Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General General 1998/issues to look for...

New kid on the Contour block here...

I am looking at possibly needing to get another vehicle and one of the ones I am looking at is a 1998 Contour SE. I found the numerous posts about the water pump impeller, but wanted to solicit other imput.

The specific vehicle has about 69K miles on it and appears to have been a one-owner prior to the trade that put it on a local lot (I base that on the VIN search I ran through records with the car being titled locally with 20 miles on it and the original window sticker being in the glove compartment). It is the 5-spd, and clutch felt average...no real notchiness to speak of but not the solid pedal like I used to have on a 5.0L Mustang or what I have on a PSD F350...car felt like it would still have chirped the wheels going into 3rd though, so I would be inclined to attribute the mushy feel to being more of a passenger car than sports car- am I correct?

Biggest concern I noticed during the test drive was an alignment issue...very definitive pull to the right even with clutch in neutral (so that takes out the possibility of it being a FWD issue). Steering wheel is cocked to the left when going in a straight line.

No noticeable body damage aside from door ding scarring, although it does have the sagging bumper disease.

Hmm...oh yeah, the console with the sunroof switch is loose in the front portion and could be pulled slightly away from the inside ceiling of the car- indication of prior repair or just a peculiarity of the Contour?

Any input welcomed...thnx

added on edit...one oddity I noticed, however, is that it is body code 67 in the VIN, which comes back as a 1997 according to the NADA guidebook. Production date is 03/97 and titled in 05/97. Were the 1998 models released that early in the year or is NADA wrong on the body code?

'98 is a long model year. and it started early. thanks to the face lift it's easy to tell '97 from '98

it's not a "passeneger" car, thank you, but MTX has ****ty feel to it, no excuses. there is a cure.

alighnment is depinitely an issue, check for bent suspension parts.

spend couple of days reading the site. you'll know what to look for.

it's a great car, unless it's a lemon

welcome to CEG

The 67 body code is for 95 - 98 Model year SE. The 10th digit is the actual model year. You probably have "W" in the 10th location in the VIN. (I found this info here .)

I don't have a sunroof, but a lot of people have problems with the gear mechanism, so that's what probably got fixed.

The clutch is hydraulic, so that is probably what you are feeling. Maybe it needs new fluid (it shares the fluid resevoir with the brakes). The trans feel can be cured with a little synthetic ATF and Ford Friction Modifier. Check the FAQ, here , as well as the other info in this section for helpful information on a variety of Contour quirks.

FWIW, VIN is #1FALP67L9WK114321

The NADA guides were showing 66 as the 1998 SE V6 code, but it also would not be the first time that I found an error in there. Even FoMoCo stuff doesn't always get it right- if their stuff was to be believed, there were PSD owners that had an engine that didn't exist in the breakdown of the VIN that was in the shop manuals :rolleyes:

One other item that I forgot to mention that I found problem with was the passenger side mirror is inoperable. Motor makes some noise, but gear meachanism does not appear to engage properly, which was a problem I encountered when I had a 1998 Ranger with power mirrors.

What you're noticing here is that the mounting feet for that trim panel reside at the front edge (the trailing edge is supported by a sheetmetal bracket in the roof structure that picks up two slide clips on the trim panel).

If the trim panel has ever been removed for any reason (moonroof motor work, lighted moonroof switch mod, or bodywork) and those two screws re-installed too tightly, those plastic mounting feet are quite prone to snap off--leaving the front to dangle freely.

I wouldn't worry about it too much, as it's a $16 or $17 item...just exercise a judicious hand when tightening those screws on the new one.

First, and foremost..
Welcome to the CEG... I hope that you leave here knowing a little more than you did when you arrived... Enjoy your stay..

Secondly,

Okay... who's with me on nominating michelle as this year's "most informed newbie"... REALLY looks like you did your background work, both on the car, and on the proper etiquettes of this site.. I am surprised at the way your post was written, and can definitely see the difference in responses that you got, because of this, I would imagine. Good luck in your upsoming purchase.. and know that you will be impressed with the 'tour, should you decide to get it (barring that it isn't a lemon).

Ray
Shall we vote now, or do we need a 10 minute recess, first?

LOL Ray...thnx, but LOL nonetheless

Having been on a number of vehicle boards, I know that there is generally a wealth of information to be had in both forums and FAQ's. It certainly doesn't hurt that there is far more information to be had on the web for vehicle purchases in this day and age compared to when I bought my first car.

The information here gave me the ideas as to what to look for when I went back to take the test drive, and then it made sense to post the other umm, peculiarities that I noticed when I had it out. Still undecided on purchase though...but trust me, I'll let y'all know if I get it

UPDATE: No, I still haven't pulled the trigger yet, but they have brought the price to under $5K. I'm not sure if it is solely to move it or the fact that one of their lot jockeys managed to put a dent in the rear door.

I know that the price is below book, but we are entering a period with the 2003 vehicles hitting all the lots which adds the additional year of depreciation. With the above taken into account, is the $5K neighboorhood still a good price, or do I see how much leverage there might be? FWIW, asking on the other Contiques (all ATX) seems to be closer to $7-9K in this area, with the ones under $5K being the 4-banger.

[ADDED ON EDIT: I just realized that I had not previously mentioned that it was leather interior and had CD player...and sunroof, as per above comments ]

Thoughts, comments?

Make them fix that dent before you pay them a dime.

Originally posted by PA 3L SVT:
That was discussed

Aside from dealing with the dent (small, not massive caved in door type damage), is the price one that y'all would consider "good" or do I look to get them lower?