First, a little history on the car. The SRT-4 was released in 2003 to compete with the Japanese imports that America was obsessed with. Cars like the Acura Integra Type-R were all the rage in the early 2000’s, and America wanted to take that back from them, and this was their first attempt.
So what did Dodge do to make this economy sedan a high-performance Civic beater? First up, the engine, SRT strapped on a turbo to the 2.4L four-banger, which put a whopping 215 horsepower to the front wheels. In 2004-2005 the power was upped to 230. 60 would show up on the speedometer in 5.6 seconds, and the quarter mile in 14.1 and finally topping out at a tested 153 mph. The exhaust was modified to improve the sound and performance. And no muffler was added on the SRT-4 because it relied on the turbo to reduce exhaust volume leading to a very good sound and lots of blow-off noise from the turbo.
In 2003, a Neon SRT-4 finished first in its class for Tire Rack’s One Lap of America.
So now that we’re past the history of the SRT-4, lets see if it’s any good today. You can find a mostly stock SRT-4 online for no less than $5,000 unless you‘ve found an amazing Craigslist deal, and if you have, don’t miss you opportunity. But most you will see are modified in some way. So is it really worth it? Yes, if you’re looking for a turbo 4 performance sedan, go for this. Modern hot hatches are no less than $25,000 and the new Civic Type-R can get over $40,000 and the Neon is fun, loud, unique and fast, so get on Craigslist or eBay and pick one up today.
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