2016 – 2019 Dodge Neon: What’s In a Name Anyway?

2018 Dodge Neon SXT-A (Mexico)

The recent GM announcement about retiring 6 slow selling sedans was inevitable considering how the standard sedan is seige in a marketplace that’s more interested in the next iPhone than any car. Many now think of cars as mere appliances to be rented or hired as needed.

Still, on the bottom end of the market, the entry level car still thrives when it’s well built and offers considerable value. As the well of available cars dwindles down to market leaders from Honda, Toyota and the Hyundai Group, it makes you wonder if trends will ever swing back to the good olde three box passenger car in a variety of sizes.

Chrysler was one of the first of the Big Three to jettison it’s small car offering in America. The Dart had potential, just like the 200 after it, but both ultimately lagged behind the competition in refinement and sales.

Chrysler compacts since 1995

Which brings us to oddly to a new Neon.

The old Neon was great car when first introduced back in 1994. It’s design was fresh and innovative and it’s packaging made it uncommonly roomy for an American small car while being fun to drive. Over time Chrysler updated the Neon through two generations, but not at a pace that kept up with the competition. The story of the Neon played out much like that of the many American cars of the era; they tended to lag behind imports to the point that discontinuing them or using re-branded captive imports was easier than trying to compete directly with home grown products. Unions also hampered car companies, making it harder to discontinue poor selling lines, thus pouring salt into wounds.

To Chrysler’s credit, it tried more than once with the Neon’s replacement. The Caliber was simply a disappointment to many. While the Dart was not as innovative as the initial Neon, it was at least attractive and sometimes comfortable. Unfortunately, despite its good looks and acceptable performance, it lagged in other factors (mostly perceptual) and was relegated to second rate status almost as quickly as it was introduced. Had the Dart arrived 5 years earlier, it might have been a class leader, but these were strange times in the world of compact cars.

For a hot moment, the smaller car market in the U.S. was fiercely competitive, leading to jumps in quality and in varying degrees technology. The Fiat based Dart simply could not match its suddenly hot competition. The Dart only lasted a few years and was axed along with it’s step up companion the Chrysler 200. It became clear that the Neon or Dart name might not appear again in America.

Fiat Tipo Sedan

Like the Escort and Cavalier, the Neon reappeared, but this time in Dodge’s 2016 Middle Eastern and Mexican lineups. Like a class reunion of old friends who could not agree where to meet, these old names were never destined to meet in the U.S. market again.

The Dart or Neon names mean little in the Middle East. In Mexico, there is likely someone who remembers the ’90s Neon or the ’60s Dart and was happy to see one of them come back. They must have been disappointed to know that the new Neon had nothing to do with the storied car of old, but instead started life as a Turkish-built Fiat Tipo sedan. The Tipo is immensely popular in Southern Europe and the Mediterranean and seemed well suited for emerging car markets like China.

One of the Neon’s surprising features is a large trunk

Perhaps we in America are spoiled, because the Neon is the largest sedan sold by Dodge in Mexico (its a step up from the hilariously funny looking Attitude and View subcompacts).

There was even talk a few years ago of bringing the Neon to America as a Dart replacement – which would have be disastrous being that the new Neon is not as attractive or as capable as the outgoing Dart. For instance, the 110 hp 1.6L four cylinder equipped sedan is slightly smaller than the Dart and by comparison offers basic SOHC technology. Things like rain sensing wipers and driver selectable variable assist electric steering are nice standard features that might give the Neon a leg up on other low price cars like the Nissan Versa, but not value leaders like the Kia Rio.

Interior of 2017 Dodge Neon SXT-Plus

To the Neon’s credit, it does have all the modern digital connectivity options that buyers expect like Bluetooth, handsfree technologies as well as a sweet 8.4 inch touchscreen infotainment interface. The screen alone might be a selling point for many who care less about driving vs. in car entertainment options. For about $15k or so dollars, it’s almost as compelling as a Nissan Versa.

2017 Dodge Neon with 6 Speed Automatic Transmission

The Neon might have two potential hurdles in the unlikely event it arrive in the U.S. The first are it’s looks. They are sure to put off fans of the Dart and original Neon. The other might be it’s overall performance. A small sedan can be difficult to nail the proportions correctly and the Neon has it almost right. The Mazda 2/Toyota Yaris sedan would be the current benchmark of how to do a small sedan right. The compacted shape of the Neon constraints some areas like the front overhang to the point of making the car appear cartoon-like. The Who from Whoville feel is more pronounced on the base SE with it’s tiny looking 15′ wheels. Even with the larger 17′ wheels of the top trim SXT Plus, the Neon can look pedestrian from some angles.

2018 Dodge Neon SXT Plus

The rear is perhaps the cars best feature with an upscale tail light treatment with a tasteful chrome strip running across the trunk. Some versions even have chrome door handles. Chrysler has some of the world’s best designers and did their best to make the Tipo look like a Dodge, but I wonder if they could have done better if they were not blinded by the burnouts of Hellcats and Demons.

As for performance, while no would buy the Neon expecting it to be a sleeper street racer. As a small car with around 100  to 110 hp, you’d expect it to get more than 40 miles to the gallon. As spec’d in Mexico with a 6 speed auto only achieves 36 mpg on the highway. To put that in perspective, a Honda Civic LX with 158 hp is rated for 38 highway mpg. Other cars in the segment easily top 40. This disadvantage would likely be compensated for with heavy discounts for the Neon to work in America.

If Chrysler was really serious about bringing this car to America, they must have concluded that the name would have been wrong. The Neon’s reputation towards the end may not have been not steller, but it did have a positive overall legacy. Using that name on a car that’s neither cute or overly capable would put the name in the grave for at least a generation or two. After all there are still a sizable number of Neon enthusiasts (some of whom bought the Dart). Besides the Neon fits Dodge’s current line up about as well as a tree hugging hybrid would.

2018 Dodge Neon (Mexico)

Dodge has decided to stick to selling highly profitable V8 powered muscle cars and house towing trucks. It’s an odd and bravely defiant strategy being that everyone is running to electrification. For Dodge, its current strategy seems to be working (for now). It’s been said that auto industry product planners typically try to look 5 to 6 years into the future when justifying new products. With that in mind, maybe they project that buyers with more digital connectivity than cash just might see the new Neon as a cost effective long-term alternative to ride sharing services. Perhaps now would be a great time to bring Plymouth back.

2016 Dodge Neon STX Plus