Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Should I sell it?

What's up. I own a 95 Mercury Mystique GS, good condition. I've been reading ALLLLL these posts from different message boards on how totally crappy the 95 Mystique was. I saw 3 posts where these peoples engines blew at 40-50k miles and couldn't believe it. Everyone was having trunk leakuage, electrical problems, exhaust issues. Seems if it could have gone wrong, it did. I also heard there was a pending lawsuit by owners of these cars against Ford. Rumor? Possibly. But anyways, I have had this car since 56k miles. I've replaced the mass air-flow sensor and the timing belt. That's about it. I have had no problems other than those. My car just reached 83k miles, and I'm trying to decide whether you think I should sell it based on all these facts. I don't want to hit 90 or 95k and everything just totally go wrong with this car. All of you may have some knowledge about this that I'm not aware of. But I am looking for some advice. Also, if someone could help me with this, my check engine light comes in after I accelerate hard, not too hard, if I reach around 3k RPM's or so in first gear. It usually pops on when it shifts to second gear. I heard there is a digital readout that is in my car that I can read to find the code for what the problem is. If so, can someone tell me where it is, and possibly where I can go to find out what the number means? I appreciate everyone who helps me out here, Thank you.

Kyle K.~

These are not the most problem free cars, but you know people who have problems are more likely to post how crappy their car is than those who have not had problems. For instance how many places have you gone and posted "hey this '95 mystique has been great for me have only had to replace timing belt (are you sure it wasn't actually the serpentine belt?) and MAF."

I bought my '95 w/82,500 now has 99,500...I have had to do both wheel bearings, replaced plugs and wires, cleaned fuel injectors, and replaced rear brake wheel cylinders when one started leaking, and just recently starter motor. I kind of expect to have to spend money to keep an older car like this running, I have had to spend a little more than I would like but has not been a horror story or anything like that. I spent about $1800 total which includes in addition to repairs above normal maintenance and $210 for 4 new tires (also I probably over-payed by about $200 for some stuff done at dealer) while I have had the '95 contour. I did none of the work on the car myself, btw.

The check engine light is for emmisions related faults that are picked up by the various sensor on the engine. A common failure with all cars at higher mileage is the O2 or oxygen sensors. This is probably what yours is. If you have the V6 it may also be clogged EGR ports which can be cleaned pretty easily. On the 95s you can put a jumper wire (or paperclip) between 2 pins on the diagnostic connector and count the CEL flashes to determine the code. Autozone sells a "scanner" for about $30 to read the codes, and may have one available to scan cars so they can sell sensors. (Try calling and asking around) The diagnostic connector is at the end of 5 wires hanging just behind the driver side strut tower in the engine bay. Post your error code and someone will be able to point you in the right direction.

Hey Kyle ready for another opinion?

I bought my 96 Mystique 3 yrs ago with 37,000 on it. It had previously been a lease, was clean, and I figured it had had reasonable care and service. Since then my major repairs have been replacing the left front wheel bearing, both heater hoses, the thermostat, and left front brake hose, all done by the local Ford dealer. Everything else has been routine maintenance, except one look at the way the serpentine belt was packed in...I had the dealer do it. In all I've spent around $1000 for repairs.

I recently considered trading mine in for something else, but I've decided to hang on to it awhile longer. After 40,000 miles I've come to appreciate the power windows, locks, lumbar support, and other creature comforts. It was a step up from the 91 Escort I had. The next thing I'm looking at is having the timing belt replaced. The shop manual has no maintenance interval for it, but all the dealers I've contacted recommend 60,000. (They would, wouldn't they.) I changed the belt on my Escort myself, but I'm not sure I'm ready for a DOHC! The dealer quoted my a price of $214 complete.

I guess if you spend more time in the car than under it, it's worth keeping. A co-worker of mine with an older Escort said "Once it goes over 100,000 you may as well keep it just to see how long it will go!"

Oh yeah, Jeffyscott was right when he said that more people post how crappy their cars are than how good they are. This web site seems to be one heck of a support group, too!

Good luck with yours.
Jim Ward

Hi Kyle,
If you can find the connecter where Scott said you might as well go a little farther. You have the older On-Board Diagnostics System (OBD-I)(also called EEC-IV) so you can pull codes with an analog voltmeter & a jumper wire (Heck! You don't even need the meter, just a test light & jumper wire). Check this site out. If you have any more questions, just ask? Enjoy your car. Ford doesn't build any perfect cars, but who does?

I have had my 95' GS since 64k miles. I have only had 1 problem with it and it was some kind of bracket broke on my ATX shifter.. so it was stuck in drive other than that, I have had no problems with it. The previous owner babied it and took really good care of it. The other day, i just hit 89k. That seems pretty reliable to me, considering i got it in 2000. It still runs well, but i am planning on cleaning the intake eventually to get some power back and better startups etc. If you don't have any problems... I would just keep it, you won't get that much money for it anyway.

Hey thanks for that page. Tomorrow is work day on the car, changing the transmission fluid and coolant. Also, I printed out that page and plan on working on that too tomorrow. To answer an earlier question, it was the timing belt, it was done by the dealer. Surprisingly, my serpentine belt is in full effect still. Scary, I need to change that. My car is a 2.0L DOHC, 16 valve. I'm a college student, 19. I live on my own, college and work fulltime. I deliver pizzas. How convenient, especially for my type of car. I'll post the results of the test later, someone said earlier they would help out with it. I do love my car like you were saying earlier... power everything, lumbar support. Maybe I'll drive it till it dies, who knows? Thanks a lot guys, and I'll post that code tomorrow if someone doesn't mind telling me what it means, or could give me a site to a list of what the read-outs are. Thanks.

Kyle K.