The most unreliable thing on the srt4 is the owner. Stock to mildly modified versions are very reliable, can easily get well over 200k miles with normal maintenance. Had one with 220k miles before I sold it.
@@timothydraper6626 they tried with the Caliber srt-4, but it was slower than the Nsrt4, coupled with the crappy leadership with Daimler/Chrysler, the crappy interiors, and no real LSD (used electronic LSD) not many were sold so they were discontinued after 09. I have one of them as well and they can be made into fun little cars with a lot of room inside.
@@j_tootie kinda more got the impression the neon was not so popular in UK because the 2.0 engine is a bit bigger than we are used to in a car of this size. A diesel would have helped too
I bought my new 2000 Neon christmas 1999. Had it for 20 years. Drove it 245,000 miles to 15 states and Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Three sets of tires, two water pumps, a head lamp and a few batteries. The car looked brand new when I donated it to a charity (only because all the rubber bushings were starting to fall apart). The best money I ever spent. Designed in Germany, made in Windsor, Ontario, Canada and bought in Ventura, California.
I've owned my srt4 since New in March 03. 19+ years. I have 150k on it and have never heard of these reliability issues you mention.other then normal maintenance, it's been my most reliable car ever.. I've raised 4 kids with it,drag raced it,gone on trips and daily driven this thing and it still going strong!
His video is loaded with inaccuracies, from the 8 gallon fuel tank (it's 12.5 gallons) to "change the head gasket at 60k miles" (WHAT?) utter ignorance
Lol. You drag raced it? Against what? Lol. I had one of these rags back in the day. You may be able to drive one like a grandma and get 150k. I guess you are the drag strip driver tho. So I’ll take your word that the rest of the plant is wrong. Lll
The SRT4’s reliability has a direct correlation on how the owner treats the car. Driving style, budget, maintenance, etc. The reality is, being such an inexpensive vehicle (new & used) it also attracted owners who were a bit too frugal and inexperienced.
Absolutely spot on. Teenagers were driving a lot of these things because their parents thought they were just another Dodge Neon. They were also cheap to modify, too.
yeah mine has always been good i blew one motor racing a bbc camaro but i was maxing my bws out plus on nitrous and it windowed the block but i was right with that camaro suprised the hell out of him. and the other time is when i rebuilt a motor and i was on 24 psi on an s257 turbo and it was fine for awhile but one night i did a long pull to around 160mph and when i got out of it she was flashing the cel at me and missing like crazy but i made it home and ended up frying piston number 4 and having to do another rebuild lol but this time shes on e85 and more boost and shes as happy as ever out down 540whp but i was at 94% duty cycle on the id1050x and the tuner wanted to keep her safe and hes right shes been safe ever since. except for snapping the stock input shaft with slicks in an 1/8 race and was racing a bbc blown gremlin on meth with a big tire wasnt even a contest in my opinion but i was out in front of him when i shifted into third which is when she snapped the input shaft. but im more than happy breaking shit when im racing thats not the cars fault thats me pushing it. but never had an issue with it when not racing other than blowing vacuum lines off which you learn to button down every vacuum line you can find lol
My buddy got one brand new in 2004 when we were Juniors in Highschool. He treated it very well; from proper maintenance, to turbo timer, and making sure it was operating temp before hard pulls. It lasted until I got my WRX in 2011 when he sold it; shortly after the bottom row of gears went out twice and the E-Brake locked up on the freeway at speed. Not bad for the fastest production car for $20,000 that would do 157mph off the showroom floor lmfao
One thing I like about the SRT4 is you can take a 420a head from the base model 2g Eclipse and bolt it to the SRT4's block. With that setup you now have the turbo in the front instead of the back where it would get heat soaked. It's a nice frankenstein build
Had a 92 eclipes turbo back in high school... Wrecked it at just over 100mph.... Ended up taking the drive train and sticking it into a ugly, rusted, dodge colt! Engine bolted right in. Best sleeper I've ever had!
Learned to drive manual in one back in 2003 when they were brand new (it was the Solar Yellow color). It was very fast for the time, let alone for being under 20k brand new. Hung with 350'z stock for stock and surprised the hell out of a lot of V8's.
Dude i had the Mopar stage 2 upgrade and was pushing around 400 hp and i smoked everything i ever raced i dont think i ever lost one in my Neon the closest thing that i raced was a souped up Ford Lightning and we raced at the drag strip i beat him down the track but he ran like a couple of tenths of a second faster than me ! Mine was Red and i had a intake,blow off valve,ecu upgrade,a lil bit bigger turbo, and some engine work !
Bro...it was the first turbo car I had ever driven. My friend had one with a few aftermarket things. I couldn't stop smiling. I got introduced to that turbo noise. Super fun car. Underrated in my opinion
Only hung with 350's until about 80mph because it was fwd I had an altima coupe 3.5sr basically a fwd 350z and it would pull away from these but, again after 80mph the 350z would pull away from me because its rwd
@@shannacollins4741 sounds like the same setup as me basically but I make 300 lol. Just no engine work. Eventually wanna build the head cause 6400 RPMs aren't enough 💀
I worked for Chryslers marketing department at the time of the SRT line. They weren’t going after anyone, they were trying to create a performance like lineup similar to AMG or BMW M, remember from 1998 to 2007 the company was actually DaimlerChrysler and Daimler was actually calling the shots.
I think why everyone says it's like an American Japanese tuner car is because of DSM, you can taste the Mitsubishi eclipse GST in the srt4, and the bodykit styling is pretty similar too, so it makes sense that it would feel Japanese
@@Reynar7 Because SRT was called PVO at the time of releasing the viper and viper GTS. The SRT-4 was the first car branded SRT by dodge, and caused their PVO division to be renamed to SRT. Then they released the Viper SRT-10, Charger SRT-8, so on so forth.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the engine in this car taught them a thing or two for the current 2.0 turbo in the AMG cars. Car companies use knowledge knew and old for projects. Just like people forget ford had a 2.3 turbo in the 86 SVO mustang.
Owning a SRT4 isn’t as bad as people claim, i daily it and it never given me major issues, just simple problems like usual but how it sounds, and torque monster that it is, it can be fun as heck. IMO best sounding 4 cylinder with cams.
You described why the people that love them (like me) love them. They are like nothing else from that era and are a blast to drive and listen to the noises. I've owned them since '05 and I have a super clean 500 whp one that I have devoted my channel to! Glad you got to drive one that's running! Hah!
@@btnoodles thanks man life has been a little crazy lately but I hope to have some more videos out soon. Some additional upgrades coming as well. My IG is updated a bit better. Same username.
A Turbo a little too small, making it sound like it’s ready to go at any moment. Combined with the wasted spark ignition lighting up any unburnt fuel on deceleration. Yeah it sounds cool.... but it’s not for the right reasons. Just like the euros.
To me the SRT-4 is one of those hidden gems. I’ve always been fond of them and I thought it was cool because there wasn’t any other US automaker with a performance Econobox. Sure the Cobalt SS came out near the end of the SRT-4’s life cycle, but to me it never captured what made the SRT-4 special. I wish Dodge made an SRT-4 Dart to be a true successor to the Neon SRT-4 unlike the Caliber but it never happened.
The svt focus was a performance ecobobox. It wasn't as quick acceleration wise stock but was peppy for what it was and a handful in the corners. A turbo one is a riot. The way they should have came. I guarantee a 300+ wheel turbo svt would be more reliable than a 300+ wheel srt4. So america did have performance economboxes
@@midnight347 I’m gonna have to disagree. Those focus were hot garbage. The handling at the limit was atrocious. And 170hp isn’t in the same league as a 200hp boosted car. The svt is more in the same league as a Saturn ion or a cobalt or even like an ep3. The srt4 played in the class above it.
After owning 13 cars for over a span of 11 years my Srt4 has been the most reliable car I've ever owned. These cars get a terrible reputation due to the younger community in the hay day these came out and even through the years. All because they were beat to piss. So to find one that has actually not been thrashed to hell is rare. That's why the majority of people who deal with these cars dislike them all because of their negative experience with them. Well..I mostly blame the previous owner. It's all how well a car was kept up..before it gets thrown onto the next owner. Throughout the 30k+ plus miles that I've put on it...I've never once had a check engine light come on, nor has the car ever broke down on me or left me stranded. I love it. And could never fathom selling it. That's why when you've had your first one and you sell it.. almost everyone regrets it immensely right after. Then buys another one down the road. It's a crazy cycle. If you know you know.
Exactly. It all comes down to the owner. I have an example. I used to own a Neon srt4. It was stage 1 and boltons. I put 70,000 miles on it and never had ONE problem. Not ONE thing needed to be replaced other than standard maintenance, which actually makes it the most reliable car I ever owned. And I didn't baby it either, but I drove it like a car is meant to be driven. Well, I ended up selling it and a few months later I see it for sale on Craigslist with a blown motor! It's not the cars fault, it's the people who buy them. People buy them, trash them, then sell them, or they buy them trashed and have a bad experience. There are good ones out there, but you're gonna pay a little more. Maybe 8-10k for a nice one imo. But I will say that this car is still the best bang for your buck.
@@dan_t Same. ON my 3rd one now. 1st one i bought brand new off showroom floor back in '04 when i was 21. I have had pretty much every little "hot" hatchback under the sun since '01. From 3 Gti's(ranging from gen4 - 6), Wrx, Mazdaspeed 3, Focus St, Fiesta St...even with those newer cars i missed my srt-4. I really had regret after a while in trading in my first one(which had 65k miles and not a single issue, think i traded it in for a Acura TL or a NISMO Frontier lol now that i really think about it, idk lol). So i decided to track down one after all these years of wanting another one. < I am just gonna skip story of my 2nd Srt-4 I purchased just 3 years ago(an '05 w/55k miles) bc it still saddens me thinking about what happened to it >.(basically it got totaled from me having to swerve off the road in trying to avoid hitting an SUV that pulled out in front of me the very last second, still so fucking pissed as they fled the scene and we never found them). Soooo i said fuck this im getting another one. I waited forrrrever to bc i wanted a REALLY clean one. Found me an 03' with 22k miles(limited slip has been installed) and absolutely no rust whatsoever, and the interior looks like brand new, clean clean. I was already half sold on the car big time too after knowing it was a California car its entire life(Rancho Cucamonga) garage kept. The pinch welds underneath are perfect, shop i go to that works on srt4s for a living told me cleanest srt-4 they've ever seen since a new one. I paid a good penny for it too (as i just got it last December and we all know how the used market has been), but idc i plan on holding on to it forever now that i got me a really nice one! I live in Jersey where we had one of the BEST shops for this car which was owned by "BOGDAN" or Dan, a friend of mine and a very awesome person. He is the owner of the "REDBULL" srt-4 you see here on ytube, it is incredibly fast srt-4 (was the fastest srt-4 on original 5pd & stock block). He used to have a highly reputable shop where he worked on and built srt-4's strictly, and Everyone would go to him. His entire lot used to be full of srt-4s it was insane. Sadly he moved back to his home country 2 summers ago now(after making his millions working on these cars for over a decade), but he still has 1,000's of parts from the simplest washer to a new engine so if you need something he is your man STILL. Luckily when it comes to a reputable shop we still have another srt-4 shop here that Bogdan is actually friends with and recommends himself, so thats great. The car really is just pure raw fun, i also have a Veloster N and i swear i have just as much fun (maybe even MORE bc i got more power in the srt-4 rn) in the SRT-4 and find myself wanting to drive it more! Another thing i honestly cant get over is how many people stop me and say something about my srt-4, its crazy, like practically EVERY time i take the car out. The Veloster? Lol very rarely ill get a "nice car man" but its rare lol(its usually only someone who knows what it exactly it is, which isnt alot lol). 9/10 when im at the gas station someone is approaching me "yoooo thats an SRT-4!?! nooo wayy duuude"... "i wanted one of these sooo bad since highschool, omg i love it". I swear i get people all the time on opposing/oncoming side of the rode that will notice my srt-4 approaching them, and will beep their horns or flash their lights as we pass by each other. Same at red lights to get my attention, ill be sitting there and here a little "beep", and when i look its always them giving me a . I love it...
@@RyGuyRy Hell yeah man! keep that super clean SRT forever! Odds are you may never find one like that again. But I definitely agree with you. This car truly is a beast. It's very raw and just crazy. It's an experience like no other car, honestly. I want to get another one too. It's funny, they always say that when you sell your SRT-4, you always end up getting another one down the road. And it's true.
Ive been driving mine for just over 12 years now. It was my first car and it taught me all about turbo systems, suspension systems, heel-toe shifting, basic vehicle maintenance, and above all, commitment. It was easy on me however, my 05 srt is just now needing a clutch for the first time at 135k miles as well as a respray on the roof. Dodge was notorious for having sub-par paint and clear coat back then. This car outlasted my subaru outback by two engines. I loved it so much that I bought a caliber srt4 in 2020. It is not nearly as reliable as the neon, but I must have gotten the pick of the litter since I have not had to do any major repairs outside of axles and worn suspension components and wheel bearings. I will never sell my neon as it is to this day the cleanest one I have ever seen.
Went though 3 intake manifold gaskets in 45k miles on mine, axle issues, trans issues, clutch issues, paint issues, shifter issues, interior falling apart issues, boost gauge not working issues....still enjoyed it for the time I had it. Definitely one of the most unique exhaust notes. Sounds like a boat exhaust that is burbling halfway in and out of the water.
@@Jsmith9619 every car has issues like that. Mines making 400 wheel and I daily drive it. You have to take care of everything. Just like any other fast car
There's a couple really fast really clean Caliber SRT-4's around town where I live. Most of the SRT-4 Neon's are pretty rough or blown up at this point. Maybe it depends on your age or something but I've always thought they were pretty cool. They always sounded cool, I liked the stock wheel design, and when they were new they actually looked pretty nice for a few years lolz.
Have 110k on my red 05 SRT-4. Its a fun car to cruise around town. Has always been very reliable. In all its mileage only needed a cam sensor, oil pressure sensor, power steering sensor and valve cover gasket. Never understood the unreliability reputation. But its 100% stock so maybe that's why. I recently acquired a EVO VIII and in comparison the SRT-4 is certainly just a neon with a 2.4L Turbo but, in my opinion, that's what makes it so special and fun to drive.
@@SRT4Driver1988 agreed I have owned four over the years since 2008 I don't own one any longer but I never had any major issues with mine. Racked up hundreds of thousands of miles on them too. always hear about people having third gear issues with them I never had third gear issues with any of mine. They get a bad stigma for being unreliable because there are people that mod them poorly, they don't maintain them and they drive the living hell out of them
One of those cars I lusted after as a broke high school student when these came out, but also glad I never had to live with owning one. I loved the way they sounded when just coasting and downshifting almost more than they did under acceleration. Instantly recognizable and so unique, even today. If you hear one in a parking deck, you know exactly what's coming.
@@isuckballsatthisgame If your dad kept up with maintenance then I'm sure it was fine, but I have to imagine most of the original owners of these skipped some things and weren't in a position to put huge money into them if it didn't mean the world to them. So like David said, if they are still around and working well they likely are big fans and it was worth the expense. That said, it was probably recency bias because of the video, but I saw one today for the first time in ages, and immediately my eye was drawn to it lol
@@hudsonja You're pretty much correct. These were quite cheap when brand new and making them faster was cheap as well. A lot of younger drivers bought them. A friend of mine had one and while it was a pretty great tuner car, it just felt cheap (it didn't help that American car quality pretty much sucked in the 2000s, either). A lot of people bought them to go fast, modified them, and then moved on. I don't think they were unreliable, I think people just tended not to take great care of them.
I have an 04 srt4. Clean and reliable. Stage 2 car bws turbo with turbo toys on e85 complete suspension and nothing but bottom end untouched, love it, most enjoyable car I’ve ever owned and driven. No rust in Illinois if you can believe it
What have you use for suspension. Im looking for someone a little better than stock, its my daily so it still gotta be comfortable. Was thinking the good ole bc coilovers, but im thinking for what im looking for i could find better maybe.
@@RyGuyRy - the stock struts and go for the prothane poly bushings all around, you can do all the work in about 2 days, then I'd say engine mount inserts, unless you are already running solid mounts, then take it in for an alignment.
I am one of the guys keeping one alive. 10 years or ownership a lot of ups and downs but there’s something about the sound and sleeperness of it that keeps me loving it.
@Faded Garage I rode in one in 2005 that was pushing a little over 450whp and that car was nutty! The first car that I heard the burble exhaust note when you let off. Sad that you rarely see this out on the roads. Kudos to you for keeping it alive
I just bought a low mileage solar yellow SRT back in April this year. I was driving the other day and the car shut off and would not restart. Of course I was on the busiest road in town right next to an ice cream joint that was packed with people haha. I ended up finding the resistor box wire jiggled loose and fried the fuel pump fuse. In the meantime another SRT4 friend came to help and his car was puking coolant out of the overflow when he showed up. So we ended up having two broken SRT4's, a big audience, and we both drove away in the end. Good times lol.
Back in the day when I finally found a car group to hang out and cruise with there was a black SRT-4 Neon that had that awesome sound and was fast as hell and I've loved them ever since. This was before the K series craze and B series honda turbo cars were barely pushing 400 with our budgets. That bolt on E85 SRT was a rocket that all the Mustang guys had problems with and was our hero lol I will forever love the sound and ridiculousness of that powertrain/chassis
Nice. Love my 3.8 Genesis coupe. Just finished installing long tube headers to complete my exhaust. Getting tuned at the end of the month. I've actually always liked the srt4 and Cobalt ss
They are nice but it's just not that reliable unless you have the funds I had a veloster did some work to it and it broke around 145,791 miles I could have got a new engine but it was gonna cost me a fortune and I downgraded hard got a yaris hatch doing some work to it don't judge don't care if it's slow but it's light and zippy unique build
Last September I had a 2011 Kia Optima with the 2.4L in it and factory dual exhaust. It was mint inside and out, paid $8k cash for it and it had only 95k on the motor. I had plans for a turbo and everything but 5 weeks after I bought it, I spun a bearing in the bottom end of the motor on my way home from work. Ended up with a 2010 civic. Not complaining but I miss the optima lol
@@Jac735 They weren't reliable because youngsters were adding WOT Boxes, wastegates and Bosst Controllers without a tune then racing the piss out of them. I have boltons with a E85 tune still on stock wastgate and turbo and it has over 175k Miles without any serious issues. Going bigger turbo also causes parts to start breaking.
I had one of these, it was my first fun car. I loved it so much and I’m still trying to find another one. Me being 17 and paying for it with my own money I tried so hard to care of it and I just wasn’t mechanically inclined at the time. I blew it up several times and we had planned for you to review it back in 2020 and it blew up for the last time. Everything that went wrong with it was easily preventable but I just didn’t know enough. I can’t wait to own another one
Love my 05 Orange Blast. Still super clean after owning for 10 years and rarely had any problems at all. The only reoccurring issue was power steering but that's long been fixed now. Considering I own a 392 Daytona charger as well, I still love driving the srt4.
Had an 05 as a “winter beater” such a fun car I miss that little skittle. It felt like an evo for people who couldn’t afford an evo…and had also never driven an evo
Back in 2004 I bought a new Neon SRT4 in metallic blue with the kicker subwoofer system. I had it all modded up with all the bolt ons and had a great time with it. The only thing was that I got bored of it in 9 months and sold it shortly after and upgraded to my 05 Evo 8 which I still have to this day.
I have a black 04 i got from my uncle before he died he gave it to me 2 years ago with 14k miles on it its the most fun car I've driven in a long time. I only drive it in the summer and its now sitting at 16.5k
I just bought one a few months ago and I would definitely say it’s unique. For me it holds a sentimental place as I grew up. This project though is going to take time as I’m doing a full resto-mod.
The SRT4 Neon wasn't a cash grab or a "throw darts at a board" scheme. Dodge did this in the 80's with the Shelby GLHS. Chrysler was actually the biggest turbocharged car manufacturer during that time. The SRT4 is a modern version of the old Shelby dodges and very much an improvement in almost every way.
I’ve owned two silver ones. Once the third gear issue is fixed the car is definitely in a league of its own. Not only because it’s always broken but also because it keeps you on your toes with what will break next. Great review.
I recently acquired a red 04 srt4 that my friend left me when he passed, cars an absolute riot, definitely a hidden gem that I plan on keeping permanently
I own one of these. It came out when I was HS and always wanted an SRT4. They have a ton of little issues but has been pretty reliable. The most significant problem I have now is that notorious 3rd gear grind. It also likes to pop out of reverse while I'm backing up. Besides that, it is an absolute blast to drive.
Most dangerous car ever made. People crash those every time. I’m shocked you even found one. My buddy had a blue 04 and totaled it a week later. They have the Saftey of a soda can. They just crumble like nothing.
In all honesty I believe this SRT4 is the continuation of the Dodge Omni GLH. A Manual 4 cylinder front wheel drive turbo car that came from a simple 4 door beginnings. I remember test driving one of the first Dodge Neon RTs at a Dodge sponsored test track setup in the infield of Viper Days back in the day. The Neon handles well for tracking with a low center of gravity and the powerband is nothing to scoff at. This was a great video and I enjoy your channel, I look forward to seeing future videos!
Been in the car scene for a while, Did not know there was hate for this car. TONS of people love this car because of the out of box experience and price.
The maintenance schedule in the owners manual of the SRT4 neon has no mention of the headgasket needing replacement as part of regular service, in fact it looks remarkably similar to the maintenance schedule of my 7th gen civic.
I own two of them. One since 2006. So to me they are great cars. One of them is my 16 yo sons daily. If they are properly maintained and cared for they can be very reliable from my experience. They are the most hated of the sport compact world but I think they are best cars ever.
Nothing to hate on aside from mediocre things these kids think there are. I am not a fan of domestics much but always had a soft spot for these cars, they're a blast to drive. Kudos to you on sharing one with your son, that's awesome.
I'm not sure where you got your info but no where in the factory service manual does it say replace the head gasket at 60,000 miles.... Seats also not exactly viper seats, but viper-inspired. Most of the torque steer is due to the rubber LCA bushings and factory motor mounts.
I daily drive a NSRT4 with 160,000 miles on the clock. Only issue I had was wheel bearing failure, broken dashboard and faded paint. I purchased this car brand new in 2006 and have tracked, autocrossed and drag raced this car, so I do take care of it with general maintenance. Still on the factory clutch, too. My NSRT4 is an August 2005 build date.
lol wats wrong with the Dart ? it looks nice but sure engine is smaller but so what, not like you cant crank up the displacement or anything stop being lazy and look at the big picture
The Neon SRT-4 was hated by people driving other sports compacts that were slower. "But in the end you are still just driving a Neon" was code for "I paid more for my car because of model/brand image and need to promote that same myth to justify my purchase even though your car is a far better performance value."
I remember back in about 2012, I would go up to the weekly car meets at staples. There was always an orange blast srt4 that would show up that had a cf hood, bigger down pipe, and straight piped. All you could hear was the turbo spool and the bov. Ever since then, I have always wanted one myself. Even now I would almost take one over my focus st lol.
Will forever have a soft spot for it and still have a fully running one in the garage that has been no harder to maintain than any other vehicle I've owned. I had a few buddies that had them too over the years. It's definitely an experience that stands out and sticks with you
Pound for pound one if the hardest punching cars back on the day. I would gap ws6"s on a 30 roll with Mopar stg 1 and wastewater actuator 21lbs of peak tapering to 15lbs. Only got rid of it because needed a quieter car with my preggo wife.
I respect the Neon. One of the first cars to ever blow my doors off on the highway. Although I had a bad turbo and a bad boost leak on my car at the time but it would have still probably beaten it anyway. The power delivery of the SRT4 always reminded me of what a Volvo turbo motor would have been like in a super light cheap car.
I absolutely love mine! Full bolt on, fuel system, 110 octane, methanol injection, intercooler sprayers, and 28psi of boost. Just can't beat the driving experience for the price.
It’s an unpopular opinion but I loved the sport compact era in the mid to late 2000s the RSX Type S and Cobalt SS T/C were my favorites. I miss going to the races at night watching people with these cars get into it with the Camaros and Mustangs. The car scene was so much better back than.
I lived through that time also, but dang man these new Mustangs and Subarus, type Rs and stuff are really a whole lot more car than back then. I remember thinging breaking into the 13s in the 1/4 was serious speed. A few year old Mustang GT with the 10 speed auto will run dang near into the 11s now with some better tires. Crazy. 11s were like full stick axle drag cars back then.
With the price of gas and a governmental push away from fossil fuels, expect to see cars shrink in coming years, and see more 4-cyls running around. It happened following the 70s oil embargos, and the oil price surge in the late 90s.
Some really weird comments in this video.. change the head gasket at 60k is just not in the manual, and it was made such a big point in the video. In fact, change the head gasket is not in the manual's maintenance schedule at all. In reality these cars require the same normal maintenance that any other car does. Unfortunately these were simply "too cheap" and ended up in the hands of a lot of negligent owners.
My e-blue SRT4 was by far the most reliable vehicle I’ve owned. Outside of routine maintenance, I never had a single problem and beat the hell out of it. You treat it well, it’ll treat you well. Not to mention, they have one of the best exhaust notes. The turbo Cobalt SS is another gem that’s a ton of fun.
My 2004 srt4 was my favorite car. That time period, early 20s, in the army, had an srt4,red and the sunroof. If you've ever had one, you will forever turn and look when you hear that exhaust. You know when you hear one.
I had 2 of them , I miss mine . Very underrated . Whip a lot of ass with mine and had very little problems out of them . Had over a 100k miles on 1 of them and had ZERO problems out of it other than a Clutch and a couple of vacuum leaks .
I had 2 srt4’s never had any issues with either of them. The main issue with them were the drivers who had no idea how to handle them. Or the email tunes that were made for them. They could make an insane amount of power for cheap. The gate on this car was crazy but……. It’s a neon when someone rolls up on it, it’s a srt when they lost
Now that you're home, go look up the free pdf version of the owners manual and then do the right thing and edit your video to correct your inaccuracies
@@Skullman7487 It's true the SRT-4 is better but costs way more now a days. The PT Cruiser GT I have was $500 and is a 5-speed manual. Best sleeper there is. The PT was down tuned only making 9psi stock but if you just get the Diablo sport tuner it will up the boost to around 17psi and will remove that 120mph speed limiter. Just like that mine ran a 14.1@101mph on the 1/4mile spinning on skinny 15" tires. Gets a lot of hate but once you do a couple simple/cheap mods, STI owners get really confused why they lost to a Granny PT Cruiser
@@wolfemancola lol a stock sti does 13s but not for long. They are junk. I'm tired of my car. Gave it to my girl. Freaking money pit. I'm ready to upgrade to a big boy toy. Srt challenger hellcat
Had a 2005 ACR edition in red making 300whp, ran mid 12's for me but was probably quicker. Broke many axles at the track and a intermediate shaft doing flatfoot shifts but other than that loved it.
I just saw another user saying he did 450 track days since 03, stock engine, 460hp, ran ~11.3s says he never snapped a driveshaft. I'm normally pretty generous in my belief with car guys, cuz.. my tribe but he then said those runs were on 10" radial slicks🤔🤔🤨🤨 He is one lucky guy if that's true.
Daily drove one with a 50trim on it for 2 years and loved every minute of it. So many funny moments in that car, easily gave me and my friends the most smiles per gallon of any vehicle I've ever owned. I still miss both of the SRTs I've owned to this day and I'm actually looking to get into another one. They're addicting, and theres nothing out there like them.
Srt4s are a super cool little car but it seems like they are dying off probably because people give up on them after a while. I own a cobalt SS s/c and have had my run ins with some I’ve beat some and lost to some. They are definitely cool and I’ve honestly wanted to ride in one because of the nature of turbo cars and how they create power.
Changing your head gasket every 60k was for the single slammer N/A dodge neon engine, brother. The 2.4 liter SRT-4 engine often lasted up to 250k pretty easily..
I like his videos, but he's definitely not correct with his information on quite a few platforms. He may know his own platforms well, but others he uses the interwebs
I can't even recall the last time I saw one of these on the road, if I had to guess I'd say like 2013. They sound great but just like other Mopar/ DSM tuners, talon, stealth etc they all end up in the junkyard.
I own two that are still on the road. You gotta remember there was only ~24,000 total made from 03-05. With the fact they were so cheap and young tuners wanted them they weren’t properly maintained or correctly modded. So they ended up trashed!
As someone who has driven only RWD sports cars for the past decade, I can still appreciate the Neon SRT4 for what it was, especially when it came out when I was a teen in the 2000s. Utilitarian, easily modified, and most of all when compared to similar sized cars.....FAST.
I was going to buy one when they came out because they were pretty cheap for what you were getting. I test drove it and the way the shifter felt was such a big turn off, but I do have a soft spot for them Lol
I bought one of these brand new in 2004. I sold it 10 years later with 120k miles on it, still on stock clutch. Had just bolt ons intake, Intercooler, turboback exhaust. This car was truly awesome for the time because dodge gave us what all the tuners were doing to honda civics at the time from the factory. I only had a couple of sensors go bad in the car, and it ate spark plugs very frequently to the point where it would misfire. I also never had the third gear grind everyone talks about. But other than that, this car was one of the quickest cars on the road at the time and I loved every second of it.
Sold my srt4 for a 2nd gen speed 3. Still miss it every single day. Most fun I've had in a car, not to mention the exhaust note alone is brutally awesome.
@@JustcallmeGnarly22 eh, I've done some extensive work to mine. Don't get me wrong, it sounds great. Speeds have one of the best exhaust notes. It's just not the same, especially on a stock mani srt4
Unreliable is not the word I'd use, but what do I know? I've only been driving one of these things since 2005 at power levels far above stock numbers. If you don't know what you are doing and you are beating the crap out of it at the track as well as doing clutch dumps everywhere, I guess you could get yourself into situations. I pretty much only broke at the track until I got above 500whp, then it was axles...so my current build is right at 400whp and it's a stone cold reliable, starts every time, ac&heat, daily beater car.
My friend Dan bought one brand new, the dealership wouldn’t let him test drive it. He just sold it a few years back. He modified it mostly for autocross, for awhile it made 350 ft lbs of torque. One of my top two favorite FWD cars to drive. He has a ND Miata now
Wow, where does one even begin to respond to the utter ignorance of this video. 1 - the car was NOT unreliable. That’s a completely incorrect statement not based in reality. From day one there were a host of people who tried to make this claim, and they were one by one proven wrong. It’s astonishing that 19 years later someone new tries to say the same thing. The vast majority of SRT4s not on the road ended up wrecked. That’s not a reliability issue. And no one who has a nice SRT4 is going to let someone like you drive one. 2 - the user manual did not have an “insane amount of maintenance”, you are talking about the SERVICE booklet, not the user manual, and the service booklet had two different sections, one for normal driving conditions, one for extreme. Obviously, most people would use the extreme, and even there, the “maintenance” you speak of rivals any turbo sports car. Have you ever seen a force inducted Porsche manual, or worse, ANY Ferrari? “Those are super cars” You may want to take a look at an EVO or STI service manual then, because you obviously have no idea what you are talking about. 3 - “the turbo is so loud” that’s because you are in a heavily modified SRT4 that’s had the crap beat out of it. See that cold air intake, the aftermarket exhaust? That causes the spool up on the turbo to be extremely noisy. 4 - The owner of an obviously heavily beat on SRT4 who runs it at a road course “all the time” finds it unreliable? Versus what 19 year old turbo car that would be reliable when it’s been beat on that hard? 5 - Pushing 11 lbs of boost??? But claiming 300 horsepower? NOT POSSIBLE! Not even remotely. STOCK off the showroom floor the SRT4 pushed 15 lbs of boost and 225 WHEEL horsepower (245 is the likely engine horsepower). 11 lbs would put that significantly lower. Did you even research before you did this video? 6 - They made the car for 3 years, that did NOT include research and development, as you claim. The car started development in late 1998 and continued on until 2003 when they were first released to the public, through 2005. The interior is unchanged from 1999, except seats, boost gauge, shifter, and instrument cluster. That is one way they kept the price under 20,000. 7 - NOTHING in the manual says to change the head gasket at 60,000 miles, you are flat out LYING. At 60k miles, you change engine oil and oil filter, check brakes, replace engine air filter, replace spark plugs and wires, inspect tie rod ends and boot seals, inspect PVC valve and replace if necessary (typical on turbos due to blow by) replace make-up air filter, adjust generator drive belt tension (as needed). There is NOTHING about the head gasket, that’s a load of rubbish! 8 - The seats in the car did NOT come from the dodge viper, the bolster style seats were a one off style used only in the SRT4, “styled after the Viper”, not from the Viper. There were three different seats used in the SRT-4: bolster, SRS, and ACR specific. None came directly from the Viper. The SRS was shared with several other models. 9 - You are going to find more “torque steer” by far in a yellow SRT4, because that’s a 2003, and they did not have a limited slip differential. In the 2004 and 2005, they came standard with a quaife LSD. 10 - UGH, you claim to have read the owners manual, but you say “8 gallon fuel tank”. WRONG, the car has a 12.5 gallon fuel tank. How do you not do your research??? 11 - Yellow is not a rare color. In 2003 there were black, silver, red, and yellow SRT4s. There were more yellow built than any other color in 2003. 12 - If you had done your research you would know the weak link was the transmission, but you never even brought it up. When the Neon SRT4 was released, it was faster than the S2000, 350Z, WRX, Ford Mustang GT, and a host of other vehicles in 2003. 19 years later, I’m wondering just how many 2003 versions of the above cars you are going to find in tip top shape out there? It’s disturbing just how inaccurate your video was. You should have had someone who knows the car go over it with you before you posted this.
I enjoyed his video but was shaking my head at some of the comments he made. You basically covered everything I was thinking. I own a white ‘05 since new with 65-k miles. It’s been a pretty reliable car for the most part. I’m 53 years old and have owned many cars. My SRT is only car I haven’t been able to part ways with. It’s got a special place in my heart. Thanks for defending her honor!
Totally!! Neon SRT-4 is a beast! During my RX7 days the Neon-SRT was something to consider!.... Being a young man during the 90s I was definitely surprised when a co-worker showed up with this machine. What an awesome Video! Thank you for the step back in time. Remwmber one thing! YOU are a winner!!!
I love the srt4. I was originally looking at cars like the EVO/STI/Civic Si when I got mine. Nothing beat the bang for buck the srt4 had. Yeah it's not as good of a platform as an evo but it was also 1/3 of the price and could rival the EVO in speed. The civic si (fa5) was cool but was slow out of the box and needed alot more modification to compete with a stockish srt4. The Srt4 has one of the best sounding exhaust notes I've heard from a 4 cylinder. Lots of snap crackles and pops. Loud turbo and bov. These cars are also unique which was important to me because I like to be different. The amount of hate these cars get was icing on the cake. And overall they are just fun cars to drive especially for the money. That is when they are running 🤣...
The SRT-4 gas tank is 12.5 gallons, not 8. IDK why he says it's 8 gallons. I used to own a 2004. I bracket raced it at NHRA and IRHA tracks, plus it was my everyday driver. I snapped 3 or 4 half shafts in the burnout box.
Thanks. Guess my fuel gauge is off. When pegged out on E, it has taken at most 7.8 gallons. Glad to know I got 4 more gallons after the gauge is pegged out on E.
Had a yellow srt4 with the mopar stage 1. Was a blast to drive especially after adding a manual 2 stage boost controller. Wheel hop was not fun but stiffening the engine Mount helped a little. Bought it as soon as it hit the lot and rarely saw one on the road.
Still have mine, purchased new in 2004 in Metalic Blue. Used it in Autocross until a life change. Currently has less than 2000 miles on it. Never seen a winter road.
My son had an SRT4 for a couple years. He installed a stage 3 Mopar kit (larger turbo, modified ECU, and some other goodies) that Dodge offered and that kept most of the warranty intact. That plus a pair of slicks was good enough for an 11.88 quarter mile on a so-so prepped strip. (I think he still has the time slip.) That thing was a little beast. You had to be very careful with throttle application on street tires or you would break traction in any of the first four gears. Great car.
12 gallon fuel tank 2003 were yellow with no LSD and less HP. Theirs nothing in the owners manual about changing the head gasket as maintenance. More BS folklore spread by mustang and WRX owners who are still butt hurt about getting gapped by a neon. Probably still going to circle jerk meetings crying. It’s unfortunate you young guys only get to experience these cars after they are used up. I’ve had my 2004 16 years and never had any issues. I currently have 88k on it with mopar stage one. Everything all original. My little neon will still stomp the majority of new performance cars. Not bad for the 16k I spent getting it used.
I'm a hardcore muscle car/v8 red blooded American but I will admit that the fastest car I've ever personally driven is a SRT4 making about 500 to the wheel. Damn near impossible to hold it on the road and mak it go straight but it was fast doing it
Never had one, but always loved them! When everyone was tuning those, I had a twincharged Probe GT, so only the quickest srt4's were keeping up. If I would have ever owned one, I'd probably love them even more!
@@jeremyvelez7544 Damn! 15 years! I have probably owned 10 or so Probes and MX6's. I love the 2nd Gen Probe and the First gen MX6. I actually have a 96PGT right now that I plan to give to my daughter in 3 years.
To think that long before the 800+ HP Hellcat powered monsters and the V10 Vipers and SRT-10s that we know today, SRT’s very first car was turbocharged FWD 4-banger.
Fun Fact: The decals on that car were inspired by Twisted Metal video game. When Eddie (owner) said he named it Twisted Axle … I immediately thought of the character Axel and that game. The car is a real personality and the owner is just as fun and interesting.
Very true they used the lsj like the 05-07 cobalt ss my wife had an 07 ss lsj we sold it with 210xxx miles original motor and transmission. And I promise I was not easy on that car haha.
I rode in a 400hp srt4 back in 2010. That was my first time experiencing torque steer lol. It scared the shit out of me but was awesome at the same time.
I always thought they were super cool, as well as the PT Cruiser GT (because of it being the sleeper version of the SRT-4), and yeah, bone stock they would outgun just about every stock JDM compact. Like you said, the Cobalt SS took up the mantle when these cars weren't being built anymore (or people would put a Jackson Racing supercharger on their SVT Focus), and I think these cars still have street cred even to this day.
@@nastystew6942 yep, didn't forget those, or the Saturn Sky Redline/Pontiac Solstice GXP (which my dad wants actually). This was the same era that Dodge brought back the Charger, the Magnum, the Chrysler 300, and GM made some sleeper mid to full sized cars like the Pontiac Grand Prix GXP, Chevrolet Impala SS, Buick Regal GS, Oldsmobile Aurora (Northstar V8 model), and also the euro-slaying Cadillac CTS-V...
@@theejoeylee yep, I meant the SVT, so nice save. A buddy of mine had one with a smaller pulley, and a couple of tweaks, and it could incinerate the tires 1st through 3rd, uphill...he had to get custom Chromoly Steel driveshafts made for the car, and a quaife LSD to handle the torque...
This pandemic (lockdown) has taught so many people the importance of having multiple streams of income ,unfortunately having a job doesn’t seem to guarantee total financial stability rather having a different investment is the real deal.
The most unreliable thing on the srt4 is the owner. Stock to mildly modified versions are very reliable, can easily get well over 200k miles with normal maintenance. Had one with 220k miles before I sold it.
‼️💯
An estate/station wagon version could have been good. That kind of thing would sell well over here in the UK.
@@timothydraper6626 they tried with the Caliber srt-4, but it was slower than the Nsrt4, coupled with the crappy leadership with Daimler/Chrysler, the crappy interiors, and no real LSD (used electronic LSD) not many were sold so they were discontinued after 09. I have one of them as well and they can be made into fun little cars with a lot of room inside.
@@j_tootie kinda more got the impression the neon was not so popular in UK because the 2.0 engine is a bit bigger than we are used to in a car of this size. A diesel would have helped too
I bought my new 2000 Neon christmas 1999. Had it for 20 years. Drove it 245,000 miles to 15 states and Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Three sets of tires, two water pumps, a head lamp and a few batteries. The car looked brand new when I donated it to a charity (only because all the rubber bushings were starting to fall apart). The best money I ever spent. Designed in Germany, made in Windsor, Ontario, Canada and bought in Ventura, California.
I've owned my srt4 since New in March 03. 19+ years.
I have 150k on it and have never heard of these reliability issues you mention.other then normal maintenance, it's been my most reliable car ever..
I've raised 4 kids with it,drag raced it,gone on trips and daily driven this thing and it still going strong!
His video is loaded with inaccuracies, from the 8 gallon fuel tank (it's 12.5 gallons) to "change the head gasket at 60k miles" (WHAT?) utter ignorance
@@rooh5825 yeah,I was going to make a comment about all of that but I didn't want to come off too negative. 😎
Lol. You drag raced it? Against what? Lol.
I had one of these rags back in the day. You may be able to drive one like a grandma and get 150k.
I guess you are the drag strip driver tho. So I’ll take your word that the rest of the plant is wrong. Lll
@@rickylee2477 what plant are you talking about? And it looks like you joined RUclips just to comment,thanks!
The SRT4’s reliability has a direct correlation on how the owner treats the car. Driving style, budget, maintenance, etc. The reality is, being such an inexpensive vehicle (new & used) it also attracted owners who were a bit too frugal and inexperienced.
Absolutely spot on. Teenagers were driving a lot of these things because their parents thought they were just another Dodge Neon. They were also cheap to modify, too.
yeah mine has always been good i blew one motor racing a bbc camaro but i was maxing my bws out plus on nitrous and it windowed the block but i was right with that camaro suprised the hell out of him. and the other time is when i rebuilt a motor and i was on 24 psi on an s257 turbo and it was fine for awhile but one night i did a long pull to around 160mph and when i got out of it she was flashing the cel at me and missing like crazy but i made it home and ended up frying piston number 4 and having to do another rebuild lol but this time shes on e85 and more boost and shes as happy as ever out down 540whp but i was at 94% duty cycle on the id1050x and the tuner wanted to keep her safe and hes right shes been safe ever since. except for snapping the stock input shaft with slicks in an 1/8 race and was racing a bbc blown gremlin on meth with a big tire wasnt even a contest in my opinion but i was out in front of him when i shifted into third which is when she snapped the input shaft. but im more than happy breaking shit when im racing thats not the cars fault thats me pushing it. but never had an issue with it when not racing other than blowing vacuum lines off which you learn to button down every vacuum line you can find lol
For what they were, they were extremely reliable.
My buddy got one brand new in 2004 when we were Juniors in Highschool. He treated it very well; from proper maintenance, to turbo timer, and making sure it was operating temp before hard pulls. It lasted until I got my WRX in 2011 when he sold it; shortly after the bottom row of gears went out twice and the E-Brake locked up on the freeway at speed.
Not bad for the fastest production car for $20,000 that would do 157mph off the showroom floor lmfao
Facts. That's why every single one you see is clapped the fuck out and beat to hell. People don't take care of their cars.
One thing I like about the SRT4 is you can take a 420a head from the base model 2g Eclipse and bolt it to the SRT4's block. With that setup you now have the turbo in the front instead of the back where it would get heat soaked. It's a nice frankenstein build
Had a 92 eclipes turbo back in high school... Wrecked it at just over 100mph.... Ended up taking the drive train and sticking it into a ugly, rusted, dodge colt! Engine bolted right in. Best sleeper I've ever had!
Learned to drive manual in one back in 2003 when they were brand new (it was the Solar Yellow color). It was very fast for the time, let alone for being under 20k brand new. Hung with 350'z stock for stock and surprised the hell out of a lot of V8's.
Dude i had the Mopar stage 2 upgrade and was pushing around 400 hp and i smoked everything i ever raced i dont think i ever lost one in my Neon the closest thing that i raced was a souped up Ford Lightning and we raced at the drag strip i beat him down the track but he ran like a couple of tenths of a second faster than me ! Mine was Red and i had a intake,blow off valve,ecu upgrade,a lil bit bigger turbo, and some engine work !
Now if you learn in one, you learn first third then fifth thats it lmao
Bro...it was the first turbo car I had ever driven. My friend had one with a few aftermarket things. I couldn't stop smiling. I got introduced to that turbo noise. Super fun car. Underrated in my opinion
Only hung with 350's until about 80mph because it was fwd I had an altima coupe 3.5sr basically a fwd 350z and it would pull away from these but, again after 80mph the 350z would pull away from me because its rwd
@@shannacollins4741 sounds like the same setup as me basically but I make 300 lol. Just no engine work. Eventually wanna build the head cause 6400 RPMs aren't enough 💀
I worked for Chryslers marketing department at the time of the SRT line. They weren’t going after anyone, they were trying to create a performance like lineup similar to AMG or BMW M, remember from 1998 to 2007 the company was actually DaimlerChrysler and Daimler was actually calling the shots.
I think why everyone says it's like an American Japanese tuner car is because of DSM, you can taste the Mitsubishi eclipse GST in the srt4, and the bodykit styling is pretty similar too, so it makes sense that it would feel Japanese
Why would they "Try" to create a performance brand SRT, when SRT was already performance brand? SRT was literally already SS/SVT for Chrysler.
I remember because they had an "RT" model for nearly every car, including the Dodge Intrepid and even the Dodge Dakota Pickup truck.
@@Reynar7 Because SRT was called PVO at the time of releasing the viper and viper GTS. The SRT-4 was the first car branded SRT by dodge, and caused their PVO division to be renamed to SRT. Then they released the Viper SRT-10, Charger SRT-8, so on so forth.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the engine in this car taught them a thing or two for the current 2.0 turbo in the AMG cars. Car companies use knowledge knew and old for projects. Just like people forget ford had a 2.3 turbo in the 86 SVO mustang.
Owning a SRT4 isn’t as bad as people claim, i daily it and it never given me major issues, just simple problems like usual but how it sounds, and torque monster that it is, it can be fun as heck. IMO best sounding 4 cylinder with cams.
Y’all are literally the worst part of the SRT-4
@@MrReadySetDance how come lol
Agreed on the best sounding 4 banger for sure 💯 they sound so so sooooooooo good when cammed!!
@@alext4234 “ITS NOT A NEON ITS AN SR4 BRO” & “MOPAR” intersecting in one community
@@MrReadySetDance hahaha gotcha. It will forever always be just a neon.
You described why the people that love them (like me) love them. They are like nothing else from that era and are a blast to drive and listen to the noises. I've owned them since '05 and I have a super clean 500 whp one that I have devoted my channel to! Glad you got to drive one that's running! Hah!
Just subbed to you. Looking forward to watching.
@@btnoodles thanks man life has been a little crazy lately but I hope to have some more videos out soon. Some additional upgrades coming as well. My IG is updated a bit better. Same username.
@@TheHermitHacker that's awesome! Appreciate the sub. I hope to have some more videos coming soon. More parts on the way! lol
Subbed from another rust free 500hp srt4
@@kennethkane9431 thanks bud!
SRT4 is one of the best sounding 4 bangers of all time.
Agreed
Agreed wish they made a SRT4 Dart I was definitely going to buy one if they did.
A Turbo a little too small, making it sound like it’s ready to go at any moment. Combined with the wasted spark ignition lighting up any unburnt fuel on deceleration. Yeah it sounds cool.... but it’s not for the right reasons. Just like the euros.
No mufflers
Facts
I like how underrated they are, like, it's not a piece of junk, not something super fancy,
It's just good enough.
To me the SRT-4 is one of those hidden gems. I’ve always been fond of them and I thought it was cool because there wasn’t any other US automaker with a performance Econobox. Sure the Cobalt SS came out near the end of the SRT-4’s life cycle, but to me it never captured what made the SRT-4 special. I wish Dodge made an SRT-4 Dart to be a true successor to the Neon SRT-4 unlike the Caliber but it never happened.
SRT Dart was in the plans but Fiat axed it 😕
Yea they been talking bout it since 2014 I was waiting for it too bit it never happened
The svt focus was a performance ecobobox. It wasn't as quick acceleration wise stock but was peppy for what it was and a handful in the corners. A turbo one is a riot. The way they should have came. I guarantee a 300+ wheel turbo svt would be more reliable than a 300+ wheel srt4. So america did have performance economboxes
@@midnight347 I’m gonna have to disagree. Those focus were hot garbage. The handling at the limit was atrocious. And 170hp isn’t in the same league as a 200hp boosted car. The svt is more in the same league as a Saturn ion or a cobalt or even like an ep3. The srt4 played in the class above it.
Srt4 cali owner here and don’t rag on it till you actually ride in a tuned one 😎
After owning 13 cars for over a span of 11 years my Srt4 has been the most reliable car I've ever owned.
These cars get a terrible reputation due to the younger community in the hay day these came out and even through the years. All because they were beat to piss. So to find one that has actually not been thrashed to hell is rare. That's why the majority of people who deal with these cars dislike them all because of their negative experience with them. Well..I mostly blame the previous owner. It's all how well a car was kept up..before it gets thrown onto the next owner.
Throughout the 30k+ plus miles that I've put on it...I've never once had a check engine light come on, nor has the car ever broke down on me or left me stranded.
I love it. And could never fathom selling it. That's why when you've had your first one and you sell it.. almost everyone regrets it immensely right after. Then buys another one down the road. It's a crazy cycle. If you know you know.
Exactly. It all comes down to the owner. I have an example. I used to own a Neon srt4. It was stage 1 and boltons. I put 70,000 miles on it and never had ONE problem. Not ONE thing needed to be replaced other than standard maintenance, which actually makes it the most reliable car I ever owned. And I didn't baby it either, but I drove it like a car is meant to be driven. Well, I ended up selling it and a few months later I see it for sale on Craigslist with a blown motor! It's not the cars fault, it's the people who buy them. People buy them, trash them, then sell them, or they buy them trashed and have a bad experience. There are good ones out there, but you're gonna pay a little more. Maybe 8-10k for a nice one imo. But I will say that this car is still the best bang for your buck.
@@dan_t Same. ON my 3rd one now. 1st one i bought brand new off showroom floor back in '04 when i was 21. I have had pretty much every little "hot" hatchback under the sun since '01. From 3 Gti's(ranging from gen4 - 6), Wrx, Mazdaspeed 3, Focus St, Fiesta St...even with those newer cars i missed my srt-4. I really had regret after a while in trading in my first one(which had 65k miles and not a single issue, think i traded it in for a Acura TL or a NISMO Frontier lol now that i really think about it, idk lol). So i decided to track down one after all these years of wanting another one. < I am just gonna skip story of my 2nd Srt-4 I purchased just 3 years ago(an '05 w/55k miles) bc it still saddens me thinking about what happened to it >.(basically it got totaled from me having to swerve off the road in trying to avoid hitting an SUV that pulled out in front of me the very last second, still so fucking pissed as they fled the scene and we never found them). Soooo i said fuck this im getting another one. I waited forrrrever to bc i wanted a REALLY clean one. Found me an 03' with 22k miles(limited slip has been installed) and absolutely no rust whatsoever, and the interior looks like brand new, clean clean. I was already half sold on the car big time too after knowing it was a California car its entire life(Rancho Cucamonga) garage kept. The pinch welds underneath are perfect, shop i go to that works on srt4s for a living told me cleanest srt-4 they've ever seen since a new one. I paid a good penny for it too (as i just got it last December and we all know how the used market has been), but idc i plan on holding on to it forever now that i got me a really nice one! I live in Jersey where we had one of the BEST shops for this car which was owned by "BOGDAN" or Dan, a friend of mine and a very awesome person. He is the owner of the "REDBULL" srt-4 you see here on ytube, it is incredibly fast srt-4 (was the fastest srt-4 on original 5pd & stock block). He used to have a highly reputable shop where he worked on and built srt-4's strictly, and Everyone would go to him. His entire lot used to be full of srt-4s it was insane. Sadly he moved back to his home country 2 summers ago now(after making his millions working on these cars for over a decade), but he still has 1,000's of parts from the simplest washer to a new engine so if you need something he is your man STILL. Luckily when it comes to a reputable shop we still have another srt-4 shop here that Bogdan is actually friends with and recommends himself, so thats great. The car really is just pure raw fun, i also have a Veloster N and i swear i have just as much fun (maybe even MORE bc i got more power in the srt-4 rn) in the SRT-4 and find myself wanting to drive it more! Another thing i honestly cant get over is how many people stop me and say something about my srt-4, its crazy, like practically EVERY time i take the car out. The Veloster? Lol very rarely ill get a "nice car man" but its rare lol(its usually only someone who knows what it exactly it is, which isnt alot lol). 9/10 when im at the gas station someone is approaching me "yoooo thats an SRT-4!?! nooo wayy duuude"... "i wanted one of these sooo bad since highschool, omg i love it". I swear i get people all the time on opposing/oncoming side of the rode that will notice my srt-4 approaching them, and will beep their horns or flash their lights as we pass by each other. Same at red lights to get my attention, ill be sitting there and here a little "beep", and when i look its always them giving me a . I love it...
@@RyGuyRy Hell yeah man! keep that super clean SRT forever! Odds are you may never find one like that again. But I definitely agree with you. This car truly is a beast. It's very raw and just crazy. It's an experience like no other car, honestly. I want to get another one too. It's funny, they always say that when you sell your SRT-4, you always end up getting another one down the road. And it's true.
@@dan_t So true, one of kind car. Good luck in finding another one. They're still out there!
Amen to that brother. You get it or you don’t.
Ive been driving mine for just over 12 years now. It was my first car and it taught me all about turbo systems, suspension systems, heel-toe shifting, basic vehicle maintenance, and above all, commitment. It was easy on me however, my 05 srt is just now needing a clutch for the first time at 135k miles as well as a respray on the roof. Dodge was notorious for having sub-par paint and clear coat back then. This car outlasted my subaru outback by two engines. I loved it so much that I bought a caliber srt4 in 2020. It is not nearly as reliable as the neon, but I must have gotten the pick of the litter since I have not had to do any major repairs outside of axles and worn suspension components and wheel bearings. I will never sell my neon as it is to this day the cleanest one I have ever seen.
I have a 400 whp stage 3 in 100% mint condition. It’s a 11k car
Went though 3 intake manifold gaskets in 45k miles on mine, axle issues, trans issues, clutch issues, paint issues, shifter issues, interior falling apart issues, boost gauge not working issues....still enjoyed it for the time I had it. Definitely one of the most unique exhaust notes. Sounds like a boat exhaust that is burbling halfway in and out of the water.
@@Jsmith9619 every car has issues like that. Mines making 400 wheel and I daily drive it. You have to take care of everything. Just like any other fast car
There's a couple really fast really clean Caliber SRT-4's around town where I live. Most of the SRT-4 Neon's are pretty rough or blown up at this point. Maybe it depends on your age or something but I've always thought they were pretty cool. They always sounded cool, I liked the stock wheel design, and when they were new they actually looked pretty nice for a few years lolz.
That's cuz u never seen my 03
Have 110k on my red 05 SRT-4. Its a fun car to cruise around town. Has always been very reliable. In all its mileage only needed a cam sensor, oil pressure sensor, power steering sensor and valve cover gasket. Never understood the unreliability reputation. But its 100% stock so maybe that's why. I recently acquired a EVO VIII and in comparison the SRT-4 is certainly just a neon with a 2.4L Turbo but, in my opinion, that's what makes it so special and fun to drive.
He has no clue lol. I like this guy but him calling them unreliable is ridiculous. I ran mine on a big turbo for years no problem.
@@SRT4Driver1988 agreed I have owned four over the years since 2008 I don't own one any longer but I never had any major issues with mine. Racked up hundreds of thousands of miles on them too. always hear about people having third gear issues with them I never had third gear issues with any of mine. They get a bad stigma for being unreliable because there are people that mod them poorly, they don't maintain them and they drive the living hell out of them
One of those cars I lusted after as a broke high school student when these came out, but also glad I never had to live with owning one. I loved the way they sounded when just coasting and downshifting almost more than they did under acceleration. Instantly recognizable and so unique, even today. If you hear one in a parking deck, you know exactly what's coming.
I don't really understand the unreliability thing. My dad has one bought new and it's certainly rusty, but has almost 250k on it.
@@isuckballsatthisgame If your dad kept up with maintenance then I'm sure it was fine, but I have to imagine most of the original owners of these skipped some things and weren't in a position to put huge money into them if it didn't mean the world to them. So like David said, if they are still around and working well they likely are big fans and it was worth the expense.
That said, it was probably recency bias because of the video, but I saw one today for the first time in ages, and immediately my eye was drawn to it lol
@@hudsonja You're pretty much correct. These were quite cheap when brand new and making them faster was cheap as well. A lot of younger drivers bought them. A friend of mine had one and while it was a pretty great tuner car, it just felt cheap (it didn't help that American car quality pretty much sucked in the 2000s, either). A lot of people bought them to go fast, modified them, and then moved on.
I don't think they were unreliable, I think people just tended not to take great care of them.
I have an 04 srt4. Clean and reliable. Stage 2 car bws turbo with turbo toys on e85 complete suspension and nothing but bottom end untouched, love it, most enjoyable car I’ve ever owned and driven. No rust in Illinois if you can believe it
What have you use for suspension. Im looking for someone a little better than stock, its my daily so it still gotta be comfortable. Was thinking the good ole bc coilovers, but im thinking for what im looking for i could find better maybe.
@@RyGuyRy daily driver stay stock
@@RyGuyRy - the stock struts and go for the prothane poly bushings all around, you can do all the work in about 2 days, then I'd say engine mount inserts, unless you are already running solid mounts, then take it in for an alignment.
I am one of the guys keeping one alive. 10 years or ownership a lot of ups and downs but there’s something about the sound and sleeperness of it that keeps me loving it.
Grats man! I've always had a soft spot for these things.
@Faded Garage I rode in one in 2005 that was pushing a little over 450whp and that car was nutty! The first car that I heard the burble exhaust note when you let off. Sad that you rarely see this out on the roads. Kudos to you for keeping it alive
I just bought a low mileage solar yellow SRT back in April this year. I was driving the other day and the car shut off and would not restart. Of course I was on the busiest road in town right next to an ice cream joint that was packed with people haha. I ended up finding the resistor box wire jiggled loose and fried the fuel pump fuse. In the meantime another SRT4 friend came to help and his car was puking coolant out of the overflow when he showed up. So we ended up having two broken SRT4's, a big audience, and we both drove away in the end. Good times lol.
Fuel capacity was, like with all Neons, 12.5 Gallons
Everything this guy says is false. Also I'm not a chrysler guy but these cars were very reliable
This guy needs to be cancelled
@@codylucier4688 cap. They was only semi reliable if you drove them like your grandmother and new born baby was on the front seat unfastened.
Back in the day when I finally found a car group to hang out and cruise with there was a black SRT-4 Neon that had that awesome sound and was fast as hell and I've loved them ever since. This was before the K series craze and B series honda turbo cars were barely pushing 400 with our budgets. That bolt on E85 SRT was a rocket that all the Mustang guys had problems with and was our hero lol I will forever love the sound and ridiculousness of that powertrain/chassis
🧢. You need to specify the mustang. I wouldn’t even race one in my 5.0 out of pitty.
It’s like an adult bullying a toddler. No point.
@Ricky lee true I beat one in a stock 96 gt easily. Soon as I hit 3rd gear I was gone. Id still like to have a neon though
2 examples of why mustang owners are constantly ridiculed... No and nope
I kinda miss my SRT4. Sold it and bought a genesis coupe not realizing that I could’ve kept the SRT and still bought the Gen🤷🏽♂️🤣😂
23.8?
Nice. Love my 3.8 Genesis coupe. Just finished installing long tube headers to complete my exhaust. Getting tuned at the end of the month. I've actually always liked the srt4 and Cobalt ss
They are nice but it's just not that reliable unless you have the funds I had a veloster did some work to it and it broke around 145,791 miles I could have got a new engine but it was gonna cost me a fortune and I downgraded hard got a yaris hatch doing some work to it don't judge don't care if it's slow but it's light and zippy unique build
Last September I had a 2011 Kia Optima with the 2.4L in it and factory dual exhaust. It was mint inside and out, paid $8k cash for it and it had only 95k on the motor. I had plans for a turbo and everything but 5 weeks after I bought it, I spun a bearing in the bottom end of the motor on my way home from work. Ended up with a 2010 civic. Not complaining but I miss the optima lol
@@Jac735 They weren't reliable because youngsters were adding WOT Boxes, wastegates and Bosst Controllers without a tune then racing the piss out of them. I have boltons with a E85 tune still on stock wastgate and turbo and it has over 175k Miles without any serious issues. Going bigger turbo also causes parts to start breaking.
I had one of these, it was my first fun car. I loved it so much and I’m still trying to find another one. Me being 17 and paying for it with my own money I tried so hard to care of it and I just wasn’t mechanically inclined at the time. I blew it up several times and we had planned for you to review it back in 2020 and it blew up for the last time. Everything that went wrong with it was easily preventable but I just didn’t know enough. I can’t wait to own another one
as an srt4 owner of 9 years id suggest joining groups targetted towards srt4 owners, i see them for sale all the time all over the us 5kish average
That's how it goes man... If I could go back in time, I'd still have a couple cars and they'd still be running lol
Love my 05 Orange Blast. Still super clean after owning for 10 years and rarely had any problems at all. The only reoccurring issue was power steering but that's long been fixed now. Considering I own a 392 Daytona charger as well, I still love driving the srt4.
Yeah I believe ya 😁 you got your srt4 as your pic and not your charger lol
The first srt line up was so legendary. Wish they would bring some of them classics back.
Had an 05 as a “winter beater” such a fun car I miss that little skittle. It felt like an evo for people who couldn’t afford an evo…and had also never driven an evo
This is funny lol
Back in 2004 I bought a new Neon SRT4 in metallic blue with the kicker subwoofer system. I had it all modded up with all the bolt ons and had a great time with it. The only thing was that I got bored of it in 9 months and sold it shortly after and upgraded to my 05 Evo 8 which I still have to this day.
I have a black 04 i got from my uncle before he died he gave it to me 2 years ago with 14k miles on it its the most fun car I've driven in a long time. I only drive it in the summer and its now sitting at 16.5k
I just bought one a few months ago and I would definitely say it’s unique. For me it holds a sentimental place as I grew up. This project though is going to take time as I’m doing a full resto-mod.
The SRT4 Neon wasn't a cash grab or a "throw darts at a board" scheme. Dodge did this in the 80's with the Shelby GLHS. Chrysler was actually the biggest turbocharged car manufacturer during that time. The SRT4 is a modern version of the old Shelby dodges and very much an improvement in almost every way.
Exactly. Dodge was manufacturing fwd turbo monsters long before Japan was even thinking about it.
I’ve owned two silver ones. Once the third gear issue is fixed the car is definitely in a league of its own. Not only because it’s always broken but also because it keeps you on your toes with what will break next. Great review.
😂😂
I recently acquired a red 04 srt4 that my friend left me when he passed, cars an absolute riot, definitely a hidden gem that I plan on keeping permanently
I own one of these. It came out when I was HS and always wanted an SRT4. They have a ton of little issues but has been pretty reliable. The most significant problem I have now is that notorious 3rd gear grind. It also likes to pop out of reverse while I'm backing up. Besides that, it is an absolute blast to drive.
Most dangerous car ever made. People crash those every time. I’m shocked you even found one. My buddy had a blue 04 and totaled it a week later. They have the Saftey of a soda can. They just crumble like nothing.
In all honesty I believe this SRT4 is the continuation of the Dodge Omni GLH. A Manual 4 cylinder front wheel drive turbo car that came from a simple 4 door beginnings. I remember test driving one of the first Dodge Neon RTs at a Dodge sponsored test track setup in the infield of Viper Days back in the day. The Neon handles well for tracking with a low center of gravity and the powerband is nothing to scoff at. This was a great video and I enjoy your channel, I look forward to seeing future videos!
Been in the car scene for a while, Did not know there was hate for this car. TONS of people love this car because of the out of box experience and price.
The maintenance schedule in the owners manual of the SRT4 neon has no mention of the headgasket needing replacement as part of regular service, in fact it looks remarkably similar to the maintenance schedule of my 7th gen civic.
I kinda miss my srt4. But not enough to get another one 🤣
I own two of them. One since 2006. So to me they are great cars. One of them is my 16 yo sons daily. If they are properly maintained and cared for they can be very reliable from my experience. They are the most hated of the sport compact world but I think they are best cars ever.
Your son must be pretty cool, I always wanted to drive something cool when I was in Highschool! I didnt.
Nothing to hate on aside from mediocre things these kids think there are.
I am not a fan of domestics much but always had a soft spot for these cars, they're a blast to drive. Kudos to you on sharing one with your son, that's awesome.
I'm not sure where you got your info but no where in the factory service manual does it say replace the head gasket at 60,000 miles....
Seats also not exactly viper seats, but viper-inspired.
Most of the torque steer is due to the rubber LCA bushings and factory motor mounts.
Always loved the sound on these. All I remember about them is how (at the time), ludicrously fast they were for their cheap price LMAO
I daily drive a NSRT4 with 160,000 miles on the clock. Only issue I had was wheel bearing failure, broken dashboard and faded paint. I purchased this car brand new in 2006 and have tracked, autocrossed and drag raced this car, so I do take care of it with general maintenance. Still on the factory clutch, too. My NSRT4 is an August 2005 build date.
Love this usdm beast.
Every brand should have this class vehicle and an awd variant AT THE SAME TIME. 1.8-2.0 i4 turbo micro sedan/ wagon/hatch.
yeah too bad we got shitty dart rallye with 1.4 turbo that has no balls
@@Tyler-si2rj and crossovers…
lol wats wrong with the Dart ? it looks nice but sure engine is smaller but so what, not like you cant crank up the displacement or anything
stop being lazy and look at the big picture
@@AnthroGearhead I worked at a Chrysler back in 2014-2015, all of us called them dodge dirts for a reason lol.
@@Tyler-si2rj but i like the styling of it :(
The Neon SRT-4 was hated by people driving other sports compacts that were slower. "But in the end you are still just driving a Neon" was code for "I paid more for my car because of model/brand image and need to promote that same myth to justify my purchase even though your car is a far better performance value."
I remember back in about 2012, I would go up to the weekly car meets at staples. There was always an orange blast srt4 that would show up that had a cf hood, bigger down pipe, and straight piped. All you could hear was the turbo spool and the bov. Ever since then, I have always wanted one myself. Even now I would almost take one over my focus st lol.
Will forever have a soft spot for it and still have a fully running one in the garage that has been no harder to maintain than any other vehicle I've owned. I had a few buddies that had them too over the years. It's definitely an experience that stands out and sticks with you
I own both, the Neon SRT4 and the Caliber SRT4. The neon is more "raw" and the caliber is more "classy" I love both and I bought both new.
same here , still have both
now get the pt gt
@@Theeeeea No thanks, I think the PT cruiser is one of the worst looking cars ever made. I know there are some faster ones out there but not for me.
@@daryltrail9872 lol Ik I’m joking, but my brother has a sleeper pt, and it is super ugly but every single person that hears his cars loves it
I just got a pt dream cruiser 3 with the 2.4 turbo in it for $750.. I couldn’t pass it up for that price even if they are butt ugly 🤣
PLEASE DO THE CALIBER SRT4 TOO!!
I was going to say the samething They discontinued the neon and after that they made the caliber srt4
As an SRT-4 owner... YES! They're extremely unreliable. But they're still a total blast! I love mine!
Pound for pound one if the hardest punching cars back on the day. I would gap ws6"s on a 30 roll with Mopar stg 1 and wastewater actuator 21lbs of peak tapering to 15lbs. Only got rid of it because needed a quieter car with my preggo wife.
I respect the Neon. One of the first cars to ever blow my doors off on the highway. Although I had a bad turbo and a bad boost leak on my car at the time but it would have still probably beaten it anyway. The power delivery of the SRT4 always reminded me of what a Volvo turbo motor would have been like in a super light cheap car.
I absolutely love mine! Full bolt on, fuel system, 110 octane, methanol injection, intercooler sprayers, and 28psi of boost. Just can't beat the driving experience for the price.
It’s an unpopular opinion but I loved the sport compact era in the mid to late 2000s the RSX Type S and Cobalt SS T/C were my favorites. I miss going to the races at night watching people with these cars get into it with the Camaros and Mustangs. The car scene was so much better back than.
I lived through that time also, but dang man these new Mustangs and Subarus, type Rs and stuff are really a whole lot more car than back then. I remember thinging breaking into the 13s in the 1/4 was serious speed. A few year old Mustang GT with the 10 speed auto will run dang near into the 11s now with some better tires. Crazy. 11s were like full stick axle drag cars back then.
With the price of gas and a governmental push away from fossil fuels, expect to see cars shrink in coming years, and see more 4-cyls running around. It happened following the 70s oil embargos, and the oil price surge in the late 90s.
Some really weird comments in this video.. change the head gasket at 60k is just not in the manual, and it was made such a big point in the video. In fact, change the head gasket is not in the manual's maintenance schedule at all. In reality these cars require the same normal maintenance that any other car does. Unfortunately these were simply "too cheap" and ended up in the hands of a lot of negligent owners.
I appreciate the car, I really wish auto makers would make tuner cars more like this.
My e-blue SRT4 was by far the most reliable vehicle I’ve owned. Outside of routine maintenance, I never had a single problem and beat the hell out of it. You treat it well, it’ll treat you well. Not to mention, they have one of the best exhaust notes. The turbo Cobalt SS is another gem that’s a ton of fun.
I've owned one a few years ago and loved it. It was actually pretty reliable lol. BTW You should review a Caliber SRT
My 2004 srt4 was my favorite car. That time period, early 20s, in the army, had an srt4,red and the sunroof. If you've ever had one, you will forever turn and look when you hear that exhaust. You know when you hear one.
I had 2 of them , I miss mine . Very underrated . Whip a lot of ass with mine and had very little problems out of them . Had over a 100k miles on 1 of them and had ZERO problems out of it other than a Clutch and a couple of vacuum leaks .
I bought a yellow one August 28, 2003, with 32 test drive miles on it, had 7 the first time i test drove it. Love it, still have it today.
People pick on the srt4s reliability. Nobody talks about the piles and piles of blown up Subaru engines.
Aye watch ya mouth dawg ! 😂
I had 2 srt4’s never had any issues with either of them. The main issue with them were the drivers who had no idea how to handle them. Or the email tunes that were made for them.
They could make an insane amount of power for cheap. The gate on this car was crazy but…….
It’s a neon when someone rolls up on it, it’s a srt when they lost
I'm glad to say I made it back home after this one.
Lmco
A miracle lol
Told you not to let off in the corners. LMAO
As you would in most SRT4s. You are wrong about the reliability.
Now that you're home, go look up the free pdf version of the owners manual and then do the right thing and edit your video to correct your inaccuracies
had a blue 2004 srt 4 , no problems . I am not a teenager . fun little car .
Fun fact: There’s a pt cruiser with the same 2.4 turbo engine, and yes it is quite tuneable.
my brother has one, at our shitty meets its almost the coolest car there every time lmao
Yeah but it was gay and slow top speed of 120 and 0-60 in 7.5 lol my srt will do 0-60 in 4.9
@@Skullman7487 It's true the SRT-4 is better but costs way more now a days. The PT Cruiser GT I have was $500 and is a 5-speed manual. Best sleeper there is. The PT was down tuned only making 9psi stock but if you just get the Diablo sport tuner it will up the boost to around 17psi and will remove that 120mph speed limiter. Just like that mine ran a 14.1@101mph on the 1/4mile spinning on skinny 15" tires. Gets a lot of hate but once you do a couple simple/cheap mods, STI owners get really confused why they lost to a Granny PT Cruiser
@@wolfemancola lol a stock sti does 13s but not for long. They are junk. I'm tired of my car. Gave it to my girl. Freaking money pit. I'm ready to upgrade to a big boy toy. Srt challenger hellcat
@@Skullman7487 yeah you're right, a stock STI will do 13's because of the awd but from a roll they are not as fast. Depends on the year, and nice
I really enjoyed my 04 SRT-4.
Had a 2005 ACR edition in red making 300whp, ran mid 12's for me but was probably quicker. Broke many axles at the track and a intermediate shaft doing flatfoot shifts but other than that loved it.
I just saw another user saying he did 450 track days since 03, stock engine, 460hp, ran ~11.3s says he never snapped a driveshaft. I'm normally pretty generous in my belief with car guys, cuz.. my tribe but he then said those runs were on 10" radial slicks🤔🤔🤨🤨
He is one lucky guy if that's true.
@@realMaverickBuckley wheelhop kills most of the axles.
Daily drove one with a 50trim on it for 2 years and loved every minute of it. So many funny moments in that car, easily gave me and my friends the most smiles per gallon of any vehicle I've ever owned. I still miss both of the SRTs I've owned to this day and I'm actually looking to get into another one. They're addicting, and theres nothing out there like them.
Srt4s are a super cool little car but it seems like they are dying off probably because people give up on them after a while. I own a cobalt SS s/c and have had my run ins with some I’ve beat some and lost to some. They are definitely cool and I’ve honestly wanted to ride in one because of the nature of turbo cars and how they create power.
Changing your head gasket every 60k was for the single slammer N/A dodge neon engine, brother. The 2.4 liter SRT-4 engine often lasted up to 250k pretty easily..
I like his videos, but he's definitely not correct with his information on quite a few platforms. He may know his own platforms well, but others he uses the interwebs
I can't even recall the last time I saw one of these on the road, if I had to guess I'd say like 2013. They sound great but just like other Mopar/ DSM tuners, talon, stealth etc they all end up in the junkyard.
Not mine!
Not mine either lol I detail that bad boy every month
I own two that are still on the road. You gotta remember there was only ~24,000 total made from 03-05. With the fact they were so cheap and young tuners wanted them they weren’t properly maintained or correctly modded. So they ended up trashed!
Not mine either lol
As someone who has driven only RWD sports cars for the past decade, I can still appreciate the Neon SRT4 for what it was, especially when it came out when I was a teen in the 2000s. Utilitarian, easily modified, and most of all when compared to similar sized cars.....FAST.
I was going to buy one when they came out because they were pretty cheap for what you were getting. I test drove it and the way the shifter felt was such a big turn off, but I do have a soft spot for them Lol
I bought one of these brand new in 2004. I sold it 10 years later with 120k miles on it, still on stock clutch. Had just bolt ons intake, Intercooler, turboback exhaust. This car was truly awesome for the time because dodge gave us what all the tuners were doing to honda civics at the time from the factory. I only had a couple of sensors go bad in the car, and it ate spark plugs very frequently to the point where it would misfire. I also never had the third gear grind everyone talks about. But other than that, this car was one of the quickest cars on the road at the time and I loved every second of it.
They have so much character. I’d never get rid of mine. The tough part about these cars is finding parts and aftermarket support.
Actually Chrysler had been doing this stuff all the way back in the early 80’s with all the turbo 2.2’s charger,Omni,Daytona,spirit and others
Those loved to eat head gaskets too
Sold my srt4 for a 2nd gen speed 3. Still miss it every single day. Most fun I've had in a car, not to mention the exhaust note alone is brutally awesome.
I found the Speed3 does sound similar with exhaust and intake mods.
@@JustcallmeGnarly22 eh, I've done some extensive work to mine. Don't get me wrong, it sounds great. Speeds have one of the best exhaust notes. It's just not the same, especially on a stock mani srt4
I went from a SRT-4 to Speed3 as well. Both insanely fun cars cuz they’re kinda bonkers.
Love the neon srt4 fast fun reliable and hold 500 hp + stock motor
Been in one a long time ago in a 2005 model
Okay kind of reliable depends on the maintenance
Unreliable is not the word I'd use, but what do I know? I've only been driving one of these things since 2005 at power levels far above stock numbers. If you don't know what you are doing and you are beating the crap out of it at the track as well as doing clutch dumps everywhere, I guess you could get yourself into situations. I pretty much only broke at the track until I got above 500whp, then it was axles...so my current build is right at 400whp and it's a stone cold reliable, starts every time, ac&heat, daily beater car.
I own a srt4 and I love the little car great job on the videos
My friend Dan bought one brand new, the dealership wouldn’t let him test drive it. He just sold it a few years back. He modified it mostly for autocross, for awhile it made 350 ft lbs of torque. One of my top two favorite FWD cars to drive. He has a ND Miata now
Wow, where does one even begin to respond to the utter ignorance of this video.
1 - the car was NOT unreliable. That’s a completely incorrect statement not based in reality. From day one there were a host of people who tried to make this claim, and they were one by one proven wrong. It’s astonishing that 19 years later someone new tries to say the same thing. The vast majority of SRT4s not on the road ended up wrecked. That’s not a reliability issue. And no one who has a nice SRT4 is going to let someone like you drive one.
2 - the user manual did not have an “insane amount of maintenance”, you are talking about the SERVICE booklet, not the user manual, and the service booklet had two different sections, one for normal driving conditions, one for extreme. Obviously, most people would use the extreme, and even there, the “maintenance” you speak of rivals any turbo sports car. Have you ever seen a force inducted Porsche manual, or worse, ANY Ferrari? “Those are super cars” You may want to take a look at an EVO or STI service manual then, because you obviously have no idea what you are talking about.
3 - “the turbo is so loud” that’s because you are in a heavily modified SRT4 that’s had the crap beat out of it. See that cold air intake, the aftermarket exhaust? That causes the spool up on the turbo to be extremely noisy.
4 - The owner of an obviously heavily beat on SRT4 who runs it at a road course “all the time” finds it unreliable? Versus what 19 year old turbo car that would be reliable when it’s been beat on that hard?
5 - Pushing 11 lbs of boost??? But claiming 300 horsepower? NOT POSSIBLE! Not even remotely. STOCK off the showroom floor the SRT4 pushed 15 lbs of boost and 225 WHEEL horsepower (245 is the likely engine horsepower). 11 lbs would put that significantly lower. Did you even research before you did this video?
6 - They made the car for 3 years, that did NOT include research and development, as you claim. The car started development in late 1998 and continued on until 2003 when they were first released to the public, through 2005. The interior is unchanged from 1999, except seats, boost gauge, shifter, and instrument cluster. That is one way they kept the price under 20,000.
7 - NOTHING in the manual says to change the head gasket at 60,000 miles, you are flat out LYING. At 60k miles, you change engine oil and oil filter, check brakes, replace engine air filter, replace spark plugs and wires, inspect tie rod ends and boot seals, inspect PVC valve and replace if necessary (typical on turbos due to blow by) replace make-up air filter, adjust generator drive belt tension (as needed). There is NOTHING about the head gasket, that’s a load of rubbish!
8 - The seats in the car did NOT come from the dodge viper, the bolster style seats were a one off style used only in the SRT4, “styled after the Viper”, not from the Viper. There were three different seats used in the SRT-4: bolster, SRS, and ACR specific. None came directly from the Viper. The SRS was shared with several other models.
9 - You are going to find more “torque steer” by far in a yellow SRT4, because that’s a 2003, and they did not have a limited slip differential. In the 2004 and 2005, they came standard with a quaife LSD.
10 - UGH, you claim to have read the owners manual, but you say “8 gallon fuel tank”. WRONG, the car has a 12.5 gallon fuel tank. How do you not do your research???
11 - Yellow is not a rare color. In 2003 there were black, silver, red, and yellow SRT4s. There were more yellow built than any other color in 2003.
12 - If you had done your research you would know the weak link was the transmission, but you never even brought it up.
When the Neon SRT4 was released, it was faster than the S2000, 350Z, WRX, Ford Mustang GT, and a host of other vehicles in 2003. 19 years later, I’m wondering just how many 2003 versions of the above cars you are going to find in tip top shape out there? It’s disturbing just how inaccurate your video was. You should have had someone who knows the car go over it with you before you posted this.
Thank you for your complete, TRUTHFUL, and actual fact based write up. This dude spoke with someone's uncles neighbor who was drunk to get his info
I enjoyed his video but was shaking my head at some of the comments he made. You basically covered everything I was thinking. I own a white ‘05 since new with 65-k miles. It’s been a pretty reliable car for the most part. I’m 53 years old and have owned many cars. My SRT is only car I haven’t been able to part ways with. It’s got a special place in my heart. Thanks for defending her honor!
@@jamessiddle572 😆😆
Totally!! Neon SRT-4 is a beast!
During my RX7 days the Neon-SRT was something to consider!....
Being a young man during the 90s I was definitely surprised when a co-worker showed up with this machine.
What an awesome Video!
Thank you for the step back in time.
Remwmber one thing!
YOU are a winner!!!
I’ll have to read my owners manual. I never realized the 60k head gasket. I’m wondering if you might be thinking of the valve cover gasket.
60,000 mile service doesn’t call for a head gasket. Sounds like David is getting his information from “anonymous” sources.
It doesn't say that, no idea where he got half the nonsense he is saying.
He was talking out of his ass on that as an 04 SRT4 owner, that isn't in the suggested maintenance
Love the srt 4!! Super under rated! Srt 4 neon is a beast!! Would keep up and beat the best of them! One of the most under rated cars of all time.
I love the srt4. I was originally looking at cars like the EVO/STI/Civic Si when I got mine. Nothing beat the bang for buck the srt4 had. Yeah it's not as good of a platform as an evo but it was also 1/3 of the price and could rival the EVO in speed. The civic si (fa5) was cool but was slow out of the box and needed alot more modification to compete with a stockish srt4. The Srt4 has one of the best sounding exhaust notes I've heard from a 4 cylinder. Lots of snap crackles and pops. Loud turbo and bov. These cars are also unique which was important to me because I like to be different. The amount of hate these cars get was icing on the cake. And overall they are just fun cars to drive especially for the money. That is when they are running 🤣...
The SRT-4 gas tank is 12.5 gallons, not 8. IDK why he says it's 8 gallons. I used to own a 2004. I bracket raced it at NHRA and IRHA tracks, plus it was my everyday driver. I snapped 3 or 4 half shafts in the burnout box.
Thanks. Guess my fuel gauge is off. When pegged out on E, it has taken at most 7.8 gallons. Glad to know I got 4 more gallons after the gauge is pegged out on E.
Had a yellow srt4 with the mopar stage 1. Was a blast to drive especially after adding a manual 2 stage boost controller. Wheel hop was not fun but stiffening the engine Mount helped a little. Bought it as soon as it hit the lot and rarely saw one on the road.
Still have mine, purchased new in 2004 in Metalic Blue. Used it in Autocross until a life change. Currently has less than 2000 miles on it. Never seen a winter road.
My son had an SRT4 for a couple years. He installed a stage 3 Mopar kit (larger turbo, modified ECU, and some other goodies) that Dodge offered and that kept most of the warranty intact. That plus a pair of slicks was good enough for an 11.88 quarter mile on a so-so prepped strip. (I think he still has the time slip.) That thing was a little beast. You had to be very careful with throttle application on street tires or you would break traction in any of the first four gears. Great car.
12 gallon fuel tank
2003 were yellow with no LSD and less HP.
Theirs nothing in the owners manual about changing the head gasket as maintenance. More BS folklore spread by mustang and WRX owners who are still butt hurt about getting gapped by a neon. Probably still going to circle jerk meetings crying.
It’s unfortunate you young guys only get to experience these cars after they are used up. I’ve had my 2004 16 years and never had any issues. I currently have 88k on it with mopar stage one. Everything all original.
My little neon will still stomp the majority of new performance cars. Not bad for the 16k I spent getting it used.
I'm a hardcore muscle car/v8 red blooded American but I will admit that the fastest car I've ever personally driven is a SRT4 making about 500 to the wheel. Damn near impossible to hold it on the road and mak it go straight but it was fast doing it
did the srt-4 come with a lsd or open diff?
Never had one, but always loved them! When everyone was tuning those, I had a twincharged Probe GT, so only the quickest srt4's were keeping up. If I would have ever owned one, I'd probably love them even more!
They're super fun. Especially with a nice sounding turbo and exhaust. Super iconic.
Ahhh another probe guy! have 90’ probe 2.2 n/a that i would give anything to have up and running. (Been sitting for 15+ years)
@@jeremyvelez7544 Damn! 15 years! I have probably owned 10 or so Probes and MX6's. I love the 2nd Gen Probe and the First gen MX6. I actually have a 96PGT right now that I plan to give to my daughter in 3 years.
I wanted one so badly like 22 years ago.
To think that long before the 800+ HP Hellcat powered monsters and the V10 Vipers and SRT-10s that we know today, SRT’s very first car was turbocharged FWD 4-banger.
Srt group was around 15 years prior to that they just changed their name to srt in 2004. They started when they was designing the viper late 80s.
Fun Fact: The decals on that car were inspired by Twisted Metal video game. When Eddie (owner) said he named it Twisted Axle … I immediately thought of the character Axel and that game. The car is a real personality and the owner is just as fun and interesting.
There is also Saturn ion redline, came out in 2004-2007. They are very reliable. You should do a review if you find one.
Very true they used the lsj like the 05-07 cobalt ss my wife had an 07 ss lsj we sold it with 210xxx miles original motor and transmission. And I promise I was not easy on that car haha.
I rode in a 400hp srt4 back in 2010. That was my first time experiencing torque steer lol. It scared the shit out of me but was awesome at the same time.
I always thought they were super cool, as well as the PT Cruiser GT (because of it being the sleeper version of the SRT-4), and yeah, bone stock they would outgun just about every stock JDM compact. Like you said, the Cobalt SS took up the mantle when these cars weren't being built anymore (or people would put a Jackson Racing supercharger on their SVT Focus), and I think these cars still have street cred even to this day.
You mean JRSC on old SVT focus?
Don't forget the Saturn Ion Redline supercharged was a sleeper too! It could keep up with Evos stock for stock!
@@nastystew6942 yep, didn't forget those, or the Saturn Sky Redline/Pontiac Solstice GXP (which my dad wants actually). This was the same era that Dodge brought back the Charger, the Magnum, the Chrysler 300, and GM made some sleeper mid to full sized cars like the Pontiac Grand Prix GXP, Chevrolet Impala SS, Buick Regal GS, Oldsmobile Aurora (Northstar V8 model), and also the euro-slaying Cadillac CTS-V...
@@nastystew6942 that's just a rebranded 05-07 cobalt ss with less aftermarket parts and tuning.
@@theejoeylee yep, I meant the SVT, so nice save. A buddy of mine had one with a smaller pulley, and a couple of tweaks, and it could incinerate the tires 1st through 3rd, uphill...he had to get custom Chromoly Steel driveshafts made for the car, and a quaife LSD to handle the torque...
Graduated in 06’. A blue one of these was my realistic dream car outta HS. Still love em.
This pandemic (lockdown) has taught so many people the importance of having multiple streams of income ,unfortunately having a job doesn’t seem to guarantee total financial stability rather having a different investment is the real deal.
Scammers
i made so much money through the pandemic servicing truck drivers at rest stops.... so much in fact i started a business