1996 Ford Contour Transmission and drivetrain Problems
- Complaints
- 77about this part
- Share
- 14%of 563 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 81,124miles
- Trend
- StableComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.
NHTSA recorded 77 complaints about the transmission and drivetrain of the 1996 Ford Contour, 14% of the 563 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 81,124 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers. 1 recall campaign on record is filed under a similar system.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“I just got the car from used car dealer on 02/07/08 drove fine went home and in the morning I went out got kids in car and went to back up and had no reverse..the shop I took it to said the transmission is out. The car only has 81000 miles on it....and there has been alot of complaints made about this transmission in 1996 Ford contours... I think some thing needs to be done ...”
NHTSA complaint #10217555, filed 2008-02, 81,124 miles“This car has less than 70000 miles on it. We had trouble with the fuel door, front wheel bearings, brakes, door handles, transmission, electric windows, and now as a special treat the engine failed. This car has been the worst investment that my wife and I have ever made. I have have owned several cars and trucks with 200000 plus miles on them and none of them have ever been as problematic as this automobile.”
NHTSA complaint #10069333, filed 2004-01, 49,000 miles“At first vehicle would indicate wrong gear and then it binded up the gear shift so eventually had to remove some plastic from gear shift just to shift the gear then the automatic gear shift indication will not indicate what gear the car is in at all. Possibly causing wrong gear selection could cause collision in parking lot.”
NHTSA complaint #10154464, filed 2006-04, 130,315 miles“Power train:automatic transmission:gear position indication (prndl) details: automatic shift lever may not indicate correct gear (p, d, r) lever hangs up when switching between p, d, r. Problem has been occurring for appx three years.”
NHTSA complaint #10078310, filed 2004-06, 65,000 miles“Prndl indicator is broken, similar complaint to NHTSA # 98v233000, found Ford recall # 98s26, dealer and manufacturer will not cover vehicle under this recall campaign.”
NHTSA complaint #10129287, filed 2005-07, 68,110 milesRelated recalls
- 98V233000Sep 18, 1998Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The floor shift automatic transmission control can be damaged if subjected to certain interior cleaning products. The…Covers: Ford Contour 1995–1998, Mercury Mystique 1995–1998
Transmission and drivetrain: other model years
Other parts of the 1996 Ford Contour
123 complaintsElectrical system
119 complaintsExterior lighting
64 complaintsBrakes
49 complaintsEquipment
41 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
41 complaintsSuspension
38 complaintsOther or unknown
31 complaintsVehicle speed control
31 complaintsFuel system
30 complaintsSteering
30 complaintsAir bags
25 complaints
← All problems reported for the 1996 Ford Contour
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology