Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Zetec Performance Where's a good place to start....?

My contour (1998.5 SE, 2.0 Zetec) has been in the shop recently, so I've been driving my wife's 1998 Escort SE (SFI), and I'm somewhat irriated by how much faster it is than my contour. I was wondering where a good place to start would be for it, just to get a little more accelleration out of it. I haven't done much to it except for rebuilding the cylinder walls, and a couple wheel bearings and rotors and C/V's (just normal replacements). I was thinking about an intake, but i'm not exactly sure where to start. I've got about $400 to play with on this project, and I've got a good bit 'o time to play with it ;]

I think there is something wrong if a SPI escort is a lot faster than your contour, it will be faster due to weight, but it has about 15hp less. Check out the newbie performance mod list in this section, it has all you need to know.

Well, this is based on a contour with a VERY broken wheel bearing, mine wouldn't peel out from a dead stop, hers will, every time (both atx'es, no neutral dropping). I get mine back tomorrow, so we'll see if that was it. After I got above 25 or so, i'd drop hers flat, but she'd get me on takeoff most of the time....

The CD4E has the worst take-off of any ATX I have encountered. It sucks and there really isn't a way without spending a good bit of money to improve the take-off a whole lot. Once moving though, the contour does pretty good.

geez, I drove an escort and it was terribly slow (ATX)

For $400 I think you could have yourself a CTA intake and a custom made/or SVT exhaust.

For $400 you should be able to get;

1) custom cold air intake, see my post here.
2) 2.25" flex-pipe back custom exhaust or stock SVT Exhaust
3) crank under-drive pulley
4) optimized throttle body

With proper fund management and a little shopping around you should be at or maybe a few dollars over budget.

Yeah, that's all doable for UNDER $400.

Like I said, it's all doable for under $400. You can go a little less on the exhaust and the udp. You could even go (a lot) less on the TB if you know how to do it yourself.