Classic sign of wheel bearing failure. It is something that appears to happen to just about every Contour. I just had both of my front bearings replaced at the dealer for $349, which I thought was very reasonable. That, combined with replacing the noisy KDW tires makes my SVT feel like a Lexus, it's so quiet inside now!

Lee K
E0 SVT, silver


Lee K 98 SVT Contour, silver (sold after 7 years and 100K miles) 03 Lancer Evolution, red