Lance of Chicago writes:

In 1998 I received a letter from Ford explaining a defect in the head gasket of my 1995 Windstar and they were extending the warranty to Dec. 31, 1998 unlimited miles or 5yrs/60,000miles.

In June of 99 my head gasket went out. It cost me $1,400 to fix. I feel Ford knew about the defect and should have replaced the gasket for free. Ford says because my car has 80,000 miles the warrenty has expired. I can't believe Ford thinks it's appropriate for a head gasket to go at just 80,000 miles. They knew of the defect and should have fixed the problem.

Michael of Kilgore, TX, writes:

My 1995 Ford Windstar has been in the dealer's and other garages for various complaints -- electrical problems; headgaskets, timing belt/chain cover; transmisssion. The dealer (Dusty Rhodes Ford) did the work on the headgskets. The transmission we replaced ourselves as we did not have the money the dealer wanted for replacement.

Now, the engine has a hole in the #4 cylinder wall. this was found after we took the van twice for the "CHECK ENGINE" light being illuminated. The first time the dealership (Jeremy) informed me that their computer indicated that the plugs and ignition wires were the cause. We replaced the plugs and ignition wires. The problem still existed. the van ran rough. The "CHECK ENGINE" light came on and then blinked. Took it back to the dealer. This time the dealer (Allen) informed us the computer stated it was an internal engine problem. They could not make any better evaluation uunless the engine was torn down.

After negotiating with the dealer getting one of their rental cars, (they do not have loners), we dropped the van at the dealers this morning (9/14/99). Right before 12:00N, the dealer called and informed me that there was a hole in the #4 cylinder wall. To repair it would require a short block and all related parts plus labor plus tax. The befoe tax figure was $3,715.. This is the original engine and it has only 75,000 miles on it. The oil has been changed every 3 - 4,000 miles. It has gone through two power steering pumps. It has been maintained in accordance with good operating practices.

My wife and I are both disabled. She is drawing LTD insurance and I am now on Social Security. We do not have any loose cash lying around in stocks, bonds or bank accounts that we can use to fix these major problems.

Dan of Arvada, CO, writes:

We have had a couple of problems that seem to be a recurring theme with the Windstar. First, our transmission went out. The dealer said it was a defective computer chip in the transmission. The cost to us was about $500. The warranty had expired about 2,000 miles prior,but Ford would not compensate us.

This week our head gasket blew. We have about 85,000 miles on the vehicle. Talking to people and searching the internet, I found out that there is a service bulletin out on the head gasket. I spoke with the national customer service center and was told that Ford would not assist. I was told that the vehicle had to have less than 60,000 miles to qualify for assistance. Our cost for the repair is about $1,800.

Don of Carlisle, MA, writes:

My Windstar's head gasket needs to be replaced. The head might also be damaged. I understand that Ford has recognized the problem and extended the warranty for the problem until 60K miles. My Windstar has 70,500 miles.

The cost to repair this is app $1,000. I believe that Ford should pay a significant portion if not the entire bill. I spoke to the dealer and to a manager at Ford. The dealer is trying to get authorization from Ford.  However, Ford will not help.

It appears that Ford believes that 60K miles is acceptable mileage for a consumer to expect from a Windstar. They should be made to advertise this.

The Windstar is a relatively expensive vehicle. Ford advertises that the engine requires no maintenance for 100K miles. Seems they substituted special spark plugs for bad head gaskets and poor design. Ford should fix all the vehicles or at least extend the warranty to something reasonable like 150K miles. Today, that is what a consumer should get from a car before the engine breaks.

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