Ford Windstar Reviews

It goes through a tank of gas in two days. It gets about 5 miles to a gallon of gas. I fear for my safety and my grandchildren's safety while I drive it. Also, I fear that the rear axle might corrode and break. Ford looked at it and said, it looks okay right now. Okay that's right now, but what about in the near future. Is Dahl Ford going to keep checking it off and on for free? I think not. This is the worst van in the world. Ford needs to buy these vehicles back and save our lives.

I have spent so much money trying to correct these things and nothing helps. I am completely broke, and I have a van that is a piece of crap! I can't go on like this. I have ran my van upon to empty lots, trying to make it stop. I have been almost rear ended in traffic, when it just stops running! This 1998 Ford Windstar van has broke me in repairs that did not help!

Luckily, this happened when it did. I guess God was watching over me and my children. If this had happened just 30 minutes prior, my 2-year old daughter, 8-year old son and myself probably would not be here today. We had just been on the expressway, where we were traveling approximately 60-65 miles per hour. Even if we would have survived, it would have been a terrible accident, guaranteed! When the tow truck got there, the driver said he had never seen anything like this before. I had it towed to a Ford dealer where they said the exact same thing. I purchased the vehicle in November 2009 and it only had one previous owner and approximately 124000 miles. He was a friend of the family that took very good care of the vehicle.

As a matter of fact the van looked practically new except for a few scratches in the paint and a few small rust spots on the on the lower part of the front doors. I have read many similar complaints and do not understand why Ford is not addressing this potentially fatal problem. My family and I were blessed but I fear that many others may not be as lucky. I will never own a Ford again since they apparently do not take responsibility for their products. I am a single mother and currently am out of a vehicle. I cannot afford to repair the damages, which I was quoted a minimum of $2000 to replace subframe and other damages that resulted, such as broken belts, steering column, airbags, and any other items that were damaged when the engine fell.

We have since gotten rid of the car because it had another problem that no mechanic could figure out how to fix, but we had to pay twice to replace the rear axle and was wondering if we are due compensation as it was a recall issue.

I have pictures of the broken axle. I asked to have the broken axle back, and I have it in the car. The cost to fix was $1250. This pales in comparison to what might have happened if we had been traveling at 65mph, because the wheels basically fell off the car. I have contacted the attorneys handling class action lawsuit recently filed in PA. This should have been a recall. Realizing that things do go wrong with aging cars, wheels falling off is not something that should happen. 140,000 miles on a car is high, but not outside of the use period. Oil was changed at 141,000 miles and tires rotated-car was looked over by the mechanic and was fine at the time.

As it turns out the Federal Government launched a formal investigation just weeks ago, yet Northport Ford insists this is a problem unique to my vehicle. The truth is that there are hundreds and thousands of complaints online. Someone is going to die if people are not warned to have their axles checked. It was one of the scariest incidents I have ever been involved in. I needed to have the car towed which cost almost $150 and I am awaiting word from the shop on the cost of the repair, but I have been warned this could cost up to $4000. Additionally, I need to rent a car which will cost about $50-$75 a day but the worst damage was how terrified I was during and even now after this happened. Losing control of a car on a parkway is something I never want to experience again.

And was always told that they road test the van. The van sat in their parking lot for an extended time period. And then I was told that they cannot find the problem. We do not put many kilometer/miles on a vehicle, we have 130,000 km now, and our neighbors are just ticked. We have been on the Web looking for a fix, and the one that we had tried is as follows: Tried turning the key 8 times to the off-and-on position quickly and leaving the key in the on position, then using the remote control to activate the door locks up and down. Note! This did not fix the problem; it still blows at any time. We also brushed and cleaned the terminals on the sliding door, hoping this would fix the problem. It did not.

Question: Are there any recalls on this problem? I have been checking the Web and I found that a lot of other people have been having the same problem, also relating to other Ford vehicles. I cannot believe that the Ford dealerships have not heard of this problem.

Mr. **, my family, and I have almost been killed now three times from you're supposed "five-star" safety rating vehicle, the Ford Windstar! In 1999, we purchased our first and only new vehicle, a Ford Windstar LX from Larson Ford. We were absolutely thrilled with our decision to purchase a new vehicle and finally be able to feel safe and secure. We chose the Ford Windstar because of the "five-star" safety rating.

Our first problem occurred when, after only 68,000 miles, the transmission went on the car, as I was driving through an intersection with my two young sons; and we almost had an accident. At first, your company was reluctant to do anything about it, but they finally allowed me to purchase an extended warranty that would cover the transmission replacement. That work was done, only to find a month later that a faulty "new" transmission was installed. We had to bring it in for a third transmission to be installed.

In November 2009, while traveling to a friend's funeral service, my wife had noticed some "creaking" noise by the passenger rear wheel. Luckily, while only trying to back into a parking spot to check it out, I heard a loud "bang"! My rear axle had broken, and my back wheel was "snapped." My mechanic told me it had rotted. What kind of car design allows for its axles to rot after only 10 years! We could have been killed, but I took it as a freak incident and had the axle repaired for $900.00.

Now, last month (February 2010), I heard a noise by my front passenger wheel. My mechanic took a look and was dumbfounded to discover that my front frame/axle support by the wheel is rotted and has snapped! What kind of vehicle does Ford "supposedly" take pride in building? A "family" vehicle that will literally become a death trap in 10 short years? I have never seen this in my entire lifetime of owning American cars (and I have had many over 15 years old!).

My mechanic was estimating a $1,300 repair! My brother is a truck mechanic and runs a truck repair shop. He said that he has never seen a vehicle frame rot out and break. Body rot, OK, but not the frame.

I have seven total people in my family. Five kids, my wife and me. All of us are sick to our stomach about what has taken place. We need a car but do not have enough money to buy a used one. I think it is a shame the Ford calls itself and American Made Company. Ford talks about great customer service and the great ethical values they have. It is all just fluff to me since I have been in contact with them. The big corporations really do not care about the average Joe. If you can help me or give me sound advice, please contact me.

When I received the letter from Ford about the recall on the switch and the letter states that they would reimburse anyone that had replaced this switch, I sent them the original receipt with the switch clearly marked on it and they now say that because it was not done by an authorized Ford dealer that my claim was not eligible for the reimbursement. I'm disabled and do not have the funds to take my auto to get repaired when this repair is so easy to do. My 13-year old granddaughter helped me replace the Ford's mistake with the plenum seals and the cruise control deactivation switch.

They will never admit to the mistake with the seals and refused to reimburse the $22.11 for the SCDS switch. Luckily, there was only some brake fluid that had to be cleaned off the electrical control at the top of the transmission. This is where the fires start. This fixed the operation of the cruise control and set my mind at ease.

There is absolutely nothing left of it. The insurance company hasn't settled with us. I did however have full coverage on my vehicle but have to take away the $500 deductible. This being said I'll most likely get about $3-4,000 dollars for my van. I paid $7,995 and after the interest I had paid a total of $11,000 for it. I will never recommend ford Windstars to anyone.

They refuse to test vehicles that have the check engine light lit up. The transmission went at 90,000 km and was rebuilt but now at 130,000 km, the transmission is ready to go again at a replacement cost of around $3000. I went to the Ford dealer and they stand behind this vehicle. I asked them if they could guarantee that they could get the engine light to go off if I let them work on the vehicle. Otherwise, why would I have this work done if the vehicle would still be uninsurable due to the engine light staying on? They then told me "no, they couldn't" and quite frankly, they said they don't want customers like me anyways. I asked what kind of customer is that. The Ford manager replied, "well, someone like you is likely to sue us."

I bought this van to start a painting company. I have spent a lot of money on tools, advertising, car maintenance, insurance, etc., but now I can't even run my company without a properly working vehicle. I think this van is unfixable and Ford isn't taking accountability for its poorly designed product. I am scared and stressed out! The painting season is coming and I don't know what to do. I can't afford to buy another vehicle. I spent $3000 on this vehicle already this year and it still won't work properly and I can't even insure it because of its defect.

I would have never purchased this vehicle if I had known. The consumer reports gave no warnings and only shouted praise for this vehicle. Because there is no way to re-insure this vehicle, the city may come with a tow truck and remove it from the street. So I purchased this van for $5000 and I have put over $3000 into it. I went online and found 80 people who had the same problems with this same vehicle.

I actually broke down on Highway 5 on the way back from visiting a friend who lived just off the Grapevine. I had both of my girls with me, and they were both still in car seats. Not only was it a hassle to get a tow truck that was able to accommodate the car seats, but I also had them tow us from the Coalinga rest stop to Dublin, CA. I had the bill from that at $150.00+ since I also had the AAA 100-mile tow package, or it would have been considerably more. Then, the dealership was saying that they could find nothing wrong with the van, which we know was a lie. My husband told me to have it towed to the Concord Dealership where they put a rebuilt engine in it.

I have had to take so much time off work in dealing with the recalls in the past and not being compensated for rental cars, etc., but to also be knowingly lied to makes me not want to ever own a Ford again. Unfortunately, I still own this one, and I just received another recall letter - this time for the possibility of it catching fire from a faulty speed control deactivation switch that may leak brake fluid. Like I stated, the local dealership is no longer in business, and there is not another one located conveniently nearby. I am not in a position where I can take time off of work, plus the van was hit while it was parked in front of my house; and the insurance company of the person that hit it decided that it was not worth the estimate to repair, so they totaled it.

I am now driving it as a salvaged vehicle. I already requested that Ford send the part (and reimbursement) to the repair shop that I do work with, that I can walk to, but they are not willing to do that. I will most likely have to find a way to pay for that too. Meanwhile, I just did a survey that they sent to me from Ford, because of this situation, and I answered it very negatively, as well as telling them I will not own a Ford again. It is sad to see that this is not an isolated incident. Thank you for letting me vent.

When this Windstar's engine blew up, I was living 125 miles from my hometown and I knew no one. I also had a 6-month old baby at the time and was having to walk nearly 4 miles to work while pushing him in a stroller in the middle of summer while it was nearly 100 degrees outside. I ended up buying a very cheap and very rough vehicle that was barely able to get me back and forth to work. No way that I could get back home, which was 125 miles away, couldn't move back home, couldn't get another decent vehicle because of this piece of junk. I have just recently been able to get a good vehicle due to this thing being on my credit because I couldn't afford the $2500 to fix it when I still owed almost $7000 on it.

I last had it replaced under the Extended Warranty in April 2006. Since I used my Extended Warranty, it was only covered til April 2007. If I had paid for it myself, It would have been covered until April 2009. Same service, parts, etc.

I am at a financial loss because I used my Extended Warranty. I now have to pay for a transmission which should have been covered for 3 years, just like a cash customer.

$1700 for the gasket replacement. About $400 in related (unnecessary?) repairs prior to successful diagnosis.

We had to put it on a credit card and it is still being paid off!!!!

The next year the new head gasket blew resutling in a tow and 1400.00 worth of work. The dealership never said anything about this being a common problem. The check engine light has been on for years due to foul up with the oxygen sensor since the gasket blew. The hatch back allows water in on one side and this has shorted out the close door sensor and the light for "open door" comes on every now and then of it's own free will. All the internal lights came on and stayed on until I took out the bulbs due to the car thinking a door was open.

The power windows on the passenger side died. The vent window on the passenger side died last week (in the open position of course when it started raining heavily. I wound up breaking the hinge trying to close it manually. I now have a Fix Or Repair Daily (FORD) that has cost me almost as much as I paid for it in repairs...2 head gaskets, one transmission, multiple electrical problems and now the ignition is messing up and you can start the car without a key sometimes. The open door "ding" will sound with the engine off and no key.

Told them I wanted to talk to the manger and the warranty company. They start my vehicle and it made a loud pop and then a loud rattling noise. I was told a rod was broke and had gone thru the oil pan. They first said they would take care of it, but came back and said it was that way when I drove in (when I drove in). They did not cause the damage. Now I ask if you pressurize the radiator on a motor and it looses pressure would you not wander where it went. I talk to other shops and was told that they would have pulled the plugs or turn motor over my hand not start it as Fairway shop did. Piston had water in it and water does not compress so the piston rod broke.

The cost of repairs would be $4300 for new motor or they could rebuild mine for $3700. I could not afford that so I talk to a lawyer who wanted $2500 to take the case (I couldn't afford that) I purchase an older car for $400 down and $280 month while Windstar was left at Fairway ford. I also was making $375 month payment to Ford motor credit. After not getting any results from Fairway Ford or Ford Motor I decided to let Ford Motor Credit repo the vehicle. I was sold in fall of 2003 at auction for $990. I am now being sued by Ford Motor Credit for $8970 plus court cost. Ford Motor knew they had a problem with the head gaskets in 2003 and so did Fairway Ford. Why did they just fix the motor?

I was not my fault the hydro my motor and started it breaking the piston rod. I was having financial problems at the time and could not afford to go after anyone to get it fixed and my daughter start college so I could not afford to pay FMC. All this because Ford would not admit it had a problem with head gaskets on my Windstar. Thanks for listening.

Then we pick it up and the same thing happens and My husband daughter and I were on the highway and we were almost killed because the car jerked and went from 55mph to 2mph and an 18 wheeler almost devoured us. We took it back and I think it was Wendell that said it is the transmission. That was Saturday, but there wasn't a mechanic so we left it there. Monday, Aug 27th my husband goes back to see what was going on and they told him that there wasn't anything wrong with it and to take it back and drive it and when it konks out bring it back.

Well my husband was furious becasue he was basically telling him to go drive it and get killed and that there was nothing that he could do after they collected almost $1500 on it and that problem was not occuring when we first brought it in. It started happening directly after they so called fixed it for the first $905. Since they said it was the transmission today 8/28/07, we took it the mechanic that put in a brand new Jasper transmission about 2 years ago. Mike, said there was nothing wrong with the transmission that it is a sensor. Now my husband is back at Mathews Ford. He told them what Mike said and they are looking into it. We have no more money to give Mathews Ford and I am sure they will come up with another problem so that they can rob us for the third time. What are we to do? Help us out.

As I mentioned above we spent almost $1500 at Mathews Ford Dealer because we trusted that they were the experts on Ford vehicles only to get a problem that was not occuring when we first dropped it off. As a result we were almost killed twice. We have three beautiful children.

I feel that they are responsible for our safety and for guaranteeing that the vehicle is safe when we pay for the work they say was needed. If we die in a wreck because it shuts down after we pick it up again, I want you to know that they are responsible and take it to the media or where ever it needs to be handled.

My children are afraid to get in a car, i still struggle trying to buy a vehicle because i spent 18,000 cash for this van I has no comprehensive on the vehicle because i trusted ford i have been unable to serve as a volunteer EMT on my first aid squad to which I am a member I had to get rid of the vehicle because ford wouldnt help me AND IT SITTING IN MY DRIVEWAY WAS TRAUMATIZING

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We have a 1996 Windstar that is garage kept and well maintained. I keep all service records and perform minor work myself. About 92,000 miles the rear cylinder head gasket blows. I had anticipated this and saved money for this repair after I was told that Ford would probably not cover this on the 1996 models. I had called consumer service anyway, but my resources were right. Well about 2 months ago our transmisssion came apart. Since we need this vehicle daily and depend on it, I had it service immediatly by a reputable transmission specialty garage. It seem the housing actually split apart and pieces of it had gotten into the flywheel and pretty much chewed everything up. T

he person in charge showed this to me, and looking at the housing this should not have happened. The aluminum should not have broke apart unless there was a major accident with the vehicle or someone threw ahand grenade in my engine compartment. I called For Consumer Service and spoke to a nice lady by the name of Paula and after a go around she stated that there was nothing they could do. Even after I stressed to her that I had purchased many Ford vehicles over the years and also had got the rest of my family to purchase thier vehicles, it didn't seem to matter.

Is this how Ford is going to treat thier return customers? Lexus doesn't do this. Toyota doesn't do this. I know this from talking to friends and coworkers that have kept thier vehicles well past the so called life expentency of 65,000 miles. Wake up Ford Motor Company, if you want customers to return you must take care of them. If it wasn't for us devoted customers you would be selling alot less vehicles. I think I'll be taking a bigger look at Honda, Toyota, Nissan and such. At least they take care of thier loyal customers.

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I went on-line to see about this van, recalls, information on the van. to me and my mothers horror we started to read dozens and dozens of customers with terrible and costly repairs! My mother still owes about $2300. on this, and she was going to give it to me, but after reading all this, I'm afraid, I am a songle mother with 2 children. I wonder how safe this will be?

I cannot phathom Ford doing this to thier customers. Ford was always a relible dealership, but now I tend to wonder. If things like what people are saying are true, theirs no way i'll be able to come up with the money for the repairs. scared to death to take it in for the warning lights.

Ford needs to realize they made a mistake, and help all of their soon to be ex-custerners, fix these repairs. When will they own up? when someone finnaly gets injured, or worse! I dont quite know what to do with the van now that I know about the repairs. wont be able to sell, or trade in. whats a single mother to do?

The head gasket failed in it, the same way, and Ford would do nothing to repair it. These engines are identical, and there seems to be a pattern here, in the failures. The Ford Windstar's transmission is failing at 135,000 miles.

This is a common problem with that van, usually failing at 50,000 to 60,000 miles. I don't have the $2500 to pay to rebuild the transmission.

The economic damage is that I do not have the money to pay $2500 for a rebuilt transmission, and do not have the money to even attempt to buy another car. My wife lost her job (one that she held for 26 years) two months ago, and has not found employment yet. It took dissatisfied customers years to get Ford to rectify the head gasket problem (which they finally honored on the Windstar, but never on the Cougar).

Now the transmission is failing. If it just happened to me, that would be one thing. However, it has happened to several people with Windstars just like mine (same year). Transmissions don't normally need to be rebuilt before 150,000 miles. I know this sounds like I am whining here, but this just isn't right. The pattern of these failures should be an indicator that there were some serious defects in the 95 Windstar. Randy Havener

Two days before going on vacation I had the car serviced, oil changed, everything checked. 300 miles later in Orlando, the van catches on fire because huge amounts of transmission fluid are pouring from the engine.

My van now sits in Orlando at a dealer, Ford is still deciding whether they will help me or not. The rental car for my vacation cost $700.00. My father who is 60 years old has not had a vacation in 35 years, was in the car when it started on fire and was almost unable to get out.

It has been in for premature failure of the suspension system, electronic window problems, windshield wiper malfunctions, door alarm problems, two tire tread failures within 15,000 miles, and last and most depressing, the head gasket failure at 64,995 miles back in Feb. of 1999. As everyone has read way too many times, I did not meet the criteria of the "program." I had 4,995 miles over the "program" maximum miles limit and it was two months over the "program" time frame limit.

They offered me a ride home in a courtesy shuttle and advised they would come back for me later when I called them to let them know I needed to come back. The dealership also had a sign up offering a special on an oil change, filter change, check and fill all fluids, and various other things. I asked them to diagnose my vehicle, call me to advise me of the diagnosis, and then I might want them to perform the special deal they were offering if I had time. They advised me they would call me in 2 hours with a diagnosis on my vehicle, and at that time, I could authorize repairs. They were not to perform the special deal until my vehicle was diagnosed and they had called me. This was at 8:00 am. I took the courtesy shuttle home after waiting 45 minutes for it.

2 hours came and went. At 1:00 pm, I still had not heard back from the dealership. I called them at 1:00 pm and they advised me that they were just completing the special oil change to my vehicle, and by the way, I had a blown head gasket and that I could go ahead and make arrangements for the courtesy shuttle to pick me up and bring me back and they would be finished with my vehicle by the time I got there. I immediately stated my concerns of them going ahead and doing the special oil change on my vehicle after finding out that it had a blown head gasket and prior to them notifying me of what was wrong with my vehicle.

When I arrived there, they informed that I owe them 20 something dollars for the special oil change they performed. I was told nothing of a recall on the head gaskets. I refused to pay for the special oil change per I would never have authorized this had I known of the blown head gasket, because it makes no sense to change the oil just to drain it out to change the head gasket. The service manager proceeded to cuss me out. He then insisted that I pay for the special oil change and I simply refused to pay for it. I advised the service manager that I didn't want the special oil change until the diagnosis had been made on my vehicle, and that was depending on what was wrong with my vehicle. I then advised him that I was not stupid enough to have an oil change when my heads were going to have to be removed from my engine to replace the head gasket. (My step-father was Service Manager for Nalley Chevrolet for 22 years in Atlanta, GA.) I know a thing or 2 about vehicles. I have rebuilt 3 engines for a truck and 3 different motorcycle engines. I am not the typical girl, nor am I gay.

I took my vehicle home and called Ford headquarters customer service department to make a complaint on the service manager that had treated me so poorly. The girl that helped me in customer service was very apologetic and also advised me to give her my VIN# per they were having problems with some of the head gaskets of the '95 Windstars and that it was only certain VIN#'s. I gave her my VIN# and she advised that my vehicle was one of the VIN#s that they would replace the head gasket at no charge to me. She helped me make arrangements to take my vehicle to another Ford Dealership (Gwinnett Ford) and they would take care of me.

I took my vehicle to the Gwinnett Ford that same day. I was told it would be 4 days to repair my vehicle. I had to get a rental car in the meantime. Well, they had my vehicle for 2 weeks, not 4 days. When I picked up my vehicle, they also informed me that I also had a leak in my coolant system at a connection point and I could pay them almost $600.00 to repair it. I was then advised about the almost $600.00 it cost them in labor to repair my vehicle per Ford only reimbursed them for the parts of the recall. I took my vehicle with me and did not allow them to repair the coolant problem they now claimed I had. I felt I was being scammed for their labor money back.

I also went to 2 different friends of mine that are mechanics and they advised me that Ford could have easily disconnected the part of the coolant system where the leak supposedly was when they replaced the head gasket. And anytime you disconnect a piece of the coolant system, the system usually has to be replaced, because once that seal is broken, it cannot be resealed - it has to be replaced. Also, the next day, my check engine light came on and stayed on. No one could diagnose this. I was told some kind of hose was disconnected, but no one could figure out which hose.

Finally, this year, May 2003, I had to have my transmission replaced at my expense. The transmission mechanic found the problem of the check engine light also. It was a melted plug that had melted from the heat of the engine. I had him repair this also. The transmission and replacing of plugs cost me $2000.00. About 2 to 3 years after having my head gasket replaced, I received a recall notice in the mail from Ford advising of the bad head gaskets that needed to be replaced. It turned out that it was all of the 95 Ford Windstars and not just certain VIN#s. Back when my head gasket went out, I had informed my neighbor of the problem and advised them to call Ford Customer Service to find out if their 95 Ford Windstar van was one of the certain VINs that needed to be replaced. He called and they advised him that his was not one of the affected ones. He also received the letter of the recall 2 to 3 years later.

He, nor I, were ever informed of the mileage cut off. I was told by the first customer service person that this problem has been happening after the vehicle reaches 60,000 miles. So, if I was told after 60,000 miles, why are they now telling people by 60,000 miles they will not cover it? I have the names and numbers of everyone I spoke with along my journey of getting my vehicle repaired. I even received a letter from Ford concerning my complaint on the first dealership. I have kept everything. I feel we need to all file a class action suit against Ford.

Well, I just got a call from Ford and they told me that there is no sign of an external leak but that the head gasket is "seeping". They went on to tell me that there was a serious knocking sound from the engine and that this was a sign that the motor was going to fail. They quoted me a price of $3,825.00 for a new motor. They went on to tell me that I better make a dicision soon and either sell the car or replace the motor before it breaks. The van only has 63,977 miles on it. I always change the oil and other fluids and have had it in for maintenance service. This is ridiculous.

After researching this site, I discovered that this head gasket problem is not new. It seems to have been a problem since Ford came out with this model in 1995. Oh, one more thing. For the first time, the dealer didn't give my wife any paperwork for the work they performed. It took four phone calls to get them to fax it to me. When I received the fax, it does state some leaks they found and that it needs a new motor, but it doesn't state anything about the head gasket seeping as mentioned to me on the phone. I suspect this is intentional.

This head gasket problem has been around since 1995 and Ford has done nothing about. Thank the lord that nothing serious has happened yet, but financially I have put thousands of dollars into this vehicle between 36,000 miles to the present. And if I chose to replace the engine, another $4,000. I don't have that kind of money.

Based on earlier bad experiences with a Ford product, shortly before the factory warranty expired on our 96 Windstar, we purchased (for $1,394) from Mossy Ford a four year extension on warranty coverage. When I asked for comfirmation that this warranty would be covering the costs for the required engine repairs, the service rep said he wasn't sure and was in the midst of negotiations with the warranty company. He also said that the warranty company wanted us to bring in all of our records of service for in the agreement was an "out-"clause which said that warranty coverage might not be provided if the service schedule defined in the owner's manual had not been followed.

I asked him to provide the warranty company with a summary of all of our service visits to the dealership. He said they couldn't do so as these were not kept in their computers. (After I spent 3 hours retrieving and organizing our service records over the past 6 years, he then said that it wouldn't be necessary as the warranty company agreed that our compliance was ok ). I then told the service rep that I had three newpaper articles about identical premature failures in Ford's V-6 engines. He said that those problems were only in the 1994 and 1995 models and that in the 1996 models the engines had been redesigned to eliminate this problem, hence we would not be eligible for the remedial offers.

The latest information l found on the web indicated that although there were said to be changes made in the 1996 models to remedy the problems with the head gaskets, the changes in the 1997 models included a different higher density head gasket indicating to me that the changes made in 1996 probably did not resolve all of the head gasket problems (if any). The service rep said that the warranty company also shared my skepticism about this early failure and that they would cover only part of the repairs. Within the next few days, I plan to meet with the service supervisor at Mossy to press my case for full coverage.

Head Gasket leak on 1996 Ford Windstar resulting in $1200-1500 in repairs and loss of the vehicle for 1 1/2 weeks.

Two months later I get the recall notice. Dealership reimburses me.

Now with 108,000 miles the head gasket is bad again. Dealership says nothing they can do. Gave me Fords customer service number. They are very rude and only quote the specifics of the recall, ie: 100,000 miles or 7 years. They claim there is nothing they can do. Also the timing belt cover gasket is bad this time also.

Frustrated I authorize the repair of $2300.00. We pick the van up and drive it 150 miles and now the engine is gone, needs new block. Dealership says they are waiting for Ford rep to call. It has now been three days and the only contact I have with dealership is myself calling them. They claim that if Ford does not warranty or cover any of the cost of engine repair I'am out the original $2300 plus the quoted new engine replacement of $4300.

Since I didn't know of any recall, and 1 day I was blowing white smoke out of my tailpipe. I took it to the nearest respected auto maintenance facility in my German village. $4k + for fixing the existing engine and its head gasket. $2k + for the water destroying the converter and muffler,etc.etc. Multiple rental cars, taxi's later.

Mark and everyone else in this situation should sue Ford in Small Claims Court.

In August 1998 we went to Utah. Our engine light came on and the temp started to rise. We took the van to the nearest dealer in Logan and they blew us off and said that nothing was wrong. When we got home we took it to our dealer, they said nothing was wrong. We went to Utah again in March of 99 and the light came on again. We took it to our dealer when we got home and they said that nothing was wrong.

We showed them the letter that we got about the bad head gaskets and they said they would be happy to replace the part when it goes bad. Just last week 9/12/99 our engine light went on again and we took it in on Friday and gave them the letter. The man looked at the letter and said we were past the cutoff of Dec. 1998. He then went on to say that our van is over 5 years old. Then he said we were past the mileage.

I looked up on some websites and found over a hundred people who are having the same exact problem as we are. The mileage is all within 5,000 miles. We are now facing at least $1500 in repairs.

My 1995 Ford Windstar was provided with an extended warranty for premature failure of the head gaskets on their 3.8L FWD Engine.

The warranty was extended for 5years or 60,000 miles from the original warranty start date. The vehicles covered under this program are the 1994 and 1995 Taurus, Sable and Windstar. The warranty did not allow for service to check the head gaskets conditions nor was it a recall of these defective head gaskets.

My Ford Windstar has 64,000 miles on it which exceeds the extended warranty by 4,000 miles. On Friday 8/13/99 my 95 Ford Windstar broke down because of the failure of the head gaskets.

This caused anti-freeze to enter the exhaust system, spark plug chambers and oil compartments of the engine causing severe engine breakdown. The vehicle was towed to Ramp Ford in Port Jjeffereson, Long  Island N.Y

At the dealership I was informed that Ford will not cover the repair cost because I was beyond the extended warranty. This is extremely unfair because Ford knew of a severe defect within their vehicles and chose to hide it instead of fixing it.

I own a 95 Ford Windstar van. At 68,000 miles the head gasket blew. All towings, repair costs and rental fees exceeded $3,600. Ford has refused responsibility because the vehicle exceeds 60,000. RE Barber Ford, the dealership that sold me the vehicle has refused to back their product. They keep sending me back to Ford customer service. Ford customer service keeps sending me back to the dealership.

Not only has this been an expensive inconvenience but a significant safety hazard as my family with two children under the age of three was stranded standing out on the highway on two separate occasions as rush hour traffic zipped by at 75 mph and the tow truck loaded the heap for the trip back to the garage.

Ford customer service is anything but helpful. Their strategy is not to listen to your concerns, but to outlast you on the phone. Regardless of who you talk to, the response is "sorry for your trouble, but we cannot help you". Why would I buy a Ford again?

This weekend I noticed the dealership's used car lot is selling 95 Windstars. I wonder if they have replaced the head gaskets on these vehicles? Ford and the dealers that represent them must be held responsible for knowingly designing, manufacturing and marketing a defective product.

Blown head gasket on 1995 Ford Windstar, at 86,000 miles. Ford will not cover the repairs even though they had sent a letter stating that there could be premature failure. To top it off, we just had it in the shop 3 weeks prior getting the fuel pump replaced.

The consequences are that it will cost $900-$1700 (or more?) depending on the extent of damage to the engine, since they could not get us in right away. So, right now it is undriveable. My husband has to drive me to work, a 30 mile round trip out of his way, since he works in the opposite direction, our only other option is to rent a car, which is prohibitive because of cost.

Defective Head Gasket on 1995 Ford Windstar MiniVan requiring replacement at 77,000 miles. Research indicates this part should last until at least 100,000 miles. Ford has numerous complaints about this very issue.

Repair bill of $1550.

Only 15 months ago, in July of 1998, I spent $3,600 to replace the engine in my '95 Windstar only to turn around and find out that it now has bad head gaskets. The engine replacement was due to a thrown piston rod, which I suspect was caused by antifreeze possibly getting into the crankcase because of faulty head gaskets. Unfortunately, I had no way of proving this.

When I did reluctantly purchased the engine, I was told that it would come with all of the corrections that recalls had been issued for (the head gasket recall, as I understand, was issued in May of 1998).

This most recent problem started with a check engine light coming on. When I had my local dealer diagnose the problem, I was told that the oxygen sensor was bad. No big deal except that I had the same oxygen sensor replaced only 5 or 6 month's prior. Keep in mind that this was on an already replaced engine!

Upon further diagnosis as to the cause of the oxygen sensor going out, I was told that head gaskets were bad and that the antifreeze leaking was contaminating the sensor. I of course brought up the fact that the engine should have had new head gaskets since it is only 15 months old. This is when I was told that the engine doesn't have the new head gaskets required by the recall.

As you can imagine this is becoming a battle between the dealership and Ford about who's responsible. The engine has 23,000 miles on it, which puts it outside of the 12 month, 12,000 mile warranty. I have told my local dealership that the warranty should be of no concern because the proper head gaskets should have been on the engine in the first place. I also pointed out that even if they try to get out of it because of the warranty not being in effect, the fact still remains that the engine was recalled for this very problem. So far I have been told that Ford is sticking to the recall limits which were 60,000 miles or the work had to be completed by December 31, 1998. Therefore it no longer applies since the vehicle has 86,000 miles. This is absolutely ludicrous! The engine only has 23,000 miles.

Nothing was ever done by Ford or the dealership that performed the original replacement of the engine. I was forced to pay out over $3,600 to replace the engine. Now with the head gaskets going out on the replaced engine, this is putting a lot of mental and emotional pressure on me because I'm looking at going through this entire process again and so far neither Ford nor the dealership, once again, are willing to step up to the plate and fix the problem. I shouldn't have to pay for any of this. It isn't right.

Damages: 1st case - $777 covered by Ford. 2nd case - $1877 Loss of vehicle for 6 weeks plus cost of rental car $400. 3rd case - $3972 Loss of vehicle for 2 weeks plus cost of rental car $500

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.

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.

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.

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.

The engine failed on my 1995 Windstar due to an overheating problem because of a faulty head gasket. This is a major problem that THOUSANDS of Windstar owners are having. The vehicle needs a new engine but Ford will not pay for!

We purchased this van because we were told is was top rated but now it's just a piece of junk which cannot be driven. Please help!

Head gaskets and engines on these vehicles are failing every day!!!

We had the head gasket go on ours in April of this year (of course it was 4 months beyond the end date of the program).

Fortunately we had an extended warranty that was about to expire (the car had 70,400 miles, the warranty was good until 72,000).  We still had to pay for the deductible though and some other items not covered. 

The warranty was another issue, we bought it through a Ford dealer and were told it would be accepted at all Ford dealerships. This was not the case, the closest dealer to our house would not honor it. 

Two towings later it was back to the bealer where we bought the warranty.

In July of 99 my Windstar head gasket blew with 73K miles. Prior to this, in 98 I had experienced a problem with the heater and discovered it was caused by coolant lose. I refilled the radiator and the vehicle worked fine.

After taking the vehicle to be repaired I did some checking on Windstars and found this is a common problem. Ford has been very inconsistant when talking to them on this issue. The dealership and Ford area rep where I took it to be repaired offered to pay 50% of the cost of a remanufactured engine. The area rep of the dealership I purchased the vehicle from told me Ford would not pay for the repair (this was after the other Ford rep offered 50%).

I have also found a dealership in Montana where Ford has paid 100% of the repair on a vehicle with 80K miles (this occurred in march of 99). I have talked to Ford customer assistance center several times and have now been told they can document the problem but cannot help and they will not let me speak to a supervisor. Ford has a design problem with these vehicles and should issue a recall and compensate the victims.

Once the Windstar was repaired we headed for home in Colorado thinking the worst was behind us. Two weeks and 1000 miles later, my husband was travleing to Texas on business when the engine threw a rod and left him stranded in the middle of nowhere. We had it towed to back to our mechanic in Colorado Springs who informed us that we had thrown a rod. My husband, still needing to get to Texas for business was forced to rent a car at a cost of $1500. In order to fix the Windstar (now called the DEATHSTAR) we had purchase a new engine at a cost of 3K ( $1100 was wasted on repairing the head gasket). Ironically, this new engine has a better warranty than Ford had on it's new 3.8L -- 70K plus labor up to $49 an hour.

We have to pay for a 2nd set of gaskets, which Ford knows are defective. Both sets failed within the time and mileage limits set by Ford, and they refuse to compensate us for even one set. This is expensive and aggravating.

I think this should be covered by Ford and the makers of the seat. They told me I would have to pay a $100 deductible to have it repaired. I think that schould be covered by Ford. I have three grandchildren that need to be in the car seat by law but it is unsafe to use. The back of the seat is falling apart, the dealer asked me not to use it.

But how do I tell the police this when I get stopped?

If Roger thinks this is a safety defect common to all Windstars, he should report it to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

Just recently, my wife noticed the van getting sluggish and emitting white smoke from the tail pipe. I know something about vehicles and instructed my wife that the headgasket blew. I called the service repair department at Freeport Ford who then instructed me to have my wife drive the van 15 miles to the dealership.

At first, the Service Manager told us the van blew a headgasket and gave us a rental vehicle. The end result, they say, is the intake gasket leaked and allowed coolant inside the engine, thus overheating the bearings. At first, the dealership was going to replace the heads. Then they decided that the engine was beyond repair so they would order a "new engine". Then they found out it would take 4 to 6 weeks to get that engine so they decided to rebuild the engine on site. As they tore apart the engine, Ford mysteriously calls back saying, once again, that a new engine is on the way.

We were to get the van back on Tuesday so I decided to drive by the dealership and check the progress on Monday after work. I discover that the engine is not new, but re-manufactured and machined out at 200,000ths. The significance of this is that the engine is rebuilt, presumably with the same inferior parts that many 1995-1996 Windstars suffer from. To add insult to injury, I find out the warranty on the engine is 12 months or 12,000 miles. Remember, my extended warranty still has until June 30, 2002 or 75,965 miles.

I have requested that my re-manufactured engine be given an extended warranty. The Service Manager states the same warranty applies to all Ford vehicles. Having read numerous accounts of owners of 1996 Windstars, it is evident why this is the case. After being stonewalled for several days, I finally speak with Melissa, a Customer Service Rep, who untimately tells me the same story and refused to let me speak with anybody else concerning the matter.

I informed her that if a Ford re-manufactured engine is as good as a new engine, then why would Ford not apply the same warranty on a new engine. All I ask is that they entend the same warranty on my vehicle as they have the defective 1995 models. My confidence in Ford products is shaken and I will not buy a Ford again.

Also, the Service Manager insinuated that if the maintainance were done at the dealership the engine may not have been ruined. He did not ay it directly but i read between the lines. It would be nice if Ford did not try to put a design flaw problem on the general public. There is no way a transmission and engine should go out of a vehicle when driven only 56,000 miles.

My fear is that the same defect may occur again once the warranty is expired at 75,958 miles. I don't feel that I'm asking for much, just a little peace of mind. My wife and I make a decent living but we struggle like most to make the car payment. After reading the e-mails from other people, I am positive the 1995 Winstar defects carry over into the 1996 models. Since we owe four years on the vehicle it is impossible for us to sell it and get enough money back to pay off the loan.

I checked on the cost at a local repair shop and was given information on the extended warrenty on the 1995 3.8L Windstar for the same problem. Now I know that if Ford had a problem with the 1995 engine that it would not have been discovered by the time the 1996's were being built. The repairs cost me over $1,000 and when I contacted Ford they told me they would e-mail the dealership and the dealership would have to send a letter asking for assistance.

The dealership tried to assist me by trying to back date an extended warrenty but it would not cover repairs that had been done so I did not get it. Is there any thing else that I can do to recoup some of the money lost to Ford on a verified head gasket malfunction that has been documented on the 1995 but not on the 1996? The cost is the main issue here as my family is in the process of moving and did not need the added expense.

I asked WHY. I was told it is a safety issue. My car is 6 months old. This roof rack was an option which I paid extra for. Now I'm told that I cannot use an item that many summertime families use on my "family car". I'm sure not many Windstar owners are aware of this information because I have seen Windstars with these carrier on the top.

Needless to say, I am extremely annoyed and dissappointed this was never pointed out to me at any point. Perhaps I would have chosen a Chrysler minivan instead. Do you have any suggestions as what I can do?

My family is leaving on vacation shortly and have planned from the start to purchase and use this cargo carrier so we would be able to accommodate the luggage we need to travel. I'm not sure what to do at this point.

There are many rooftop carriers that attach to the car with straps. You should be able to find one that fit