ContourGirl...i too am a contour girl, a 95 contour girl. I too am having serious issues with the contour SE. Initially the Ford Dealer claimed that it was the PCV and then it was an electrical problem, then it was the oxygen sensor. They fixed the PCV and the oxygen sensor but never touched on the "electrical problem" After 500.00 worth of work through Ford, and no progress the car was then diagnoised as having a transmission problem. I felt that it was a transmission problem all along. It started suddenly dragging into all gears, high RPM's a revving sound accompanied with a surge of power once it kicked into gear. A surge so bad it felt as though i had been rear ended. So Ford says tranny problems and they wanted a COSTLY amount of money to fix the tranny. So it was then moved to a transmission specialist who was stumped by the symptoms as well. Finally a manual run through of gears led the specialist to believe that it was a tranny problem (in addition the tranny fluid was full but black-brown-grayish in color, similar to what you described) After a new tranny is put into the contour it is still shifting with hesitation. SO the specialist has been working with the Ford Corp. and a automotive troubleshooting club for two weeks trying to determine what demon is plaguing my car. Just talked to him and everything seems to check ok, but he reverted back to Ford's suggestion of electrical problems. He feels at this point that it is the computer of the car, he is working with a salvage yard to obtain a computer from another contour to test and see if this will fix the contour. The last time i seen my car was May 19th...it is june 18th and still no car. If anyone has any ideas, suggestions, comments, go to hell tips, anything i would be so appreciative! It's come to the point where the automotive troubleshooting club is out of ideas, the specialist is ripping his hair out and there is no way in HELL I can afford a new car, so that is not an option. The contour has to return to me, PLEASE PLEASE HELP! Thanks in advance for any help you may offer.
ciao
brandy
