14th Jan 2004, 10:58

I own a 1998 contour se I bought new. It has 130000 kms on it now, and so far I had only the shifter position switch replaced, one set of brake pads, and engine oil and filter on a regular basis. Everything else is great. I think the V6 is a far superior engine to the 4 cyl, so maybe that is where the authors problems are coming from.

24th Mar 2004, 07:39

Yeah the thing about the converter going out at 10,000 miles, I really don't think happened. I have a '97 Ford Contour GL and it's converter got clogged at 98,000 miles. Not certain what care the person before me did to it, but obviously not that good. The only things that have gone out on it are the water pump, and the converter. Otherwise that car runs very well. As long as you take care of the car there wouldn't be any problems. Perhaps the person with all the problems is abusing their car... could be!

20th May 2005, 13:45

I had a 1997 Ford Contour GL, and from the day we bought it brand new, it only averaged 14mpg in gasoline. We took the car to the dealership garage 3 times and they could find nothing wrong. My dash board vibrated/rattled constantly and I was told (by the dealership again) "the Contour is known to do that, it's just part of the car". At 67,000 miles, my engine blew and left me and my 2 children stranded. Ford would do nothing for me because my warranty expired at 65,000 miles! This was the worst car I ever owned.

9th Mar 2006, 23:39

I have a 1997 ford contour gl I bought it used to be honest I have had nothing, but problems and continue to have problems I have had it to three shops so far and no one seems to know what the problem is. I am not happy with this car nor would I ever buy another or encourage anyone else to.

23rd Jun 2006, 14:04

We ordered our "1997" Contour SE (2.5L V6) mid 1996. It was a 'special order' because 'what I wanted', inasfar as options/no-options were concerned, could NOT be located at any dealer. Hence, 'our' car was made from scratch. We 'received' the car Sept. 1996.

It's now the tail-end of June 2006 and we have 87,000 on the odometer.

"Dealer scheduled service" done at 'first scheduled service' (3K miles) and then at 15K, 30K, 60K. This type of service has mainly been 'pollen' filter, oil change (s), fuel-filter, Manifold and injector cleanings, updates to the computer, wires/plugs, etc.

Problems/repairs: at 78K the HEI wires caused a misfire and they were replaced. Also I got a CEL (Check engine light) for code P0420 which 'points to' a bad PRE-cat. Because we were OVER 8yrs the 8/80K warranty was worth squat. Ford quoted us $2,500 to change the cat (s). I told them to take a hike after they charged us $300 to 'verify' (via scan tool) what the CEL "said". Several cans of Berryman's B12 in the UIM (upper intake manifold) and in the gas tank *totally* cured the CEL! (and THAT was 10,000 miles ago!)

At 70Kt the (CD4) tranny developed a leak around one of the 'servo covers' -- fixed by AAMCO for $200. (They had to drain the radiator and replace some gaskets.)

My first set of tires lasted 48K. I changed to 4 Michelin MXV4's and they are absolutely FANTASTIC for roadholding with no squealing. Wet or dry they are fab!

My brake pads lasted 52K. The brakes were just starting to have a 'little' shimmy so I decided it was time. (Meineke asked me "Do you use the brakes at all?) The rotors were "mic'd" and then resurfaced at the same time as new pads were installed.

I have NOT had any problems with the IMRC.

I have NOT had any problems with the water pump.

I have NOT had any vacuum leaks / egr problems / fuel delivery issues, etc.

I have NOT had any problems with 'cracking dashboards'.

I have NOT had any funky or unusual 'electrical problems' or fuses constantly blowing out.

The "premium sound' CD player has a mind of its own. It sometimes goes "clickity-click" even if you DON'T have the unit on! It only seems to 'go quiet' if you KEEP a CD *in* there...even tho' you actually want to just listen to the radio.

Gas mileage has been 18-20 during the winter (winter gas?) and 21-23 during the summer. It's a V6 so I wasn't expecting the 'performance' of a Toyota Prius.

I don't beat on the car -- but, on the highway - when I 'need' power -- I don't hold back on the throttle! -- and she DOES respond!

I wash it regularly and wash/clean/polish both the outside and inside (leather seats) 3 times a year. There are NO cracks in the vinyl or leather.

I have seen ZERO rust anywhere.

It's a shame that a car in this condition is only worth, according to Kelly Blue Book, approx. $3000 (and dropping!)

BTW, I plan on keeping this car (now 9yrs old) until it dies or develops such a fault that repairing it would cost MORE than its resale value.

Gerry

(murray@hq.acm.org)

4th Jul 2007, 21:48

I just bought a used '97 Contour GL and it was well taken care of by the people who owned it previously. I few minor changes and a check up by the local mechanic and the engine is in great shape along with the drive train. A set of new tires and I am off. With 166,000 miles it gets 27 MPG. A great buy for $500. If it dies, I am only out the $175 for the new 14" tires. This thing is driving the ladies wild.