Front Suspension Wheel Bearing problems of the 1998 Ford Contour

Vehicle started making loud noises and the brakes failed. Caller was driving on a highway and had to pull off the road. Caller said brakes did not work very well when she tried to get the car home. Dealer said the front left rotor broke ,and rear wheel bearing wore out . Manufacturer will not offer any help.

While driving there was a loud boom and the front left tire was rubbing. Consumer drove the vehicle to the dealership, who indicated that the right front coil spring broke. The spring was replaced. However, within 6,000 miles the failure recurred, the left front spring broke. The dealership was unable to replace the spring because the manufacturer discontinued manufacturing the part. The steering knuckle was removed and replaced due to the wheel bearing race spinning in the knuckles which caused abnormal wear of the knuckle. The knuckle and the bearing were replaced.

Front wheel bearings failed at about 40,000 miles. One side was completely failed, other side was in need of replacement. I noticed sudden grinding noise and checked for cause. Had bearings replaced. Could have been worse if I had not recognized the problem. No warning as to failure. Wheel bearings should last more than 40,000 and should not fail suddenly.

Right front wheel bearing locked up prematurely causing car to pull violently to the right. This could have caused and accident had there been a car to the right. I believe Ford should have a recall due to others having wheel bearing problems prematurely.

Though this car is only slightly over 3 years old, I have had 5 recalls on it, had to replace front wheel bearings ($400), console clock light has burned out, had to replace windshield due to extensive crack caused by small stone chip,etc. Current cam timing job estimated at $1,000. I've never had this much trouble with a vehicle in my life. Asked Ford's to cover 1/2 of cost; was referred to dealer, who "declined. " is there anything else I can do about this lemon??.