Is the Ford Contour a good car? Will it hold up in time?

 

In short, no. It's lackluster, cheaply screwed together and problematic---indicative of many Ford products.

If you must buy small, buy Japanese. However, buying small nets you cheap iron all over compared to midsize and large cars.

 

I'd stay away if I were you. I've had a few friends that HAD them if you know what I mean. I personally would stay away from any American mid-size now a days. If you can afford it, the new Impala's are good I hear.

 

I agree w/ the other guys. We had 1000s of them over the years & they weren't very impressive.

A brief list of their problems:

Cooling system issues.

Timing belt issues.

Transmission problems.

Electronic Engine Control problems.

Variable Cam Timing problems.

They also don't hold their value very well, which gives you a pretty good indication of what the used car market thinks of them.

 

Every car has it's problems. My wife bought one brand new in 1999, and has had zero problems with it up to this point. *knock on wood* Just changed the oil every 3k miles, and replaced the tires once, but other than that, no major problems at all.

 

stay away from it and runnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

 

Your wife's car is the exception rather than the rule. Research the Contour/Mistake...oops, I mean Mystique on the web & you'll see it has a less than stellar reliability record.

The 6 cyl. SVT w/ 5 speed trans is fun to drive but still plagued with sevice issues as well as saddled w/ clunky styling.

 

Not to mention both the Contour and Mystique are not produced anymore .

Both obsolete to my knowledge. That should tell you something.

I'm with Knuckles on this one. The bus beats this thing for relibility by a landslide.