefective part and I would just get a 5 speed. The auto trans in them untill recently where just 3 speeds anyway. It wouldn't be my number one choice in cheap beaters though.

 

[JokerF15]

www.neonextreme.com

You might enjoy some of this =)!.

-JokerF15

 

[Rallispec]

<< well what else should I look for then? >>



nissan sentra
(best car. ever. i love mine)

 

[Aceman]

<< Hehe asking here is like asking at the honda dealership. >>



AGREED! You know people, there are quite a bit of midwesterners on this board that wouldn't even think about getting a jap car. If the neon weren't a Mopar product, I'd probably get one. (But, I'm a diehard Chevy/Pontiac person.)

 

[yobarman]

i wish there was a poll in this thread so i could've just clicked "NO"

 

[nigm]

what are you guys smoking?! this car is the illesst'... trust me you won't regret it.. i have a 1998 dodge neon acr, runs 12's..
i beat every car there was in the us.. i beat a civic millions of times... trust me, you wont' go back!

 

[stonecold3169]

if you get one that's before a '98, check and make sure the head gasket has been replaced already. They have a tendency on the earlier models to blow around 50-75,000 miles. You add in the cost of fixing one of these onto the $2000 you're already paying and it's not so cheap anymore.

On the plus side, once the replace the head gasket with a more durable one, you should be in decent shape. My buddy has one, and although my '96 cutlass supreme buries it, it's a nice car. And unlike mine, he doesn;t get dirt in his calipers that I do, and therefore goes through a lot fewer brakes and eventually rotors then I do.

 

[Nutdotnet]

<< what are you guys smoking?! this car is the illesst'... trust me you won't regret it.. i have a 1998 dodge neon acr, runs 12's..
i beat every car there was in the us.. i beat a civic millions of times... trust me, you wont' go back! >>



Crazy but true....I have seen a number of neons smoke the pants off of those riced out honda's.

BTW coolred- did you say that you can get one for $2000?!?! That seems awfully cheap for even a 1995.

 

[StageLeft]

no

 

[StageLeft]

<<

<< what are you guys smoking?! this car is the illesst'... trust me you won't regret it.. i have a 1998 dodge neon acr, runs 12's..
i beat every car there was in the us.. i beat a civic millions of times... trust me, you wont' go back! >>



Crazy but true....I have seen a number of neons smoke the pants off of those riced out honda's.

BTW coolred- did you say that you can get one for $2000?!?! That seems awfully cheap for even a 1995. >>

And you can get a civic to smoke a ferarri in the 1/4 mile as well. It's all mods. No stock neon does the 1/4 in 12 seconds.

If you want a reliable car for $2k a neon simply is not that car. Ralispec's recommendation (sentra) is far more reasonable.

 

[Nutdotnet]

<<

<<

<< what are you guys smoking?! this car is the illesst'... trust me you won't regret it.. i have a 1998 dodge neon acr, runs 12's..
i beat every car there was in the us.. i beat a civic millions of times... trust me, you wont' go back! >>



Crazy but true....I have seen a number of neons smoke the pants off of those riced out honda's.

BTW coolred- did you say that you can get one for $2000?!?! That seems awfully cheap for even a 1995. >>

And you can get a civic to smoke a ferarri in the 1/4 mile as well. It's all mods. No stock neon does the 1/4 in 12 seconds.

If you want a reliable car for $2k a neon simply is not that car. Ralispec's recommendation (sentra) is far more reasonable. >>



Uh...and you can GET a reliable for $2k? I've never seen one.......

And actually no, to get a Neon to beat a Civic (of course depending on what Neon and what Civic) all you need is a decent driver.....to get 12s on the other hand you need much more than a few cheap-o bolt-on mods.

 

[melly]

neons are good for people that don't like to speed or do distance travelling. a friend of mine's first car was a neon, and she drove it into the ground. constant repair jobs.

 

[Nefrodite]

focus = good
neon = bad

sez who? consumer reports!

 

[Zenmervolt]

There is only one thing you need to know about the first generation Neons; 3-speed automatic. Four speed automatics need an extra gear, three speeds would be comical if they weren't so awful.

ZV

 

[coolred]

I have found severl neons around the Columbus, OH area as well as other parts of ohio for around my price range, maybe if I can scrape up some extra cash I can go a little higher. I know about the head gasket in the early neons. I will not being racing this car, it will be a general purpose car used to get me to work and back ocasionally a trip up to see my family a couple hundred miles round trip once a month maybe. I am just looking for a cheap reliable car that gets decent gas mileage. I know a coupel people that have had neons and have not had any major or few minor problems with them, minus the one that did have to replace his head gasket. I looked into the sentra a little, but there aren't many available around here. I will keep looking though. And please for those of you that just say NONONO or whatever, please give me your specific reasons why the neon is so crappy. I don't want a bunch of die hard Ford or Chevy or foriegn car people coming in here and just saying no to it just because it's a dodge or something like that. I am looking for specific reaosns why I should or should not get the car. I mean the head gasket was a valid argument, as well as the guy that said his friend worked at a dealership and said the neons were constantly in for repairs, while I beleive that, that is also the claim of one person from one city, maybe all those people just drove the cars to hard or something, or maybe the neon is junk, thats what I am here to find out. Thanks

 

[pyonir]

my roommate has a 95 neon. NEVER had a problem with it (with the exception of normal wear). it has over 105k miles on it and still going like the day he got it. i probably wouldn't buy one...but not everyone has problems with them.