Anyone Else - CEG Archives

Well, I've had my share of grief since I got the car too. Bought it last August with ~ 67,000km on it (now I have ~ 94,000km).
Since then:
- replaced the rear struts last winter
- replaced the front bearings, rotors and pads last month
- now have to replace the driver's side lower control arm later this week (it squeaks terribly all the time for any reason). Of course this requires an alignment too.
- just had my interior light fixture fall from the ceiling (broken plastic housing)
- had to replace driver's side mirror
- just had to replace windshield

I've pretty well lost the "enthusiast" out of my CEG.

Jonnie

Sounds to me something ELSE is wrong with that car... Persistent alignment problems for a car THAT young indicates to me this MAY be a salvage rebuilt. Did someone check Carfax for you?

very lemoney, sorry, I have a 98 that has none of those. . .and I've driven for 6 years, so, I guess previous owners must've abused the hell out've your tour. .

Yes Carfax was checked, and I know who owned it before, and it has never been in so much as a fender bender. Ford has problems building good cars consistantly, and I happened to get a sucky one.

Originally posted by red99sesport:
Lound popping noise when braking hard

I had this problem recently it was my front sway bar links. The were replaced under warranty. Yours may not be under warranty but the parts were pretty inexpensive. I think it was only like $51.00 for the set. The problem stopped right away. I'm sorry to hear your car is so problematic.

Originally posted by red99sesport:
Anyone else had this many problems with their tour in one year. I bought mine in Aug 2002 with 12K on the odometer. since then:

Car won't start (PATS)
Car won't start (Loose wiring)
Gauges won't work (Gas, Speedo, Temp)
Dash lights flicker
Courtesy lights flicker while door is closed
Car dies with any accessories on (Radio, Fan, etc.)
Spolier fell off
Antenna fell off
Passenger's side ground effect fell off
Speakers made a hissing sound even when radio was off
Dash started to warp
Car was aligned three times, still won't track straight
Steering sticks when wheel is turned to the right
Lound popping noise when braking hard
Tires wore out at 23K
Exhaust fell apart at Cat
Cruise quit working

It has been in the shop for at least 15 days since I bought it. Pretty pathetic in my opinion. I'm getting tired of not having it to drive. I'm trying to get rid of it. I like the car, but I can't put up with all the repairs.

I feel your pain. My car's history:
Bought it in May 2000 brand new in southern california. Bought LoJack along with it and had to take it back 1 weej afte I bought it to have it installed. Got home and realized they scratched the ever loving hell out of my fron fender while they had it. Took it back and they buffed it out...acted like it was a big putout for them and as if I was being picky.

Jun '00: Drove it to NM where I am currently stationed. 1 week later had: Condensation in the left headlight, interior lights and horn not working, cd player worked when it felt like it and worst off the sunroof gear busted WHILE it was fully opened with a rainstorm coming.Took it to their body shop and they forcibly closed the sunroof until I could get it fixed. I didn't have a chance to get it all fixed until December due to being deployed.

April 2001: Driving up to Vegas for temporary duty. Got there and every time I put my car into 3rd it grinded bad. Took it to the local Ford dealer who told me that my syncro needed to be replaced..downtime 1 week and he refused to give me a rental car even though I was working on Nellis AFB and staying at a hotel 12 miles away and had people depending upon me fora ride. Called Ford main customer service and [censored] until I got a rental car.

Aug '01: Had to take it to a body shop to have the spoiler tightened as one bolt was completely off and the other was about to be that way...stupid spoiler almost came off.

Jun '01: Tire spun off while driving down the highway so I had the car towed to the dealership to: 1) See if it was a defective tire that caused it 2) Check the rim and front end for any damageand 3) Fix my warped dash. They told me it wasn't a defective tire and that the rim was slightly bent and I should buy a new one for $150. Took the rim to another tire shop where they did a thorough check and told me there was NOTHING wrong with the rim. Also, the bastards didn't fix my dash. Got a follow up call from Ford customer service from the dealership and basically shredded them and scheduled a time to bring the car back to get my dash fixed. Went to pick up my car afterwards and my dash was fixed but they left epoxy (that's what it looked like anyway) all over the inside of my windshield and white powder of some sort ALL over the dash AND the inside of my car. Again I got a call from their customer service and again I shredded them at which time their main guy attempted to bribe me into giving them good marks on the mail in feedback form on the grounds "Well sometimes our customers have problems and the warranty has JUSt ran out and we are more willing to help out customers in that situation if they give us good feedbacks" so I called main Ford customer service and BBB and reported the dealership and I haven't had my car there since.

Apr '03 Driving back from Cali to NM after being home for a death in the family, got about 100 miles out from Cali and my cruise control, speedo and odometer all stopped working. Turned around and went back to Cali as I wasn't gonna drive 900 miles with no speedo or cruise. Speed sensor was bad and needed replacing. 1 week downtime that caused me to lose 7 days of leave (military vacation time) that I didn't have. Got it back to NM and had problems every once in a while with trying to put it in gear (usually ona downshift) and the thing wouldn't go in. Dealership said they couldn't duplicate the problem but did notice my transaxle was FUBAR and needed replaced.
On top of all this my paint is cracking chipping and I'm gettin spots where the clear coat is sort of bubbling up (for lack of a better way to describe it) and of course I got the "acid rain" and "not waxed often enough" excuses.

After all this you'd think Ford would at least give me or cut me a deal on an ESP (I tried to lemon law it but it didn't meet the criteria) but instead of helping me they just ignored me completely.

I love my car when it runs but I hate and loathe Ford Motor Company with a passion and I will NEVER EVER EVER EVER buy another new car from them AGAIN! Grrr I'm gettin all pissed again just thinking about this crap.

Ok, wow, long posts. this will be one too. The numbers are the problems so just scroll if you want.

After all of you just DAWGED Ford lemme go on 'head here and lift it back up. Keep in mind that all car companies make lemons. Ford just makes a few more.

I have the 95 stique (see sig)

I've had a few problems here now lemme go on here and break em' down wit da remix. (Like that song)

1. Passenger side window. Damn cables all screwed up. I have to replace the cables ONLY but I can't get them alone. I have to buy the whole motor assemble and have it pro-installed for about 300 bones.

2. Alternator. For some reason the alternator blew up. Literally, autozone couldn't even test it cuz it wouldn't spin. Got a new one from autozone and it was dead from the get go. Replaced again and FINALLY it worked. Those are a royal pain in the ASS!

3. Fan motor switch. It burned up and I had the recall done. All fixed and no worries so far.

4. Trunk leaks. Ok, all of us with the big reflector in the back know about this. When it rains or we wash our car, the trunk leaks

5. Tail lights and condensation. The tail lights would fill up with condensation. I think a short or surge was caused by one of the lights filling up to the bulb. I think.

6. Rough Idle. I still have this problem but it has lightened up since I replaced the plugs and wires. Coil is next and then maybe the IAC valve.

7. Knocking while running. Just like I said. The car knocks when she is cold and running. Only when cold though. maybe its the oil (10w-30) or maybe the fuel. I haven't noticed it after filling up with 93 for the first time in a while. Maybe I'm just imagining stuff.

8. Stock Stereo. This thing sucked. I couldn't play a tape for anything. It would play on one side of the car. The radio itself was ok though. I replaced it with an aftermarket deck though.

9. Carpet. A lot of people know about this thing. The first years the car was made the carpet was cut short. It doesn't fit under the sides. Oh well.

10. Antenna. The gears inside are busted so it won't go up or down unless forced. Actually if I put it down and turn the radio on, it will come up.

11. Gas tank cover. It sticks every now and then. Mostly on humid days. Just a minor thing.

12. Timing belt. Replaced timing belt at 90K. Normal wear
and tear.

13. Back doors squawk. Just what I said. They sound awful when opening or closing them. I think I just found a weekend project.

14. A/C vents broken in mid. section. They're broken. I bought it like that. I deal with it too. No biggie.

15. Thermostat. I changed it because I thought it was the reason my car was "overheating". Back before i knew about this site. I think it was ok but I'm listing it anyway.

16. Mega-Fuse blew. Same time as my alt did. 170 amp fuse!!! 5 dollars and a pain in the ass to fix.

17. Cup Holders busted. Bought it like that. Got the replacement from ford for 55 bucks.

And that is all for now.

I still love my car and would only change it for an SVT.

Right front caliber seized and I had to be towed home (on my wife�??s birthday)

Water pump went (on my birthday) and I had to be towed home. (I guess somewhat my fault by not doing the �??water pump replacement maintenance) Then the car was off the road for a week and a half while I tried to find the 10 cooling system hoses (150 + 70 for pump).

Torque converter and VB went $400 bucks and fixed it myself. Again two weeks down time for parts.

RR strut is leaking

LF wheel bearing is bad.

Bank 1 upstream cat bad.

LF lower control arm bad ($175)

Fog lights cracked and haven�??t worked in four years.

Horn went bad (2nd time)

I�??m sure I can think of more, but it�??s too painful.

jeff

After all of you just DAWGED Ford lemme go on 'head here and lift it back up. Keep in mind that all car companies make lemons. Ford just makes a few more.

A Few more, very funny. Let me give you a history of the Ford Cars we've owned in the past 12 years.

1992 Taurus LX, had the crappiest firerocks I've ever seen, battery kept going bad. AC failed twice

1994 Aerostar 4.0L EXT. The roof had no paint on it, the side windows leaked, the transmission shifted like crap.

1994 Thunderbird 4.6L V8 It ate brakes like they were bon bons. It went through a set every 20K, and the automatic climate control failed.

1995 Windstar The transmission failed at 1200 miles, it blew numerous fuses, master cylinder cracked and ABS failed

1995 F-150 5.0L 4x4 The push button four wheel drive froze in the 4x4 mode, the cruise didn't work right, and the vent windows leaked.

1997 Expedition 5.4L 4x4 The brakes failed twice, the ABS failed once, it blew numerous fuses. The dash squeaked so bad it had to be replaced

1997 Lincoln Continental The self dimming rearview mirror stopped working, one of the battery cells ruptured and kept the car from starting. This car has had 6 pages of warranty work done to it.

1998 Mystique 2.5L CD4E The flywheel warped and the car wouldn't start. The pass side cupholder sucked. The dome light broke and hung by the wires. The ABS failed, and the trunk release broke.

1998.5 Contour SVT Monroof motor failed, power seat failed, radio failed, trunk stoped opening.

1999 Windstar Van from hell, had numerous electrical problems, refused to start several times, fit and finish was so poor that sliding doors didn't close properly, keyless entry unit died. Plus the tires were so crappy that it wouldn't go at all in the snow. Was in the shop so many times for recall work.

2000 Explorer 4.0L 4x4 The autolamps and self dimming mirror failed. The driver's side rear door wouldn't close right. The keypad on the drivers door would randomly lose its programmed code, locking you out of the car. The rear audio controls stopped working, and the rear defroster stopped working. Did I mention it had firerocks on it?

My contour, problems listed above. In "Anyone Else"

Now let me finish by saying that all of these cars with the exception of the 1997 Lincoln Continental, the 1998 Mercury Mystique, and my Contour were purchased new. All the cars had less than 12K a year put on them. They were all leased, and the dealer did all scheduled mantiance. They were kept clean, inside and out. All of them with the exception of the F-150 were in a heated garage. The used cars were also mantained by the dealer, and taken excellent care of. Before anyone blasts me for b$%ching about Ford products and continuing to buy more, the reason we owned so many Fords is because my Dad worked for Ford. He felt that because he worked at Ford we should all drive Fords. I did not want the Contour in the first place, but he bought it for me, and I wasn't about to complain about a free car.

I can say that after actually looking at the Fords we've had, that I am disgusted with their reliability and quality, and will never buy another one again. My mom recently purchased a Toyota, and in the 8 months we've had it it has had no problems. No Ford we ever had went more that a month without serious problems. I need something dependable, and if anyone looks at my experience with Ford they could see why I won't buy another.

99 Contour SVT. Bought it Jan of 2001 with 32K miles. Not one single problem and it now has 89K miles.

My family members have had better luck with their Ford Escorts and Windstars than I have. My mom was lucky, after she traded in her Sable wagon, the tranny died!

I had a '94 Stang V6 that was a dog after 36K miles, and I was leasing it (still had to pay to fix it). The 1991 Mercury Tracer I had before it was a good car, but I just HAD to get a new Mustang, :P

My 97 Contour was fine, just two problems after 60K miles, alternator and MAP sensor. The 2000 I have is OK, but my problem is plumetting resale value. My Focus is fine, but I can't afford the payments, so it's for sale.

I'm looking to get other brands next time. When Ford and GM finally get better quality, maybe I'll "look again".

yeah.... i have similar problems, and i lost my full time job, so i don't have $$$ to fix them...

rear wheel cylinders leak, now rear brakes grind

ate 4 alternators, it's on #5 (1 month old now...)

ate a mega fuse

shorted out parking light fusible link (my fault, but they should have picked a better spot for it instead of with the wiper motor wiring...)

runs like sh*t. has a misfire. hesitates at take off (unless CEL is on), can't idle right (stalls all the time). can't run right, hold gas steady and car feels like you're tapping gas.

engine ticks real loud now. sounds like it's low on oil, everyone comes up to me and is like "dude, put some oil in it" and it's full.

alignment is wierd, car drives straight, wheel is cocked to right.

rear tires basketball down road due to bad struts.

sway bar link is broken, makes loud bang sometimes when i make a corner or hit a bump.

dash vents are broken in middle, not a big deal.

cupholders are totally missing, obviously broken before and someone just took them out.

latch for console is broken, not a big deal also.

front doors can't open from outside unless you push in while pulling up on handle.

if my car has them, both keyhole lights are burned out on front doors.

power locks didn't work when i got the car, no blown fuses, put power to the driver switch and they work fine, but they jam, not allowing entry/exit in rear without forcing lock open.

passenger window is gonna stop working, goes up real slow and falls forward about 1/2 inch.

spring loaded flap on glovebox is pissing me off, no obvious use for it, but it won't stay closed.

door handle light burned out on passenger side, has an intermittant short on driver side, unable to find the green bulbs to replace, might replace with blue LEDs sometime.

driver headlight keeps falling, have to get out and re aim it every now and then.

pcv valve allows oil to flow into air cleaner.

other than those problems, i love the car. i would buy another contour (possibly an SVT), but only when i can afford to prepare to fix it a lot.

bought my tour with 65K in june 2002, now it got 87K, ive had to replace 2 02 sensors, UIM gaskets, brakes (that one is my fault), the back doors squal very badly, the tranny is pretty much shot (atx), and the precats are shot too.

oh well, i got a new atx to put in it very soon, MSDS headers, and a 3L !

i can honestly say, even with 87K, the engine runs like a beast

whaw. i feel lucky. i bought my ztec in oct of 2001 with 88k, i had to get a new motor, pads, rotors, drums and shoes, but thats about it.. now its 127 k and runs like a tiger..

I've had great experience with my Fords.

1981 Lincoln Town Car - 137,000 miles with NO problems. Mother wrecked it.

1981 Mercury Grand Marquis - Water pump at 87,000 miles & again at 160,000. Rebuilt carb at 85,000 miles (4.2L/255cid with variable venturi carb - got 27 mpg highway after the rebuild). Trade in for a 1989 Tracer at 161,000.

1988 Mercury Grand Marquis - Alternator at 95,000 (engine ran on 1Q of oil towing trailer to the Keys). Power steering hose at 107,000. Engine finally died at 180,000 from the low oil abuse in early life. I think I could have taken this car to 500,000 miles. Loved it!

1989 Tracer - Drove the %*&* outa that car for 78,000 miles & never had a single problem - not even a flat tire.

Now I've got a 1999 SE V-6 and a 1999 ZX-2 2.0 (not a Ztec) both with about 50,000 miles.

No problems with the ZX-2.
Minor problems with the SE - TB clean, resistor pack, plugs (probably my fault), 1-2 bang shift. Starting to have paint problems - non critical. No biggie.

I've always been quite particular about where I buy. If a salesman gives me one hint that he's selling me a car instead of me choosing a car for my needs, then I go elsewhere. That's why I don't own a late model BMW now, pushy-ass salesmen. Nobody tells me what I want/need. I decide that for myself, thank you.

Quote:

I can say that after actually looking at the Fords we've had, that I am disgusted with their reliability and quality, and will never buy another one again. My mom recently purchased a Toyota, and in the 8 months we've had it it has had no problems. No Ford we ever had went more that a month without serious problems. I need something dependable, and if anyone looks at my experience with Ford they could see why I won't buy another.

Amen brother!

Originally posted by mercman:

Quote:

I can say that after actually looking at the Fords we've had, that I am disgusted with their reliability and quality, and will never buy another one again. My mom recently purchased a Toyota, and in the 8 months we've had it it has had no problems. No Ford we ever had went more that a month without serious problems. I need something dependable, and if anyone looks at my experience with Ford they could see why I won't buy another.

Amen brother!

what a friggin' stupid comment....if you had soooooo many problems then why did you keep buying fords then...seems kinda stupid to me.....i certainly wouldn't keep buying a brand of car if i kept having major problems with them...

i have owned many fords,and have NEVER had a major problem out of ANY of them...

1st car-1965 mercury comet(mom still has it 170k on it all original still runs great

had many other fords all with zero major problems...

we have several ford econolines at work with over 300k on them....nothing but replacement parts have been changed(like alternators,starters,fuel pump etc.)no major problems out of thm at all....

and i guess owning a toyota for 8 whole months enables you to say they are soooo much more reliable....

and as far as the longest running problem free vehicle the family has ever had was my dads 78 datsun p/u...he drove it til about 170k...my brother drove it til about 250k...sold it to a friend who still has it with over 300k...nothing done except a clutch,and a few minor parts...so if you want something reliable why not a 70's datsun....

Since I seem to be one of the few in defense of Ford, I've had my Mystique for almost 130,000 miles (bought it new), ABSOLUTELY NO PROBLEMS, nothing replaced other than regular maintenance items. Still running the original waterpump. Original Goodyear tires lasted 40,000 miles, replaced with Michelin, and they lasted 67,000 miles. Front brake pads replaced at 105,000 miles, still got the original rear pads. Still got the original hoses and belts. I have the dealer do routine service religiously, even oil changes (the deal the dealer gives me is cheaper than doing it myself). In all honesty, this is the most troublefree car I've ever owned. Yeah, I know I don't hot-rod it, and that helps its longevity.

Quote:

what a friggin' stupid comment....if you had soooooo many problems then why did you keep buying fords then...seems kinda stupid to me.....i certainly wouldn't keep buying a brand of car if i kept having major problems with them...

Actually, I you read his post he said is Dad worked for Ford, So that would explain why he keep buying them. Sometimes the price is just right.

As for me, I had a 69 + 72 Ranch Wagon, 68 Cougar XR7 (how I wish I still had it!) 77 Mustang V8 (now that was tough times for Ford). It did go 183k mi. 86 Capri (still have it 120k mi and it�??s a back up for the Myst). 86 Tempo 180 some odd K Mi. And of course the Myst. Out of all these cars only the Myst had to be towed home (3 times).

Do I hate Ford? No. but I do hate the way they treated me and what Jac did to the company.

Now, If I could only trade the Myst for that 68XR7�?�.sweet.

jeff

ahhh....i just went from a neon to my svt. i bought the neon brand new, put almost 89k on it and never had to change the head gasket (a VERY common prob on those). the only real probs i had on it were the cam sensor o-ring blew, and the rear main seal came loose and was rubbing on the flywheel, causing it to lose ALL of its oil. just traded it in for my svt, well before i even bought the svt the fuel pump had to be replaced. its a 2000 w/ 78500 on it now. ive had the damn car for three weeks now. my prob w/ it now, i had to take it into the shop on monday morning b/c the 3rd gear synchro is going out. my sunroof motor went out once, then started working again. the trunk leaks HORRENDOUSLY and my back doors make a really annoying sound. other than that....heh, seems like i've had more probs w/ this thing than my poor little neon. i can't wait till i have a car to drive again though. the dealer i took it to is f***ing around and still haven't started working on my car. grrrr!!!!!!

sounds like u got a bad one...

Originally posted by GrnSVTour00:
ahhh....i just went from a neon to my svt. i bought the neon brand new, put almost 89k on it and never had to change the head gasket (a VERY common prob on those). the only real probs i had on it were the cam sensor o-ring blew, and the rear main seal came loose and was rubbing on the flywheel, causing it to lose ALL of its oil. just traded it in for my svt, well before i even bought the svt the fuel pump had to be replaced. its a 2000 w/ 78500 on it now. ive had the damn car for three weeks now. my prob w/ it now, i had to take it into the shop on monday morning b/c the 3rd gear synchro is going out. my sunroof motor went out once, then started working again. the trunk leaks HORRENDOUSLY and my back doors make a really annoying sound. other than that....heh, seems like i've had more probs w/ this thing than my poor little neon. i can't wait till i have a car to drive again though. the dealer i took it to is f***ing around and still haven't started working on my car. grrrr!!!!!!

Sounds lke you got one of the same mold that mine came from...the LEMON mold!

Yes, we kept buying Fords because they were the least expensive for us to buy. Plus they were leased, and so they never went out of warranty, except the used ones. Also, we lived in Metro Detroit, and before we lived ther we always drove mazdas and toyotas, and they were very reliable cars. I'm not basing my statement that a Toyota is more reliable on one 8 month old Rav4. Also, read JD power's latest results, toyotas have fewer problems than Fords do, numbers don't lie.

Another thing, some of you may not know this, but it is very unpopular to drive a japanese car in Detroit. When we moved up to detroit, we had a mazda, and the car got the windows broken, keyed to the bare metal, and bashed into in a parking lot on purpose. Many times we wished we could buy a toyota, but we couldn't afford to with the Fords being so cheap on A plan, 300 a month for the loaded expedition, or 350 for a camry. It wasn't a hard choice, plus the camry would have got destroyed. Now that I've had so many problems with Ford, and I don't get a price break anymore, I won't buy one.

guess I'll keep mine simple... had it 2 months, timing belt blew and destroyed half the engine, had head rebuilt, new altinator, 4 starters, starter wiring, waterpump, brakes, tranny problems(o/d light flashing and hard shifting), driver side window likes to go down on it's own.. but I STILL love my 'tour.. I'm taking it with me when I transffer to Pharmacy school, and I'll use it until I get my 100K a year job right out of college, where I will pour more money into it, even if it just sits in my garage... because I love it!

... well... that's just me