Just had the bad news that my 96 Contour has a blown head gasket. No symptons leading up to problem at all. Temp guage always in the normal range, no white smoke, just a sudden skipping problem. Really was hoping it was just a plug, but Ford Dealer diagnosed and said head gasket and possible cracked cylinder to the tune of $1600 and $1000 more if cylinder cracked. Extended ford warranty expired 1500 miles ago and phone call to Ford yielded no satisfaction. I'm having a hard time excepting that this car went from factory to blown head gasket in 6 years. Asked Ford to stand behind this product and they refused. In 2000 the catalytic converter blew but thankfully, ford had an extended warranty on it to 100,000 miles. Seems like an awful lot of major problems for a young car. Anyone have any suggestions? I am frustrated with Ford and need help.
