Getting a Contour SVT

[PhalC1]

Still keeping the 'Spire as a daily driver though 8)

[B6T]

Nice... a Contour SVT sounds like a fun car. I had an SE V6 Contour, it was automagic so it wasn't that much fun to drive. I bet if it were a 5-speed, I would have never sold it.

[Safety Guy]

There's a '98 5-speed SVT Contour in the OSU Lantern student newspaper going for $4K. Cheapest one I've seen, but mileage wasn't listed.

I have to admit I like Contours, but I've seen bad repair record reports on them. I'd like that engine in a ZX/2.

An SVT V-6 on a base model looking Contour with some nice wheels and tires would be sweet, IMO.

If anyone wants the phone number for that OSU Contour SVT, lemme know by email and I'll get it for you.

Karl

[FB71]

the high repair bills are due to the fact that Contours are a pain in the ass to work on! Nothing is easily accessable. Other than that, I loved driving them, mainly the SE 5spds.

[PhalC1]

Its really a hit or miss with them really. If you get a good one you better hold on to it and take care of it because they are fun. Also, some seem to have a lot of problems. I guess its just the way people drive them and take care of them, or lack there of?

[Silv3rBull3t]

Yeah I just saw one with the 2.5 V6 and that thing is CRAMMED in there!! I mean seriously the engine mount had to go up and over the belts, it looked so awkwardly put in there... -Kyle

[PhalC1]

Thats why they are so much to work on. They sound soooo good though lol

[festivagt]

...

No offense, The 2.5l duratec is a difficult engine to make power on and the aftermarket doesn't support it either. If you are going to buy a contour, why not a 4 cyl with a 5 spd? Drop all the suspension goodies and a 50 horse nitrous kit on it and your out smoking a svt for about $1500? It's way easier and cheaper to build the Zetec than the Duratec anyway. Besides, the v-6 car is alot heavier, doesn't play in the turns as nice and in general is a pain to do anything with.

[B6T]

I have a 5 speed Zetec Contour and the thing is a slow turd. It is absolutely gutless and the last thing I would want to do to the engine is perform any sort of modification on it. The engine stops producing power above 5000rpm. The Duratec is an all-aluminum engine so the weight gain over the Zetec model wouldn't be that substantial, or substantial enough to hinder the handling of the car in such a way that you would prefer the 4 cylinder over the 6. No matter what engine is in the Contour, its still a heavy car... far too heavy for any sort of 4 cylinder. If you know where to look, you can find performance parts for the Duratec.

You really don't know Contours if you think the Duratec doesn't have any potential. 6 cylinders displacing 2.5L will always be superior to 4 cylinders displacing only 2.0L. I've owned both an automatic V6 Contour and now a I4 5 speed and the automatic would absolutely blow the doors off the I4 and it wasn't even a 5 speed V6 Contour... which are the quick ones.

BTW, if you put a 50 shot on the 125hp Contour Zetec, you'd only have 175hp. I guess that would be a good match for the basic 170HP V6., but not the 195hp SVT V6.

[emot]

personally i would never buy an american car, secondly contour svt's are slow. My fathers integra R smokes them, my Mirage Turbo is way faster than my dads car. I will admit i like the sound of the exhaust on them.

[B6T]

I bet my car(s) can smoke your Mirage and obliterate your Dad's ITR... does that make your cars slow? Speed is subjective. Is my car fast to me? Yes. Is my car fast to my boss who daily drives a 1000hp+ RX7? Hell no. Contour SVTs are fast to the average person.

I don't think Contour's can really be classified as an American car. They are about as American as a Talon or Eclipse... designed on the other side of the pond, but manufactured in America.

[festivagt]

...

Other than SVT parts, they make NOTHING. Find me an aftermarket head for one, How about an aftermarket intake manifold? Or crank or Well, you get the idea. Any parts that would have to be upgraded to make serious power on a 2.5l cannot be. They can be cryogenically frozen which makes them a bit stronger. But that process is costly. Most SVT or 2.5 owners trash the 2.5 in favor of the DOHC 3.0l from the taurus anyway. Not much of an improvement. The only turbo kit for a 2.5/3.0 is about $6000. For 250-300hp? Throw that kind of money at a zetec and you'll have A completely built engine(pistons,rods, PNP,) turbo, nitrous, engine managemet, Clutch, flywheel, LSD ETC. What I am trying to say here is simple. With a much better supported engine or platform, the aftermarket makes parts for it and they do it for less money. The zetec would be VERY potent for that kind of money. I have a 4 cyl contour with a auto in it and can and have spanked SVT's without a problem. I have about $2000 wrapped up into the car including purchase price. But if you want to stick with a ill supported platform, be my guest. We all chose to do it here with the festiva. I just think that it is a bit unfair to try to mislead people into thinking that they are buying some sort of great car and paying through the nose for it - especially when they go looking for performance mods for it. There is a better alternative that is alot less money before and after the purchase. It just comes with 2 less cylinders. :lol:

[JerseyJay1.8T]

what's the NEED for aftermarket heads? for what you'd pay for them you can take the stockers to a machine shop and get them reworked and probably get the same gains as aftermarket heads and still have some cash leftover. Crank? Seriously now, how many average enthusiasts are breaking crankshafts? If you wanted a 1000 hp drag motor sure, but i'm pretty sure that the duratec in 99% of its applications is going to be strong enough. To tell someone what motor would be "better" for them, you'd have to first know what their goals for it are. But I forgot, you know everything and you're never wrong, so I guess you already psychically know exactly what he wants to do with the car?

I'm not even saying that the ztec is a bad engine but you don't make a very good argument as to why its better. You can have a 2.5 liter engine that makes 250 hp and its a lot less stressed than a 2.0 liter 4 cylinder making the same amount of power. 62.5hp per cylinder, or 41.6? Especially given that the duratec is already built for 200hp, and you're only adding another 50. Thats a 25% increase, not much risk of breaking anything. Whereas the Zetec is under a 100% increase in power.... So you would probably HAVE to build the zetec to safely and reliably run that power level, where the duratec would be happy as a clam. So slap a 50 shot on the duratec and call it a day.

Now we'll all watch as this descends into an argument, but why come on here claiming to know whats "best" for someone without knowing what they need/want first?

[B6T]

Apparently, the Duratec has forged pistons, rods and crank. The early Zetec engine would spit its rods out the side of the block if you red-lined it too much.

Now which engine is better?

[studdyhalllooser]

calm down fellas......might just have to go to the arena!