 I thought I'd follow up my earlier review on the 2000 SVT Contour.  My SVT now has 143k mi and is going strong.  It was built in late 1999 so is now nearly 16 years old.  It did need some major maintenance 2 years ago, the differential wore out so I had to pull the driveline to get the transmission repaired.  Replaced the clutch and a bunch of other minor stuff while access was easy.  Doing my own work (except transmission internals) the job cost under $1.5k as most parts are very reasonable.  Quite glad I did it as I'm back to really enjoying the car - I've thought about a dozen replacements but none seem to offer a better combination of features and value as this SVT.  I wasn't able to honestly give it as many stars as last time - it's an older car now, has needed some work, new cars keep getting faster and obviously a 90's car lacks all the techno toys of the new stuff.  But the SVT Contour is a joy to drive, offers great visibility, great seat, nice exhaust note etc.  If you can find one that hasn't been trashed or hacked and can do your own work I think you'll really enjoy it.  I think it's an underappreciated classic in the making.s