2003 DODGE Neon 2.0L SMPI 5AT FWD (133 HP)

Vehicle Overview

The Neon was introduced in 1995 to fight against the massive import market in the compact sedan segment. Still, its poor sales made Chrysler ax it from the assembly line in 2005.

After five years into production, the sales for the Dodge/Chrysler/Plymouth Neon didn’t go well. Even if it was offered with sporty packages, the vehicle’s sales were low. In 2000, Dodge claimed that it changed more than 1000 parts of the car and advertised it as a new generation. Just three years later, in 2003, it was the final refresh of the car.

From the outside, the biggest change was for the front fascia. A new, cross-hair grille design was adopted. The bumper was changed as well, but the headlights remained the same. For specific markets, such as Canada, Dodge ditched the Neon name and sold it as 2.0 SXT only. It featured aluminum wheels, a deck-spoiler, and a sunroof as the only options available for the exterior look.

Inside, the Dodge wish to offer the car at the lowest possible price was obvious. The cheap materials could have been seen all over the place. But Dodge did that to offer a sports compact car under USD 20.000, which was way cheaper than most of its competitors. The air-conditioning was offered as an option.

Under the hood, Dodge installed a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated engine. It was paired to a 5-speed manual as standard, but a 4-speed automatic transmission was on the options list.