Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (air conditioning, heater, defroster, HVAC controls).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 1998 Ford Contour owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Recall campaign 01V230000 concerning heater blower resistor. On two separate occasions vehicle caught on fire while idling in the driveway. Both times consumer extinguished the fire, and vehicle was taken to a repair shop. The mechanic determined that the heater blower was the cause of both fires. Consumer contracted the dealer and the manufacturer. Both confirmed that this vehicle was not covered under the recall due to VIN.
Tl contact owns a 1998 Ford Contour. In March of 2006, the blower motor failed and caused the air conditioner not to work. The contact just found a safety recall for his vehicle and will call the dealer to determine if his VIN is included. The VIN, powertrain, NHTSA recall number, and purchase date were unknown. The current mileage was 80,207 and failure mileage was 67,300.
Transmission has a defect, there is a slip when you applying gears. Also, brake pedal goes all the way down to the floor, and grabs a little bit. Dealership is aware of problem. Brakes have failed, on one occasion consumer almost hit a child, brake pedal slips from under foot. Emergency brake is only effective 50 percent of the time. Transmission intermittently changes gears roughly, at times jarring occupants in the vehicle. Possible electrical problem: light of the clock has burned out twice, consumer states there are shorts in the dashboard, causing the heater or A/C to only have one speed working, dome lights work intermittently, light under dash works intermittently, warning bell does not chime all the times it should, consumer states a sensor causes heater to act as the ac and vice versa. …
Heater operates intermittent, visual inspection shows wire connector and resistor pack melted. Ford refuses to correct problem under the extended warranty, and Ford motor company does not appear to want to get involved. I now find several other instances of this problem, and have never been notified. My wife drives this car, and this could have caused a fire, since my wife has the grandchildren with her an injury or death could have ocurred. The aggrevation comes from Ford and the dealers with the "so what attitude" about my having to pay for the repairs and then see the warranty company about getting paid, and the fact that they never bothered to tell me about the problem, safety bulletin recalls 99m07 and 99m08. I have to find this out myself? …
First day car was bought engine died, took to dealer, and they gave consumer another Contour. Currently, vehcile will shut off in middle of intersection. Dealer replaced transmission, and engine was acting up. Consumer states vehicle has been in 3 times for transmission problems, it jerks and vibrates, consumer does not think that dealer replaced transmission like they said. 1 time for engine problems. Consumer has been in 2 accidents due to sudden acceleration. Front sway bar replaced, steering would shimmy and rattle. Blower motor assembly replaced, due to rattling noise in air conditioner, also cycling switch replaced due to air conditioner not cooling. Left front seat belt buckle assembly replaced, belt would not buckle. Starter failed and was replaced. Engine light illuminated, dealer found loose connection at act. Rear struts replaced, noisy.
I was in transit to replace my braking system for the second time in 6 months when my transmission failed. My 'check engine' light stays on and the car now stalls when in a stopped position at a traffic light. These issues, amongst a list of other major failures has occurred in the last 2.5 years of ownership of this lemon ( complete A/C system has been replaced, complete fuel system has been replaced, window motor has been replaced, etc.). Neither the Ford manufacturer or dealerships have responded, agreed or offered any investigation, correction, compensation or assistance in response to these previously written and verbal matters, and legal action will commence. The issues listed in this table are only the recent (last 3 months), and do not include the montage of problems in the last 2 years, some of which are mentioned in the comments section.
Took vehicle to dealer to have problem resolved, gave info on TSB about problem absolutelly nothing was done to vehicle. Cable assembly at blower resistor melted while A/C was running earlier this afternoon. Will definitely have a discussion with dealer tomorrow. There are two TSB's on blower motors in the 98 Contour. Why doesn't the dealers know how to check to see if they apply to a particular vehicle. I informed the asst service manager of the TSB's on my vehicle 99m07 & 99m08 both of which deal with blower and blower resistor problems. Seems my trip to gary smith this date was a waste of time and almost a waste of my vehicle. There could have easily been an electrical fire due to the overheating cable assembly and blower resistor. Maybe NHTSA can help resolve this problem before someone gets hurt!!!!
While driving in a snow storm I smelled something that smelled like an electrical fire, the blower motor stop running. I played with the switch and only high worked. I turned the fan off. This forced me to drive with the choice of a potential fire or seeing out of the winshield. The next day I purchased a new blower motor relay from a Ford dealer. When I went to replace it I noticed that the connector to the resistor was melted to the resistor, there were bare wires on the harness side of the connector. I went to the Ford dealer and purchased a new connector. What a surprise to find that they had a connector in stock. This made me think that this must be a common problem. What will keep this from happening again and starting a real fire .
During the winter I turned on my heating unit and it would not blow unless it was on high. I would have to constantly turn my heat off and on because it would be too hot then too cold. I noticed on real cold days the heating system would malfunction on milder days the heating system would work correctly. My window would get off tract and I would have to constantly set the window in place while I raise the window. Took the car to the dealer and they could not find anything wrong with it.
Engine check light would lficker on and off but now stays on while driving. Have had it checked out no one can find the problem. Air bag light flashes on and off while driving mostly when you apply brake. Heater fan stoped working replaced it wasn't the problem, the pigtail connecting to a regulator box had shorted out and melted. Ford place said the whole pigtail wiring had to be replaced cost about $400.00 to replace didn't have it done.
AC & Heater complaints in other Contour years
Frequently asked questions
How common are ac & heater problems on the 1998 Ford Contour?
NHTSA has 47 complaints about the a/c & heater of the 1998 Ford Contour, 6% of the model year's 846 complaints. The component named most often is appliance › air conditioner (20 mentions).
Is there a recall for 1998 Ford Contour ac & heater problems?
No. NHTSA lists no a/c & heater recall for the 1998 Ford Contour, though it has 9 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 1998 Ford Contour ac & heater problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 79,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 2 fires and 0 injuries to a/c & heater problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.