Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General General found my new used car......

NOT!!!!!...got bored today and went by 3 ford dealers looking for svt's for no good reason...mainly i just want to drive one before they're all modded to death....first dealer insulted my 'tour....when i told him what i was driving his response was 'i know u wanna get out of that contour' and then he asked me what i was looking for...he offered me a caddy sts when i told him an svt contour...this dealership tho has a '00 contour se v6 with 5spd for $11,9+....it was wedged in the back or i woulda asked for a test drive...they've had it for a month or so and i may go check it out if they still have it

anyway 3rd dealer i stopped at (mercury) had no svt or even mystiques but did have a very clean 97 taurus sho sorta a maroon/rust colored red, loaded but only had cloth interior which is fine with me i hate leather....sticker price 14,222...took for a test drive and......yuck...those things are annoyingly loud...my older car with almost 2ce the mileage is quieter and i have that loud ass filter....power was nice tho when i stepped on the gas but the car is sooooo big and the steering too light, the wheel too small for a mans hands, etc...the car seemed to have had a good life overall but that v8 seemed raggedy and like it would indeed be prone to breaking down...i could just imagine twirling off a cam sprocket while i was gunnning it on the freeway

i've had my heart set on a taurus sho for years now, but after driving a 95 last yr and the 97 v8 tonight i see once again why i decided on getting a contour instead

if ford was trying to make a car that could battle the luxo sport imports they really missed the mark it seems.....dammit

EDIT....after all that writing i actually left something out...the second dealer...asked me what i was looking for....when i told him svt contour...his response....'uh....whats a contour???'...i had to repeat a couple times svt because he was wondering about a CONTOUR SUV

he claimed he had only been on the job for a month... :rolleyes:

My brother picked up a 97 SHO last Fall with 82k miles for $6500. $14k is way to much FWIW. I drove it once and felt it would be exactly what I expected my SVT to feel like at 80k miles, a loud rattletrap. But the motor pulls hard over 4000rpm.

Maybe that SHO had an aftermarket exhaust or something.. I drove a 97 SHO, and my biggest complaint was how quiet it was, and how floaty the suspension setup was. My mom has a 95 SHO, and it's got a much meaner exhaust (even better than the SVT), and a slightly firmer suspension (though it could still use some work). The 2nd Gen SHOs are where it's at, and they're CHEAP these days.

the price is absolutely rediculous at 14k...i just looked at several in autotrader at less than 9k....i really just wanted to drive the v8 model for myself....

far as i can tell the exhaust was stock...at least the tips were and the noise was mostly from the engine bay....sounds to me as if ford intended for the yamaha sound to come through to the driver but its just too damn loud...it also had the stock air filter box but i didnt see the filter itself

and i agree cartman about the suspension....first thought i had is that it would have to be upgraded/lowered

take your time and find the right SVT.

I did, and im glad I wasnt impatient. It will pay off!

Dude, if your driving the automatic SHO's, thats where your first problem is. ATX SHO's are a completely different experience than MTX SHO's. And as well, Gen 3 SHO's (96-99) are a completely different breed than Gen 1 and 2's (89-91 and 92-95, respectively). The problem with Gen 2 ATX SHO's is that a lot of them came with really small diameter Swaybars. There was really no one thing that determined which swaybar a particular SHO would get, it was like Ford grabbed whatever was on the shelf. This, along with a bad choice in spring rates, resulted in a pretty floaty ride for most of them. Personally, I always loved SHO's, but some people need a little time in one to get aquainted with em. If the Gen 3 you drove was too loud for you, and it had stock exhaust and stock intake, then it either A. had a hole in the exhaust or B. had a hole in the airbox cause Ive only been in one car quieter than a V8 SHO, that being my moms Audi S4.