luxery

[qbcsvt]

Just do something you like. This is something different then everyone having the same body style, brakes, seats, exhaust, etc, etc. So your going to get a lot of hate. I would like to see it pulled off. But I personally think you should scrap the Contour and get a CSVT to start with as it will save you the trouble of sourcing such.

Unfortunately, you will not get MUCH of those great features from a current car on the market, like heated/cooled seats, Temperature sensitive heat/cold, Great audio control, so on and so forth unless you go custom. And truthfully its not worth it. I dont regret putting my money into my CSVT (denial) but I would much rather have put it into my MR2 and had a much faster car.

- amyn

 

[FIND]

The Lincoln LS is significantly larger than a Contour.

Not a whole lot..... They seem smaller than a taurus to me. My continental is about the same size as a taurus, and an LS is smaller than my Continental, which is why I passed on buying one.

 

[Y2KSVT]

I owned a Lincoln LS and an SVT Contour at the same time. The LS is definitely a much larger car. It's not as large as a Town Car by any means, but I'd say the difference in size between the LS and the Contour is greater than the difference between the LS and Town Car, if I had to guess. The engine bay on the LS is pretty large, the trunk is a bit deeper than the Contour's trunk, and there's way more room on the interior with the LS.

I will say, that although I don't think the LS is smaller than a Taurus (and no, I don't feel like searching), it definitely feels smaller when driving. The LS is very well balanced and handles like a car much smaller than itself. Having a V8 and RWD doesn't hurt, either!

Mark

 

[Smokinjoe]

While I do like the "VIP" style of car modification, I just don't think it would work on a Contour.

 

[Antec]

I think this is the closest to VIP we have come with this platform


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkxcFvZCY38

 

[greasemonkey1489]

I think this is the closest to VIP we have come with this platform


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkxcFvZCY38

I lol'd...

Maybe throw a canvas roof on a contour? Load leveling system, handicapped symbol, heated seats etc. Bam, luxury.

 

[rouar]

wood dash kit leather seats maybe high end audio or video

A fully-loaded Mystique meets two of your criteria, at least, and it even puts wood trim on the gearshift. Although it doesn't have the 10-way power driver's seat like the SVTs, it does have small touches like the puddle lights in the doors and the rear dome light.
Here's an example with pics: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/00-M...ars_Trucks&hash=item4aa5568ec0#ht_37022wt_962

This one as well, with the Mystique dashboard before they switched to Contour ones in '99: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/vehi..._Cars_Trucks&hash=item230b26d238#ht_500wt_977

 

[Pen_Two]

What kind of luxury could you possibly build in a 10+ year old car that was built to be an economy car in the first place. You want luxury, get a Lincoln. An LS is nice and right about the same size as a contour.

I'd imagine you could do quite a bit since a good portion of classic restorations end up a great deal more luxurious than they were in their production days.

 

[Klasse Act]

The only "luxury" Contour isn't even a Contour, but a Mystique or as we call them "Contique" and its the Young America edition Mystique with its white paint, white wheels and white and blue leather interior. I know A2Steve had a 3.0L in his.

 

[FIND]

I'd imagine you could do quite a bit since a good portion of classic restorations end up a great deal more luxurious than they were in their production days.

That is a little different than a car that the average buyer only buys because it is the nicest thing they can afford. Also, we are talking about mid-late 90s econoboxes here.

 

[Pen_Two]

What's so different about it? At one point, the cars I'm referring to were also looked at the same way you're looking at mid-late 90's econoboxes.

 

[B3NN3TT]

You keep using that term, but I don't think the Contour was an "econobox". In fact, wasn't the high price one of the main reasons it never caught on?

The Escort was the Econobox. The Contour was certainly not.

 

[Pen_Two]

I was just reusing his term even if I don't agree with it.

 

[FIND]

You keep using that term, but I don't think the Contour was an "econobox". In fact, wasn't the high price one of the main reasons it never caught on?

The Escort was the Econobox. The Contour was certainly not.

Price doesn't change the fact it was an econobox.

Very few frills and in most trims it was a basic point a to point b sedan.

 

[bensenvill]

just cause it was a cheap car to start with, doesnt mean you cant add your own little touches of the good life.


here are my hvac knobs

 

[bensenvill]

A fully-loaded Mystique meets two of your criteria, at least, and it even puts wood trim on the gearshift. Although it doesn't have the 10-way power driver's seat like the SVTs, it does have small touches like the puddle lights in the doors and the rear dome light.
Here's an example with pics: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/00-M...ars_Trucks&hash=item4aa5568ec0#ht_37022wt_962

dear lord thats hideous.

I started many years ago experimenting with wood dash inserts for myself. I was real freaked out with how well my parts would hold up, but after almost 7 years of sitting outside, I can definitely put those fears to rest. (and since then, I've found it easier to just ditch the interior entirely and start fresh)... but heres a few pics.

building my test butcher block sections (used antique sugar pine because it will mimic the brittleness I need to deal with with the red palm)
cut out your cubes

make a frame and glue up the rows, clamp them down, and come back in a few hours

now glue the rows together

remove

and sand to shape, going with the grain.

which gives you this (once again, just a rough shape to test feasibility)

heres the actual wood thats going to be used

(pics are years old now... you should see the coloration on it now)

 

[zorrex]

Dear God can a mod please fix the spelling in the thread title? I'm suffering.

 

[B3NN3TT]

Price doesn't change the fact it was an econobox.

Very few frills and in most trims it was a basic point a to point b sedan.

It was perfectly equally matched to the Camrys and Accords of the day, and well ahead of the typical Malibu and Sebring. You don't hear those being described as Econoboxes.

I don't argue with the fact that it was a point-a-to-point-b mode of transportation, but just because it isn't German doesn't make it an "econobox".

 

[FIND]

It was perfectly equally matched to the Camrys and Accords of the day, and well ahead of the typical Malibu and Sebring. You don't hear those being described as Econoboxes.

Umm, Camrys and Accords are econoboxes..... A Malibu is (and always should be since the 90s) a fleet vehicle. Sebrings are a Chrysler product, so no one cares about them anyways.

Dear God can a mod please fix the spelling in the thread title? I'm suffering.

QFT

 

[mmc757]

What makes a car a luxury car anyway? One measure that I always notice when getting into a car for the first time is the feel and sound of the door closing. Most fords and chevys have very lightweight doors that will rattle or bang shut, while your Caddy's and Lincolns have some heft to them and give a quiet thump when they seal.
Once in the car, the next thing is road noise and handling. These cars handle very well, but they are significantly lighter than the luxury brands and much much noisier.

These couple of measures tell me that if I wanted a more luxurious feel to a car, I would start by removing all the panels and cramming in all the sound dampening material I could.
Walnut veneers are fine and good too, but if the car doesnt feel like luxury, then its just veneers slapped on a standard issue ford.