Bought a second neon for parts, unsure which car to fix up.
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Bought a second neon for parts, unsure which car to fix up.
Hi guys. I just bought a second dodge neon for parts for $850. But after checking it out it seems like i should make my first car the parts car. I would like your opinions. Below are specs on both.
My first Neon. My daily driver.
2005 SXT 2.0L 150,000 miles. Automatic
Pros:
* Replaced fuel pump, timing belt, motor mounts, cam and crank sensor.
* Body/ Engine
Only decent thing about this car is the body, and the engine. Engine runs fine, but not quite as well as before I started delivering pizzas for a short while bout a year ago. I'm going by sound and acceleration speed on that note. I'm actually thinking it's due to my transmission more than my engine at this point. I'm used to that responsive, peppy ,"mini" suck you in the seat feeling. It runs and accelerates alright but not like it used to at 110k miles when I bought it.
Cons:
* Bad brakes (only the front driver works, the others do nothing.) Main reason I bought the other car for parts.
* Suspension is ALL shot to hell. Rattles you apart over bumps, terrible squeaking, ect.
* Starting to have electrical problems. Windows wont operate at times, interior lights may or may not work.
* Leaky trunk. Fills with water. Dealt with it by drilling several holes.
* Eats tires like crazy. Not sure if alignment problem that can be fixed, or due to bad suspension and related parts.
* Likes to overheat bout a week between radiator fills. Atleast until I fixed a crack in the reservoir (white container with yellow lid).
Second "parts car" 2003 SXT? 2.0L 140,000 miles Standard
I personally know the individual i bought this car from. It was his daughters car that she never made the payments on. Then wrecked it. Then killed it, lol
Pros:
* Excellent brakes
* Suspension still works great. Smooth and no squeaking.
* No electrical problems.
* Standard trans works great. New clutch to boot.
* Trunk does not leak.
Cons:
* First she wrecked it, and ended up underneath another car, so he says.
* The hood was bent but has been fixed.
* Radiator supports broke. Supports have been repaired and new radiator installed. Overall a minor accident. Frame is perfectly fine.
* Engine is barely running. She let it overheat a couple months after the accident and screwed up the head gasket. Atleast I think. I got it to start today, but only after sputtering, backfiring, and misfiring badly for about 2 minutes while cranking... When it did start, it ran ROUGH. It was a just a hair away from dying at any second. Like its missing or getting no ignition on atleast 2 cylinders. It died about 10 seconds later. I let it be after that. Checked dipstick. Oil looks fine, no white substance or buildup.
-----The Dilema-----
At first, I was going to scavenge all the parts off the 03 Standard to fix my cars brakes and suspension. Whatever else it needed. But now I think it would be far easier to just pull the engine from my 05 Daily driver to fix the 03 "parts car". I think it would be cool to switch to a standard, and except for the engine, the 03 is perfectly mechanically sound. As it stands, the only sound item on the 05 is the engine. It seems like a no brainer to me, but just wanted your thoughts and opinions. Or hey, forget all that and just try to read the codes and possibly replace the head gasket on the '03 and forget about my current 05 altogether.
I just had a kid, working a **** job (been trying to get on oil rig for a year and a half now, and pipeline for 6 months), so I'm trying to keep costs down. I'm a capable mechanic, I went to school for aviation maintenance for 2 years. I just don't like diving into something until i hear from the people that's "been there, done that". And, just in case your wondering, i'm a dude. I logged in with my wifes facebook, lol. Thanks in advance guys.
My first Neon. My daily driver.
2005 SXT 2.0L 150,000 miles. Automatic
Pros:
* Replaced fuel pump, timing belt, motor mounts, cam and crank sensor.
* Body/ Engine
Only decent thing about this car is the body, and the engine. Engine runs fine, but not quite as well as before I started delivering pizzas for a short while bout a year ago. I'm going by sound and acceleration speed on that note. I'm actually thinking it's due to my transmission more than my engine at this point. I'm used to that responsive, peppy ,"mini" suck you in the seat feeling. It runs and accelerates alright but not like it used to at 110k miles when I bought it.
Cons:
* Bad brakes (only the front driver works, the others do nothing.) Main reason I bought the other car for parts.
* Suspension is ALL shot to hell. Rattles you apart over bumps, terrible squeaking, ect.
* Starting to have electrical problems. Windows wont operate at times, interior lights may or may not work.
* Leaky trunk. Fills with water. Dealt with it by drilling several holes.
* Eats tires like crazy. Not sure if alignment problem that can be fixed, or due to bad suspension and related parts.
* Likes to overheat bout a week between radiator fills. Atleast until I fixed a crack in the reservoir (white container with yellow lid).
Second "parts car" 2003 SXT? 2.0L 140,000 miles Standard
I personally know the individual i bought this car from. It was his daughters car that she never made the payments on. Then wrecked it. Then killed it, lol
Pros:
* Excellent brakes
* Suspension still works great. Smooth and no squeaking.
* No electrical problems.
* Standard trans works great. New clutch to boot.
* Trunk does not leak.
Cons:
* First she wrecked it, and ended up underneath another car, so he says.
* The hood was bent but has been fixed.
* Radiator supports broke. Supports have been repaired and new radiator installed. Overall a minor accident. Frame is perfectly fine.
* Engine is barely running. She let it overheat a couple months after the accident and screwed up the head gasket. Atleast I think. I got it to start today, but only after sputtering, backfiring, and misfiring badly for about 2 minutes while cranking... When it did start, it ran ROUGH. It was a just a hair away from dying at any second. Like its missing or getting no ignition on atleast 2 cylinders. It died about 10 seconds later. I let it be after that. Checked dipstick. Oil looks fine, no white substance or buildup.
-----The Dilema-----
At first, I was going to scavenge all the parts off the 03 Standard to fix my cars brakes and suspension. Whatever else it needed. But now I think it would be far easier to just pull the engine from my 05 Daily driver to fix the 03 "parts car". I think it would be cool to switch to a standard, and except for the engine, the 03 is perfectly mechanically sound. As it stands, the only sound item on the 05 is the engine. It seems like a no brainer to me, but just wanted your thoughts and opinions. Or hey, forget all that and just try to read the codes and possibly replace the head gasket on the '03 and forget about my current 05 altogether.
I just had a kid, working a **** job (been trying to get on oil rig for a year and a half now, and pipeline for 6 months), so I'm trying to keep costs down. I'm a capable mechanic, I went to school for aviation maintenance for 2 years. I just don't like diving into something until i hear from the people that's "been there, done that". And, just in case your wondering, i'm a dude. I logged in with my wifes facebook, lol. Thanks in advance guys.
