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H

hourang

CEG'er
Joined
Sep 25, 2008
Messages
260
Location
South Lyon, MI
Hello all! I needed a daily beater to save wear on my tahoe as well as gas. I always wanted a svt contour so I picked up this beast. Anyone here used to own this? She's a little rough but I'm happy to start fixing her up! As soon as I got her home I removed a bunch of stickers and recharged the a.c. oh did you know that if the owner forgot to give you the key to the gas cap, you can just squeeze it real tight and it comes right off? LOL.
 

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MidOH3LCougar said:
Are the wheels as bad as he was saying they are ?
​Id love to have them.
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So you know this car? Wheels are pretty bad up close but I'm gonna try to clean them real good or respray them. I really like them. He said one or two leaks and one can't be balanced anymore. I'm gonna try to keep them and if not I will get new wheels and let you know
 
ContourMike said:
welcome back to CEG!! looks like she has some potential!! nice buy!! where are you from?
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Thanks! I remember a lot from my zetec 5 speed tour so hopefully that will come in handy rebuilding this. A lot of little thing like broken plastic and tabs everywhere. Needs brakes, alignment, possibly struts, roll mount, tuneup etc. I am in Michigan and love to wrench on cars.
 
hourang said:
So you know this car? Wheels are pretty bad up close but I'm gonna try to clean them real good or respray them. I really like them. He said one or two leaks and one can't be balanced anymore. I'm gonna try to keep them and if not I will get new wheels and let you know
Click to expand...

​Saw it posted on craigslist and the facebook page.
 
Nice! i really like the red. white wheels go perfect with the red IMO. I just picked up my first contour as well. I hope you enjoy it!
 
ArKaiK said:
Nice! i really like the red. white wheels go perfect with the red IMO. I just picked up my first contour as well. I hope you enjoy it!
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I agree! if i end up replacing these wheels it will be with another white set! I am loving every minute of this car, just wish i had more time to work on it.
 
FYI you can use a small zip tie on the IMRC rod for a temp fix. Not sure how long this is going to last but im hopeful. so far its held up to two days of abuse.

NEVERMIND IT FELL OFF
 
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Just wanted to put up a list of things i need to fix so i can keep this all in one place:

1. Remove crappy stickers - DONE
2. Clean int/ext - basic cleaning DONE, need to do a deep clean (shampoo, clay bar, wet sand, etc)
3. Clean tbody/maf/pcv - DONE with toothbrush and cleaner, runs MUCH better
4. Fix IMRC - DONE - hopefully permanent but if not ill get those vacuum clips. Feels great to have real power!
5. Tune up - plugs/wires for piece of mind, they seem fine engine is strong/smooth (pcv seems new, has a new fuel pump already, not sure about fuel filter, i would hope it was done with pump) - fuel filter is pretty rusty, will want to replace that too
6. Drivers Control arm - DONE
7. Both inner tie rods - bought $18 each, need to install
8. Motor/tran mounts/roll restrictors - have window weld, will do when dropping subframe for other stuff
9. Brakes - they seem fine but do pulsate bad. i will see how they feel after the control arm is fixed. seem fine now
10. Strut Mounts - not sure how many are bad or where they are, i think they are ok
11. Struts - hopefully save up enough for BAT kit
12. Sunroof fix - needs a new plastic gear, anyone know where to buy them? the motor was loose and missing a screw, i got it tight but the sunroof will move a few inches then make a stripping sound. i am wondering now if the dent on the roof is preventing the sunroof from moving back? the gears didnt look stripped when i took it apart. - New sunroof motor fixed this up
13. Rear window doesnt roll up all the way - DONE - pulled panel, greased up the window channel, worked it up and down, then cleaned the glass real good. seems to work now
14. Paint Grill - need to repaint the flat black grill
15. Fix all the plastic! - Did a lot of plastic fixing. Still have a few spots here and there but overall much better! front bumper is a mess, bounces like crazy, all the tabs are broke, doesnt align right. headlight tabs are broke, grill tabs are broke, fixed the loose side skirt, fixed the headlights using scrap plastic and a soldering iron
16. Rear bumper missing the black mesh
17. Repaint trunk lid (clear coat coming off), sanded and painted this, it looks much better but i didnt do the best job getting the paint even
18. Rust - mostly surface rust under the doors and the common front window top area. For how old the car is and in michigan, its not that bad at all.
19. A/C recharge - DONE - so far its been working good all week.
20. Wheels - Cleaning/Painting - Need to clean them real good DONE and fix chips/scratches/etc and re-paint
21. Wheels - Leaking front passenger side - rim was bent, BFG to the rescue, so far no leak
22. Front Speakers blown - replaced with new ones
23. Install amp/sub :)
24. Parking brake needs to be fixed asap DONE
25. HID light is out on pass side, fix asap, need to order bulb from somewhere
26. Broken Exhaust tab
27. Drivers fog light rattles - FIXED
28. Headlight tabs again - FIXED with plastic epoxy repair and aluminum scrap
29. Shifter bushings - tighten shifter and new linkage bushings needed

Looks like a lot but most of this doesn't bother me and the car was cheap.
 
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had a busy weekend, replaced the lower control arm on pass side. new sway bar end link. did my own wheel alignment. Painted the grill, looks great now and matches the hood better. fixed the plastic tabs on the headlights and grill. Basically just found some scrap plastic and created new plastic tabs using a soldering iron to plastic weld. found out my car already has the ypipe optimization woot! Has resonator delete and aftermarket mufflers. found one of the exhaust flange tabs broken at the cat, will need an exhaust shop to weld that since my MIG cant weld that thick. still have a lot to fix but as you can tell I am making great progress.
 
replaced the HIDs, its nice to have both headlights and not worry about being pulled over all the time. My plastic welding hasnt lasted on the headlights, with the bumper loose and the crappy suspension and 18" wheels, this thing bounces like crazy. gonna work on making some aluminum mounts for them. the grill is still fine though.
 
buy struts from BAT inc http://www.batinc.net/main.htm, the gears in the moonroof strip out.. make sure the moonroof itself is greased up but you'll need a a new gear, junkyard or something.. I reccommend you take off the UIM and LIM and replace the gaskets and clean it all out with carb cleaner. will improve throttle response and gas mileage and power.
 
satya_svt98 said:
buy struts from BAT inc http://www.batinc.net/main.htm, the gears in the moonroof strip out.. make sure the moonroof itself is greased up but you'll need a a new gear, junkyard or something.. I reccommend you take off the UIM and LIM and replace the gaskets and clean it all out with carb cleaner. will improve throttle response and gas mileage and power.
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yeah i know about BAT, wish i could afford the $600+ kit for it right now. The UIM/LIM gaskets were replaced by the previous owner supposedly. not sure if it was cleaned well or not but with how this car is modded i am sure they followed instructions here. I did remove the tbody and clean everything really well with a toothbrush, it helped a lot with idle quality and throttle response.
 
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