Sounds like a owner error... neons arent the fastest but should beat the two mustangs u listedJust for reference ive had two friends with srt4s
First one had a mopar intake, and borla exhaust he was no match for my bolt on cobra not by a long shot.
he raced my room mates 00 gt with comp 262s Detuned he only made 265hp, and 290 torque (reason for detune was he had alot of timing pulled for nitrous),
the srt still couldnt beat that gt from any roll or even close from a dig.
Now the second srt4 has intake turbo back 3" exhaust, u/d pulleys, upped boost to 18psi 21 spike, freshly rebuilt turbo, .030 shaved off his cyl head (it might have been .020) removed balance shafts, granatelli ignition coil and wires, agp wastegate larger intercooler, lightweight wheels, short shifter, and some spring mod? He couldnt beat my friends 410 geared catback and mac cai 03 Mach 1 he got pulled by about 2 car lenghts.
My 98 cobra with 410s jlt intake, SRI, and borla catback is neck and neck with that mach 1