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Oh happy day

People need to stop their whining around here, boo hoo my car needed this and that done. Well my Escort is due for new struts in the rear and do you see me writing a post on how bad a Escort is because it has over 140K miles and needs suspension work done. NO!!! I just got the tie rod end fixed on my Mystique not long ago did you see me whining about it...nope, grow up people, welcome to owning a older car. :nonono:
P.S. I just got done also tuning both them cars up and putting in a alternator in the Escort now they're both good to go for a while now.
 
Mystique97 said:
People need to stop their whining around here, boo hoo my car needed this and that done. Well my Escort is due for new struts in the rear and do you see me writing a post on how bad a Escort is because it has over 140K miles and needs suspension work done. NO!!! I just got the tie rod end fixed on my Mystique not long ago did you see me whining about it...nope, grow up people, welcome to owning a older car. :nonono:
P.S. I just got done also tuning both them cars up and putting in a alternator in the Escort now they're both good to go for a while now.
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Seriously. In actuality, it is probably cheaper owning a car that is all paid off and cheap on insurance but costs in repairs than it is owning a newer car with the freaking payments and the insurance. Not to mention that when the tiniest thing goes wrong with the car, gotta leave it at the dealership for a freaking week for nearly no reason. The older car you fix yourself in your driveway or bring it to your mechanic and have it done in a few hours. I like owning my car. My parents have their stupid Saturn's and have to put up with the dealership's crap all the time. OMG it has to be left there alllllllllllllllll day because the CEL came on for a slow O2 sensor response. Whatever haha.
 
mbraun said:
plugs, air filter, oil filter, both wipers
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This makes me laugh. D*mn those regular maintenance parts! You think every car manufacture would design those to last FOREVER! :rolleyes:

Sounds like negligence on your part for not inspecting the car enough when you bought it.
 
Not long after I bought my Sport I had to have the ATX replaced. $2600 and only 55,000 on the clock. The fluid was basically burned up and had the consistancy of gritty water. When I contacted the previous owner (who also happens to be my brother) he told me that you don't have to change the ATX fluid and that I must have abused it for it to break :rolleyes:

I learned very quickly to never trust a previous owner, even if they're blood, and that the first thing you do with a private sale used car is take care of every conceivable maintenance item.
 
132k, 99csvt, no probs cept Ford replaced the engine at one point for some recall (engine only has 75k miles)....but still, no probs :)
 
For those who think I am whinning about this car. I listed the standard maintenance parts to offer a complete list of the things that I have done. However, I do NOT believe that a wheel bearing, axel shaft or transmission removal and new flex plate are maintenance items for a car that only has 96k miles on it. When I went to purchase a new flex plate the local Ford dealer had it in stock. Thats right a non-maintenance part for a 10 year old car in stock. The dealer told me that this is a weak part in the car and they sell several a year. When I bought this car it ran fine. But the inner ring of the flex plate where it bolts to the cranks shaft can actually spin on the outer section of the flex plate. As the flex plate has the timing "pickup" on it the car began to run worse and worse. Very poor gas mileage and no power. The check engine light was no help as it never came on. I am glad that you guys like these cars but I can not trust it. So after purchasing it, fixing it up and selling it I only lost about $300.00. But I guess it could be worse, after all I did get to drive it 2500 miles. I would like to thank all of the guys here who tried to help me troubleshoot this problem. And now that you all know about the experience that I have had if someone else is complaining about no power and bad gas mileage you might be able to give him this bit of info. Thanks again to the helpful folks.
 
You know what the weak point is? Your freaking head :nonono:

Ten year old car, 4 banger, 3100 pounds, god knows how many miles. Probably live in hills and drive them like a nut at 50mph letting the trans shift every 15 seconds. If it wasn't beaten to **** and back, you did it the favor. You had axle problems and didn't even realize it apparently... Then when the trans takes a **** after the axle problems your surprised? Try doing so more burn outs in that atx 4 banger...

*points to corner* You may die over there.
 
Wheel Bearings, I hate them on any car

Wheel Bearings, I hate them on any car

A flex plate to me is NOT normal maintenance. Wheel bearings are, unfortunately. My sister's Mystique has needed LF, now RF is going at 130 Kmiles though. My Dodge has gone through a set, and my Dad's 2003 Toyota needed one at 30K! They always make a nice growling sound that suddenly gets very loud one day. I wonder if bumpy roads contribute to the problems.
 
" However, I do NOT believe that a wheel bearing,"
Wheel bearings are maintenance items. At 10 years 96K miles, you had it good. My left wheel bearing went at 110K miles. Right is still good at 134K miles.

" axel shaft or transmission removal and new flex plate are maintenance items for a car that only has 96k miles on it."
Funny thing. We don't read about many CEGers having this problem


" When I went to purchase a new flex plate the local Ford dealer had it in stock. Thats right a non-maintenance part for a 10 year old car in stock. The dealer told me that this is a weak part in the car and they sell several a year."
Standard comment to make the owner feel better. "It is not your fault, it is the design". I used to hear that all the time when I frequented the parts counter at the local Chevy dealer (previously, I had 2 Chevys).
 
Whatever, he got a lemon, or a previously abused/neglected car. He vented his frustration and gave up on an entire brand because of it. Good riddance!

Thats just ignorant but its your choice. You have to expect some sort of defence from the board concidering 99% of the people here love their contour's! :crazy:
 
I have tried to be respectful of all people answering my posts. I have also been greatful for the guys who REALLY tried to help diagnose this cars issues over the past many weeks. I am sorry that those who responded could not show me the same level of human decency (you know who you are). Additionally, I would like to refute the idea that this car was beat on after I bought it. Your assumptions and raging on are false. One responder had it right. I have gotten a lemon and it has turned me off to the whole brand.
 
mbraun said:
I have gotten a lemon and it has turned me off to the whole brand.
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Thats sad that you would let ONE lemon turn you off to an entire brand. Trust me i know Ford has its problems(I used to work at a dealership) but trust me your not gonna find any better anywhere else. Go to GM and youll have worse problems because GM just likes to cover their problems instead of doing alot of recalls. Ford and Dodge do the same thing just not as bad. Dont let one thing drive you away from a good brand.
 
mbraun said:
I am sorry that those who responded could not show me the same level of human decency (you know who you are).
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You mean the same decency by calling our cars crap? What else was the purpose of your post? You need to learn how to guilt trip better. I stand behind my comments that trying to disparage the quality of the Contour/Mystique by listing routine maintenance items overdue on an aging vehicle is nothing more than whining.

Edit: Should I even get into how many Contours we know of with 200,000+ miles? This whole thread was moot from the start.
 
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FavoriteMystaque said:
and my Dad's 2003 Toyota needed one at 30K! They always make a nice growling sound that suddenly gets very loud one day. I wonder if bumpy roads contribute to the problems.
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I don't know about bumpy roads causing wheel bearing problems but aftermarket wheels can if they have the wrong backspacing.
Karl
 
Hey one mans junk is another mans treasure.

I think the contours are horrible cars.There quality is not that good. I for one love my car but on the other hand am the first to admit that they break like no other.

We all know the most common issues.

6th cly oil starvation.
Wheel bearings are issues with these cars for going out early.
Moosing from the air box.
3rd gear synchro's go bad real early
Auto trans are horrible slush box's and break!
Oh the Diff is like glass, it shatters even driving it on a regular basis
Alternator failure
Water pump failure
Rear sway bar tabs break.

Am i for getting any thing else lol
 
98SVTC said:
Hondas and Toyotas are! Never have to do any maintenance to them and they run forever! :crazy: :laugh:
Karl
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In your dreams!

They are just as bad as any other car if not cared for and no better if they are cared for.

Every automaker has their problems and every model has their own unique common failures. When I worked in a Honda shop I was amazed at how much trouble they had.
 
Harrry said:
Hey one mans junk is another mans treasure.

I think the contours are horrible cars.There quality is not that good. I for one love my car but on the other hand am the first to admit that they break like no other.

We all know the most common issues.

6th cly oil starvation.
Wheel bearings are issues with these cars for going out early.
Moosing from the air box.
3rd gear synchro's go bad real early
Auto trans are horrible slush box's and break!
Oh the Diff is like glass, it shatters even driving it on a regular basis
Alternator failure
Water pump failure
Rear sway bar tabs break.

Am i for getting any thing else lol
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Hang out at a Honda shop for a while and you will discover that their automatic transmissions don't hold up as well as the Contour automatic transmission. They are literally falling apart on the Oddysey, Accord, Pilot, and CRV. To Hondas credit though, they have stepped up to replace them long after warranty.

Hondas wear out suspension parts much more frequently.

Water Pumps fail at a much higher rate.

Original batteries are truly junk. They are supplied by the same vendor as Ford's batteries (Johnson Controls) but must be to a much lower spec. Battery replacement in Hondas is much more frequent than on Fords.

One of the things that most upset me about Honda is the use of timing belts on everything, including their V6. Expect a $1000 maintenance at around 100,000 miles to replace it.

Hondas go through brakes frequently with the need to replace rotors in the front when the pads are worn being a common issue.

And my favorite has to do with the CRV. The valves need to be adjusted as maintenance. If you forget about this little tidbit (and since no other common automaker has this feature anymore why would you think you need to?) at about 100,000 miles you will need to replace the head.
 
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