Vehicle won't pass inspection due to a Broken or cracked coil spring front passenger side. It was in a recall that we never received notification. And I don't feel like we should be out over $200 to get it licensed.
Ford Contour coil spring problems
120 of the 3,151 owner complaints about the Ford Contour describe broken coil spring, most of them for the 1998 model year.
- owner complaints
- 120
- worst model year
- 1998
- typical repair cost reported
- $632
- typical mileage
- 85,000
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
Tire blowout 4Grinding brakes 4Fire or smoke 2Knocking 2Engine failure 2Door locks 2Wipers 1Water leak 1
What owners say
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 ford contour. While driving approximately 40 MPH on a wet road, the steering wheel seized. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the coil springs were damaged. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact stated that the failure recurred every time the road was wet. The approximate failure mileage was 137,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 1995 ford contour. The contact stated that while driving approximately 5 MPH, the contact noticed that the front passenger side tire was flat. The tire was replaced with a spare, which was also punctured. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing. The mechanic stated that the front driver and passenger side coil spring would have to be replaced as well as the spare tire. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 98,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 ford contour. The contact stated that the front driver's and passenger side coil springs came out of the spring catcher bracket while changing the tires. If a tire were there, it would have burst. The VIN was excluded from the federal safety agency campaign id number 01v255000. The manufacturer was not willing to assist or assume any liability for the failure. The failure and current mileages were less than 127,000. Updated 07/28/09 *bf updated 07/30/09.
I had both front coil springs on my 1995 ford contour fail (left spring broke into two pieces, the right into three). Resulted in car drifting back and forth. No response from dealership.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 ford contour. While driving 25mph the front coil spring on the passenger side of the vehicle broke and disabled the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer. She states that she contacted ford motor company, where they stated that her vehicle VIN number is not included. The total cost on repairs was $950.00. The federal safety agency campaign id number is: 01v255000. The failure mileage was 47,000 and the current mileage is 47,020.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 ford contour. The vehicle was taken to the repair shop for regularly scheduled maintenance. The mechanic stated that the front passenger side coil spring failed. In 2001, the contact received a recall notice for the federal safety agency campaign id number 01v255000 (suspension:front:springs:coil springs). The dealer inspected the vehicle at that time and stated that no repair was needed. However, now that the failure has occurred, the manufacturer stated that the recall was no longer valid. The failure mileage was 73,000 and current mileage was 81,000. Updated 01/09/08. *lj the consumer stated the coils springs have been replaced twice in this vehicle. The dealer stated replaced headlight switch and cable in engine. Updated 12/12/07 *tr updated 06/04/08.
Tl*the contact owns a 1999 ford contour. She stated that the mechanic noticed that there was a crack on the passenger side front coil spring. They stated that the road salt could be a possible cause of the crack. The mechanic made the replacement. The failure and current mileages was 85,000. The VIN and engine size was unavailable.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 ford contour. He noticed that there was a fractured coil spring during a routine inspection. There is a safety recall for the suspension: front: springs: coil springs (the federal safety agency campaign #01i013000) however his VIN was not included. The vehicle purchase date was unavailable. The current mileage was 125,000 and the failure mileage was 124,000.
Took car to dealer because the brakes were acting up . Found that both tone rings in the ABS system broke. The dashboard had been warping for the last four years, was told at the shop that there had been a recall on the dashboard, and I must have gotten a letter, but it expired and will cost $1164.60 to replace it. The during the inspection they told me that the front coil spring broke. They could get away with the defective dashboard because they could blame the consumer, for driving without clear vision?, but the rings that control the braking action,and the coil spring being made of bad materials was a absolutely a safety problem, that should bring about an immediate recall. When one of these components failed while driving a bus full of children of a cliff whose fault will it be then. Not mine for not reporting it, maybe that of the federal safety agency for not recalling it, maybe fords for not fixing it, or maybe shared blame.
Related recalls
Suspension: front: springs: coil springs
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles built at the kansas city assembly plant and originally sold in or currently registered in the states of connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, and wisconsin, and the district of columbia. The front coil springs may fracture as a result of corrosion in high corrosion environments. Depending on the location of the fracture, a broken spring could move past the spring seat and contact a front tire.
- Risk
- Some tires have deflated due to contact with a broken spring.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install spring catcher brackets. Owner notification began october 23, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford at 1‑866‑436‑7332.
Recall number 01V255000 · Recall details
Questions about the Ford Contour coil spring
Which Ford Contour years have broken coil spring problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1998 (68 complaints), 1995 (36 complaints) and 1999 (9 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix broken coil spring on the Ford Contour?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $632 (median of 7 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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