2000 Plymouth Neon

The 2000 Plymouth Neon sits within a generation that saw complaints peak dramatically in 1995 (602) before steadily declining through 1999, but it breaks that downward arc with a sharp uptick to 144 complaints, 6 recalls, 2 investigations, and 63 TSBs—the highest technical service bulletin count of any year in the federal record. Compared with the immediately preceding 1999 model year, which posted the cleanest figures of the late production run (68 complaints, zero recalls), the 2000 model registers more than double the complaints, and its six-recall count ties the troubled 1995 launch year as the worst in the generation. The leading complaint categories concentrate on safety-critical systems—service brakes (24), airbags (15), engine cooling (12), and electrical (10)—and the 29 crash-related and 5 fire-related complaints further underscore exposure in those areas, though the dataset does not specify root causes or common failure modes. The fact that 2001 drops back to 50 complaints and 3 recalls suggests 2000 is an isolated spike rather than a sustained deterioration, but prospective buyers should still treat it as a higher-risk year. On balance, the 2000 Neon is a passable but not optimal choice within this generation; a 1999 or 2001 example would likely deliver a quieter, less recall-laden ownership experience.