Hi, my name is James and I’ve been a Dodge fan for years. I’ve driven an ’81 Ramcharger to an ’03 Dodge Neon. I recently had an accident with my Neon. I was hit from behind and forced into car at a traffic light. Correction, I was forced UNDER the rear of a car. My wife was in the car with me, and we both came out of it without a scratch, thank God. However, my Neon was totaled.

Here’s my problem. My wife wants to get another Neon, since we both loved that little car. Her reasons are based on fuel economy. I, however, am leaning toward a larger vehicle, such as an ’02 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab that I have found for sale. My concerns are for safety. It was pure luck that we survived the accident. Our vehicle was the only car totaled out of the five vehicles involved. I simply feel that we would be safer in a larger vehicle. I can’t see trying to save money while, potentially putting my family at risk.

Please share your opinions: Should I stay with a Neon for fuel economy or a Ram 1500 for safety?
Or is either oneas safe as the other?

I’d appreciate any thoughts on this. If I need to clarify anything, please ask.

Thanks,
James

 

Well neons obiously arent the safest car on the road because of how small they are but they are fairly safe.. And neons get totaled a lot easier than a Ram 1500 because of how cheap they are to begin with and the costs accoiated with repairs.. My buddys mx6 got in an accedent and just because his front bumper was scrapped and pushed in a bit they totaled his car.. Where as if your looking at a truck with a value of 20-30K + then a new bumper and repair work is worth it to fix it vs the value of the truck..

So just because your car was the only one written off does not necessarliy mean it had the most damage out of all the other cars.. there value could have been a lot higher.. I think the blue/black/whatever colour book value on an 03 neon is only about 3-4K.. And insurance companies look at that as a lot easier than paying for repairs that are close to teh same amount..


Personally I would say if you liked the neon get another one.. they are realiable and fairly cheap!

 

when i got my neon after graduation last year, the only thing my mom cared about was the safetly.. i had previously rolled my '89 toyota pick up and then started driving a chevy malibu.. which is really good on safety.. and then my mom read up on the neon and saw that it was good on gas AND had pretty good safety... i love the neon, the only thing i would change would be that it had a turbo and was standard..
i've got an '05 neon and haven't had ANY problems with it at all.. i would say get the neon, it's good on safety and good on gas..

 

neons are somewhat safe, it is just the values of the cars. When i got in my wreck (rear ended someone) i was fine but the car was in bad shape. The car has good crumple zones i say. Your choice though.

 

Thanks for all the replies! I really loved the Neon, I just want my family to be as safe as possible.My Neon definately took the most damage, the front end was crushed. I understand about the value of a vehicle being the main concern forit being declared a total loss, but I appreciate your point.
You've all made very valid points and I will consider them in my final decision.

Thanks,
James

 

yeah with mine the bumper, lights and radiator were finished, engine had no issues though. They take their licks but they still hold up well.

 

yeah, one thing to think about is...just because you see a lot of damage doesn't mean its less safe...its probably safer. It's probably better that you went under the car in front of you lol. I mean...if you didn't it would probably be in your car haha.

 

When the car in front of us began rising in the air as we went under it, I pulled the steering wheel hard to the left and pulled into the turning lane. If I hadn't done that, the car in front of us would have come through the wind shield and ripped to top off of our car. It could easily have been fatal, so like I said, we were extremely lucky.

That's one reason I feel safer in a larger vehicle. If we had been in a Ram 1500, we would not have gone under the front vehicle. thereby (hopefully) not incurring as much damage.

BTW, the front vehicle was a 1990 Ford Mustang convertible.

James

 

the ram would be a good choice, i like cars better, better handling

 

Well my honest opinion is that if u get in a wreck and u r driving a neon and get hit by a full size truck, the neon will be totaled..... it is kinda like getting hit by a semi truck if u r drivin a 1500 series dodge.... it is just the luck of the draw when u have an acedent.....

but the 1500 will be safer, BUT u will be hurting bad when u go fill it up at the pump...... so the choice is urs......