Start with what the Dodge SRT-4 is: a 4-door sedan with 2.4 L EDV/EDT I4, built from 2003 to 2005, in the decade of stability control, dual-clutch gearboxes and the first serious hybrids. What it meant takes a little longer. The shape is credited to Eric Stoddard.
The story
The Dodge Neon SRT-4 (also known and later labeled as Dodge SRT-4) is a sport compact car manufactured by Dodge from 2003 to 2005. A turbocharged variant of the Neon, the car was developed by DaimlerChrysler's in house PVO (Performance Vehicle Operations) tuner group. PVO was officially renamed SRT (Street and Racing Technology) in 2004. The "4" in the SRT-4's name denotes the number of cylinders of the engine. ACR (American Club Racing) and Commemorative Edition models were later introduced as well.
What is underneath
The engine is 2.4 L EDV/EDT I4. On the scales it comes to 2900 lb. Drive goes through a 5-speed NVG T-850 manual. The layout matters: the engine drives the front wheels, the packaging choice that gives a small car a big cabin. The wheelbase is 105.0 in. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Its place in the line
In the Dodge line-up the Dodge SRT-4 has a clear place: it handed the line to the Dodge Caliber SRT-4; the factory was Belvidere, Illinois, United States. The cars a buyer would have weighed it against include the Mazda RX-8, the Bentley Continental GT, the Mazda Mazda3. Nearby in the Dodge catalogue sit the Dodge 1500 and the 1955 Dodge.