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I'm about to purchase either a Bi-fuel Contour or Cavalier. The Contour year option is a 1999. I cannot find much info on this year other than the all gas engine which has a "flex plate" issue or something of the sort. I also cannot find any high mileage ones...highest Ive seen is around 60,000 miles. So to those of you that have one...what are things to look for when inspecting and things to plan for after purchase? Im hitting up an auction Friday...hopefully I will return a happy camper.
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Hey! Welcome to CEG! To be honest with ya, I don't recall ANYONE on CEG purchasing one of the FEW CNG Contour's out there. I dunno if you tried searching for "CNG" of "Alternative Fuel Contour". The only thing I've come up with is just pics, lol.  Good luck with the auction... not that I am biased, but you will love the COntour more than a Cavy. 
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I definitely would rather a Contour over a Cavalier...especially since the Contour has power windows and locks...Cavalier has squat. However, this whole CNG thing has my wife in a constant worry state. If it backfires on me...she'll never let it down. We have had the worse luck with used cars...add the CNG unknowns and I am looking at castration. But I am in dire need of HOV lane access here in Phoenix...and the CNG price break will be quite a relief as well. I just need the car to last me 2 years worry free  I dont care if it blows up after that (as long as I am not in it).
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Originally posted by Stry-ped:
Hey! Welcome to CEG!
To be honest with ya, I don't recall ANYONE on CEG purchasing one of the FEW CNG Contour's out there. I dunno if you tried searching for "CNG" of "Alternative Fuel Contour". The only thing I've come up with is just pics, lol.
Good luck with the auction... not that I am biased, but you will love the COntour more than a Cavy.
I agree, Ive seen a lot of CNG contours on ebay, but really dont know of any on here. Ive thought about buying one off of ebay to replace my current GL tour' Honestly, I think from a reliability standpoint they are pretty high up. Basically its the same as the non-cng contours... Just the engine is designed to run on an alternative fuel. I can PROMISE you, you will like the contour a hell of a lot more then the cavalier, the gas mileage is about the same, but the contour pulls harder (when needed) and is definatly the pick for traveling. My brother had a 98 Cavalier, dont get me wrong it was a great car, but we would drive on trips in it... It would just kill your back becaiuse of the seat design.
When I go on trips in my contour, My gas mileage soars, and I couldnt be happier with the way the whole car behaves above 70 miles an hour. Hell, Ive gotten 160 miles to a quarter tank before. Believe me, you will be happier behind the wheel of a contour. Besides, the CNG really is only if you want to use that fuel, the engine never has to run on it... If I had a CNG contour, I would probably fill the CNG tank and never use it unless I ran out of regular gas.
Last edited by ALIAS Jerk; 08/01/05 05:01 PM.
98 Corolla LE 1.8L DOHC 1ZZFE
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I do know one CEGer who got the CNG car & removed the CNG system because the storage tank was missing anyway.
I don't expect they'll be any less reliable than any Zetec Contour - which is pretty darn good actually. I think you have to run a tank of gasoline for every 3 or 4 tanks of CNG, just to keep things lubed up.
Now the Cav, I wouldn't touch. Friends had two. Replaced trannies twice in both of them. They were not nearly as fun to drive, & frankly I have concerns about their safety, but that was just my perception - may not be a real concern. Really bad in my limited experience.
One former CEGer in the SE does have a Cav & he likes it IIRC, but I don't know how his car has been doing.
There is a green CNG Contour for sale on Ebay in VA or sup'm. Finding a place to fill it will be fun... but I think you can buy a CNG pump for your home that will fill the tank overnight.
Must be that jumbly-wumbly thing happening again.
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I know the tanks are good until 2015.  Its in a local yard.
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Originally posted by TourDeForce:
I do know one CEGer who got the CNG car & removed the CNG system because the storage tank was missing anyway.
I don't expect they'll be any less reliable than any Zetec Contour - which is pretty darn good actually. I think you have to run a tank of gasoline for every 3 or 4 tanks of CNG, just to keep things lubed up.
Now the Cav, I wouldn't touch. Friends had two. Replaced trannies twice in both of them. They were not nearly as fun to drive, & frankly I have concerns about their safety, but that was just my perception - may not be a real concern. Really bad in my limited experience.
One former CEGer in the SE does have a Cav & he likes it IIRC, but I don't know how his car has been doing.
There is a green CNG Contour for sale on Ebay in VA or sup'm. Finding a place to fill it will be fun... but I think you can buy a CNG pump for your home that will fill the tank overnight.
Yeah, Snafulux(SP?) had a CNG tour' that he removed for said reasons. You can purchase the CNG pump from many places on line but it takes several hours to fill (8-10).
2006 Pontiac G6 3900SFI GTP Coupe
CAI, Stainless Cat Back, Vector Tune, Strut Brace, Eibach Pro Kit, Custom Made Projector Headlights, 4300K, 20% Tint
Former Owner- 2000 "Stryped" CSVT
CEG Dragon Run- Oct 13-15
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Home fueling station is in the works. I found a local resident with one the goverment gave him. I will hopefully have it by the end of the month. The Contour will be purely a comuter car...I have a weekend warrior as well as my wife's fancy Passat. Thus, Im not too worried about the fueling time. Just come home, hook it up, and check it in the morning. Im pretty excited...just a little nervous that this is going to blow up on me. I did a lot of questioning to eBay buyers...everyone seems to be happy with their CNG vehicle purchases. But at the same time...none have over 60,000 miles. The GSA auction friday has a 1999 Contour with a mere 19,000 miles on it. I've got my sites set on it. That should give me 2 years of driving before I hit 60,000.
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Here is an old thread that shows a CEGer who bought a CNG Contour. There are several pictures of it. link
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Originally posted by PoBoy:
But I am in dire need of HOV lane access here in Phoenix...and the CNG price break will be quite a relief as well. I just need the car to last me 2 years worry free I dont care if it blows up after that (as long as I am not in it).
LOL. I hope you mean the exploding engine rather than the CNG tank. You have our site to help you diagnose problems and as mentioned in an earlier post, the CNG is just another fuel system. You will have a few more pounds and less space in the trunk but other than that, it is "HOV-1" for you pal.
"Always do the cheap and easy ones first."
1996 V6 ATX 96K miles
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