This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The contact owns a 1995 Ford Contour. The contact stated that the vehicle was on while in park when a fuse blew and the vehicle stalled. The dealer informed the contact that the wiring harness failed and needed to be replaced. A private mechanic then confirmed that the wiring harness needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. No repairs were performed. The failure and current mileages were 97,000.
The contact owns a 1995 Ford Contour. The contact stated that the engine wiring under the hood was fracturing from the plastic covering and the wires were touching which made the vehicle inoperable. In addition, the contact was concerned about the potential of the wires shortening or causing a fire. The vehicle was taken to a local repair shop who advised that the failure of the wiring was so severe that they were unable to successfully run a diagnostic test. The manufacturer was contacted who did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 120,000.
I have a 1995 Ford Contour and just found out all along there was a campaign on the wiring harness in the engine compartment. This is very unsafe and is causing the car to act erratically it is a fire hazard due to the fact the wiring harness is frayed if I touch any of the wires the insulation just falls off what hasn't already fell off. Engine dies and stalls all the time and car is un drivable called Ford and they said there was a campaign and recall on wiring harness. But is unavailable now but I could buy one for $1300 it has caught small fire due to this.
The entire wiring harness in the engine compartment is defective. The plastic covering the wires is cracked and peeling off in the entire system causing the car to occasionally brake for no reason and to kick and sputter when driving especially when it has been raining. The Ford dealer admits it is a common problem caused by an experimental plastic that was used that year but the complaint is not covered under any recalls so we have had to have minor repairs done to the wiring every time the car dies due to a short in the system. The car is in perfect shape mechanically and the body is in great shape also. I am wondering why no one has addressed this problem before because I hate to think of how many others there are just like me who may have to junk a perfectly good car because they cannot afford to keep paying for wiring problems. I have never had another car that the wiring was the first to go. Especially one that is as well maintained as this one is. If you have any suggestions or solutions please let me know. It would be nice to know that the government was looking in at the problem trying to help the consumers as I have not seen it mentioned anywhere else yet.
I have a 1995 Ford Contour which has a faulty wiring harness that led to vehicle problems. After research on the internet I found that a recall (99M03) was issued for faulty wires. My car was not included in that recall even though it has the same problem that was mentioned in the recall. Why were not all of the cars with this defect recalled?
- Denver, NC, USA
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I took my 1995 Ford Contour in to my local perry Lincoln Ford dealer, on hitchcock St., in santa barbara, ca--today (10/12/09. I stated to the repairman that I noticed, on the internet, that the '95 Ford Contour had been recalled for ignition fires. I told him that my ignition switch heats up, every time I drive it, even a short distance of 3 miles to work, every day. I told him that the ignition switch gets so hot, that my key is too hot to handle!! the entire driver's wheel component, that includes the ignition switch, gets hot. The repairman, at Ford, took my VIN no.; and researched my car, on his Ford computer; and my VIN no. Did not show a recall. I told him, I thought the recall was for all 1995 Ford Contour, not just some. Do I have to wait for a fire to start, in the ignition switch, before anything is done about it" I am a working registered nurse; and would rather prevent a fire than wait for one to burn my face and body; and destroy my entire car. The Ford repairman did nothing about my concerns. He just said there has been no recall on my particular car!!! what can I do to protect myself from injury and harm, especially since my ignition switch, car key--and entire driver's wheel device overheats" all your 4 questions, below and to the right of this box are cut off except for the "approx. Incident date!!"! your questionnaire also does not allow me to choose "ignition switch" for the defective part!!
This was an "owner notification" or a Ford recall (not ordered by the fed gov.) number 99M03, wherein Ford replaced under warranty the main wiring harness on 1995 Ford Contour vehicles. This is a safety issue and has not been performed on this particular vehicle. I purchased the vehicle after the notification to owners expired and wish to have Ford stand by their warranty and complete this task under the warranty/recall.
Its 1995 Ford Contour all wiring under hood has insulation cracking and falling off all the way to hot cables at power distribution box. Checked several cars at wrecking yard for good harness all were the same car doesn't run now wires going to crank sensor shorted out car has 57,000 miles on it.
Turn car on when car reaches to normal temp check engine light comes on and stalls most of the time at a complete stop shut engine off and check engine light is off till run for a min when engine is called light stays off till engine is warm again.
While driving to the store one evening as it was getting dark I noticed that my instrument panel was dark. I asked my boyfriend to get out and check if I had tail lights (remembering my sister had a similar problem when I was little) indeed I didn't have tail lights or dash lights and when the switch was turned to just have parking lights on they didn't work either. However I still had turn signals, headlights, hazard lights and brake lights. We tested fuses and consulted a parts store with the problem, finally my boyfriend took apart the headlight switch where he found the wiring harness was partially melted.....he tried to bend the little prongs back so they would make connection with the switch again and put everything back together and now my lights work. I am however ordering new parts for my car and the sales man said that it was odd to have a problem there since it was a low heat area and suggested looking on NHTSA for recalls due to this problem.
My 1995 Ford Contour was repaired under the recall when the engine cooling fan and wiring harness burned up. However they replaced only that part of the wiring harness that is directly connected with engine cooling fans, the rest of the underhood wiring is failing due to overheating causing the insulation to break down. I had to replace the connector to the engine temperature sensor because it has turned into a soft gelatin like substance causing shorts. I believe the entire underhood wiring harness should have been replaced when the fans caught on fire. Currently there is a shorter maybe an open circuit in the engine wiring causing the check engine light to come on and stay on at times but it sets no trouble codes.
The contact owns a 1995 Ford Contour. While driving approximately 55 mph, the vehicle lost power. The contact coasted to the side of the road until coming to a complete stop. The vehicle would not restart and was towed to a local mechanic. The mechanic informed him that there was an electric fuel injection failure, resulting from installation particles becoming detached from the electrical wiring. The contact researched recalls on his vehicle and realized that he was experiencing the same failures described in NHTSA campaign id number 00V367000 (engine and engine cooling). Ford stated that his VIN was not included in the recall. The vehicle has not been repaired. The failure and current mileages were 150,000.
Air bag module (driver side) completely detached from steering wheel while driving. I have taken car to three dealerships (Ford) and no one can tell me what cause the vibration inside (front) of car. On 4-17-04 the center of the air module popped out while driving. Luckily the air bag didn't deploy.took it to another dealership and the screws had work their way loose because of the vibration problem. Speakers in car same shape, play one side today and vice verus.please advice on this matter. Thanks, kathy hundley.
The car has trouble starting or will not start. This happens intermittently and we cannot predict when the car will not crank/start. You turn the key and nothing happens; it does not crank or make any noise at all. If you park the car and go inside, return and try to start the car, sometimes it does not start. This has happened many times. Sometimes, if you wait 20-30 minutes, the car will start up, but you cannot be sure. The car has been scoped and various repairs have been made, but the problem persists, and since the non-cranking episodes happen sporadically, they have not isolated or corrected the problem. The frequency of non-cranking episodes is increasing and the wait time to try to restart the car is now up to 1 hour. The car is not safe to drive because no one can predict when the car will not start or when it will stop. Yesterday, the car stopped while my husband was driving it into the driveway. This has not happened before, so the problem is getting worse. The electrical system, the starter/ignition system or solenoids, etc., seem to be defective. Ford motor service centers have not been able to diagnose and correct the problem. We need someone with expertise to diagnose and correct the problem.
Consumer states while driving on the expressway with air conditioner running, without warning smoke starts seeping through the vents resulting in a small engine fire.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Bellmont, NC, USA