3 replies to this topic

[BoonDocksBuilder]

Bottom line....I love this site. I have learned more in an hour of reading here than six hours with my neighborhood mechanic. I am so interested in doing the 3 liter swap that I have already bought an Escape oil pan. Originally this was my wife's car with 144,444 miles (as of today) in which she did no maintenance or repairs for 5 years except the occasional oil change. I have (since November 2010) put in around $1900 worth of repairs to get the car to an acceptable safety standard and daily commuter. The list starts off with new rotors, brake pads, lower control arms, sway bars, all new hoses, belts, Idler control valve, coil, spark plug wires, halo spark plugs, all fluid change, all filter change, 4 michelin tires, front end alignment, 2 oem rim replacements( in her words curbs love to hate her), along with two missing center caps, pair of rear view mirrors, pair of headlights, new front windshield, transmission speed sensor, ac blower fan, blower fan resistor (2 ea by the way due to a water leak around the cabin filter I fixed today), and I know I am forgetting something but you get the point. During all the trials and tribulations I have had with this bane of my existence; just so I can have a peace of mind knowing my wive is in a safe mode of transportation. I have come to love my ford contour to the point I am willing to get a used ford escape for her birthday next month and I am going to drive this master piece of engineering. Oh yes, and a ford dealer clock spring. How could I forget? I have been bitten by the bug and now want to start upgrading. First with the mondeo lcd trip device so I can see my mpg. then add a front windshield electric defroster with a mondeo switch that fits neatly into the dash. I also need to replace the window tint. Upgrade to leather seats with heat and possibly if its feasible an oem sunroof from a parts yard. etc.... The only problem is the only mechanic skill I have is lefty loosy righty tighty. So this is going to be a developmental challenge for me. And the only talent I have is that I am a slow learner. I like the fact that I know how my car works and what needs attention. I like the idea of adding the SVT lower and upper intake assemblies along with the throttle assembly and getting 25 more horsepower. And then later when I upgrade to a 3.0 liter I can just get an adapter plate to fit. I am also interested in using HHO to see if it really works by using my new trip computer. In the end, I want a 3.0 liter with a stage two turbo with close to 400 horsepower and rear in wheel electric motors with a 10 kw battery pack to handle my 20 mile daily commutes. I should be able to get the 100mpg solution ford is coming out with in the fusion in 2013. All of this is possible with backyard mechanics and skilled Contour Veterans and cheaper than the 50 k plus price tag. Plus a total of 600 horespower with 800 ft lbs of torque when you use both of them together. I can't wait to see the first ET times. Check out this site http://www.proteanelectric.com/ and look at their Through-The-Road-Hybrid conversion kit.By the way I can't believe how cheap Mondeo parts are on ebay UK. Its the shipping costs that stops me every time. I just want to say thanks for letting me on this wonderful site. I would like to add two cents and tell everyone about this website that has all the diagrams for the ford contour for free. Check it out. It gives sort of detailed steps on repairs. I have a little trouble with it since I am a novice, but it is filled with allot of useful information.http://www.automotix...our-repair.html Now let my master piece begin.

[BuckeyeSVT]

to FCO!

I'm no stranger to UK parts... I've been slowly recontenting alot from the Mondeo's into my SVT. I'm curious by the Escape oil pan?? What do you mean you bought it? Are you under the impression that it will somehow safegard the engine from oil issues? If so, you have alot more reading to do here - As we have beat that horse until it's no longer recognizable as an animal and came up with the result of the pan is a waste of time. However, BAT does sell it that way... FWIW it's false advertising (even if they tote the "it changed so it has to be good" b/s). We have alot of years of accumulated knowledge here on these forums, take full advantage of that.

Your electric solution sounds interesting, you will meet and read about others who have gone electric here... And their thoughts and trials getting there.

-Dom

[BoonDocksBuilder]

Hello Dom,

It is nice to finally meet you. I did use BAT's reason of Ford making the windage tray modifications to determine to get an escape oil pan. I was searching through a salvage yard for oem rims when I came across the oil pan and made an impulse buy. So what is the consensus to fix the 2.5 L oil issues? And since we are talking about engine oil; Would the engine benefit if I added a dual oil filter with an oil cooler kit with fan and inline temperature sensor? I would like to make purchases that can be later adapted to the 3.0 Liter conversion. There are so many options for the 3.0 Liter conversion i decided to wait until I understand which path to take and have a final parts list first before I begin (to include suspension , transmission and electronics) so I know what my car should have with no weak link in the conversion. In the mean time I can be content with little projects.

I am very interested in adding HHO kit from http://www.hhokitsdirect.com/ just to quelm my curiosity and see it first hand. Has anyone used these kits? I am looking at purchasing the 773 kit to get as much mpg as possible. If it works I will add it to the 3.0 Liter conversion.

I also have not changed out my fuel injectors yet. Is there an upgrade for better performance? I know the SVT injectors were 19 lbs. Do they make a reasonable horsepower increase to change now since I need to replace mine? What is the best path to take?

Interior, I am looking at changing the cloth seats to gray leather. I have found that the chevy malibu seats have the switch for heated seats right on the side of the seats. The size of the seats are almost identical to the Contour. there are no issues with the seat belts. I know there are some issues with bolt alignments and harness customization. I just like the idea that I don't have to cut the dash for heated seat switches. Yet this means I have to get the rear seats reupholstered to match which is not cheap. Any Ideas would be much appreciated.

[spridget]

The Escape oil pan windage tray is no different from the Taurus, but the bolt holes on the bottom edge line up with the Contour trans, so no modification is needed to the pan to use all the bolts. You will need the Escape pickup tube or modify the Contour tube. The integrated rubber ring seal in the Escape and later Taurus oil pan is less prone to failure than the earlier oil pan gasket.

Consensus on the oil issues? Fill with 6 qts of high quality oil with a quality filter (ie not Fram) and drive it like you stole it. A remote oil filter and/or air/oil cooler is not a bad idea. You'll increase oil capacity. The SVT Contour had an oil/water cooler which you could install. The Escape used the same setup, but the routing of the coolant lines is a little different. All of that stuff can carry over to the 3L. I think a dual filter with a fan and cooler is overkill for a street car, good for a track car. In the 2.5L, it was commonly believed that the lack of drain backs in the heads caused oil to pool in the heads during long, fast, right hand sweepers (like a clover leaf highway interchange ramp). '02 and up 2.5L and all 3L blocks have additional drains.

Your best bet for simplicity and cost is to install a complete '01-05 Taurus/Sable engine. There are a few variances between '01-03 and '04-05, but they are minor. Find a tuner shop than can tune for the 3L when it's done and tune again when you've added the electric motors.