2003 - 2005 Dodge Neon 2.4L Front Suspension Torques

Here you can find information regarding the assembly of the Dodge Neon front end. In this guide we will cover the essential repairs for the front end of this vehicle. Included within these repairs is the inner and outer tie rod removal and change, the front wheel hubs installation, ball joint removal and installation, the upper and lower control arms, and the front strut installation. Along with the repair procedures we also include the corresponding bolt torque specs for each fastener involved. These guides are intended to assist in each procedure to help diyers with the job.

To install a new tie rod on a Dodge Neon you must first remove the old one from the vehicle. This can be done by raising the vehicle up by either the use of a floor jack or a vehicle hoist. Once the vehicle is in the air you can remove the corresponding tire for the side that you want to change the tie rod on. Once the tire is off you can now access the old tie rod and remove it for replacement. On this vehicle the tie rod is apart of an entire rod system which controls the steering of the vehicle. If any of the steering rods are loose be sure to replace them appropiately. The outer tie rod itself connects with another inner portion of the rod through the use of an inner tie rod. This inner tie rod screws into the power steering rack and can be torqued down to 55 ft-lbs. Be sure to inspect and measure your old tie rods so that the new ones can be installed correctly. Whenever steering components are changed I recommend having an alignment done after the job to ensure the vehicle is in good functional condition. When putting the tie rod onto the vehicle the tie rod end nuts get tightened down to 40 ft-lbs. Be sure to install new cotter pins to ensure that vehicle safety is maintained.

The front wheel hub on the Dodge Neon is pressed in and will need to be pressed out in order to change unless you change the entire steering knuckle with it. To start with removing the old wheel bearing you will need to dislocated the steering knuckle from the vehicles frame. This includes removing the tie rod end nut, the lower ball joint nut, the 2 strut lower bolts, the stabilizer link, and the center axle nut. With all of those removed the entire steering knuckle assembly can be removed from the vehicle. From here you can press out the old bearing and press in the new bearing. Be sure to get the appropriate parts otherwise you may run into issues. With the new bearing pressed in place you can reinstall the steering knuckle by doing the reverse procedure as the removal. Once back together be sure to tighten down the center axle nut to 180 ft-lbs.

The Dodge Neon only has one front ball joint per each side of the vehicle. The lower ball joing connects the lower control arm to the vehicles steering knuckle. The lower ball joint should be slid into the steering knuckle and the pinch bolt should be torqued down to 70 ft-lbs. Be sure that the lower ball joint is installed all the way before installing and torqueing the pinch bolt.

Lower Control Arm

On the Dodge Neon there is a single control arm for each side of the vehicle being the lower control arm. The lower control arm has 3 total fasteners which hold it to the vehicle. There are 2 bolts that hold the control arm to the vehicle frame. There is also a ball joint which fastens the control arm to the steering knuckle. The lower control arm front frame bolt can be tightened down to 120 ft-lbs while the rearward cushion retaining bolts can be torqued down to 20 ft-lbs. From here the lower ball joint nut can be torqued down to 175 ft-lbs. When tightening up the lower control arm fasteners be sure to set the wheel height to a level that it would be at during riding or when on the ground. This is best done with a bottle jack under the suspension.

To replace the front struts on the Dodge Neon you will need to lift the vehicle up into the air and start by removing the tire on the side you want to replace. With that removed we can now remove the bolts and nuts that hold the strut to the vehicle frame and lower control arm. Starting with the 2 lower bolts which hold the strut assembly to the steering knuckle. Simply remove the nuts from the bolts and then lightly tap the bolts out of the steering knucle assembly. Be sure not to damage the threads on the bolts as they will need to be reused when installing the new strut into the vehicle. With the 2 lower bolts removed we can then remove the single nut which holds the stabilizer bar to the front strut. With that remove we can move to under the hood and remove the 3 nuts which hold the upper portion of the strut to the vehicles frame. With the upper three nuts removed the old strut assembly should be able to be removed from the car. The new strut assembly can be placed into the location of the old one and the upper nuts can be hand tightened. Before torqueing down any fasteners be sure that everything is first hand tightened. The 2 lower bolts can then be installed and hand tightened up along with the stabilizer endlink nut. From here we can torque down the upper nuts to 27 ft-lbs and then the 2 lower strut bolts to 40 ft-lbs plus a 90 degree turn. The stabilizer endlink can be torqued down to 25 ft-lbs.

The front swaybar on the Dodge Neon consists of a series of brackets that hold it to the frame of the vehicle and a couple of endlink nuts that fasten it the the outer side of the car. To remove the swaybar you will need to jack up the front of the vehicle and remove both the endlink nuts as well as the brackets. To install the new swaybar you will need to move it back into the place as the old one and torque the endlink nuts to 25 ft-lbs and then torque the bracket bolts to 20 ft-lbs as well.