I bought a 95 dodge neon off of a friend for low and behold, 600$. He didn't treat the car like a car should be treated. I bought the car since i couldn't beat the 600$ bargain but I also didn't take the car to a repair shop to see if it was worth the buy.

After i bought the car, i took it to a repair shop so that I could get the dangerous issues fixed and so that i could pass insepction. the repairs cost me 800$. They fixed the turn signal (200$), the alignment, replaced the old brakes and rotors with new ones, and i believe they put in a new belt but im not sure what exactly it is. As you can see, I'm very inexperinced when it comes to car repairs and some terminolgy. I had new tires put on as well and the all these repairs showed a big big big difference in how the car felt and drove.

Sorry for the ramble but i i figured id say as much as i could so i could possibly make it easier for you guys.

I am having an issue with my headlights and my transmission.

1. The power of my headlights is very very weak. When i drive at night, if i'm making a left or right turn, i can't tell whats on my left or right until my headlights are facing that direction. i've put in brand new high power lights which i bought from autozone. they said the lights are the strongest ones that could be put in my car.

After doing some research i figured i could clean the out headlight covers since they looked oxidized. I tried the home remedy of crest scope tooth paste and it seemed to make the headlights look cleaner but the strength of my headlights didn't seem to change. they are still weak and dull.

I'm not sure if I should just buy a brand new pair of headlight covers from ebay. i found some people that were selling new ones for a total of 50 dollars for both left and right lights all together or is this just a standard issue with this model?

I asked the repair guys to take a look at it when i first took the car in and he said that he couldnt say much more than clean the headlights since they were oxidized. I just dont want to spend money on something that would't make a difference.

again sorry for all the typing, I tried to break the paragraphs enough so that its easier to read.

2. I've had the car for about 5 months now and during those months the headlights seemed like they were the only issue. But now I am having some trouble with the transmission. Since i'm a novice when it comes to cars and since this neon doesn't have an RPM meter, Im not sure if its a gear related problem or not but when I accelorate from being in the idle position the engine, at certain speeds, revs for no reason.

Sorry if this doesnt make sense but I will try my best to explain what I hear and feel. Once the car reaches like 20 mph and/or 50 mph, the engine seems like its fighting to go faster but all it is able to do is make a reving sound.

I haven't kept my foot on the peddle for more than a second or two after it happens out of fear of making anything worse. Each time its happened i've let go of the peddle for a second or two and then I've re-applied the gas to increase my speed and the car has been able to get passed the 20 mph and 50 mph cancer.

Before all this happened with the transmission, I did drive my car on the freeway a number of times and the car did just fine at high speeds as well as slow speeds but ever since this new worry started I've avoided the freeway out of sheer fear. Any ideas on what it can be?

Also, if this means anything, my catalytic converter does rattle which I am guessing is because of lose bolts but I do not have any rotten smell coming out of any area.

I want to take my car back to the shop just to see what the issue is and if its worth fixing but I've had 2 very differenct experiences at the same auto repair shop.

The first time i took the car in, it was for the inspection and the shebang of repairs. After the car was ready, the worker said that it was a good buy and it should drive much much better which i felt it did so i left with a feeling of confidence in my neon purchase.

I took the car back to the same shop 2 months later because i kept hearing a hissing sound when I would depress the brakes even though i had new rotors and brakes put in not too long ago. During the drive to the shop, I didn't hear any hissing so I was a bit confused but they took a look for me anyways. They said they didn't hear any hissing either and that they didnt see anything wrong. I told the guy i just wanted to make sure it was good since its and old car and i didnt want to take my chances on it falling apart.

The guy that told me he didnt find anything, said that if he were me, he would just get a new car. I didnt ask why because my money tree hasn't grown yet. When i drove the car back home the hissing had shown up again. I didn't take the car back since the guy had rained on my parade already.

Im truely sorry for the essay of a post, im just trying to get a piece of mind of what i can do before I possibly deal with a repair shop. Thanks

 

The stock headlights have horrible output when they become oxidized. If they have never been changed, then you have 17 years worth on them. You can find some cheap deals on eBay but make sure you buy from a reputable seller with great feedback. They are simple to install. 3 bolts and you're done.

I am guessing you have an auto? If so, I would drain the fluid pan and replace the fluid and filter with atf+4 ONLY!!!

 

yea like das said with the lights i had the same issue and i could not see a single thing at night, it was pretty bad when the fog lights put out more light then the headlights. i went on ebay and bought a set of new ones, nothing fancy just replacements and man i tell you what it made a huge difference. i can tell you from personal experience that u dont wanna separate the cover from the body decause it could leak.