A turbocharged variant of the Neon,[1] the car was developed by DaimlerChrysler's in house PVO (Performance Vehicle Operations) tuner group.

In 1998, Tom Gale, (then Executive Vice President of Chrysler Product Development and Design), attended the 1998 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas.

Gale was the design chief of the original Dodge Viper concept vehicle, and recognized an opportunity to build a sport compact that would appeal to the younger auto generation who grew up on tuner cars, who may prefer a new car with the same performance appeal right off the showroom floor.

They created a concept car, the 2000 Neon SRT, in just 4 months, with a 2.0 L 16-valve four-cylinder topped with a 45-cubic-inch Eaton supercharger, which produced 208 hp (155 kW) and 180 lb⋅ft (240 N⋅m) of torque at the flywheel on 11 psi (0.76 bar) of boost.

The car was then given a New Venture Gear T-850 five-speed manual transmission (based on the unit from the European turbodiesel minivans), equal-length half shafts, and a high capacity Sachs performance clutch.

The same satin metal trim was also featured on the instrument panel center stack, climate control knobs and on the door handles.

The 2004 model was updated with more power and torque, and included a torque-sensing Quaife limited-slip differential, larger fuel injectors, new engine management software, BF Goodrich g-Force T/A KDW-2 three season ultra-high-performance tires, and paint/trim changes.

In 2005, an American Club Racer (ACR) package and limited edition numbered Commemorative version of the SRT-4 were also offered.

The SRT-4 intercooler was a front-mounted cast aluminum 8-row unit produced by Valeo, unique in its efficiency and computer designed end tanks for air flow.

The turbine discharge was also part of the manifold/turbine housing casting, and it looped back around and hit the manifold again on its way to the catalytic converter.

[20] The exhaust system for the vehicle consists of 2.25-inch (57.15 mm) steel tubing, which is run first through the catalytic converter, then through two resonators.

The exhaust then splits into two separate sections of piping, exiting through two 3.75 in (95 mm) stainless steel tips at the rear of the vehicle.

This limited, numbered version included: In 2003, Dodge engineers built a special SRT-4 Extreme LightWeight for the 2003 SEMA show.

[22] This one-off SRT-4 was used for media events and testing of the Mopar development parts, and was destroyed as an asset reduction move in 2009.

In 2003, Cory O'Brien and Erich Heuschele drove an SRT-4 to a 1st in class and 8th overall finish in the Tire Rack Cannonball One Lap of America.

[33] In 2005, Jeff Lepper drove the SRT-4 to its first ever national road racing win in the NASA US Touring Car Championship at California Speedway in Fontana.

[34] In 2005, Dale Seeley, Kolin Aspergren, and Jamin Cummings drove an SRT-4 to a 1st in class and 8th overall finish in the Tire Rack Cannonball One Lap of America.

[38][39] In 2007, Doug Wind, Devin Clancy, and Ken Brewer drove an SRT-4 to a 1st in class and 5th overall finish in the Tire Rack Cannonball One Lap of America.

[40] In 2007, George Biskup drove an SRT-4 Neon to several SCCA T-2 National wins, and set the Track Qualifying Record at Road America.

In 2008, Curt Simmons attempts to defend his USTCC series championship, winning on June 29, 2008, at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA.

[44] In 2012, Russ Deane set a new world land speed record for four-cylinder production cars (SRT-4) of more than 226 mph (364 km/h).

His race team included Jim Hinckley, Dave Harris (chief), Craig Ohlson, "Camel" Joe George, Troy Cheney, Stuart Gosswein, and Jim Hinckley Jr.[45] *Dodge SRT-4[permanent dead link‍] at the Open Directory Project 1 Rebadged models, mostly from Japanese, Korean or Chinese manufacturers – 2 Rebadged Chrysler/Plymouth models for external markets