Jump to content
FordContour.Org

spridget

Moderators
  • Posts

    3,167
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    13

Everything posted by spridget

  1. Yeah, one thing I noticed driving the Contour as a daily is that you rarely see Contours on the road anymore. In the year I was daily driving it, i was approached at the gas station a couple times by folks who were excited to see a SVTC.
  2. Hi! I haven't been around in a while. I was driving my '99 SVTC 3.0L as my daily for the last year. I had sold (regrettably) my '05 C230 and put the Contour back on the road. It was under 100k miles but now sits at about 110k, considering I was commuting about 500-600 miles a week. However, it is parked once again. We bought my wife a bigger vehicle (to haul the kid) so I took her '14 C250.Texas sun has not done any favors to the paint. This is a poor choice for a commuter car. Always fun in city traffic, but not too fun cruising on the highway for an hour.
  3. I run a garage. I can tell you that the labor estimate to replace an entire harness will be quite high. The job is not terribly difficult, but it is very time consuming.
  4. Did you bleed the clutch on level ground? If the nose of the car is raised any, you'll get trapped air. Dealt with that headache before.
  5. I agree. Tuning may be the hardest part. 96-97 injectors will work, polarity is the same. I used these in a 3L swap I built some years ago and the current owner is still driving the car without any issues. The two vacuum tubes on the top of the 2.5L intake will be eliminated after the swap. You will need to connect the lines to the back / underside of the 3L manifold vacuum ports. You are correct about the valve covers. 2.5L covers will allow for the coil bracket. Additionally, the position of the oil fill on the 3L covers may interfere with the hood.
  6. I would just use loctite and torque to spec. Blue would be appropriate.
  7. I had read in the past that the valves begin to float around 7500 rpm. ST220 valve springs are supposed to have a higher spring rate and should prevent valve float above 7500.
  8. I've built and driven both setups. I'll prefer the non-IMRC 3L over the hybrid 3L. My '99 straight 3L makes 85% max torque at 1800 rpm. It gained 30 tq on the low end when I swapped from SVT cams to stock 3L cams. Lost 5 hp on the top end and lowered redline from 7500 to 7250. Power falls off at 6750, the extra room is just to prevent hitting rev limiter. That little kick at 3500 in the hybrid setup was nice, but the car never felt as quick as the full 3L. And higher revs just means increased wear and shorter engine life.
  9. Taurus / Sable engines are the most cost effective. They require modifying the upper engine mount bracket to fit, or removal of a head to fit. The front cover from the contour must be swapped over. The Escape engine tend to cost much more. They do not require modification to the upper mount as it is shared with the CDW27. The front cover is also compatible. The LIM is taller which can prevent hood clearance. Taurus / Sable LIMs are cheap and I often see them on eBay.
  10. The year model throws another wrench in the gears. '95 V6s used vacuum to control IMRC. All later models were electronically controlled and operated via a cable. I believe the '95s are also OBD1 which can make tuning difficult. I know it has been done but I don't know all the details. If you choose the Escape engine, keep it complete. Only thing to change would be the LIM from a Taurus/Sable for hood clearance. You can find more info about this swap on the Cougar forums where the Escape swap was more common. Using the Escape engine saves you from the hassle of of the upper engine mount and front cover. You still need to swap exhaust manifolds and alternator. Wiring the fuel injectors may be a problem, or use earlier injectors from a '96-97 Taurus/Sable that will match the engine size and the '95 Contour wiring.
  11. I dont know what I was thinking.... the 2.5L intakes will not fit the 3L heads without modifying the heads or using an adapater. Neither are very good ideas. You would be better off making the 3L intakes fit under the hood than adapting the 2.5L intake to the 3L heads. You can swap the Escape lower intake with a Taurus / Sable lower intake for better hood clearance.
  12. You can upload directly to the site using the "full version" (desktop vs mobile site). Or upload to hosting site like photobucket or Flickr and paste the link in your post.
  13. That only applies to PATS. The PATS equipped cars had a chip in the key and sensor ring surrounding the ignition key cylinder.
  14. The Escape 3L block will not require modification to attach intake and exhaust. You will need to shave a couple small "nubs" off the block to fit the alternator bracket. I believe the Escape lower intake manifold is slightly taller than the 2.5L and Taurus 3L engines. The upper intake manifold may contact the hood and prevent it from closing. A Taurus LIM would fit and prevent that contact. If you increase the engine displacement, you need a tune. The stock computer programming is not designed to account for a major change. Even if you don't tune for high performance, you should tune for efficient and reliable performance. Edit: I missed the part where you said you would use the 2.5L intakes. They will fit. You may need to use the 2.5L cam covers to reuse the 2.5L ignition coil bracket and maintain the factory PCV system. 2.5L intakes are not the best option for maximum performance, but they will fit and retain the factory appearance. Brain fart... disregard
  15. I doubt you will find any replacement OEM wiring. I had to rebuild the power distribution box wiring in my '97. If you have some experience with electrical wiring, it's not too hard to DIY.
  16. The larger combustion chambers on the 3L heads would need to be filled and machined to match the cylinder deck. Otherwise the fire ring on the head gasket won't be able to seal. Plus, the 3L has larger valves. The 3L head also has oil drain that would need to be filled and sealed. The 2.5L block is missing the rear drain. I would just keep looking for 2.5L heads.
  17. No guarantee the new belt is made to higher standards unless explicitly stated by the manufacturer.
  18. If you have the flat metal key, you do not have PATS.
  19. I haven't tried my disk on a newer OS. I think my old tuning laptop is running 2000 or XP.
  20. Blower motor resistor is a common fault. It could also be the blower is just dead. Had this issue in my Taurus with symptoms similar to yours. Replaced the blower motor and fixed the problem. I'm in Texas and the a/c runs year round. No surprise the blower motor died after 15 years.
  21. A couple areas are prone to develop leaks. Cam covers and front main seal are most likely. Minor seepage may drip onto the exhaust which runs around the passenger side of the engine. Fresh air is drawn into the hvac system at the base of the windshield on the passenger side. You might also check the exhaust gaskets between the y-pipe and cat-back section. Mine had a minor leak which caused an exhaust smell in the cabin at startup.
  22. You can no longer purchase this part from the dealer.
  23. Is the check engine light on? If so, can you provide the code?
  24. Sorry, haven't logged on in a little while. You may be able able to order the screen from the dealer. That's the only source I know of. Many times the screen would get removed because people thought it was a restriction. It serves to straighten the airflow so the MAF gets an accurate measurement.
  25. Hmm. I don't recall seeing that collar before. Does your intake still have the wire mesh screen between the MAF and filter?
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.