IS the Neon Really Dead?

Alex Gary | ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR

The last new 2005 Dodge Neon is out there somewhere in North America, hoping for a buyer.

Sales of the subcompact, assembled at the DaimlerChrysler assembly plant in Belvidere for 11 years until last September, tumbled from 4,068 in March to just 361 in July.

Soon, perhaps Friday when August car sales come out, the Neon sales report will hit zero, the true end of the road.But in the car industry, does any car truly die? Since 1998 when Volkswagen introduced the “New Beetle,” the automotive industry has spent millions on redesigning “retro” cars ranging from the highly recognizable Dodge Challenger, which will come back in 2008 with the look of the 1970 Challenger R/T, to the Chevy HHR, which was based on and named after the almost completely forgotten 1949 Suburban.

That raises the question: Could the Neon ever be retro?

According to automotive analysts, highly doubtful. According to Neon enthusiasts, a firm maybe.

“That car is never going to come back,” said Robyn Eckerd, director of media relations for Irvine, Calif.-based Kelley Blue Book, which compiles automotive resale information. “The car companies are bringing back the ones people had a certain affection for. Look at the Charger, people who are buying it are younger or the baby boomers. The Mini Cooper is an icon. The Neon never had that kind of following.”

The 33-year-old said muscle cars from the 1960s and 70s are the inspiration for most new “retro” vehicles.

U.S. models from the 1980s and 90s lack that cache.

In fact, she could think of just three ‘90s models she’d like to see return and all were foreign made — Volkswagen Corrado, a hatchback in production from 1988 to 1995; the Toyota MR2, a two-seat sports car built from 1984 to 2005; and the Honda Del Sol, a targa top convertible sold in the U.S. from 1993 to 1998.

Erich Merkle of Michigan-based auto market research firm IRN Inc. also doubts the Neon will ever go back into production.

“There wasn’t too much good to write home about in the cars of the ’80s and ’90s,” he said. “What are they going to do, bring back the K car?

“The car companies in the ’80s and ’90s were just trying to survive,” Merkle added. “They were in trouble for a reason — the product. They didn’t introduce anything that memorable.”

Haig Stoddard, manager of industry analysis for Ward’s Communications in Southfield, Mich., held the door open for a Neon return.

“It could happen because the market is moving toward station wagon body styles, from the Dodge Caliber on up to crossover utility vehicles,” Stoddard said. “I could see in 15 to 20 years a nostalgic move to go back to a sedan body style. The Neon was somewhat unique in its design.”

Still, Stoddard put the odds of an eventual Neon return at less than 50 percent.

Neon enthusiasts, though, don’t believe the book is closed on the car that sold more than 2.6 million units in the U.S. under both the Dodge and Plymouth names.

“Based on the number they sold and how many are still out there, I would think they’d want to bring it back someday,” said Bob LaPier, a car salesman at Belvidere Motors, which sells Dodge products. LaPier bought five Neons and believes the 2005 model was the best one yet. “I’ve really dressed up the 2005. It looks like a mini-hot rod.”

Dr. Nesher Asner of Rockford said the Neon’s drivability is its strongest asset.

“It was a small, cheap car but really fun to drive,” said Asner, who joined a nationwide Neon enthusiasts club with his 1998 Plymouth Neon Expresso. “I beat this car into the ground, and it’s still running.”

Another member of the Neon enthusiast club, 35-year-old Benjamin Youman, who lives between Davis Junction and Stillman Valley in Ogle County, said “probably not” when asked if he thinks the Neon will ever be “retro.”

“You’d have to design it to compete with the (Mitsubishi) Lancer or the Subaru WRX,” said Youman, a nuclear engineer at the Byron Exelon generating stations, who gave his 1999 Dodge Neon R/T to his niece. “Make it a high performance car but still tout the great gas mileage.”

Dave Lusz, general manager of Anderson Dodge, said he believes the Neon name might return someday but not as a small subcompact.

“I’ve been here 30 years, and I’ve been surprised a lot of times,” Lusz said. “There are a lot of cars I thought I’d never see again that are being talked about. Names like the Dodge Diplomat and the (Chrysler) Fifth Avenue. It’s a crazy business. You never say never about the Neon because you just don’t know.”

Old car names never die ...
Automakers have increasingly been banking on old favorites in the search for new car sales. Here are a few.

Volkswagen kicked off the retro craze in 1998 by announcing the “New Beetle.”

Chevrolet brought back the Camaro, based closely on the look of the 1967-69 first generation.

Toyota’s FJ Cruiser styling is very similar to the original from the 1960s.
Chevy HHR was based on the little-known 1949 Suburban.

Jeep Commander was reintroduced in 2005, carrying the name from an obscure Jeep sport model from the early 1970s.

Chrysler PT Cruiser was originally based on the 1934 Chrysler Airflow, but the final version resembled the Chrysler CCV and Plymouth Pronto concepts from the late 1990s. Along with VW’s “New Beetle,” it has been the most successful of the retro cars.

Dodge Challenger is coming back in 2008. Its styling is based on the 1970 Challenger R/T.

Dodge Charger is in its third life. DaimlerChrysler brought it back this year as a rear wheel drive sedan.

Ford Thunderbird was revived in 2002 as a two-seater roadster. Enthusiasts say it stayed true to the original 1955-57 roadsters.

Source: Register Star research, Wikipedia and Autobytel.com. To read a full article on the retro craze and see photos of current and past models, type in www.rrstar.com/autobytel/retro

What about the Fury?

Some key Belvidere-built products have been immune to the retro craze.
The Plymouth Fury, Dodge Monaco and Dodge Polara were built in Belvidere from 1965 to 1977, and the Plymouth Horizon and Dodge Omni, which was put together in Belvidere from 1978 to 1986.

But other cars that had much briefer runs in Belvidere have made comebacks.

Some key Belvidere-built products have been immune to the retro craze.
The Plymouth Fury, Dodge Monaco and Dodge Polara were built in Belvidere from 1965 to 1977, and the Plymouth Horizon and Dodge Omni, which was put together in Belvidere from 1978 to 1986.

But other cars that had much briefer runs in Belvidere have made comebacks.

The Dodge Charger was brought back this year as a rear wheel drive sedan based more on its 1966-1978 hardtop coupe and personal luxury car days rather than the 1983-1987 era when it was assembled in Belvidere as a front wheel drive subcompact hatchback.

The Chrysler Imperial was first introduced in 1926 and ran under the Imperial name until 1975. In 1990, Chrysler brought it back — and built it in Belvidere — as an upscale version of the Chrysler New Yorker/Fifth Avenue. It was discontinued again at the end of 1993. DaimlerChrysler unveiled a 2006 Chrysler Imperial concept car this year basing the look on the 1960s versions.

The Dodge Rampage was a small front wheel drive pickup built off the Horizon/Omni platform from 1982 to 1984. DaimlerChrysler rolled out a 2006 Dodge Rampage concept that again is a front wheel pickup but this time is a full size truck as large as the Dodge Ram.

You be the designer
If you worked at Daimler-Chrysler and were given the assignment to bring back the Neon, how would you design it? Would you base it closely on one of the Neon models over the years? Or would you take it in a new direction? Send your suggestions to Alex Gary at agary@rrstar.com for us to use in a future story. Please include your name, city of residence and how to reach you during the day.