well, just about everything that one could possibly take issue with regarding ford/SVT vs. SVT contour owners/CEG members has already been raised, but.....
i love the car, love the exclusivity, love the performance, the looks, etc.....but i HATE the rattles, squeaks, decontenting, etc. i agree w/ above posts about being somewhat sickened by the level of support the focus is receiving as compared to what the contour got, but it's understandable....ya gotta hype stuff to sell it to the import/hot hatch crowd. if it ain't honda/mitsubishi/etc., they're not gonna look at it. ergo, the media push.
water under the bridge, as far as i'm concerned. as are the added features of the focus (17" wheels, 6-speed, extra gauges, etc.). that stuff would've been nice to have, but i certainly don't expect ford/SVT to go back and retroactively try to appease we SVT contour owners w/ tranny upgrades/diff ugrades/baffeled oil pans, etc. would be nice, but i don't expect it.
i'm concerned about longevity of my car. i bought the ESP premium care warranty and haven't used it yet (i'm at 43k mi.), but it wouldn't surprise me at all, based on the experiences of others, to have a tranny, diff, or entire engine replaced before it expires at 75k.
i'm also VERY concerned about a replacement car. as others have stated, the focus SVT is a great little car, but i've graduated past the point in my life where i can make do w/ an econo-class-size car as my primary daily driver. performance and other appeal aside, the focus just won't suit my needs. i might get a cobra or a bullitt mustang, but i have to say that my faith in ford reliability/build quality is not very strong. thus, unless ford comes out w/ something (like the new mondeo) in the near future, i'll probably be trading my car on a 3-series BMW, lexus IS, or audi A4.
i do *sincerely* appreciate and applaud your visit here. oh, and journie - shut up. quit w/ the "troll!" crap. everyone around here is so quick to pull the trigger. give it a rest already.
anyway, thanks for your input and your willingness to subject yourself to some of our rants and raves, and i hope our input and insight give you something to take to the rest of SVT and maybe make use of it somehow.
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blake
98.5 E1 SVT #4910, silver frost (b. 02.28.98)
- KKM/SHOshop pulleys/borla exhaust
- 35% tint/momo shift knob/A6 sidemarkers/some audio
