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k im a high school student and i just got a 2003 dodge neon sxt over the summer. i just spent all my money on a sound system, and now i want to make it faster. everyone i ask tell me different things i should do to it, but i want to know "whats the first thing i should do to feel the greatest increase in HP?" Im only in high school, making minimum wage, so please be realistic. thanks

First of all sell all your sound system toys , but really the best bang for the buck when it comes to performance is probably a cold air intake either AEM which I have, or a K&N. Just my .02

If you need budget and want to actually feel a change instead of hear a change, then go with an UDP (underdrive pulley) first. The car will rev faster. An intake is only worth a few HP on our cars and you may think you feel a little something at first, but that feeling fades very quickly.

Since you are on a budget you just might want to get the K&N drop in filter...you will pick up a little HP and a little sound for about $50.

You can also go to the dealer and get a can of Mopar Combustion Chamber Cleaner. It is about $9. Seafoam works too, (but the mopar stuff is better for you if you don't have much car knowledge.) I'm taking the safe route since I don't know how much you know. Seafoam can hydrolock your engine if you aren't careful. If you can find it in the spray can it is as safe as the mopar stuff.
It is generally recommended that the plugs are changed afterwards. Just spray it into the TB and keep the engine running. Once the can is emptied let it set for 30 minutes or so, then fire it up. At the least it will get most of the buildup off the valves, which will help out a small fraction. The exhaust ports on the 2.0 heads are usually pretty nasty with casting flash, so they get pretty carboned up.
This will cause massive amounts of smoke, so if your neighbors are a pissy lot, then I would take the car somewhere else to do this.

While this is more of a maintenance issue, it may still gain you some power. Some good copper plugs will serve you fine if you replace them. If you are feeling wealthy, go with iridiums. While I personally haven't had any problems with platinum plugs, a lot of ppl here have, so I won't recommend those.

Or, the best mod for your money is to sell the car and buy something that will respond to mods better. Buy a first gen, you'll get money back on your car which you can then use to go turbo. You will then feel a real difference.

Stickers. I hear a Borla sticker gets you +2 HP.

I agree with the UDP, Mpx is great.

Swordfish2Cowboy wrote:Stickers. I hear a Borla sticker gets you +2 HP.

aluminum spoilers help too. the bigger the better. if you can afford it go for the double decker one. no only will your neon be faster with a huge wing, but the ladies will love it too. instant pussy magnet.

Honestly, naturally aspirated neons especially with the NGC computer do not respond to mods well and no amount on money you put into the engine will be worth it. Turbo is the way to go if you want a -noticeable- difference. Best bang for the buck FTW.

[DJ]Tomski wrote:

Swordfish2Cowboy wrote:Stickers. I hear a Borla sticker gets you +2 HP.

aluminum spoilers help too. the bigger the better. if you can afford it go for the double decker one. no only will your neon be faster with a huge wing, but the ladies will love it too. instant pussy magnet.

Is that what they ment by Faster Pussy Cat?

Mopar65 wrote:First of all sell all your sound system toys , but really the best bang for the buck when it comes to performance is probably a cold air intake either AEM which I have, or a K&N. Just my .02

WTF?

CAI's are almost completely useless. They compliment the 60mm TB decently and clean up the engine bay...but performance wise they're next to useless.

UDP is where it's at for the buck

Losing unneeded weight/mass is prolly the best "gain". While it doesn't really make more hp, more is available to propel the vehicle. A smaller battery, lighter wheels/tires, less junk in the trunk, etc. As long as it doesn't sacrifice safety, it's good. A faster car is useless without all your appendages or worse.

AlexBSXT03 wrote: k im a high school student and i just got a 2003 dodge neon sxt over the summer. i just spent all my money on a sound system, and now i want to make it faster. everyone i ask tell me different things i should do to it, but i want to know "whats the first thing i should do to feel the greatest increase in HP?" Im only in high school, making minimum wage, so please be realistic. thanks

Hmm...

You are not going to like this; however, you can obtain gains by losing weight... which likely means starting by dumping that sound system you just installed. There are other items you can remove from the car as well... depending on how drastic you want to go.

If that is not an option then I would strongly suggest you start by ensuring all the maintenance items are in order. Go through the maintenance section of the owners manual and complete all the maintenance that you know has not been done. If you have the service records and have done some of the work yourself then you will know where to start. If like me, you started with a used vehicle and no maintenance records then simply go ahead and replace & refresh everything that needs to be done for the mileage you have... this way you are establishing the start point and will know when it needs to be done again.

After that... I'd simply leave it alone and use as your daily driver.

Man, you bought the wrong car if you want to "feel noticable gains" on a budget

Faster, neon, cheap... None of thoes words go together in a sentance.

You want noticable difference? Send a few thousand and go turbo. Only hope for you.

A good way to get about 30 pounds out of the car is to take up the carpet and get all the dyno mat stuff off the floor. Just use some dry ice and a rubber sledge hammer and go at it

so whats the best place to get a UDP

www.modernperformance.com

get the modern performance underdrive pulley. They'll also send you belts since the pulley is smaller the new belts will work with it and your old belts will not.

I agree that you should sell all your sound system components since they are added weight. Don't get a spoiler. These guys just want to laugh at you once you tell them you drilled into your trunk to mount it and screwed up...

Take the resonator out of the inner fender well. It'll make your car a bit louder, and give your air box better flow.

I'd get one used and buy new belts...I did this and ended up spending about $60

Or you can get one brand new for $100

It is true that our cars don't make a lot of power without investing a great deal of money into the engine. If you are serious about making power in a neon, I would say get a first gen, or srt-4.

Our neons are good handling cars... consider going to the suspension first....

...I remember high school... I was working a minimum wage job too. I wanted a loud sound system, but I also wanted a fast car. I put all my money into the engine though... Now it's just loud and sort of fast...

weight reduction is the best place to start (don't forget driver weight too...) Take out the trunk carpet, pads (underneath), spare tire cover, interior trim, headliner (if you're serious), etc.

Also... larger wheels are heavier and will slow you down. Don't do it.

I'd say get the UDP, leave the carpet in, it won't make a big enough difference. Plus your sound will go to hell without some kind of deadening, so the $ you just spent on the system will be a waste. No need to make the car less enjoyable. Do that much, see how it works out, and go from there. Most of all accept it for what it is, and be glad you don't have a 12 MPG monster to feed.

Dude these cares aren't even that good at handling...it's freaking way overrated. Our turning radius is horrible, massive body roll...we're no Miata's by far

I'm with OD on keeping the carpet in, no need to shave weight in stupid ways. If anything, avoid buffets and drink water. It's fucking hilarious when 300lb guys try to shave weight off their car. Um, how about becoming a lighter driver?

Adionik wrote:Dude these cares aren't even that good at handling...it's freaking way overrated. Our turning radius is horrible, massive body roll...we're no Miata's by far

Sway bars, or better than base, will cure that. The bloody SRT ones I have under mine are a bit too stiff. There isn't any body roll, ain't much give to bumps and dips in the road either. Great handling, shitty ride. This is with the eibach pro kit. It didn't ride nearly as stiff till I put the SRT sways on. They may not be as agressive with stock springs/height. And you can get them realatively cheap used. The springs may break a "student" budget tho to keep it a little on topic.

I have Hotchski sways but i'm hurting for a drop...bad. I want something subtle so it's easy on the springs. Mostly like S1

I forgot to tell you: Don't get a cam gear. They don't just add hp. You won't be able to tune it unless you get on a dyno. I'm guessing that you don't have the time or money to put your car on a dyno, and if you did you wouldn't be happy... I think stock at the wheels we have 109 hp. At the flywheel our cars are advertised with 132.

Also, don't get the JET chip: it doesn't work.

Adionik wrote:Dude these cares aren't even that good at handling...it's freaking way overrated. Our turning radius is horrible, massive body roll...we're no Miata's by far

I beg to differ. Although it does matter which trim level you are starting with of course. Base model Neons can't be compared to a R/T. And the ACR is in a class by itself as we all know

/rant

Danteneon wrote:

Adionik wrote:Dude these cares aren't even that good at handling...it's freaking way overrated. Our turning radius is horrible, massive body roll...we're no Miata's by far

I beg to differ. Although it does matter which trim level you are starting with of course. Base model Neons can't be compared to a R/T. And the ACR is in a class by itself as we all know

/rant

So you get ANY aftermarket sway bars that are bigger than stock and a drop....you've already outclassed an ACR. Throw some bushings and you've outdone it in $300 or less

It is nice that you don't need a ton of money to make our cars handle well. And if you do spend a good amount of money, handling becomes orgasmic

The handling is pretty decent, my main gripes are the turning radius and the stability. Reversing to get into a parking spot is almost always a must. Hahaha.

Other than that at times over 100mph does not feel safe IMO. The ass end loves to start jumping. Once you go rear sway bar it gets 10x worst...I have fish tailed about 3 times as it is. But it was my fault for taking a 90 turn at 50mph

Adionik wrote:

Danteneon wrote:

Adionik wrote:Dude these cares aren't even that good at handling...it's freaking way overrated. Our turning radius is horrible, massive body roll...we're no Miata's by far

I beg to differ. Although it does matter which trim level you are starting with of course. Base model Neons can't be compared to a R/T. And the ACR is in a class by itself as we all know

/rant

So you get ANY aftermarket sway bars that are bigger than stock and a drop....you've already outclassed an ACR. Throw some bushings and you've outdone it in $300 or less

U,mm last time I checked you can not get all that for less then 300. You might if you find it used but even then you will be hard pressed to do it.

Adionik wrote:The handling is pretty decent, my main gripes are the turning radius and the stability. Reversing to get into a parking spot is almost always a must. Hahaha.

Other than that at times over 100mph does not feel safe IMO. The ass end loves to start jumping. Once you go rear sway bar it gets 10x worst...I have fish tailed about 3 times as it is. But it was my fault for taking a 90 turn at 50mph

And you Are the perfect example of why there are so many wrecked SRT's out there. If you knew how to drive and how to listen to your car when it was trying to tell you things that would not happen. When I built up my first neon I could do that easily and 100MPH was no problem. But I had several things you lack Better struts, better sway bars, and strut braces. When you actually have a decent suspension setup then you will think different about how well our cars handle. Until then stop doing crap like that before you kill yourself.

Best bang for the buck for an 03 is going to be yes first the UDP then it would be an intake manifold then exhaust, LTH, muffler, ETC. Sense your budget is low I recommend a ghetto blaster and then for exhaust do the dynomax pipping 1STgen/2ndgen set-up then get a used R/T muffler. For a LTH get an OBX.

Unless you do a bunch of mods at the same time you are not going to notice much. Everything I have done has given me less than 20 hp total (muffler, udp, cai, LTH, 60mm TB) and then are the other mods that don't show up on the dyno but make the car fun (sts, boogers, lightweight rims, better tires, etc).

I am working on a mag intake and mag head swap with a comp 400. I also have srt4 springs that will go on along with a set of Eibach sways (still need to buy the cam and the sways). All this is done over the course of a few years on a limited budget. I am still nowhere close to being satisfied, but it is better than it was.

Also...is your car MTX or ATX...if it is ATX then you have an even bigger hill to climb.