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To sell or not to sell...

S

svtman1

Be Gentle I'm New Here
Joined
Jul 6, 2007
Messages
3
It may be about time to part ways with my E0 Silver Frost SVT Contour...

I am the orignial owner and have put 111K on the car. Had one major malady a few years back when I had coolant leaking into one cylinder repaired ($4-5K). It's still tight, runs great and is in very nice shape. With the mileage though I'm worried about upcoming repair costs for cats (supposedly loose inside now/breaking up?), an intermittent ABS light (not from low brake fluid), impending timing chain replacement (120K) and anything else unforseen but deadly from a maintenance/repair point of view (especailly here in NY with $95/hr labor costs). As we speak, all systems are go and the car still makes me smile. You don't feel like you're driving a relic even after you've stepped out of a three series BMW test drive.

I can get a totally loaded V6 6-spd '07 (lame duck) Accord sedan for $299/mo on a 12,000 mi/36 mo lease with $1800 total out-of-pocket. They might even take the SVT for the down...Or I could keep the SVT for my 17 year old son ...or I could keep it and take my chances on maintenance. Also looking at GTI's and Madzaspeed 3's

What do you think??? :shrug: :confused:

Carl Cascone
'98 (mostly stock) CSVT #3100
 
IMO, if you are going to move on up... Mazdaspeed 3..... I've always been a Mazda fan, especially with them being under Ford's wing. And if possible, keep the tour for your son, keep it in the family! I've seen too many pictures my dad has where he says "You would have liked this one, but I sold it" (67 Stang GTA, 69 Camaro, 69 Stang Convert....) Its a 4 door, and its got guts... I would have been happy with one of these when I was 17, hell I was happy with my 1980 Toyota Tercel! lol

Good luck on the decision!
 
I'll assume your son has a driver's license and has driven the car. If you're at all considering giving it to him, sit down and ask him if he wants it. If he says "absolutely" then definitely do it! :) (If he thinks it's just another lame Contour his friends will laugh at, then don't, it will likely get abused to the point of dying early.)

As for trade-in ... people were getting laughable values for tradein several years ago, I can't imaging dealerships are giving any money for these cars now. Get an estimate from the dealer .. but if it's too low (and you don't give the car to your son) try selling on here, Craigslist or last resort eBay.
 
I smell a father/son project car. That car has a lot of potential and it could be a good experience for the both of you. IMHO
 
Welcome. :) Timing chains do not need to be replaced until they break (and they usually don't break before your pistons or rings do). Cat converter codes can be "fixed" with $30 mileliminators for the lower O2 sensors. ABS could be a problem. If the light stays on, get the codes scanned and it should tell which sensor is the problem.
 
It's an expensive car for a 17 year old, in my opinion -- insurance (depending on your state I suppose), fuel, etc.. Some SVT parts are getting harder to find, especially the SVT body parts. Contours may not have a high resale value, but they cost as much as their higher priced peers to maintain, especially SVT's (the faster the car drives, the faster the parts break imo).

The SVT will probably cost less for you to maintain than the Accord will be to lease, and depending on your driving preferences may offer a better overall experience.

Personally, I choose to own all of my cars. Used cars make a lot of sense if you're willing to put some thought into them. New cars make a lot of sense if you don't want to think about your car and only deal with standard maintenance.
 
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Personally I'd vote to mothball it for your son. these cars aren't worth much (sadly) and it will be a nice car for a young driver.
 
Im 16 and i have a 99 silverfrost svt.............................. i get all of the babes:cool:
 
Thanks to all for weighing in on this issue!

My kid would gladly take the SVT but I still haven't made up my mind. (Got another flash of the ABS lite yesterday!!) Appears the GTI is unavailable late in the model year (in my area at least) and the dealer is pushing his last remaining '07 Jetta GLI for $312 per month, $2K down--supposedly a huge deal. Wife--a Honda fan-- not sold on this white car...either am I. The stock 17 inch wheels are not gorgeous and either is the car. I really prefer the 4 door GTI. She likes black and there's a Black Mazdaspeed 3 Touring Model with Nav at my local dealership. I think I'll be calling him today! Last test I saw (early '96 (C&D)) had the V6 Accord MT running second to the GLI in a comparo. All the usual Honda virtues extolled, except the car--with "wimpy" 215/50/17 Michelins--pulled only .79 or .80 G's on the skid pad. This is a sports sedan??? I'm wondering if there were any changes between that car--an '06--and the current model year?

Once again, thanks for your thoughts. I'll let you know how it turns out!

Carl
E0 SVT Silver Frost
 
Tony2005 said:
Welcome. :) Timing chains do not need to be replaced until they break (and they usually don't break before your pistons or rings do). Cat converter codes can be "fixed" with $30 mileliminators for the lower O2 sensors. ABS could be a problem. If the light stays on, get the codes scanned and it should tell which sensor is the problem.
Click to expand...
Do we need to get to the dealer to have the ABS code scanned?
My regular Altron scanner does not scan ABS code. Do you know any scanner that does?

Thanks!
 
Tony2005 said:
Welcome. :) Timing chains do not need to be replaced until they break (and they usually don't break before your pistons or rings do).
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Yeah just make sure you don't have to be somewhere important or have it blow on the freeway. Also should have CAA/AAA or similar towing service cause you ain't goin nowhere!

Myself, I would do it before it breaks and not after.
 
Desiato said:
It's not a high failure item. I don't believe it's necessary to replace as a precaution.
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lol, you haven't had one go on you yet have ya? I would say you don't need to change it right at the interval it is recommended to change, but I still would say it is less a pain to change it before it goes. Especially if you don't have another reliable ways of getting around or don't have a couple hundred dollars laying around if you have to get someone else to replace it for you.
 
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