Weak transmission/differential - why design a high performance car using the same tranny
that goes onto a 130hp 4 cyl.? Transmissions are not "one size fits all". And it really
should have had a LSD standard, if it was really meant to be a serious performance car.
Ditto with the baffled oil pan (my '88 Mustang GT had one, for Pete's sake!). Okay, what's done is done, but Ford/SVT could (should!) have the guts to stand up and say "okay, we screwed up on these things, and we're going to make it right with our customers. This, of course, would have Dearborn bean-counters jumping out of windows, so I don't expect to see it happening!
Look what it took to get them to admit there was a problem with the
Explorers....
The decontenting, and poor assembly and quality of materials. You would think on such a limitied production run, and marketed as possessing "elclusivity and value", a lot more care would have been placed on build quality. My '00 SVT now has 6k miles.... My tranny was replaced at 2500 miles. The screws that hold the passenger airbag hinges weren't even finger tight, and caused an awful rattle from day one. When that was opened to fix it, it was discovered that my airbag had no straps holding it in place - they weren't even there! It was just flopping around in there, and I dread to think what might have happened to my passenger if it had deployed. The weatherstripping around the doors isn't lined up the same way on both sides. SVT fitted special gauges and leather seats... why doesn't my passenger get lumbar support and elec. adjustment, too? Just cutting corners to save a few bucks. Couldn't they have had a run of some better quality dash pieces produced? These low-rent materials were one of the main gripes from both owners and the press. A glovebox light, variable speed intermittant wipers and heated mirrors - some things that could even be had on lesser Contours - were left out, which is unthinkable if you're targeting the likes of
VW, BMW and Audi. Oil pressure and ammeter/volt gauges would have been nice, too... And decontenting the little support brackets for the front spoiler?!? What did that save them, $1.89 or so? It's this kind of piddly, nickel and dime crap that irks owners too, not just the big stuff. Ford's mistake here, as someone pointed out, was thinking SVT buyers were no different in mindset from basic transportation buyers. We are VERY different, and expect much more. Mr Coletti is always going on about how no one area of the car is supposed to stand out, or left lacking. The rental-car interior (apart from the drivers seat) is severely lacking. I would have gladly paid an extra $500-1000 for a quality interior.
Yes, it would be nice if Ford's performance parts division turned out a few pieces for us. And their market would not be limited to just SVT's, either. There are a LOT of
Contour/Mystique owners that would love this, and buy. Just look at all the mods in a lot of the sigs here...
And I don't really care about the merchandise (shirts, hats, mugs, etc.), but I guess it
would be a nice gesture. Not nearly enough, but a nice gesture. Or the magazine, for that
matter - it has shown itself to be nothing more than marketing propaganda up to this point. And it will probably still be available in SVT dealerships because of this. But the magazine and the SVTOA are part of what has cast Ford and SVT in such a bad light in my eyes. I feel like I have been lied to and duped by the "SVT Ownership Experience" that was implied, and in some ways promised. The magazine, discounts, track events and the like were promised to us as benefits of being SVT owners. Now Ford has changed their minds, and we have to pony up
$40/year if we want the things we supposed to get free. Let's face it, despite pleadings to the contrary, SVTOA is just a PR tool Ford has farmed out to an outside party to make us feel better about our purchase, generate excitement and promote sales of future SVT products. If Ford wants to run such a public relations excercise, fine - but we shouldn't have to foot the bill for it. It was also implied that we would be treated well, and have a good "ownership experience" at the dealership, because we were the "special kind of customer that buys an SVT vehicle". This hasn't seemed to be true, either from my experiences, or many that I have read here on CEG. These promises did indeed infulence my decision to buy my SVT. It is this reneging by Ford and SVT that has really put a sour taste in my mouth (and I believe many others here). I love my SVT, but right now I'm not so crazy about the company that sold it to me. I hope to drive it for years (if it holds together - I won't baby it!) to come. But unless something drastic is done by you guys, I will NOT be replacing it with another Ford.
Thanks for listening. I doubt that Ford will do anything, but thanks for listening.
------------------
Zilla
2K SVT Contour
#1441 of 2150 - D.O.B. 1/11/2000
green/tan
-= everything on it =-
[This message has been edited by Zilla (edited March 30, 2001).]
