5th Feb 2003, 07:28

The average lifespan for a transmission is 10-15 years on an average car. A good transmission lasts about 15-30 years.

28th Feb 2003, 10:29

MY GOD?! Did I post to this forum and forget? It's like reading my journal if I kept one. We bought our 1999 Windstar with 22,000 miles. It drove perfectly until right after the original warranty expired; about 47,000 miles. Luckily we prepared and purchased an extended warranty. The O/D light kept coming on and so we took it to Ford. They said it was a valve and "fixed" it. The O/D light came on again and they "fixed" it again. The O/D light came on again and this time they dropped in a new transmission. The extended warranty is a MUST for this car as the transmission would have cost us I think +2000. The car sounds more like a diesel now. It's in the shop as I type this getting a new rack & pinion at 68,000 miles. I just can't believe this. I suppose I should get ready and expect to have my power steering pump replacement and air conditioner compressor replacement soon. The sad thing is I'm still making payments on this car. If you ever consider buying a Windstar you better just mentally add $4,000 or $5,000 to the price tag.

24th Mar 2003, 07:45

I bought a used 98 Windstar van in Jan 2000 with 30,000 miles on it at Palm Bay Ford in Palm Bay Florida. Various items have broken within the week after taking the vehicle to Palm Bay Ford for routine product recall checks.

1. Driver side window motor kaput.

2. Rear window wiper motor kaput.

3. Power steering pump seals leaky and whines constantly.

4. Interior decorator moldings around captain seats are biodegrading and falling off.

5. Fuel tank gauge never reads full.. always between 3/4 and full. (even if you know it's full)

6. Transmission slips and sometimes won't upshift when accelerating (not consistent to be caught live when service people check it)

CONSUMERS BEWARE. The Windstar vans of every year are too costly to upkeep and it is obvious to all consumers after buying it that they are lemons.

2nd Apr 2003, 15:29

In May 2000, I purchased a used 1999 Windstar LX. It had only 21k miles on it. I should have heeded the warning and returned the van the same day I bought it after it stopped in the middle of my parking it. But I bought it anyway & got used to the transmission jolting into gear when I accelerated after a rolling stop. I got used to the rear blower motor (which has been recalled) ticking on & off even when I had the heat/air conditioning off! I got use to the engine light staying on ALL the time. I did take the van to a mechanic, but he could not find any problems with the engine.

However, in January 2003 at 89k miles, I had to replace the power steering rack & pinion, tire rod ends, and experienced more brake problems as I had just had my front rotors, shoes & pads replaced 2 yrs ago! This time, I had problems with the back brakes leaking, as well as the rotors, shoes & pads on them.

Well today as I was driving to work, the engine light started flashing and I noticed the steering wheel shaking at 70 mph. I decreased my speed to 60 and the light stopped flashing and the steering wheel stopped shaking. I then turned the O/D off. I don't know what this means as I do not have an extended warranty, but I do wish I would have heeded the warning the day I bought it. I now have 98k miles on it and I'll guess I'll start saving to fix the transmission when those symptoms start to arise.

30th Apr 2003, 21:29

We bought our 99 Windstar a year ago. It now has 38,000 miles on it. The O/D light started flashing while on the highway alone with my 3 girls on our way to vacation. My husband stayed at home. Ended up having it towed after smoke started pouring out from under the hood. It spent all week in an out of state Ford dealer while they replaced the torque converter and other transmission components to the tune of $1700.

Picked it up on our way back through the state (luckily my parents had rescued us). Drove it for 90 minutes down the highway when the O/D light began flashing again. Another tow, this time to our local Ford dealer. It is there now. They are pulling the transmission yet again. They aren't saying if it will be covered under the repair warranty from the original repair.

I'm not convinced it is safe for me to drive alone with the kids even after I get it back. We don't drive it long distances around here. Just when we're on vacations. I have been towed enough to last a lifetime.

Reading these posts make me think I should bag it and get a different vehicle. :o/

2nd Jun 2003, 17:00

Like all of you guys who are crying, I too have a 1999 Ford Windstar. This van has been trouble from shortly after it was purchased.

1. Check engine light that would keep coming on.

2. Transmission problems. Eventually it was changed by Ford under warranty.

3. Electrical glitches one after the other. The automatic sliding door would not slide, the a/c stopped working, radio stopped working, and a host of other electrical glitches. Ford finally repaired these after much trial and error.

4. Finally at about, 40,000 miles the steering rack has given up the ghost. Ford here in the Bahamas tells me a new rack cost $1100.00 not including installation. Do you believe that.

In the four years that I have had this van it must have spent at least twelve months in the shop and cost me at least $2,000.00 in repairs and service. My wife has gotten so fed up with it she just went out and bought herself an SUV. Once this thing is repaired I think I will trade this in or try to sell it.

I have had it with Ford vehicles. To any body reading this DO NOT BUY A FORD WINDSTAR.

FORD - Fix Or Repair Daily.

FORD - Found On Road Dead.

And FORD in reverse - Driver Returned On Foot.

18th Jun 2003, 11:07

Another case of 2 transmissions in 40,000 miles on a 1999 Ford windstar. The second case was the flashing O/D light. Has anyone had any luck with Ford as to covering these expenses since the warranty has just run out.

24th Aug 2003, 23:07

Other than the check engine light always being on, and after having my husband (a mechanic) and 7 other mechanic friends check it on the computers and manually, can't find anything wrong with it. It sounds as if its dragging something really heavy and the idle sputters and kicks and wants to die all the time. Bought used w/72,000 miles. Anyone else have the problem with the idle?