I am looking at a 1997 Neon Expresso 5 speed, but my question can someone give me some specs about it. (example motor power, tranny reliability) Just askin

 

it all depends if its a dohc or a sohc

 

SOHC is supposed to have 132HP but considering it doesnt have the Mopar Performance Cam like the 95's its really more like 123-25HP

The DOHC has about 150 but is kinda slow off the line, its got more high end power than anything.

The manual tranny in Chrysler products is a 100% better than the autos. Just make sure that if the stock clutch is still there get it replaces. Its a gutless peice of ****.

 

my dohc is just as snappy of the line as a sohc but the difference does show once you hit about 100 mph...and ive had the stock clutch in all my cars and it works just fine, my work car has 125,000 miles and the stock clutch...and i dont have any problems...

 

The 5-speed on the DOHC Expresso is the Performance "B", which has the 3.94 final drive and the taller 5th gear (it's where I got my tranny). Plenty quick off the line compared to the SOHC.

The '96-'02 SOHC's are more like 128 HP. The '95 cam is sold as the Mopar 4 HP cam.

The Expresso is a Sport package of sorts for the Highline. Which means it's really a dress-up package, except you have the option of an upgraded dngine (DOHC) and tranny (perf. B). For that '97, it could have rear discs or drums. It'll have the same suspension as the Highline, which was the softest available (no rear bar, softest struts).

As far as tranny reliability, it's the differential pin that is the weak link. Uneven tire spin is the big killer. There are various forms of limited slips available, from the $200 Phantom Grip (it'll fail eventually though), to the $1200 Quaiffe, with the new $600-800 OBX copy of the Quaiffe (including the lifetime warranty) in the middle...

Best of luck!