Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General General Message to all SVT owners

Troy, thanks for coming on board and talking. That is thoughtful and respectful.

Issues that I think need to be addressed Transmission first off. I am on my second transmission. First feels like the second and every mile I put on it just makes it worse. This problem still is a concern now that I am up to almost 30k on my 99 SVT.

Second issue is involving the oil problems. These were already listed above but still a concern of mine.

The last one is can we some gear we can buy? Even if it says "SVT". I would like the Contour in that still.

Troy, thanks again for coming to this board and hopefuly you can help us understand and or help problems. I don't really hate or hold SVT in vein, but I have to wonder what the heck Any questions, email me at hph213@gvi.net

Sincerely

Merlin



[This message has been edited by merlin (edited March 30, 2001).]

4-fix the paint!!!!!
u said it all bro!i also have to say that i am very pleased w/ my car!i have 56,xxx miles and not one thing has broke(except that the damn sunroof gets stuck all the damn time but to me that aint no biggie.but i will be replacing my water pump very soon!(u guys got me scared!)
but thanks again 4 stopping by.hope we dont scare u away!
ps:can we stil get our certificates?



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anthony
98 black svt
#630 of 6535
b-day 5-1-97

MY Turn...
Women and children please leave the room...

Ok seriously. I will be cordial.

I'm the Proud, but worried owner of a 2000 SVT Contour (12/2/99)

The biggest questions are:

You mention the SVT Contour was such a low production run (only 11,445) that SVO/SVT/European Parts were not worth bothering with in it's 3 year run. What about the other 300,000 cars built on the same platform. You don't think only SVT vehicles use those "special" parts do you? Do you?

What about all the problems Ford has to know about but won't lift a finger to help. (And don't you even try to tell me Ford with it's billion dollar R&D programs can't figure this out but our site of 3000 member can)

This is just the big stuff

A transmission that is revised every month because of it's faulty design to begin with. (They revised it mid model year 2000, then again this year 2001 and guess what! They're revising it again for model year 2002. Go Figure! They know it's a problem - Why won't they help us?)

A transaxle that can't handle the torque of a weed wacker. (What a Joke! I have no words to describe the fear I get when my car experiences wheel hop! It's like a mild heart attack worrying if that wet road just trashed my diff)

A water pump that fails in less then 40k miles. (Not only that, but normally takes out the plate behind it and contaminates the entire cooling system becuase it disintegrates, not just stops working! Oh Yeah. No real warning signs either!)

Known! Oil starvation issues (How many Warranty Motors does it take to cure this problem. Do you know? We haven't found out yet.)

Con Rod failures (lest do some quick math. 2000 SVT 10.25 to 1 Compression, DOHC and 7k redline. Powdered Rods! Doesn't take a rocket scientist does it?)

Bumper sag (Man! Took my SVT about 2 mos to get the droop. No cure! The early models did it too over 3 years ago. This is Not a new problem)

A sunroof that the manufacturer has told me is a defective design and they have NO fix for... (If they Know, you're damn sure Ford does too! hmm?) This one hit me. I still don't understand how this didn't get recalled. Cable operated electric sunroof. When the temp gets above 90 degrees, the cables can flex and bind the motor. This normally burns the motor out. I went to the dealer (3 different ones) about 7 times last summer over this. I have since done a mod myself (surely voiding my sunroof warranty no doubt) and seem to have it cured.

Man I could go on...

However; Don't get me wrong. I truelly love driving my Contour. There is nothing like it out there. But I can say I hate the thought on owning it very long. It's like a running time bomb.
I'm sure some of us think this is why Ford and SVT ditched it and ran for cover... What are we suppose to think? All theses problems and Ford just trying bandaids or outright warranty denial... Eventually there will too many of us to ignore. I sure hope it's soon!

Hey Troy can you please give me a email at SVT_MONDEO@YAHOO.COM or if I could get your email address?

thanks,

David Zambrano

I'm sure you're still reading Troy

Good to see some interactive involvement, I've called SVT lots of times asking for VIN #'s and build numbers

I'll keep mine short

make another SVT model that is a 4-door and I'm sure we'll all be much happier....

if BMW, Audi, Subaru, Nissan, Toyota, etc can do it - why not Ford?

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Toadster - Todd Christ
toadster_ca@hotmail.com
1998 Silver Frost Contour SVT
#1037 of 6535 built, Built May 16, 1997
Moderator: CEG Northern CA Forum
Toadster's SVT Roundup - home of the Contour SVT Owner's List
MODS: KKM Intake , TH-Fix , Synthetic Oil , 18% Llumar tint , 9006CB Headlamps , TBD....

I can't post anything new that hasn't already been touched upon. But you asked, so I'll answer:

Let me state that I feel that I might have a ticking time bomb on my hands, like many other SVT owners have stated. All the horror stories of waterpump failure, transaxle/transmission failures, paint, sunroof, alignment, bumper sag, etc. Just have me wondering when, not if, this will happen to my car. I have a black 1998 E0 SVT with almost 36k miles.

My whole life I vowed I'd never own a Ford product-- because of the various horror stories I've heard my whole life about Ford "Quality" from other Ford owners. But when the SVT Contour debuted I weakened my stance a little and said that was the only new Ford product I would ever buy. I based this decision on many aspects of automobile ownership. From reliability, dealer service, to performance-- I thought the SVT Contour could and would provide all these. I must admit I was really taken with the styling of the SVT. Very understated, and tastefully done.

I kept reading how the Contour was Ford's "world car" and how the SVT is a delightful handling car (which it is). So I figured it had to be reliable and made from high-quality parts since it's the "world car" that Ford was supposedly basing its future upon. I then figure that it's a "poor-man's BMW" in the performance aspect. This is exactly what I've wanted in a car: reliability and performance for a reasonable price-- with the 4-door utility and fwd for winter/rain. I also thought maybe owning an SVT vehicle might get me some extra "respect" from the dealer if I ever had to bring it in for service.

to get to the point:

I find this website after I get my SVT, and come to discover the myriad problems with not only SVTs but Contours/Mystiques in general. It is true that all cars have their own idiosyncrasies and unique problems, but many of the SVT's could have been avoided. When I (and other SVT owners) were getting into these cars, we were expecting special vehicles with special, high-quality parts. Not just worked over extras from the parts bin (as seems to me to be the case).

• Why should we worry when (not IF)our waterpumps are going to fail on our SPECIAL SVT-prepped Duratec engines?
• Why are my "understated and tasteful" body parts sagging?
• Why mate a brittle, fragile transmission to a high(er)-output engine if it's already known to be weak?
• The LSD issue was raised already, but it would have been nice in separating the SVT from a normal Contour-- and well worth the extra money it would have cost to every SVT owner on this board.
• Why skimp on the wheel/tire combo? 17 inch wheels should've been standard.
• Why does my 1998 Ford Contour SVT 4-door sedan rattle and creak worse than my 1979 Pontiac Firebird Formula, or any of my nine (9) previous supposed "rattletrap" sports-cars did?
• Why doesn't my SPECIAL SVT-prepped Duratec V6 have a proper lubrication system to deal with the wonderful handling this car was designed with? Oh, I can only take high-speed left-hand turns, not right-- don't want to blow my SVT-prepped Duratec.
• Why no oil pressure gauge??? For a high(er)-output engine, you'd think this is a must?
• The 6-speed? would have been nice, but I understand none were available at the time. That's not SVT or Ford's fault. It only would have helped the rev-happy Duratec, imo.

In closing-- I do love my brief experience with my Contour SVT so far. Perhaps if I found this site before I went looking for Contours, I would have chose another car. Perhaps not... Only time will tell if it was worth it or not, I suppose. I did purchase an extended Ford warrantee for 3 years/36k miles in December 2000. Here's to hoping I won't need to use it. Or that it covers whatever is bound to happen?

Sorry if this kinda turned into a rant, but I hate that feeling wondering if I got screwed or not... Especially when I really like what this car should have been and what it had the potential for.

Best Regards--

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zero
www.prilly.org
1998 Ford Contour SVT E0 black 1993 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX white

[This message has been edited by zerosvt (edited April 01, 2001).]

This is more of a Ford comment than an SVT comment, but I agree with Toadster and take it a step further.

I wonder why Ford in europe sees fit to include the Ka, the Focus, and the mondeo there, but will only keep one small/midsize line here in the states.

I would also If like to see a midsize SVT station wagon. Since the Mondeo Estate comes in a ST200 with a manual, why can't they make something like that here either?

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1998 LX Sport
Black

Troy, glad were finally getting some involvement with the SVT crew!

I agree with pretty much everything being said. My tranny is gone, no reverse and goes to the shop on Monday. A Mercury dealership. Ford gave me April 10th as a date they could fit me in.

I just want some support and for Ford to recognize the problems and work to get them fixed. All cars have problems but we have no support and we all love our cars dearly.

Christopher
San Jose,CA

Exactly in a nutshell!
Unfortunately so far you have proved my foresight & experience all too well. They say hindsight is 20/20, but all my foresight see's now is major repairs and worries and no solutions in site...

So all in all this is my first and last Ford and everyone I talk to get's this same attitude (I work in the automotive aftermarket industry too. Imagine how many people I turn off Ford just because of my experience! Now imagine it times just the 3000 members here! What about all the people that don't come here too?)

No this isn't targeted at you. Just let others see our comments as well. WE ARE YOUR CUSTOMERS! Losing customers is always bad for any company.

I hope you guys know this TROY GUY is a joke/troll!
Come on think about it,do you think SVT just thought they would post here for no reason,and for a dead car?
Come on guys someone is just hyping us up for another let down.I wouldnt go for it If i was you.
Let him prove himself first before he wasts our time and gets our hopes up!
Im sure its one of those past trolls we pissed off by pissing on there "i beat an SVT Contour" stories.
Hey Troy prove to me your from SVT headquarters and Ill appologize.