I was reading the most in depth article yet on this car last night from the new Sport Compact mag I just got. They tested this thing to run a 14.2@99.5mph stock! It put down 223hp and 250 lb ft. to the wheels on the dyno!



Now I especially have always steered clear of domestic cars but this is a deal if you just want a fast street car (or even weekend drag car). Dodge put the money into making it fast, not giving it much amenities inside and its not THAT great in the corners according to the test...

Im sure some jackass is going to say how much of a FC/FD you can build for $20,000, and lose the whole point of your post, lol

i was gonna but forget it now. you said the new issue of scc? car auto/manual? i just read a lot of the mustangs at the track are auto because of the torque converters? true?

i was gonna but forget it now. you said the new issue of scc? car auto/manual? i just read a lot of the mustangs at the track are auto because of the torque converters? true?[/quote]

Alot of the cars are auto because they can use a powerglide tranny, it only has 2 speeds.

And with the proper converter for the weight of the car and the camshaft in the motor the car launches like a bat out of hell.

i was gonna but forget it now. you said the new issue of scc? car auto/manual? i just read a lot of the mustangs at the track are auto because of the torque converters? true?[/quote]

Alot of the cars are auto because they can use a powerglide tranny, it only has 2 speeds.

And with the proper converter for the weight of the car and the camshaft in the motor the car launches like a bat out of hell.[/quote]

yeah, i never knew that

still.. automatics are no fun, you lose that sense of control and in essense lose the sence of becoming the car. Which everyone knows is a necessity for any sports car.

i was gonna but forget it now. you said the new issue of scc? car auto/manual? i just read a lot of the mustangs at the track are auto because of the torque converters? true?[/quote]

This Neon is manual with a close ratio gearbox but no LSD. They frowned on the lack of LSD which is noticeable more in the turns than anything. Surprisingly for a FWD with this much torque, it still had decent 60' and 0-60 times.

It's a 2.4 turbo 4 running 15psi off of a 16G Mitsu turbo from the factory.....

Yeah but did they fix the wheel hop problem that Neons have? My base model 95 with an auto will wheel hop if that gives you an idea........

They didn't mention any wheel hop and the suspension and halfshafts are beefed up to handle all the torque. Also, it has some "new" camber plate that keeps the front wheels very straight up and down during launch for increased traction to combat the lack of LSD....

Heard of the Dodge Razor concept?? Supposed to get a Turbo 4 cyl. , 6 speed tranny and 250 HP did I mention rear wheel drive and it supposed to weight 2800 lbs. HMMM I think I might want this over an RX-8. Add a boost controler and exhaust and it will be one fast mofo.



Dodge always comes up with some cool cars. I hope this one gets to the streets.



BTW - I like that Neon a lot!! I am just keeping my fingers crossed for the Razor.

thats a grip for a stock car, wonder how long till it breaks.

lol @ rob too

Unfortunately all Dodge vehicles look like they were designed by my grandmother. Including the new Viper. (Not the old Viper though, that thing looked sweet!)



New Razor concept looks kind of cool actually, but you know when/if it gets created it will look like an Avenger or something. It's just not in their nature...

I just read 2 write-ups on this car, Mazda once again has dropped the ball. You may not like the Neon or not, I for one am not a fan of them, but it offers alot more for the money then the Mazda. If Mazda only gave the car some more power it would have been the class champ.

Mazda is coming out with some nice cars, but everyone else is putting out cars with more power in the same price ranges.

Heh if you look at their website, nowhere do they refer use the name "Neon SRT-4", it's just "SRT-4". Think they're embarressed about the car's roots? I would be too...

I never liked the look of Neons either but I think this one looks fine, especially with the fat FMIC... anyway, good enough for me to buy for $20K with that kind of performance. Another article I read said 13.9@102. To get a new car with a 100mph trap speed for $20K is a great accomplishment for any automaker.



As for Neons over the years, look at how popular the stripped down ACR version was. There was a whole spec club racing circuit around that car kind of like spec Miata now. I respect them for offering a basic track car to the public from the factory.



Rob, are you talking about the Mazdaspeed Protege??

so true.

Yes, the Mazda Speed Protege



Yeah I know with mods the Protege will gain HP, blah blah blah

But so will the Neon.

the neon is a chick car

well it beat out the mazdaspeed protege for the #1 spot for best car under 20G

It looks wierd..

its a good bargain and if someone gave it to me id be happy to have it... but its still a dodge. and i will never purchase a dodge unless its a 70' charger. oh well

i'd buy one of those solely because i like drag racing https://www.nopistons.com/forums/pub...#>/biggrin.png

I think it just may.

By the way, read a write up on the Mazda 6 S model, they had some good things to say.

in europe they have a new edition to the 6 already coming out. its a 6 speed w/ a turbo with big 18" rims. prolly wont make its way over here

they had it as a concept the 626MPS, AWD too https://www.nopistons.com/forums/pub...DIR#>/wink.png

oh yeah its all wheel drive too

i dont rmembe weebut they said the reason the mazda speed protege has was 170 hp i because they limited it... they said they dint want to change the transmission or engine internals from the stock one for the turbo. this made them limit what could have been more like 200 hp. also the exhaust is restrictive... its the same exhaust found on the mp3... it could def use one more fitting of a turbo

yeah first thing to go was the exhaust on the mazdaspeed. let me look for the mag and ill post some more.

carrol shelby needs to come back and design some cars for these companys again... they made some pretty nice ones in the 80s

<rant>

I dunno about you guys but I hate mazda as a car company anyways, all the bullshit people had to go through with the FD's, peeling/chipping paint, motors blowing, twin turbo systems failing, vacuum lines popping off, dealerships having their heads up their asses about the cars, class action lawsuits just to get some results from mazda america, **** them. There isn't a day I spend in the garage that I don't wish I was working on a lotus or porsche engineered and implemented rotary engine vehicle, so much screams mazda / compromise. If porsche made our 13B do you think our rotors would weigh ~9lbs? would we have a mix of iron and aluminum housings? probably not, I suspect it would be more like all aluminum with silicon impregnated (think 928 block). mazda is annoying, rotary engines are interesting. Only mazda would ghetto rig 100 different systems for managing idle rather than just use a damn IAC capable of doing it all.

</rant>



anyways, I think the elise needs a turbocharged 2 rotor, not a stupid NA rover inline 4. To think that car still runs 13's with that motor.



Is it just chance coincidence that there are no mazda logos on this web site? I like it. :bigthumg:

I'd imagine they use the same turbo setup as the PT Cruiser turbo. Kind of a weird design, but it makes sense to me.



http://www.members.aol.com/mopartek/ptturbo.html

I think that's the same engine in the PT....

Finally someone else sees the light!

You and that violin https://www.nopistons.com/forums/pub...DIR#>/moon.gif



https://www.nopistons.com/forums/pub...R#>/violin.gif

performance wise i would rather have the neon but looks i would rather have protege

**** that the neon barely beat the mazdaspeed out. if im gonna drive american and enjoy it, it will have to be a corvette, mustang or an suv (being able to afford those cars)

the neon has a odd turbocharger also, it spins in the opposite direction of a typical turbo, so apparently it will be more difficult to upgrade.... not true of the protege.

The neon is very much a chick car, but 5.6 0-60 speaks for itself. Don't get me wrong i wouldnt wanna be caught dead in a neon but at least its not a PT clown car. https://www.nopistons.com/forums/pub...DIR#>/moon.gif