Problems with 1997 Dodge Neon ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

Took vehicle in to repair shop after noticing an oil leak. they told me at first it was normal leaking from routine oil change. then thanksgiving day 2001, at freeway speeds (75 mph) the head gasket blew. oil went every where. i had oil even in the coolant system. took to my personal mechanic, he told me he has seen this many times before with neon's. final price to fix problem 987.36, head gasket replaced coolant system flushed out, etc. now i need a new radiator because of it. seems to be common with this year of vehicle. my friend had a 1998 dodge neon that the head gasket was recalled in and she was able to get it fixed for free. obviously for consumer satisfaction it would be in chryslers best interest to acknowledge, at the very least, that they have produced a less than satisfactory engine component in the 1997 neon. what i would like to see is that some of the money, if not all, is refunded back to us. otherwise i am satisfied with my neon. it is out of commission right now due to needing a water pump. i purchased the vehicle december 20th, 1996 and have been the only owner. *ak

I bought this pile of c... 2 years ago and had to replace the transmission with 38000 miles on it . now the head gasket has failed. i was about to give the dealer $800 to repair it when the told me the engine has a crack in it. now it will be $3500.00 for a new engine. it only has 71000 miles on it . and chrysler doesnt care that this is quite possily the worst car ever made. it ranks right up there with a yugo and a pinto

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

Vehicle just shut off while stopping at a stop sign, and would not restart. also, battery light and seat belt light came on.consumer had vehicle towed to dealer.*ak

Replaced 3 head gaskets in 1997 dodge neon. fewer than 33,000 miles at replacement of third head gasket. *la

I can not believe there hasn't been any recalls on this car for the engine, with the number of complaints you have listed. when i got this car it started with cylinder # 1 misfiring, then the r & r compressor was faulty, power steering pump was loose, the fan relay switch blew and now after my last payment the head cracks and cylinder # 2 doesn't hold enough pressure. i haven't had a pleasant experiance with my dodge neon.*ak

Dealership refusing to pay damages for defective head gasket. *ak

Six months ago severe overheating problems, told relay not functioning. mechanic replaces switch, first time fan kicks in to cool engine, relay blows/shorts out, mechanic sends me to dealer because of warranty .dealer replaces relay, car continued to over heat. dealer told me "mice" must have eaten through wiring, dealer replaced switch/wiring. now head gasket needs replacing after four months of oil loss. diaganosis w/black light, head gasket. told relay and head gasket related as aluminum block prone to overheating, relay cooling disfunction possible cause of head gasket leak. *ak

I have gotten the head gasket replaced twice in a span of a year and a half.*ak

Consumer took vheicle to a mechanic for a bad oil leak. mechanic showed consumer 36 different cracks in head of motor.also, transmission was shattered, vehicle was not shifting right. consumer took to dealer and it was full of pieces of metal. consumer states that dealer replaced head. please provide any further information.*ak

Oil was leaking from vehicle, consumer had to constantly put oil into vehicle.*ak vehicle was taken to dealer, and consumer was informed that head gasket was defective.*slc

Head gasket needs to be replaced. dealership examined vehicle and found that radiator fan relay switch circuit shorted out which could have allowed engine to overheat, and crack head gasket. please provide any additional information/attachments. *ak

Vehicle had been using a lot of oil, had vehicle inspected, and was told by mechanic that head gasket was blown. vehicle not repaired yet.*ak

Numerous complaints of head gasket failure on this model car. please consider a recall. *ak

Head gaskets are leaking coolant onto engine. dealer has been notified. *ak chrysler offered to pay half of the repairs. *slc

Vehicle was leaking oil.contacted dealer, problem due to head gasket going out.*ak

Vehicle would overheat if it was sitting at stop light. dealer replaced jumper wiring and radiator fan relay.also, manufacturer had a technical service bulletin. consumer will add additional information relating to tsb. *ak

Head gasket began leaking, consumer made attempts two months later to schedule repairs under an 8 year 80000 mile warranty, however dealer would not acknowledge the warranty, 2 months later the engine blew out because of the leaking head gasket, consumer is requesting reimbursement for repair costs. *slc

Engine head gasket started leaking at 60200 miles, vehicle has not been repaired yet.*ak

I bought this neon in august of 1998, it has been nothing but problems since purchase. i have had to have the electrical system worked on twice. when you go over 60mph the steering wheel rattles. the speakers for the radio work sometimes. the overhead light comes on while driving. when it rains the front floor boards get soaked with water. last month the i needed to replace the headgasket, and after several calls the the manufacturer they paid half, but the next day the engine started to knock severly.

I contacted chrysler daimler 800-992-1997, i was told that there is no repair assistance or recall. although the service bulletin shows an upgrade and a change in the head gasket and additional installation requirements to be made. this became known in 1998, 1 year after my vehicle was built. this seems likely to be a defect and quality issue.*ak

Consumer noticed that there was some oil leaking. consumer took vehicle in to a mechanic, and mechanic told him that head gasket was defective.*ak

Engine leaking oil/water mixture out through coolant bottle, average about 1 quart per engine run or 100 miles whichever is first.*ak

Head gasket blew and repaired through local dealer. we were told this was an on going problem with this model. we contacted the main office and got nowhere. we were told it's not a recall so we can't help you. the customer service rep. was very rude and hung up on us. it cost us over $600.00 for the repair. if this is an ongoing problem dodge needs to be resposible. we were very loyal dodge owners but from now on we are not. there is a tsb on this but we were told if it's not a recall we cannot help you. this needs to be addressed. nlm

Consumer can see oil dripplets on engine and on frame , and small puddles of oil on ground under vehicle. *ak

The head gasket went out of my '97 neon only 45 days after the extended warranty expired. i called the 800 # on the warranty card and they pretty much hung up the phone on me saying there was nothing they could do about it. i have done some investigating and it seems this is a very common error with this car, even the dealer told me it was a problem. it cost me $678.00 to repair a dealer design fault.*ak

I have driven this car for three years and it blows a head gasket at 60k costing a $1000 to repair. there are many others who have posted complaints on the web but not here. *ak

Engine gasket has crack in rear,causing an oil leak in compartment. dealer has been contacted. *ak original gasket was a fiber gasket and was a failure. the new neon's gasket contain a metal and fiber gasket. *yh

Head gasket blew out. dealer replaced head gasket, but an independent dealer told consumer head gasket was not replaced. also, dealer wanted to replace transmission/transmission pan and flywheel. vehicle not in condition to be driven. *ak

Shortly after buying this car it started to show oil on the floor, most cars leak a little thought little of it. january 15 i seen a large wet spot on floor and investigated it to find it was the left rear corner of the head. talked to chrysler about this and was informed that it was very common. i reminded them that there was only 32000 miles on the car. was informed i was out of warranty and they would go to 50% on the total bill. i've seen where there are a lot longer warranties that are kept secret from us, if this is so can you get me to the place that i have to be to find this info so that i might get this rectified? if no recall is going to ever happen on an item that has been known to be defective for a long time what are we to do?*ak

Oil is leaking because of a defective head gasket. *ak

Dealer notified and working to resolve $ expense with me and warranty dept. head gasket failed and noticed numerous complaints in this area. why hasn't a recall been made? was this just a poorly designed engine?*ak

Head gasket is leaking oil from right hand rear corner of cylinder head. viewing engine from flywheel end. *ak

After only 32,000 miles, head gasket blew causing oil leakage. this is an ongoing problem with the 97 dodge neon. it must be recalled.*ak

Driver's side head gasket broke. it was leaking oil all over. dealer would not assist in helping with payment because chrsyler would not reimburse them. dealer said it was a faulty design of head gasket. *ak head gasket was replaced at the consumer's expense. *yh

Noticed oil leak, took to mechanic, was told head gasket was gone. i have only 37,000 miles on this car and it has been routinely maintained. i am waiting for the dealership to look at it and decide when they will pay for it to be fixed. they are looking at these cases on a one on one basis, which should show that these cars need to be recalled or paid to be fixed by the dealer or chrsyler. *ak

Noticed oil leaking. took to dealer and was told that head gasket blewout. *ak *slc

Head gasket failure. there should be a recall contacted chrysler and they said no!

Oil leakges after taking vehicle to dealer for an oil change, vehicle was returned to dealer for leakages, and dealer informed consumer that problem was due to a head gasket failure. *ak

Cylinder head needed to be replaced. leaking oil. replacement part was twice as thick as original part. *ak

Consumer has to constantly fill up oil. when parking and moving one can see oil on ground. *ak

Consumer noticed a puddle of oil forming in driveway. dealer has repaired once, but engine is leaking again. *ak *slc

I heard alot of head gasgets on 95-99 neon have failed and chysler has paid to repair them even when they are out of warenty. when i called them they acted like they never heard of the problem before i talked to the dealer and they just blew me of to . my bill was $900.00. i can't belive there was not a recall when so many head gasgets have failed.

Consumer took vehicle to dealership. vehicle was leaking oil from underneath/ also, there was oil inside spark plugs. *ak

Transmission is sluggish and headgasket leaking, took to dealer. *ak transmission is now completely failed. *yh

No summary

Six miles over my warranty my alternator went out. the dealership refused to fix it. my headgasket with less than 60,000.*ak

On sunday july 23, 2000, i was on my way home from a restaurant with my family, i came up to an intersection and stopped. after aproximately 10 seconds at the stop light, i noticed the air conditioner began blowing hot air. i immediately glanced at the temperature guage in the car. it had risen to aproximately 3/4 of the way toward the red mark. i immediately turned the ac off and then turned the heat on as to not raise the heat anymore than what it already was. i was within a mile of my mechanics , so i drove over there and dropped off the car. on the next day, my mechanic called me to tell me that my head gasket had blown. he then told me that these cars were known for this particular problem. i then called smithfield dodge ( where i bought the car ) they gave me the service manager and he told me that they were having alot of problems with the head gaskets on the neons. he told me to call the complaints line at dodge/chrysler and that even though it was no longer under warranty that they would probably repair it for free as they were on the verge of a recall with these cars. my wife called and left a message with the regional district manager who called me back and tried to strike up a bogus deal with me, offering to fix the car for 544.00 saying this was the best they were going to do. i had also heard from people over the internet who had also had this problem and they didn't have to pay for their repairs and, they too were also over the warranty. i also heard that this is not the same gasket, they have redesigned it to accomadate the problem. this alone should be recourse for a recall. i still owe two years on this car and i can't afford bills like this. i want a full reimbursement for the work i had done on the car. i have always maintained all my vehicles and kept them all in excellent running condition. this is a problem which is occuring constantly on these vehicles. check the internet if you don't believe me. people are not happy with dodge. they're not !

Vehicle experienced overheating due to head gasket failure. dealer/manufacturer notified. feel free to provide any further details. *ak

Went to start vehicle in the mornings and it sound like something was clogging the engine. looked underneath the vehicle and noticed puddle of oil. contacted the dealer, who was aware of the problem.*ak