1997 PLYMOUTH NEON — Owner-Reported Problems
Verdict & Safety Summary
- Crashes 19
- Fires 2
- Injuries 22
- Deaths 0
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Component Problem Distribution
Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)
UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.
View component data as a table
| System / Component | Complaints | Share of Reports | Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires) |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE | 87 | 54.7% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| AIR BAGS | 13 | 8.2% | 8 crashes · 2 fires |
| SERVICE BRAKES | 8 | 5.0% | 3 crashes · 0 fires |
| POWER TRAIN | 7 | 4.4% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 4 | 2.5% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| SEAT BELTS | 4 | 2.5% | 2 crashes · 0 fires |
| STEERING | 4 | 2.5% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| STRUCTURE | 4 | 2.5% | 0 crashes · 0 fires |
| VISIBILITY | 4 | 2.5% | 1 crashes · 0 fires |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 80 | 50.3% | 18 crashes · 2 fires |
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Problem & Recall Timeline
Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time
- Campaign 97V080000 was reported 44 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
| Date | Record type | Count | Record identifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997-Q1 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 1997-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 1997-Q3 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 1997-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 1998-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 1998-Q2 | Owner reports | 2 | |
| 1998-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 1998-Q4 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 1999-Q1 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 1999-Q2 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 1999-Q3 | Owner reports | 11 | |
| 1999-Q4 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2000-Q1 | Owner reports | 16 | |
| 2000-Q2 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2000-Q3 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2000-Q4 | Owner reports | 6 | |
| 2001-Q1 | Owner reports | 9 | |
| 2001-Q2 | Owner reports | 9 | |
| 2001-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2001-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2002-Q1 | Owner reports | 7 | |
| 2002-Q2 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2002-Q3 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2002-Q4 | Owner reports | 5 | |
| 2003-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2003-Q2 | Owner reports | 8 | |
| 2003-Q3 | Owner reports | 3 | |
| 2003-Q4 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2004-Q1 | Owner reports | 4 | |
| 2004-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2004-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2005-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2005-Q3 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2005-Q4 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| 2006-Q1 | Owner reports | 1 | |
| Recall campaign | 1 | 97V080000 | |
| Defect investigation | 1 | PE02082 |
Safety Recalls (1)
Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA
-
Manufacturer action
Recall campaign 97V080000
- Report date
- Component:
- AIR BAGS
- Consequence:
- UNEXPECTED AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT CAN RESULT IN OCCUPANT INJURY.
- Remedy:
- DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE AIR BAG ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED MODULE.
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Complaint Narrative Explorer
Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records
No complaints match the current filters.
Estimated Ownership Cost
EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates
Adjacent Model Years
Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records
Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.
Methodology & Data Integrity
Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.