Contour 95 SE, need replace wiring harness?

[franz]

Hi, I have a F.Contour 95 SE, 44,000 miles ,engine DURATEC V6 2,5L 24 valve DOCH
Problem: Just doesnt start , all sudden! It soundns like it will , but it doesnt,
Diagnosis: A mechanic found all the wiring harness all cracked out and after changing the bolts , checking that no electricity reach the cilinders recommend to have change the whole wiring harness,
Solutions :
1.- Dealer? hahahaha! Ford says it is out of the extended warranty on this fabric defect of 10 years, cost to be fixed are about 1,200 + work 700 d. (they admit it was their mistake but for 10 years)
2.- Buy a new? used? repair it ? , using isolating tape all over after having the engine been removed.
I will appreciate comments how to fix my car.
F

[beyondloadedSE]

been there done that. luckily i have a 96 and my car hasnt broken 100K yet, so I got all of them replaced for free.

Id say at this point, i would just replace them with a used harness from a 98-99 contour. They usually pop up on ebay or the CEG classifieds from time to time.

[phil-l]

My Contour is going in to the dealer for the wiring harness inspection this week.

My '95 GL V6 only has 69K miles on it. As it turns out, many of the miles were cool-weather miles, so my harness stayed in good shape for quite some time. However, I've now discovered cracking in several places - and the 10 year anniversary of its in-service date is just next month (I bought it in late '96 as an end-of-model-year leftover).

I'm worried that the dealer might try to fight me on the harness replacement; I've heard of folks who have had problems getting the dealer to fix this problem. I've read the details of the repair - and the labor hours Ford will pay. I've heard that the repair generally takes longer than the labor allowance, meaning the dealer takes a loss it.

franz: Your 44K miles SE is one of the lowest-mile examples I've heard of. Sadly, once you're past the 10 year line, the dealer has no incentive to help you. I've never heard of anyone getting help on a beyond-10-year car for this problem.

Some options: The repair involves a total of up to 4 different harnesses, depending on car model and options. You might look into replacing only the harnesses that most need it. I've also heard of people replacing the harnesses themselves - but, as noted above, it's a lot of work.

If you haven't already, see the details here:

http://www.contour.org/FAQ/recall/99M03/