Faults:

When we first got it the left control arm was loose, 2 bolts and that was fixed.

Seat belt warning light comes on and stays on even when the belt is latched.

ABS/TRAC light comes on every once in a while.

General Comments:

I really like the van, very comfortable and nice on long trips.

Transmission is a little annoying in the way it shifts, but it is a luxury vehicle so...

The stereo is pretty good and the A/C is really cold.

We are way behind the curve on loan payoff vs trade in value so we probably will keep the van at least 3 more years, that is my biggest complaint about the Windstar.

Faults:

Steering column replaced at 32000 miles - $550.00.

Lower intake manifold replaced at 70000 miles. $1000.00.

The engine blew at 80000 miles. Van needs new engine. It's currently at the dealership where I purchased the vshicle.

General Comments:

This is the second new Ford I purchased that blew an engine at approx. 80000 miles. The first was a 1994 Taurus with a 3.0 liter engine. At 80000 miles a connecting rod broke and punched a hole through the front of the oil pan. I was in traffic at the time moving at 5 mph. The sound was incredible.

Recently I was driving home from work in the 1999 Windstar at 65 mph when all of a sudden I lost power and heard all kinds of noises coming from the engine. Fortunatly I was able to pull to the side of the road and call AAA to have the van towed to the dealer. Rizzo Ford called me on 5/29 to tell me I need a new engine. Unfortunatley for me, I did not have an extened warranty.

I am a Mechanical Engineer who takes good care of my vehicles. I will never purchase another domestic vehicle. I recently purchased a 2004 Nissan Altima for my wife, and I plan on purchasing a foreign vehicle for myself also.

I now have a 1999 Ford Windstar for sale which is in excellent condition, except it needs an engine of course...

My advise to everyone. If you need a van, go with a foreign manufacturer.

Faults:

Cam sensor went at 60,000.

Transmission went at 80,000.

Power steering unit went at 82,000.

General Comments:

This started out as a great vehicle. It looked great, rode well, started well in the cold. We got excellent gas mileage on the highway. Consistently close to 30 miles per gallon.

However, once the warranty ran out things went from good to bad to worse. At 3 years old, just over the 60,000 mile warranty the ‘cam sensor’ failed 1,500 miles from home. The $500 repair bill put a bit of a dint in the vacation spending.

About this time the paint started to fall away in certain areas, in the driver’s side drip rail on the roof and near the fender/door joint on the drivers side.

At 80,000 miles the transmission developed a shudder during the first to second gear shift. Since we were over the warranty we went with a recommended National transmission shop. The cost was $2,500 Canadian plus taxes for a total of $2,950.

Shortly after that the power steering unit went and needed to be replaced. When the engine started behaving just like it had when the Cam sensor needed to be replaced, we decided that we had enough. We have replace this Ford with a new van from another manufacturer.

Faults:

The brakes have had to be redone on two occasions with an ABS light still coming on intermittantly.

The check engine light came on several times, but finally resulted in $500 worth of intake gasket and manifold work.

New EGR valve needed to be installed, then another manifold after a hose was disconnected and melted a hole in my new manifold. As it is plastic, this is not surprising.

The O/D (overdrive) light began flashing at highway speeds and later began a harsh engagement from 1st to 2nd gear. The repair for this problem was a $2400 transmission replacement including torque converter, solenoids, and all.

The van has 4 oxygen sensors, all of which have had to be replaced to the tune of $600.

Rear windshield wiper motor is now blown.

Electrical system seems to have a mind of it's own sometimes - the rear air will come on by itself, dome lights will flash when hitting bumps, and there is sometimes a 'clicking' noise coming from my dash. These problems only happen sporadically so it is hard for a mechanic to duplicate.

General Comments:

This has to be the finest example in modern cars today - unreliable and cheaply made. I have never had so many problems in one vehicle and am quickly reaching the amount paid in repairs as that paid FOR the car. Long trips are becoming increasingly stressful as you never know when something is going to go wrong with the car, and it has probably spent more days in the repair shop having work, maintenance or recalls done on it than it has spent on the road. You can add a 'star' to a name, but that does not make it better. I will never make this mistake again, as it seems more lucrative to shell out the extra 10,000 for a Honda than spend it in repairs on a car that has this kind of record.