I have just purchased my first SVT to add to my fleet of first generation Mystiques and Contours. My local body shops wanted over $5k to "refresh" the dings and paint on any of my older cars, plus their main wiring harnesses, not the ones covered by the recall (which I've already replaced), were starting to fray. They're still "runners" so they will still be my daily drivers and tow vehicles and catch any stray shopping carts at Walmart. The SVT is intended to be my road trip machine, or grand tourer. I thought I'd jot down a few initial impressions from someone who had never even seen an SVT in person for anyone else considering the upgrade, or to an SVT owner who may be having some trouble and need to downgrade for a while.
Positive Impressions:
Tropic Green is gorgeous, especially in this example which has been garaged most of its life. Now I need to buy a carport to keep it looking good.
The second generation headlamps are much better. I don't need to go through the HID conversion like I did to the older cars.
The bolstered seats are much more comfortable to me. They pinched my ribs in the old SE.
The stance with the body kit is a head turner. I deleted the side skirts on my SE because they just looked tacked-on.
This car likes to "rev;" and it reminds me of older european cars with heavier clutch pedals and temperamental gearboxes with little tolerance for sloppy shifting.
The car is quieter than I expected. The insulation on the firewall was deleted, but most extra noise seems to come from the dual exhaust.
Trade Offs:
This is my first car which prefers 91 octane fuel for the best performance. Does it really matter unless you like to lurk around the redline?
The short shifter with "cables" feels a little sloppy compared to my old "tall" rod shifters. Could be worn cable ends or Ford Europe cost-cutting.
No tire plate on the door frame. I still haven't found inflation pressure information for the 215/50 r16. The shop manual suggests 31psi for < 3 passengers and 34psi fully laden.
Those tires are hard to find, so be prepared to stay somewhere for a couple of days if you get a blowout far from home, though the other tires seem a bit uncommon as well.
No clock! This was the top of the line, I thought. May need to fill that oval; is the harness in place for an oval clock? Maybe a Mondeo trip computer upgrade since I bought the 3 shop manuals.
All of the other decontenting. I work the night shift and like the courtesy lamps in the doors, door pockets, keyholes, glove compartment and driver's vanity mirror. Side mirror defrosters, too
No towing! My V6 Mystique loves to haul my utility trailer around, but the SVT's body kit that makes it look good results in poor approach and departure angles.
Different Speedometer. I found myself speeding along until I realized the top of the speedo is now 80 instead of 60 MPH.
Positive Impressions:
Tropic Green is gorgeous, especially in this example which has been garaged most of its life. Now I need to buy a carport to keep it looking good.
The second generation headlamps are much better. I don't need to go through the HID conversion like I did to the older cars.
The bolstered seats are much more comfortable to me. They pinched my ribs in the old SE.
The stance with the body kit is a head turner. I deleted the side skirts on my SE because they just looked tacked-on.
This car likes to "rev;" and it reminds me of older european cars with heavier clutch pedals and temperamental gearboxes with little tolerance for sloppy shifting.
The car is quieter than I expected. The insulation on the firewall was deleted, but most extra noise seems to come from the dual exhaust.
Trade Offs:
This is my first car which prefers 91 octane fuel for the best performance. Does it really matter unless you like to lurk around the redline?
The short shifter with "cables" feels a little sloppy compared to my old "tall" rod shifters. Could be worn cable ends or Ford Europe cost-cutting.
No tire plate on the door frame. I still haven't found inflation pressure information for the 215/50 r16. The shop manual suggests 31psi for < 3 passengers and 34psi fully laden.
Those tires are hard to find, so be prepared to stay somewhere for a couple of days if you get a blowout far from home, though the other tires seem a bit uncommon as well.
No clock! This was the top of the line, I thought. May need to fill that oval; is the harness in place for an oval clock? Maybe a Mondeo trip computer upgrade since I bought the 3 shop manuals.
All of the other decontenting. I work the night shift and like the courtesy lamps in the doors, door pockets, keyholes, glove compartment and driver's vanity mirror. Side mirror defrosters, too
No towing! My V6 Mystique loves to haul my utility trailer around, but the SVT's body kit that makes it look good results in poor approach and departure angles.
Different Speedometer. I found myself speeding along until I realized the top of the speedo is now 80 instead of 60 MPH.