I did something I never thought I'd do...

[Exodus_2pt0]

Not going to lie, I had a Sunfire, but it wasn't your average Sunfire.

I do regret the gauges, but in my defense the stock tach couldnt keep up in the first 2 gears. Also, it stopped at 7 and I was taking this engine to 8,250.

It twas a pretty awesome sleeper though.



I've learned my lesson however. Better to start with a car that had performance in mind at production than to polish a turd.

[supermansocks95]

No, no you don't. It's like that first serious girlfriend, you probably split up for good reasons.

Lol it had 83k on the clock. I sold it to a dealership for 2k just because I wanted quick cash for spring break and for parts to freshen up my first E30 that my dad gave to me. But I can definitely see that comparison. The c-waffle of a baby momma I have proves that....

[Vincent Brick]

I just really like Neons and hate how bad of an undeserved rap they get. I know guys from when I lived back east that build/race/restore Neons, so it is a shared sentiment. Every dollar I ever won racing was behind the wheel of a Neon, I mean that was only a few hundo, but that's a lot for a Neon owner, amirite?

lol at people who drive a fucking box thinking a Neon is ugly.

[roguetoaster]

Blah, blah, Sunfire. I still regret selling it :(

No, no you don't. It's like that first serious girlfriend, you probably split up for good reasons.

[supermansocks95]

That or they are so spoiled as to not enjoy anything FWD and low-power

My first car was an 05 Pontiac Sunfire. That thing had all of 140hp and a 4-speed auto. I had so much damn fun in that car. I still regret selling it :(

[supermansocks95]

Vincent, I agree with you on this. I will say, however, that I don't care for the PT Cruiser's looks. But the SRT-4 isn't ugly at all to me. I like the fact that the neon has such a terrible reputation, to be honest. It's fun to have people rev at me at stoplights because they think I'm just another ricer. Why is it fun? Because they shut their mouths when I rev and they realize there's more than just another low-power N/A four banger under the hood. I could do without the backfires, though...

[MR E30 325is]

I think the forum has found Vincents hot button issue.

I have never seen anyone defend a dodge neon this seriously.

+1 to them being terribly ugly.

[agent]

Yes. Neons and PT Cruisers are ugly.

[Vincent Brick]

Neons are ugly? 1st gens? Seriously? That's news to me, I think the 1st gen coupes are great looking cars, but admittedly the bugeye isn't for everyone whether its Neon, Subaru, whatever. PTs aren't exactly attractive, but ugly? I find that to be a stretch. Its no uglier than an X3 or any other small utility appliance, it just has that played-out '00s retro styling.

Anyone who has driven a twin cam 5-sp 1st gen Neon and didn't think it was a fun car simply wasn't doing it right. That or they are so spoiled as to not enjoy anything FWD and low-power, or at the very least maybe just aren't aware that the car stickered for thousands less than a similarly equipped Civic that is still down by ~20hp and doesn't handle as well (remember this is pre-B16 EK Si period) and are trying to compare it to more expensive cars. Not trying to say the Neon was the hands-down best compact of the era, but those cars didn't win multiple consecutive Showroom Stock C national titles, over 300 podium finishes at SCCA national events in 1997 alone and IIRC over 1500 total SCCA podium finishes during the car's production cycle by being a huge pile of dog shit.

I can't speak for CA because I haven't been here long enough, but in the midwest they are starting to disappear due to rust and being easily totaled in crashes because of low resale value. Pretty much the same fate of any other period compact that isn't a Civic or Corolla, both of which took much longer to depreciate. Here in my part of SoCal I see about as many Neons as I do Proteges and Sentras of the period.

[supermansocks95]

it's really a rhetorical question. We all know very well what happened to them. :p

Madtyte burnouts into madstiff poles?

[nando]

it's really a rhetorical question. We all know very well what happened to them. :p

[jpod999]

Where did all those 1st generation Neons go? There were millions of them. I haven't seen one in years.. even the 2nd generation have all but disappeared. Wonder why that is?

I've been wondering the same thing, I haven't seen one here in the Bay Area for a while now.

[nando]

They are the same car. lol. Sure, it has different rear suspension - everything else is basically built to the same level of quality, using the same parts bin.

I have driven a manual transmission, 16v Neon. It was well, a Neon. Sorry (not sorry) I convinced my wife not to buy that POS.

the R/T was kinda cool when it came out - I wanted one pretty bad. Everything else was horrible. Where did all those 1st generation Neons go? There were millions of them. I haven't seen one in years.. even the 2nd generation have all but disappeared. Wonder why that is?

[roguetoaster]

People usually make fun of ugly things. It happens in grade school, it happens in the adult world, and it happens to cars. It's not hard to understand. The neon and pt cruiser are ugly cars. Even if they were incredibly reliable, got 50mpg, had 300hp, and sold for $500, I wouldn't buy either.

Every single PT Cruiser that I've driven (4 examples) has been a complete POS, 20 MPG, awful driving dynamics, no power, average brakes. It's the only car that I have ever felt genuinely ashamed to be driving. PT Cruisers also 100% missed the styling appeal to me, and they have a freakin' towel bar for the passenger, so, yeah I have no idea on that one.

Neons OTOH have been solid, excepting one beaten auto example, fun to drive if not fast, and are really only let down by the low price point manufacturing. Still haven't driven an SRT-4, but I suspect that they are just like a Joan Jett song.

So it's not just the ugly that hurts them, it's the apparent cheapness/reputation and therefore low enthusiast appeal that does. Just consider the inverse, the E30 M3, much rep, but not enough pep to back that up.

[atldohc]

dont worry vincent, you're not the only one to like neons. i still miss my first gens,(only the 5 speed ones of course). they were a blast to drive, and were pretty reliable for me. honestly sometimes more fun than the e30. dirt cheap and easy to work on. i had 3 of them, none with under 100k and never any kind of drivetrain problems. i would still be driving the acr if not for the e30, since i also had to choose between the two. even back then people would give me shit for driving a neon, without ever spending some real time driving it. nowadays it seems like the opposite reaction. strangers saying "your car is awesome!" or "nice ride man!". usually these are people who know nothing about e30s but i guess if it looks nicer then it must be? i guess the point of my rambling is that a cheap car can sometimes be a very satisfying one to own and drive, even if most other people dislike it and will never give it a chance. and i wish e30s were not as popular so i could get parts for cheaper.:razz: