text: The car was badged and sold as both a Dodge and a Plymouth in the United States and Canada; in Mexico and Gulf Cooperation Council it was sold as a Dodge and a Chrysler, and in Europe, Australia, and other export markets it was sold as the Chrysler Neon. At the Neon's release, then president of Chrysler Corporation Bob Lutz said, "There's an old saying in Detroit: 'Good, fast, or cheap. Pick any two.' We refuse to accept that." The Japanese press touted the Neon as the "Japanese car killer", due to a spiraling Yen due to the Japanese "bubble economy" crash and the lower production cost of the Neon. The Neon also became the first Chrysler small car sold in Japan but despite focused attention, only 994 were sold in Japan between June and December 1996. The Neon was classed in the larger "Normal sized Passenger vehicles" tax bracket according to the Japanese Government dimension regulations which obligated Japanese owners for additional yearly road taxes which affected sales. The Neon received praise for its appearance, price, and power when compared to competing cars such as the Honda Civic DX at , the Civic EX at , the Nissan Sentra at , the Ford Escort ZX2 at , the Toyota Corolla at , the Saturn S-Series at  for SOHC variants and  for DOHC variants, and the Chevrolet Cavalier Base and LS models at , among others. Car and Driver tested the DOHC 5-speed equipped Neon R/T and reported that it could run 0–60 in 7.6 seconds and 16.0 seconds in the quarter mile. First-generation Neons were competitive in SCCA Solo autocross and showroom-stock road racing.