my girl friends dad has a 99 contour SVT that is 5 speed and wants to race me ... what would be the results of this race ? (BTW im 5 spd.)...
have any of you incountered a contour svt?

thanx
peace

 

If you are both stock, you should take him by about 1 or 2 car lenghts.

 

yeah, but depending on the drivers it will be a good race. Don't underestimate them.

 

The Contour SVT I encountered had lots of low end torque. It wasn't really a race as we caught up to traffic and the SVT did some real scary weaving just so that he was ahead of me at the next intersection.

 

Well seeing as the Maxima has ALOT more torque than the SVT Contour, that's a strange statement.

Basically, the Maxima is the faster car, but they are close enough that if he is a significantly better driver than you, he could take you out.

 

but hes auto... the contour might have launched high rpm & took him off the line? maybe?

 

i raced a contour last weekend it was a pretty close race until i hit 3rd gear the infamous "walking gear" and i started to pull on him i got about a car length but we hit traffic ...i talked to him at the light and he was surprised maximas where so fast...he even assumed i was an automagic.. with all said and done a good run with no mistakes shifting etc.. you should win

 

You should take him. Just be confident.

 

The way you drive...you'll most likely get your *** handed to you.

 

According to some SVT guys on www.contour.org if the driver can launch right, he is capable of running high 14's.

If you run him on the highway, I believe they have 195-200HP

 

This will come down to driver skills. Both cars are very equal in power & weight. The Contour SVT is very capable of running high 14's stock, just like a stock 5spd Max. Who ever can launch better, faster, & has better rowing skills (shifting) will be the winner in the end.

 

Depends on driver skill. If equal, Maxima will pull slightly ahead.
-Cyrus

 

Did anyone take into account that the Contour 5-speed is a 4-cylinder? You can take him no problem.

 

Stock vs Stock I think it has more horsepower than the Maxima 195 seems to ring a bell, I do not know about torque or weight of the Contour is. I think it will come down to the driver.

 

SVT Contours ARE NOT torquey when compared to a 4th/5th gen Maxima. I know a handful of SVT COntour owners in my area. I've watched them dyno too. It appears that these SVT motors are VERY inconsistent in terms of power production. All the dynoed SVTs had intake and exhaust work and the numbers ranged from 155fwhp-170fwhp and 145-155fwtq. Most of the SVT guys are in the mid to lower 15s. I also know a guy with a SC SVT Tour. His SVT is making 270fwhp and 190fwtq (runs 14.0@100+). One owner, who I hope to race, has a SVT with lots of bolt-ons and tuning that's making 187fwhp and 165fwtq. He's run a 14.8@93mph. I think I can take him


Dave

 

i had a horrible launch, spun throught 1st and most of second, held him off while i was doing that then hooked up and had 2 cars by 90.

 

try a SVT Duratec 3.0 v6. Now we've got the right engine

 

ive run a svt countour at the pike numerous times, hes 5 spd supercharged, when he ran 6 lbs i beat him by a fender to 80 when he ran 9lbs a few weeks later he walked me by a car -pete

 

start racing people that can drive

 

i was thinking that too.

 

yeah steve u beat him with a 2k2 modified!!!! a 95 is gonna have a harder time..i think that the contour might take it....yeah and steve u gotta lean to launch ur beast.. - peace

 

What engine is that in?

I thought the Contour SVT was a 2.5 V6?

 

my bad... sorry... it is 2.5 liters... i had the VQ on my mind for some reason. it happens... lol...

 

The SVT has a very high-strung 2.5l V6. Improved timing, breathing & an extrude-honed intake are what separate the SVT from the normal SE. From my experience (as a former Contour owner) the Contour doesn't have much torque (on paper or butt-dyno) but it does make a lot of HP. Unfortunately a lot of that power is at the top of the RPM range so one has to rev the crap out of the engine to get that power. Think Honda VTEC but not quite as extreme. I think the stock specs are 195/200hp and 165tq depending on year.

OTOH the Contour is a rattling piece of crap. Bad build quality, poor overall reliability, heinous resale value, cramped interior & a rubbery shifter. Contours are notorious for shattering their differentials (only two spider gears instead of four) and have water pumps that fail at 60k because they have PLASTIC impellers. SVT engines also have an abnormal failure rate due to oil starvation (bad pump design) and subsequent seizing. Read some of the posts over at Contour.org and you'll see there's an amazing pattern of major component failures.

I guess the moral of my rant is, even if you lose to the guy, you're not driving a piece of crap like him. Think of the Contour SVT as a slightly dressed up Neon R/T; fast but junk. I sold mine after two years of hellish ownership to buy my Max. What a difference build-quality makes.

Regards,
TOM

 

Its probably because I got him on the light. Thats all that I was after. The guy must have gotten p*ssed because he went full bore weaving through traffic. Basically the other guy wasn't thinking ahead about becoming another street racing casualty like I was. I knew when to back off. Anyhow he took the turnoff from the highway so I couldn't show him my stuff.

 

from what i heard from mattc you only won by half a car length

 

thats what a bunch of people said... but him and the contour agreed it to be a few lengths...

still... steve has to learn how to launch.

 

yes i do, just wait, you who what we are bringing to the rim shop today to be put on my car tomorrow hell the SVT comes with g-force TA Kd's STOCK, once i have mine it's all over with.

 

Contour SVTs start off their lives with 2.5l duratecs, but a number of owners are making 3.0l conversions that can make upwards of 270 NA HP(!!!) and eliminate the lack of torque issues. They have a have a special forum for the conversion at contour.org

The SVTs also benefit from a lightened flywheel and VI, so getting to the good part of the RPM range isn't as hard as it may seem.

Interestingly, the Jaquar X-Type is based on the new Mondeo platform (where the contour came from). They apparantly have triple length intake runners and get 180ft-lb torque @3K rpm on the 2.5l, as opposed to 167ft-lb @5625 for the SVT. I can only imagine the powerband of a 3L conversion w/ECU and y-pipes might mean for that.
surprisingly the X-type 3.0l only makes 209 ft-lb. I would have expected much more.

The Contour SVT is maybe 60lbs heavier (despite it's smaller size) than a 4th gen.