1996 Dodge Neon from North America - Comments

Over all the car is an upgrade from my previous car. There are although a few things wrong with this car.

One of the major problems I have is that the speedometer works when it feels like it, which makes the odometer not work. The second, is that the fuel gauge doesn't work. Its either full or empty with no inbetween. Probably the most annoying problem is that something leaks when it rains and the floors become a small swimming pool. It hasn't rusted a hole in the floor yet because the water doesn't leak out, though I'm expecting it any time now.

There is a slight bumping in the tires. Not from any dents or anything, just because it feels like bumping.

The car doesn't handle all that bad for having stiff steering. Looks nice when washed. Not a cheap looking car when it's in working order.

I have a 1996 Neon, 2 door. I have some of the same problems you are having... gas gauge being either full or empty and the speed odometer not working at all now. Has been this way since I purchased the car used, a year and a half ago.

Lynn in NC.

I am having the same problem with water when it rains. I get water in the trunk and then it runs onto the floor of the back seat. Have tried to find the leak, but to no avail.

I have a 96 Dodge Neon, it basically runs well, but I have the same problem. When it rains the water runs in through the trunk & onto the rear passenger floor, the gas gauge either reads full or empty & the speedometer works off & on.

I have a 1996 Dodge neon, my car does the same thing also. Gas gauge will go completely empty, and speedometer work off and on, it can be very annoying, I am trying to find a way to get it fixed though.

Actually believe it or not the speedometer problem is an easy fix. You'll need to remove the instrument cluster, but this is actually a lot easier than it sounds. If you pop the top cover off of the dash and remove it (just put a screwdriver underneath it and pry up gently on both the driver and passenger side) this gives you access to the instrument panel.

Take out the 4 screws that hold the panel in place and just pop it right out of the dash. Then take it over to workbench (or inside if your like me and doing this stuff in your driveway) and remove the screws that hold the dust cover in place over the circuit board (these require an allen wrench btw).

Then take all the screws that hold the circuit board in place to the instrument panel, and remove the board.

Flip it over, you'll see two rows of 6 connectors on each side - this is where the connectors that plug into the dash connect to the circuit board.

Take a soldering iron and heat each one of these connectors until the solder melts and changes color, it only takes a few seconds per connector. Once you've done all the connectors, just put the instrument panel back together and go plug it back into your dash. Replace the top cover and your all set, your speedometer and other gauges will work great with no further problems.

You can find another description of this repair and pictures of the circuit board with the connections you need to resolder highlighted here:

http://www.neons.org/modules/news/article.php?storyid=18.

I own two neons and have had to do this to both of them, haven't had a gauge problem with either since.

The gauge trick above also works on 2nd gen neons. I had a 2003 neon se that the speedo and tach was not working. I tryed this out on it. the only differance is all the pins are in the middle instead of being split between sides.

Your water leaking in your trunk and then the back seat area ( neon ) is caused by water leaking passed your tail lights. I had the same problem when I replaced a tail light assy. I just used sealant around the tail light assy and then everything was fine. Hope this helps.

Ditto on the 2nd generation comment above. My 2002 Dodge Neon instrument cluster completely died, accompanied by no dome light, and no warning sounds for lights left on, keys in ignition. Took it to the dealer thinking it would be a wiring harness or connector issue. "Bad circuit board" was their diagnosis.

This could be remedied (by them) by installing a new instrument cluster, a nearly $1,000 repair. No thanks! The service tech told me they used to be able to get new circuit boards, but no more -- just the whole instrument assembly.

Thanks to all the contributions above, I was able to effect this repair in about one hour. A couple of comments specific to the 2002 Neon:

All I did was remove the screws on the outside end of each side of the dashboard, and then lift/pry the front of the dash up.

Have a couple of small wood blocks (a short piece of 2x4 for example) on hand to prop up the dash during the removal and re-installation process. I did not remove the dash top (nor could I see how to do so), but just wedging it up in place worked fine.

Removing the trim piece on the bottom front of the cluster (above the steering column) requires prying the snap clips out from their sockets on the upper end of each side of the piece. Then you can work the rest of the piece out.

Remove the four phillips head screws holding the cluster in place, and pull it forward. You'll probably have to do some maneuvering with the unit to get it out.

There are no wire assemblies or connector harnesses. The connector is a single unit mounted on the back of the cluster that plugs into the dash. Remove the cardboard and unfasten the circuit board screws with a T-15 Torx screwdriver. Pull up on the circuit board to remove it -- the gauges themselves have pins that stick up through the circuit board into friction connections, so there will be some resistance from that. Then, turn over the circuit board and re-flow all the pin connections for the single connector.

BTW, be sure to do this with a proper soldering iron made for electronics -- don't try it with any of the larger irons, or with a solder gun. They will get too hot and possibly damage the circuit board. If you need one, check Radio Shack. A bright light and a magnifier help.

When you plug the unit back in, the odometer should light up immediately if you were successful (assuming you have a door open).

Again, many thanks to everyone for the help. Nothing like a simple one-hour repair that saves you $1,000 to make your day! :-)

One other thing to remember on repairing your instrument cluster: undo the neg. battery cable. Otherwise you risk blowing your air bag or frying the cluster.

I also have the same problem with my speedometer on my '95 Neon. It only works once in a while. Will try the same repair stated.