![]() ![]() Indeed, the Neon Sport coupe is just two-tenths shy of our old benchmark, the Sentra SE-R. Fitted with the standard manual five-speed, the Neon coupe nails the 0-to-60-mph run in a mere 7.6 seconds, compared with 8.9 seconds for the Sunfire GT (currently offered only with an automatic). In the Sport coupe's 2524-pound package, 150 horsepower produces front-of-the-class performance. Indeed, on that score the Chrysler twin-cam betters even the Quad 4 in the coming Chevy Cavalier Z24/Pontiac Sunfire GT, which itself is no slouch with 150 hp from 2.3 liters. This is one muscular little car: the twin-cam four produce 18 hp more than the single-cam version, for a total of 150 horsepower from just 2.0 liters. In some ways, the coupe delivers on that potential. With the twin-cam's added power, we figured the Neon might become a real scorcher for enthusiasts on a budget-maybe even a successor to the discontinued Nissan Sentra SE-R. ![]() After all, the single-cam, 132-hp Neon Sport four-door won our last econocar shootout (June 1994) and ranks as one of our favorite all-around small cars. The notion of a twin-cam Neon certainly has appeal. But for now at least, if you want the latest double-overhead-cam version of the Neon's 2.0-liter four-cylinder, you can get it only in the two-door Sport coupe. Not that we fault Chrysler for building the car: for many Generation Xorcists, having a twodoor is as essential to lofty social standing as drinking Zima liquid and bobbing to Snoop Doggy Dogg videos. So we admit to feeling some philosophical bias against the latest Neon Sport coupe even before driving it. ![]()
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