I've run both my Mystique and my SVT very, very hard at the track over the past two years and not had an oil starvation problem. My track is extremely demanding, 11 turns in 1.6 miles with over 9 stories of elevation change! Turn 9 is a flat, very wide, 3rd gear, 180 degree sweeper, right after the S sequence of turns 7 & 8 off the 100+ MHP back straight. Ideal for creating an oil starvation problem.
I've got larger sway bars front & rear, Energy Suspension bushings all the way around (not just the swaybar bushings), Ground Control Coil-overs and I run 225/50/15 Toyo RA-1 DOT race tires on the SVT, so if there were going to be a problem with starvation I'd be a great candidate for it, but - knock on wood - there has been no indication of starvation to-date.
Bob Bondurant ran a few 1998 SVT Contours at his famous Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving and to my knowledge never had one go. I've got some spec's on the last three he had (these may be the only three he had as one is the 12th SVT Contour ever produced serial # 1FALP68G1WK100012) indicate that they had from 5,800 to over 14,000 track miles on them without an engine rebuild. Two required trans rebuilds. One at 1,500 miles the other at 13,000 miles. These cars were prepared by Jack Roush. I've also been told by a racing friend who knows some of the inside scope at Ford that Ford used windage trays on some racing Contours and actually ended up taking them off.
The comments regarding topping up oil and wheel nuts is correct. I use Mobil-1 synthetic and put an extra 1/4 qt in. Regarding the lug nuts you need to torque them (85-90 ft/lbs) prior to each of your runs and let them cool down as much as possible before re-torquing. I wait till about 5-10 minutes before going back on the track to re-torque. The heat build-up is tremendous (I've burnt myself on a lug nut!!!) and if you re-torque right after coming off the track you'll actually be over tightening and run the risk of breaking a wheel stud, not to mention making them a reallllll pain to take off later.
Broken wheel studs is not unheard of for Contours.
I trust you are familiar with the water pump problems and have replaced yours with a metal impellar one. If not, that is likely the first thing you should do before going on the track.
Good luck. Have lots of fun. The Contour/Mystique (especially the V6 5spd ones) are great fun at the track and continually impress people with their ability. Don't shift super hard or fast - there is little need to and it puts strain on one of the weaker parts of the car. Unless you've done the Focus Shift Tower upgrade, as I have, then rip away. 8=)
Regards, Alan Coles
