i own a 97 neon, and i certainly wouldn't wait till 100,000 miles to service the tranny! i have been changing the fluid / filter every 40,000. this is the first time we ever bought a brand new car, and i wanted it to last. it has gone better than 200,000 miles so far, and we recently had a horrific incident with the transmission. its survival i have to believe was due to the maintenance keeping the transmission in good condition. on the 97, the kick down shaft is siameesed inside of the gear selector shaft. the kickdown shaft had gotten rusted to the point where it froze inside the gear selector. when i tried to pass another vehicle, pressing on the accelerator moved the gear selector into reverse (becuase the pressure broke the end off the gear selector cable) at 50 mph! the car stalled, and we were stranded, as it would not restart. i had it towed home, expecting that the transmission would probably be junk. longer story shortened, i made the repairs, put it back together, and everything survived! what a relief! we have driven it roughly 3,000 miles since, and not even so much as a hiccup from the transmission. moral of the story, keep the transmission in great condition, and it will give you a long and happy service life. ignore it, and you will be facing a very expensive rebuild.