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Joined: Apr 2002
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My brother has a 98 Contour SE and its just one big problem...Is the SVT Contour a more reliable day to day car?
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Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 4,899
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Nah, it's the same basic car with some more modification done to it. Should be just as reliable.
Dan Parmelee
1999 Acura Integra SiR-G coupe
"I heard Affleck was the bomb in Phantoms"
"Word, bitch! Phantoms like a muhfuka"
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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 7,329
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Any car is only as reliable as the quality of maintenance performed on it.
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Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 76
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and how hard you beat on it. The few miles you street race are much harder on any car than the mild daily drive to and from work. Even with proper maintenance, things still break in extreme circumstances, blown engines and transmissions are just two things that I believe do occur in street racing and I mean any car that street races.
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Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 1,040
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90% luck, 5% maintenance, 5% the way you treat it. IMO.
98 Mystique LS v6 atx 110,000km
97 Contour LX v6 atx 125,000km
stock CD on LS, cass on LX
spoiler, tinted windows on LS only
4 wheel discs on LX only
All other available options on both
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Joined: May 2001
Posts: 651
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My 99 SVT has been very reliable, now at 40,000 very HARD miles. I do maintain my car extremely well though. I've taken mine to the track a few times and auto-x numerous times. The rear suspension creak is really the only problem I've had, lubed the sway bar bushings and that took care of it. Basically it all comes down to what DemonSVT said...maintenance  -neal
99 SVT...modified
96 GL....the beater
"I live my life a quarter mile at a time. For those 14 to 15 seconds, 16 if I get tire spin, or get a bad jump, or possibly if I have a friend in the car, I'm free."
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Joined: Apr 2002
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Maintenance is very important but if you had to choose between two used cars that have been equally maintained and one was driven very hard and the other was driven conservatively, which would you pick? Why do people pay the top dollar for a used car that has been babied? I think a car driven hard will have a greater chance developing problems earlier than one that has been babied. I became a member to help me look for a SVT Contour. At least for me, I will not consider a car that has been driven hard.
Some members recommend dropping the car into first gear at 4,000 RPM to gain better off the line acceleration. This can't be good, especially when it done frequently! You can do all the maintenance you like but increased wear or damage (which ever you prefer) has been done.
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Joined: Oct 2000
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Originally posted by Wiser:
Maintenance is very important but if you had to choose between two used cars that have been equally maintained and one was driven very hard and the other was driven conservatively, which would you pick? Why do people pay the top dollar for a used car that has been babied? I think a car driven hard will have a greater chance developing problems earlier than one that has been babied. I became a member to help me look for a SVT Contour. At least for me, I will not consider a car that has been driven hard.
Some members recommend dropping the car into first gear at 4,000 RPM to gain better off the line acceleration. This can't be good, especially when it done frequently! You can do all the maintenance you like but increased wear or damage (which ever you prefer) has been done. I disagree completely, I know of plenty of SVT's driven "hard" by reputable owners; I would not hesitate to buy their car. Such a broad view of "wear" and "hard" is foolish. What about the owner who didn't drive their SVT like a banshee, yet neglected to perform timely oil changes, never allowed the engine to reach operating temps, learned to drive a mtx on a SVT, etc. etc.
Matthew W. Campbell-- bigMoney Racing -- 1999 SVT #220 "NT4UA" /O.Z. Crono Evo\'s/ /Rear Deck Sub/ -- 1972 Chevrolet C/10 Custom Deluxe-- 1980 Camaro in fewer pieces-- "If I had invested...in IBM or something like that, I would certainly have been wealthy within a decade. Instead, I bought a Porsche...and got a life" Leon Mandel
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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 7,329
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Would you rather buy an SVT were the owner "conservatively" lugged the engine all the time or one where it was put through it's paces on a regular basis.
Which one is more likely to fail when you "stretch it's legs"?
Simple really.
There is a difference between beating on a car and driving it hard. This engine is designed to be driven.
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Joined: Oct 2001
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Its not IF you beat on the car, its HOW you beat on it. If you dont slam it into gear and drop the clutch all the time, then no. It ~should~ run fine. Yes, it wont last AS long but the difference wouldnt be worth worrying about. Demon made the best point in terms of maintenance.
You bought the car to enjoy it so do so as you please!
Jonathan
98 SVT E0 #4290
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