Junkyard Gem: 1998 Ford Contour SVT

When Ford stopped making the antiquated Tempo/Topaz after 1994, what was to fill the suddenly empty compact-sedan void between the Escort/Tracer and Taurus/Sable? As it turned out, the rise of the SUV made sedans of any size much less relevant to American car shoppers by the end of the 1990s, but Dearborn opted to bring over a car that was selling like crazy on the other side of the Atlantic: the Mondeo. It was sold as the Ford Contour/Mercury Mystique over here starting as a 1995 model, and a high-performance version of the Contour known as the SVT was introduced as a 1998 model. Here's one of those cars, found in a Denver-area self-service wrecking yard.

Ford hadn't seen big success with bringing vehicles to North America from its European operations in the past. The Zephyr and Cortina barely registered here, the Capri and first-generation Fiesta enjoyed lukewarm-at-best sales, and the Merkur XR4Ti and Scorpio looked interesting at first but then disappeared without much trace (the U.S.-market 1981-1990 Escort was more cousin than sibling to its European counterpart). After 2000, the Contour and Mystique were gone, though the Mondeo-based Mercury Cougar soldiered on through 2002.

The Contour SVT got a warmed-up version of the 2.5-liter Duratec V6, rated at 195 horsepower and 165 pound-feet for 1998 and 200 horsepower/169 pound-feet for 1999 and 2000. In a 3,100-pound car, that was decent but not overwhelming power.

Someone bought the transmission out of this car.

The only transmission available was a five-speed manual, which excited the members of the automotive press but scared off many potential buyers. The car's handling was exceptionally good by American standards.

The interior was comfortable and felt European enough, but it seemed cramped for the price. The base '98 Contour LX listed at $14,460, while the SVT had an MSRP of $22,405 (about $27,530 and $42,657 in 2023 dollars).

Meanwhile, a new '98 Taurus sedan started at $18,245 ($34,737 after inflation). 

This car has well over 200,000 miles on it when its career-ending crash happened. It appears to have been rear-ended by a fast-moving assailant and then shoved into other hard objects.

The airbags deployed successfully.

Just 11,445 Contour SVTs were sold during three model years, making this car a good example of the rare-but-not-valuable phenomenon.

Performance. Substance. Exclusivity. And value.

Over in the UK, nought-percent finance!