Going back to the original question, Carolinagirl, do you need four doors? If so, the standard recommendation is a Mazda 6s. If you are opening it to the rest of the world and are considering a Mustang, then there are many, many choices.
As far as your 99 Contour goes, then there are a couple of things to do to keep it going:
1. Have the CEL diagnosed. If it is the one for the catalytic convertor, then Ford will replace it for free under warranty, assuming you don't have more than 80,000 miles. Otherwise, you're in for a pretty hefty repair expense.
2. The squeaky back doors need to be lubricated. Ford has a lithium grease for this, and it works. Have the dealer do it when it's in for the CEL problem.
3. The warped dash is a common problem for 99s. Ford fixed them for free, but that recall has expired. Search for "dash warp" here on CEG and you can find what other people have done to fix it, short of buying and installing an expensive replacement dash.
