22nd Dec 2008, 17:55
I own a 98' Ford Contour SVT and I absolutely love it! I had never even heard of it before, and needed to buy a car quick. It was all tricked out when I got it also. The guy that owned it before me was into high performance aftermarket kits and parts.
It had 130,000 miles on it when I got it, and it has been absolutely awesome! I have had it for over a year, and the only thing I have had to replace is the clutch (my clutch worked great. I just wanted to install a high performance clutch instead).
My SVT also does incredibly well in the snow (gotta love those super wintry conditions). Paired along with my studded snow tires, the traction control on these cars is amazing. I owned a 94' Toyota pickup with 4-wheel drive, and this car does tons better in the snow than that pickup ever did. I keep up with all of the heavy duty trucks on the highway, while all the other cars are lagging behind, and slipping off the road.
I am not saying that this car is perfect, but it comes pretty darn close. I have not had to replace my water pump yet. It may have been replaced with the owner before me. I get a lot of compliments on my car, and I would recommend this car to anyone.
20th Oct 2010, 15:42
I have a 1998.5 Contour SVT. Fun car to drive, but you can tell it's cheaply built.
Paint is peeling.
Fuel pump went out at 28000 miles.
A/C stopped working with only 12000 miles on the car, even though a Ford dealership tried to fix it under warranty 3 times.
Also the steering wheel is peeling, dash is warped, and now with only 38000 miles on it, the check engine light is on.
Nothing like a good old Ford!!!
25th Oct 2010, 10:42
I am currently looking into purchasing a 1998 contour SVT. It's a single owner and it's spotless. It runs and drives like nothing I've ever driven before. It has 87K on the engine and I'm very interested.
I'm familiar with Fords SVT, but I didn't know they made a Contour with an SVT engine. I am curious what other Contour SVT owners have to say and what they could give me as feedback on the car.
So please feel free to fill me in on anything I might want to know.
1st Dec 2010, 14:33
I bought a 1998 E0 Contour SVT 6 years ago with 80,000Km on it. I'm from Canada. The car had one previous owner, who was an older lady, and the car didn't go very far, and it was never driven in the winter. I paid $6500.00 Cdn. for the vehicle. I do not drive it in the winter, because it is in mint condition.
This car is the funnest (if that's a word) car to drive ever. Regardless of what people in postings say, don't listen to them. If you find a Contour SVT in decent shape, BUY IT. These cars hold their own on the roads, even in today's car market.
For all those German nay-sayers who get angry when you compare a CSVT with a 3-series, I say deal with it, because it's true. I have smoked many BMW and A4's in all aspects of performance. They're just mad because they put lots of fuel in them, and pay way too much for insurance, and spent double for the same type of performance.
Buy one and drive the crap out of it. I've put 60,000km of hard fast driving on my 'tour, and it never lets me down. I'm supercharging mine in May of 2011. I'll keep ya's posted.
4th Aug 2007, 10:47
I think the Contour SVT is like any performance touring sedan. By that I mean it will be reliable and run well when driven appropriately and maintained well. I have driven Fords for some time with next to no problems. I have also sold cars and find that most cars are reliable when properly mainained.
Just recently I helped a Toyota mechanic that was stranded at a busy local intersection in a new Tundra pickup. The Tundra quit him and his comment was, " I hope this is not one of those new 5.7L's that has had the camshaft break in two." So even the manufacturers with best reputations have problems on their vehicles. Just between you and me, I would take any broken water pump over a camshaft broken in two.