2000 Dodge Neon

I had a 1998 Nissan Maxima,(which I named Cheryl) that I bought used with 28,000 miles on it. After one year, I had over 54,000 miles on it. I decided it was time to trade in my beloved Cheryl, and seek out a new driving friend. Of course Cheryl was a 195 horsepower speed demon, but she couldn't control herself around those turns. I wanted to downsize just a little bit, for the sake of handling, and knew, ultimately that I would have to sacrifice the power, for the handling, and stability.

I originally wanted a Honda Civic or a Ford Focus. I didn't even consider a Dodge Neon until I started looking online, at all the after-market parts and accessories. I went to test drive the Civic, and yuk. Without changing the exhaust or adding a cold air intake the car was practically anemic. And generic. Boring!!

And then I went to my friendly Ford dealer, who promptly tried to rip me off, (being female, that happens from time to time-) with the shoddy, space deprived Focus. It was odd, but nonetheless interesting. I would have had to pay extra for the better engine, no sunroof was available, and both of my daughters hated it. So, we decided to check out the Neon. My younger daughter, Jacey, (she's 11) loved the Neon. We settled on a Sliver, 2000 ES Highline sedan, WITH a sunroof-fully loaded at a lean little price of $15,200 including tax. After trading in Cheryl, I paid $4,200 for my new friend, Sylvia.

Sylvia is a great little car- after I drove it, I had to have her. She has a 4-cd changer in dash, a cassette and AM/FM stereo, with 6 speakers, that actually suffice until one can afford a system, or a kicker, or whatever kind of aftermarket sound system you want to add. The stereo isn't bad for stock, on an American car!!! The gauge faces are white, and look totally cool. There is carbon-fiber trim around the shift knob and the stereo. It looks awesome. The seats are comfortable, sport buckets in front, and enough room for three kids, or two adults and a kid in the rear seat. The rear seats fold down, which makes driving home stuff from IKEA a lot easier!! I got the aluminum 15 inch wheels, and they are really hot looking!

So, as far as looks and functionality are concerned, I love this car. Aftermarket, I had the windows tinted, 20% in the rear, 35% in the front, and added titanium blue chromies, and a titanium blue exhaust pipe tip, (until i can afford the cat-back exhaust), as well as a Badtz-Maru emblem on the rear window, in silver, and vent-visor side window visors. Also replaced the interior lighting with hyper-white lights. She is a beauty, my Sylvia.

When the kids first rode in the back seat, they said, Cheryl was much more comfortable in terms of feeling bumps-, and I explained that the Maxima was more of a family car, and this was a fun, sporty compact car. There is a difference in the ride. As far as driving it- I love it- it corners like its on rails, I never hear a squeal or a slip.

The car has 132 hp, which of course can't compare to the Maxima, but it really is peppy- I mean I drove home from Seaside last week, doing 90 on the Garden State Parkway the whole way home. I didn't feel it- no unsteady feeling, no steering wheel quake- a nice ride. Brakes nice, and even, and really can't complain one bit about the ride. I have to say, I have not had one regret in 2 months so far about buying this car. Like, you know, I wish this car had..... None of that yet.

The interior of the car is very comfortable, and convenient. It has four cupholders. FOUR!!!! Imagine, this bottled water chuggin, coffee slugging Jersey girl needs somewhere to store the Starbuck*s. (hee hee) I love that about this car. Believe it or not, I refused to buy a Jetta because the cupholders were almost an afterthought!! Not in the Neon; nice, deep, considerately placed molded in cupholders. And in the center console, an extra big one, that holds a mug, a REAL mug, or a LARGE Iced Coffee from Dunkin Donuts- (black, two sugars). In the center armrest, there is room for my CD's and if you flip up the lid, it has a molded in cupholder for the rear passenger! My daughter Jacey loves that- no more, 'Mommy put this in the front please'- ahhhh.

The sunroof tilts up, and then if you want you can open it up. nice for those brisk Jersey autumn days, and cool summer nights. The air conditioning works very well, I had no complaints all summer! Lighted vanity mirrors on both the driver's and passenger sides. And the Oh Sh*t handles in the rear, made Jacey very happy. As well as the map pockets on the backs of the front seats to hold a copy of Harry Potter for the road. The side pockets on the front doors are deep, and great for holding my extra stuff! My older daughter Kayla, appreciates the adjustable shoulder height on the seatbelt in the front, as well as the 2nd generation air-bag which is supposed to eject less forcefully. I think Kayla's favorite part is the CD player. I love the fact that it ISN'T in the trunk, so I can change all 4 cd's without having to pull over off the highway to do it! The cruise control feature is also considerately placed; easily operated without having to look down.

The only negative, odd, weird thing about this car, is that the rear windows are manually operated!! Although the front windows are power, the rear are not. I guess maybe this is a safety feature of some sort, but- its only slightly annoying when one of the kids leaves the window open. The second thing, is that- well it's not WRONG, per se, but I can't use the panic alarm to find my car at the mall. I like to be able to press the red button, and wait to hear the friendly beeping, like Cheryl used to do- ("here I am, mommy!!") but with this car, you have to be right on top of it for it to reach- so you can;t loc your door from too far away, or without being in DIRECT range. Just a peeve, not an actual problem.

All in all, I have to say, I really LOVE this car!! i read some bad reviews on this website, and realized that they weren't for a 2000 neon, but the older models. This model looks, feels, and acts, a LOT different. Test drive one, if you are interested in a smaller more fuel efficient vehicle, at a good price. You will probably love it, as much as I do. I recommend it fully loaded, as the amenities really add very little to the price. All I really want now, are a new exhaust, clear side marker lights, meatball tail lights, and lowering springs. Then she will be perfect. But hey- that's just me- it is a phat car- just the way it is.

THe only thing I didn't get for this car, as an option, was the smoker's package and the ABS brakes. It's a personal thing, as I have read many times that with ABS, there have been more accidents, as the brakes are not used properly by most people. I felt more comfortable using the brakes I was familiar with.