I am interested in buying a 96 Contour for commuting purposes only. I will be traveling for 45 miles at speeds between 0 and 75mph (highway commuting - need good gas mileage). I have read the reviews about this car (both good and bad). I have not found many reviews that speak specifically about the manual transmission. It appears most of the problems exist with the automatic?
I am willing pay average retail for this car. I would like to know from those who have owned a Contour for sometime, if it is reliable enough to last me two to three years, or approximately 65,000 more miles? If anyone can tell me if they experience stalling, broken springs, etc with the manual transmission, I would be very grateful - please email me at toddroe@msn.com. Thanks - Todd.
From what I've been able to read, The Contour/Mystique quality improved in the later years, but I'd still steer far away from one. Go for an import sedan a few years older if you have to, you will not regret it. Honda Civic and Accord, Toyota Camry and Corolla, Nissan Altima and Sentra and others would be a wise choice. Don't let people dissuade you by saying the import cars are more expensive to fix. Nowadays, there's more equilibrium on repair pricing between the traditional domestic brands and the foreign cars.
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