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1997 Dodge Neon

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Neon years

Owner complaints for the 1997 Dodge Neon are substantially higher than the model-year median of 173.

About this comparison →
390Owner complaints

Model-year median: 173

1Recall campaigns

View recall details →

1Investigations

View investigation details →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Other model years Selected year
9
1994976
1995611
1996390
1997339
1998116
1999337
2000
Compare all Neon years →

Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

Engine And Engine Cooling
222Service Brakes, Hydraulic
44Air Bags
41Electrical System
33Power Train
26
All reported categories
Structure
24Unknown Or Other
19Seat Belts
17Steering
15Exterior Lighting
12Vehicle Speed Control
11Equipment
9Fuel System, Gasoline
9Visibility
8Tires
6Interior Lighting
4Suspension
4Seats
3Service Brakes, Air
3Wheels
2Latches/locks/linkages
1

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 35 of 390 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 222 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 44 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Air Bags. Review the 41 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

44 crash reports12 fire reports24 injury reports

Engine And Engine Cooling complaints

222 reports
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Mileage unknown · Aug 7, 2001
Engine And Engine Cooling

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 C…

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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

NHTSA ODI #749992

Mileage unknown · Jul 30, 2001
Engine And Engine Cooling

THE FIRST ISSUE WITH THE BLOWN HEAD GASKET, OCCURED AROUND 32,000 MILES. IT WAS FIXED WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. I AM NOW HAVING THE SAME PROBLEMS AGAIN; OIL LEAKING, EXTREMELY ROUGH IDLING, AND HAVE SCHEDULED AN APPOINTMENT TO GET MY CAR IN. HOPEFULLY IT WILL BE COVERED UNDER MY ADDED WARRANTY. THE SECOND PROBLEM IS WITH THE PAI…

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THE FIRST ISSUE WITH THE BLOWN HEAD GASKET, OCCURED AROUND 32,000 MILES. IT WAS FIXED WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. I AM NOW HAVING THE SAME PROBLEMS AGAIN; OIL LEAKING, EXTREMELY ROUGH IDLING, AND HAVE SCHEDULED AN APPOINTMENT TO GET MY CAR IN. HOPEFULLY IT WILL BE COVERED UNDER MY ADDED WARRANTY. THE SECOND PROBLEM IS WITH THE PAINT JOB. THE ORIGINAL PAINT IS LIPIS BLUE AND IS PEELING AND FLAKING OFF IN MANY PLACES. AT 35,500 MILES, THEY TOUCHED UP THE PROBLEM AREAS, TOLD ME OF THE DEFECT IN THE PRIMER, AND THEN INFORMED ME THEY COULD NOT PAINT THE ENTIRE CAR, ONLY THE PANELS WHICH DID NOT PASS THE TAPE TEST. I HAVE CONTACTED THEM AGAIN MORE RECENTLY BECAUSE OF OTHER PEELING PROBLEMS. IT IS MY BELIEF THE CAR SHOULD HAVE BEEN PAINTED COMPLETELY WHEN THEY INFORMED ME OF THE DEFECT.*AK

NHTSA ODI #749435

Mileage unknown · Jun 29, 2001
Engine And Engine Cooling

NEED REPAIR OF HEAD GASKET, OCCORDING TO EL CAMPO OF TUCSON AZ. *AK

NHTSA ODI #747579

Mileage unknown · Jun 20, 2001
Engine And Engine Cooling

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

NHTSA ODI #890814

Mileage unknown · Jun 19, 2001
Engine And Engine Cooling

HEAD GASKETS ARE LEAKING COOLANT ONTO ENGINE. DEALER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED. *AK CHRYSLER OFFERED TO PAY HALF OF THE REPAIRS. *SLC

NHTSA ODI #890633

Mileage unknown · Jun 14, 2001
Engine And Engine Cooling

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

NHTSA ODI #890397

Mileage unknown · Jun 13, 2001
Engine And Engine Cooling

OIL LEAK FROM HEAD GASKETS AND FROM REAR MAIN SEAL. *AK

NHTSA ODI #746803

Mileage unknown · Jun 3, 2001
Engine And Engine Cooling

NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS OF HEAD GASKET FAILURE ON THIS MODEL CAR. PLEASE CONSIDER A RECALL. *AK

NHTSA ODI #746338

Mileage unknown · May 16, 2001
Engine And Engine CoolingService Brakes, HydraulicVisibility

HEAD GASKET BLEW. OXYGEN SENSOR BLEW. LEFT REAR BRAKE PAD FELL OFF AND JAMMED IN THE DRUM RENDERING THE VEHICLE UNMOVABLE. UPON INSPECTION, HAD TO REPLACE BOTH DRUMS, BOTH DISCS, AND NEW PADS ON FRONT AND BACK BOTH SIDES. WINDOW SEALS HAVE FAILED ON THE PASSENGERS SIDE FRONT WINDOW. WATER LEAKS IN AND AIR LEAKS AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS…

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HEAD GASKET BLEW. OXYGEN SENSOR BLEW. LEFT REAR BRAKE PAD FELL OFF AND JAMMED IN THE DRUM RENDERING THE VEHICLE UNMOVABLE. UPON INSPECTION, HAD TO REPLACE BOTH DRUMS, BOTH DISCS, AND NEW PADS ON FRONT AND BACK BOTH SIDES. WINDOW SEALS HAVE FAILED ON THE PASSENGERS SIDE FRONT WINDOW. WATER LEAKS IN AND AIR LEAKS AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS, SLOWS CAR DOWN IMMENSLEY AND CAUSES MORE FUEL CONSUMPTION. DRIVER'S SIDE WINDOW HARSHLY SCRATCHED. GETS WORSE AS TIME GOES BY, HAVE SEEN OTHER NEON'S WITH THE SAME PROBLEM. FUEL FILTER WENT, CAUSING THE ENTIRE FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM TO HAVE TO BE REPLACED.

NHTSA ODI #745430

Mileage unknown · May 4, 2001
Electrical SystemEngine And Engine Cooling

WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE ENGINE HEAD GASKETS BLEWOUT. HAD HAPPENED TWICE, AND EACH TIME WAS REPLACED ALONG WITH SPARK PLUGS.*AK

NHTSA ODI #887467

Official recalls

1

97V080000 · Air Bags:frontal:sensor/control MODULE-INACTIVE

May 16, 1997

THE ELECTRICAL CIRCUIT DESIGN ALLOWS THE POTENTIAL FOR AN INADVERTENT AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT UPON VEHICLE IGNITION SHUT DOWN.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: UNEXPECTED AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT CAN RESULT IN OCCUPANT INJURY.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE AIR BAG ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED MODULE.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

1

PE02082 · Safety Belt Cinching Latch Plate

Opened Nov 6, 2002 · Closed Apr 23, 2003

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Seat Belts

THERE ARE NO INJURIES OR FATALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS ALLEGED DEFECT.WHILE CONDUCTING THIS INVESTIGATION, ODI FOUND THAT THE SUBJECT CINCHES MEET THE LOAD BEARING REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD 208, AND THAT MANY OF THE REPORTED FAILURES WERE DUE TO INCORRECT CHILD SAFETY SEAT INSTALLATIONS. ADDITIONALLY, THE REPORT RATE IS LOW (1.60/100K).THE INFORMATION AVAILABLE FAILS TO ESTABLISH THE EXISTENCE OF A DEFECT TREND AT THIS TIME.FURTHER ALLOCATION OF AGENCY RESOURCES TO THIS ISSUE IS UNWARRANTED AND THE PRELIMINARY EVALUATION IS BEING CLOSED.