2002 Ford Windstar rear axle broke, left me stranded almost wrecked, trying to stop the vehicle. They said they was the no recall for my model in the axles contact local dealerships all lied and put me off like I was trying to get something for nothingI hope they go out on strike and starve to death. Ford like everyone else now has outsourced the answering service so you speak to people that don’t even speak English American made my ass.

I bought a 01 Windstar only to have the rear axle crack in half exactly where all the others have .took it to Ford dealer cause they said bring it in .only to have them tell me it would be 1000$ to fix said no recall for me .then said I can pick up my van as long as I paid the 167$ inspection fee Wich I never agreed to or signed any thing to that affect.never even mentioned there would be a charge to look at it plus all u have to do is look under the back of the van and you will see the cracked in half axle

My son’s winstar axle broke while driving. Stranded him and a bridge, Very dangerous. Dealer indicates that time for his recall has expired so the cost of repair is left to him. How can they put a time limit on a recall this dangerous?

We’ve owned our 1998 Windstar for just 3 years and have liked it. So disappointing to see this recall and also not see Ford jumping through hoops to pay for a new axle, period. Instead, the letter talks of the brackets possibly “improperly” installed. This hints that if properly installed all is well. Pretty easy to find out that the brackets even if “properly” installed the axles are going to fail. It’s not an “if’ but a “when”. Also, try to find out what they even mean by “improperly” . Can’t they just admit the axle is inferior, dangerous, and must be replaced?

AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! About 2 weeks ago the rear axle of our Windstar broke. We took it to the corner shop and they did a VERY temporary fix to literally get it home. The following day I found out about the recall (we’re not the first owners) and I called our local Ford (from whom we purchased an older Fusion from). They informed me that there was actually THREE recalls on it and asked to drop it off. I dropped it off only for them to tell us that they, per Ford, could not fix it because we “attempted” to fix it. We picked up yesterday and it broke AGAIN because of the TEMPORARY fix that was done when we “attempted” to fix it. Called Ford and they said they couldn’t do anything about it. RIDICULOUS how they can get “around” what is an obvious (even to the untrained eye) simple solder and not repair it!!!!!

http://www.carcomplaints.com/Ford/Windstar/2003/suspension/rear_axle_control_arm_cracked_at_point_fixed_under_recall.shtml this is a link to another recall site, i include pictures and an update

Our axle broke even after Ford put cheap brackets on it. Ford refuses to replace the bad axle because they say the recall has since expired. I really wish there was a away to sue Ford to get them to care more. We had the axle welded but that will not last long. I need to get a new vehicle.

We were driving 60 miles per hour on the Freeway , when our rear axel snapped in two on our Ford Windstar. We had our entire family in our van. We heard a load noise, smoke was everywhere. We were all scared to death. We were able to bring the van to a sudden stop, but our entire family was traumatized. We stood on the side of the road ( at midnight). Waiting on a friend to pick us up. We took our van to a Ford dealer when we received a recall letter. They supposedly fix the van, by putting two little brackets on the rear axel. Now Ford is saying they rant responsible, because the auto place we took our van to put the brackets on wrong!! REALLY? FORD, are you even serious right now? I’m without a car and this is very stressful. Also people have died from your NEGLIGENCE! Please stop putting lives in danger, please put a new rear axel on these vans, not a cheap set of brackets..

NOT sure iof my van is affected i live in philly araea. BUT this van served me well with some huge reapirs lately 600$ new water pump and motor mounts NEW baterry $60 alternator last year $85 cost installed starter 3 yrs old guaranteed for life of vehicle $300 any way was told by pep boys parts guy this is the worst model ever for ford he said more parts are sold for windstars than all other makes. Anyway this is my last ford product and i had them all MERC Grand marquis only 63,000 miles on it dead in junk yard after 4 years. consantly after 2nd year every month had to fix something including broken tie rod while i was driving thank god low speed no one around. Lincoln continental mark 3 plaese every week that gas pig killed me got crushed in accident was happy to unload it to scrap yard for $300 old ford fairmount was ok but got whacked in cuty streets bought an old olds 98 after that. Anyway got to replace two sensors reset the vehicle by removing battery terminals so the CHK ENG goes off and cross fingers it stays off replace both tail lights and then sell it for about $1000 knowing next owner gets at laest a year trouble free only thing is seats removed cause i used this van for scrap iron work. SO i have to list as such.

i have ford windstar in Europe,also broken rear axle,ford usa said-no recalls for this axle for my car.Ford USA dont know who is real seller in EU .First central office send me to Finland ford,this seller-no we do not sell this cars…Then send me to another finland company(for USA said yes contact with this company) .This company said-no no -we just sell in finland and for finland buyers…So same car same problem and problem with Ford USA Company…i dont want buy any other USA For car in my live…

I have a 2001 Winstar which was in for the recall on the rear axle, there were clamps put on. Do not feel safe with this fix, my rear axle broke right under the clamp and I called Ford they told me the warranty on the fix is 3 month or 5000 Kilometers. A joke, when you are dealing with peoples lives. Expect no help from FORD. I will never drive another.

In March of 2008 our Ford Windstar was making noises. When my husband looked underneath the van, it almost made him sick. The rear axle had a huge crack through it. We had just been traveling 70 miles an hour on the interstate the day before. Of course, when he took it to the dealership they said “we have never seen anything like this before.” We still owed money on this vehicle and ended up having to trade and loosing money on that. Since then we have been driving Mitsubishi vehicles and will never drive a piece of crap Ford vehicle again. EVER! We also had problems with a Ford Windstar before where the head gasket went bad. The recall for that came after the problems and the recall only covered the head gasket and not the whole computer board that blew because of the bad head gasket. Should have learned our lesson then, but we didn’t. The thing that really makes me sick with Ford is that if they would have started checking into these issues early in 2008 when we started reporting a problem, some lives could have been saved!

Have 2003 windstar limited, rear axle broke on Saturday, called ford on Monday morning, gave ford info and vin # they come back and tell me that my vehicle is not part of the recall because my vehicle had a different axle and was out of warranty. Every vehicle in this recall is out of warranty. Total BS axle broke in same spot as all the ones I have seen online and on you-tube. Very very upset with FMC.

I live in north Carolina and the rear axle broke on my windstar 2000 I was looking for a replacement over the web to fix it when I found out that ford recall those minivan I call the ford dealership end they said not notice of that. The only way to replace is if I have an insurance with ford. Why only in certain states? What I can do? Any body can give me hand up?

how do i get i n the ssuit i had my kids in it when it broke

WOW WOW WOW! AMAZING STORIES GUYS AND GOD BLESS YOU ALL. I GUESS I WILL TAKE IT THIS WEEK TO GET INSPECTED AGAIN. THANK YOU ALL1

I have a 2001 Ford Windstar. While taking off at a green light, the carriage dropped and my accelerator went to the floor and I had no steering. This was on a highway to make things worse. Thank goodness it was a Saturday morning, without much traffic because I went straight into the other lane. Could have been dire. The power steering pulley and serpentine belt broke which Ford did not cover. They did replace the motor carriage and rear axle for no charge, but wouldn’t cover anything that broke when the carriage broke. I don’t get it.

I have had so many issues with this 99 ford windstar its unreal . who do i contact to resolve this ??

We have 3 vans. Two are Fords. The front coil spring in the one broke two weeks ago. It is still sitting in driveway. Today, our 16 yr old daughter was driving, the other van, across town, not more than 3 miles from home, one of the coil springs in the front broke on it. Just going down a 25 mph road. This sounds to me like the coil springs on these vans were not any good. These are .

Just got my van back May 20th, Ford had it since Nov. 1, 2010. The dealership told me that all the tires were dry rotted, the battery was replaced, and the van was ready to be picked up. They said one of the tires had a leak. I figured it was something I needed to just watch. It was flat by the time I drove 6 miles home. Ford Co. wouldn’t do anything and asked if the dealership was aware I was driving it from the lot. What kind of question is that. At first the dealership told me oh well and it wasn’t their problem. Then I spoke to management at the dealership and the man was wonderful and sent someone out immediately to replace the one bad tire, though I was already told that I cannot replace just one tire. Yesterday the alternator went out, not sure if that could be related to it sitting for almost 7 months. But the van runs worse than when it went in, dies out when idleing. Who knows. Loved the free rental but now have a car that is not reliable.

I just bought my 1998 windstar about 6 months ago and i learned about the rear axle recall at the end of feb i took my van for inspection on 3/1/11 and was also put into a loaner that same day. i picked up my van today 5/13/11 to find that my passenger window door lock and speaker no longer works my air conditioner does not work, i need a new battery and alternator, and muffler. i have a nice size dent in the front passenger fender and pick paint on my passenger mirror. it also looks as if the the right headlight cover has been replaced. I also have a huge crack down the right side of my windshield. i also have 5 check engine code so i can not even pass an echeck. i will never go back to ford again! and will make sure that everyone knows how they do not take care of customers!

Is there any word on whether or not the buyout option will extend to cover the 2002? I am about to take my van in this Friday to be inspected, and honestly after reading the horror stories I am ready to take the buyout. I’d still buy Ford I think, but man they sure make it hard to want to purchase from them.

I have two Windstars,a99 and an 03 .The 03 has a six inch crack in the rear axle which i am now driving a 2011 Chrysler Town & Country rental. Ford has treated me good and Enterprise rental has been great. One other comment i’d like to make is about people talking about blown head gaskets. I do my own engine work and i noticed that my intake gaskets are thick plastic with rubber o-rings .These o-rings can leak after a period of time (maybe while sitting),and can leak coolant down into the oil pan which can look like a faulty head gasket. On my 99 even with new gaskets after sitting for a long period i loosened the oil plug and drained out a small amount of coolant.(water is heavier than oil and goes to the bottom,which that’s the first thing that your oil pump will pick up which will result in abad engine. Thank Bill

Got the call april 4th my 2001 windstar was done. The dealer also told me that he could not keep it running. He thought the head gasket had blown he wanted 1500 to fix the head gasket. I had told the service dept to fix it but I was not happy. They then called to tell me the block was craked instead now they want 2750 to put in a junkyard motor with no warranty. I am totally fed up. They also parked my van outside with no attention given. If my van would have been at home in the garage and ran everyday like normal I don’t believe this would have happened

I was hearing that same clunking noise before received my recall notice back in October. Ford had my van form 10/16/10 thru 3/23/11 because they had find the part I have 2 call on Monday morning because Im hearing that same notice again. Personally I’m starting to believe they tried 2 rebuild it since reading someone said he could not locate the axle.

Got the call from dealer yesterday car finally fixed 6 months later! Car ran perfect no problems till axle broke on us November 17th 2010. Car towed and sat in lot till yesterday when I wnet to pick it up with my family. Started up but started missing, I attributed this to standing, started driving in lot to exit and it sounded like the rear was going to fall out, started running rougher as well. Pulled back around building spoke to GM and told him I am not taking this, left with rental. Went back this morning, April 12, 2011, had service manager get in and explained what was wrong, brakes, roughness and noise in front and rear so he decided to drive it. we went about 30ft when he said sorry. I left and called him a few hours later, they left the shocks loose! Called ford to complain about breaks, rough running they said dealer put new plugs in it but it now needed head gaskets!! I called ford a few times to express my concern about the vehicle sitting and was told lets wait till we pick it up, well I am not paying for something that isn’t my fault. My vehicle ran perfectly before the axle broke. The ford rep said they would not help me s they weren’t sure of the condition before the car was there, I told verbatim “ listen why would I put my family in a car that I dangerous” he could not answer but his other response was “Our engineers say that there shouldn’t be a problem with the vehicles sitting this long” my response to him was “ is this the same engineer that designed the axle cause if it is I don’t have any faith in their design” no response to that as well. So now I am stuck with a car I cannot sell, nor trade in! my KBB value is zilch and ford will do nothing to assist.

Got my 2002 Ford Windstar back this week after 5 weeks of driving a rental. I thought wow, I was a lucky one. Well, to my surprise. My van died on me once in the parking lot and again that evening when I got it home. Also my check engine light came on. Called the dealer the very next day and they asked if I could bring it back in. Took it in the that night, got a call the next day….$800 in repairs for a cam sensor and a fuel pump hose. Dealer told me that they contacted Ford and Ford said it wasn’t covered under the warranty for the recall because one those parts aren’t covered and two I drove it off the lot! OH MY. Will be calling Ford Motor Company in the morning! I took a perfectly working car to them 5 weeks ago! Hello, this was from it sitting for that long! FORD NEEDS TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THESE ISSUES NOW! I like many others on here held Ford to high respect. That is not going to happen anymore. I have told everyone about my problems and WILL NEVER BUY FORD AGAIN! My 70 year old father has been a loyal Ford Customer for over 40 years, guess what…not any more. He’s will never buy another FORD after this incident. Dont’ get my wrong, I commend Ford for the recall but stand behind the issues too. You had to know they were going to happen.

getting my 2000 windstar back aftter 3 months of down time; ford put me in a sweet ride of a jeep liberty rental. would buy that jeep over the ford anyday. the windstar comes home today, ford replaced the rear axle and replaced the battery. they said they sent many to the scrap yard , but i wonder why mie was able to be repaired . i was hoping for a buy out and sweet trade in offer sicne it is over 10 years old

Picked up my 2001 Windstar on 3/25 after 5 months (11/1/10 it was towed to the dealer) of sitting on the dealer’s lot. In the beginning, dealer said they start the vehicles every day. I know that’s an outright lie because after several snowstorms that we’ve had, I went by the dealers lot and no snow had been touched, removed or stepped in around the car. Ford said they are also supposed to ‘drive’ the cars a bit once each month to avoid flat spots on the tires. However, mine was undrivable because the axle had already broken (twice – first left side then right); so that didn’t happen either and I have flat spots on the tire(s). On Friday, April 1, one week after picking the car up, it wouldn’t start. Had to have it towed to my own mechanic who said the starter had corroded and melted. So he fixed it ($400) thinking it was just that. Three days later, car died again. Yesterday, I found out that there is an antifreeze leak inside the engine which means a “cracked head” or head gasket. My mechanic also said that the started was so severely melted that the only way it could have melted that badly was by someone repeatedly attempting to start the car or that the car severely overheated (and I know it wasn’t me). This problem if we choose to get it fixed will be about $1,600. Clearly, the techs at the dealer could not get the car to start and just kept trying until it finally did (however, never said a word to me about that problem when I picked the car up). I’m about to head into battle with Ford to have this resolved . I have proof that my car was in perfect running condition before they got it. I know that they are going to deny any issues whatsoever, but I’m not going anywhere until they take care of it or have to call the police to have me taken from the dealer bodily. By the way, I was on my way to get gas in the car when the axle broke but never made it, so it was low when the dealer got it. When I picked it up, I prayed that I would make it to a gas station because the tank was virtually empty — more evidence that the car was not started/run in 5 months. Also, the dealer noted on my receipt that the car had to be brought into the shop via forklift. But I’m sure that didn’t cause any damage!!!!!

To Chris: You are an idiot also. My husband was a Ford dealer. We cleaned the underside of our van, garaged it, took it for inspection before trips, maintained it very well. This was a Ford Defect. My family was almost killed when the axle went out on the interstate. FORD was negligent. To you ignorant people writing on this site, like Chris and Ryan, get a life. You just want to cause trouble. YOu have no clue what its like to live through a devistating situation like this. Get a life!

Ryan, you are a clueless idiot on what is going on with the Ford Windstar. Keep your stupid comments to yourself.

i have a 2000 windstar i just looked up recalls and i was so shocked i have 5 kids and anything could have broke at anytime i fear putting my kids back in that van my family is my life where would i get my van checked for recalls someone please let me know

MY 2000 windstar went in last week for the recall it failed both front and rear. ‘The worst they seen yet ‘ They said. they gave me a rental car which is no good for me thats why we own vans not cars. So im now paying everyday out of my pocket to upgrade to a van. while my van sit at Ford with all the others. I tried contacting ford on the issue they said no about a buy back no about taking some money off a new ford product i cant belive i was going to spent 45,000 on a new truck from them and they would not even take 500 bucks off. instead let my van be fixed $2000 and thousands for rental. From reading some storie here some people are getting buy outs why only some??????? Ford needs to reconsider buyout or a discount towards a new product. we will all win they will save we will get rid of our crap . Im going to be contacting ford.

You couldn’t find a ford windstar rear end in the numerous junk yards across the states. Just sound like you want to complain about something. Maybe if when you took your vehicle to the garage where you got your inspection sticker the inspector actually looked closely like he is supposed to he would have noticed the flaw. Take it up with them.

My 2003 Windstar was recalled 24 Feb due to the Subframe crack issue. Never had an issue with the Axle recall Got a call this morning that my Van was ready to be picked up. All repaired. 6 weeks. Not too unhappy. Had a nice rental for that time. Now just hav eto decide if I want to keep the van. Only 44000 miles, on it. Dealer did offer me a good deal on a new Truck.

I drive interstate 90 in Cleveland, Ohio everyday. My axle broke in December 2010, at the time I was 2 months pregnant , now I’am 5 months and there is another recall on the van for defective frames. I turned down the offer for 2,000 dollars thinking I’ve put more than that into the vehicle on repairs.Now I don’t even want the van back, how in the world can you attach a new axle on a frame that has also been recalled? DOES NOT SOUND SAFE!!!!!!!!!!. I am still in a rental vehicle and thankful for that but Ford needs to offer up a better solution to this problem caused by there manufacturing.If they offered new Ford vehicles(2011,2012) to the customers affected by this recall it would only be a drop in the hay for this HUGE ! corporation and the right thing to do.I could see if this problem was caused by me the consumer but it wasn’t. FORD STEP UP AND DO THE RIGHT THING!

We dropped our Ford SEL 2003 Windstar off this past Sunday. I thought we’d get a call in a few days that it was fixed. We got a call saying that it was not repairable and that they couldn’t give us our car back. My husband left the lot. They never initially offered to give us a rental car until I researched it myself. He went back and they called Enterprise for a rental. We asked for our van back and they said we’d have to sign a waiver removing all liability. Long story short, three days later we got a check from Ford for a very fair amount but we were NOT prepared to have car payments right now as our van was paid off and only had 75K miles. Check was 115% of Kelly Blue Book.

I was a loyal ford customer until Jan 6th when I first heard about the Windstar recall. I was surprised that I only received a recall letter in Jan when Ford knew about the problem last summer….possibly sooner. When the second recall notice came for the front end I called my local dealer’s service dept and asked if my car could be inspected to see if it failed the front end inspection…it had already failed for the rear end recall. I was told I had to wait to have the front end looked at. First come First served….so my car, like many of yours, is being held hostage. Yeah it’s great that they gave me a rental, but I’m still paying insurance on the Windstar…and I’m driving a car that is 1/3 the size of what I’m used to. Thinking of taking the Windstar off the road, cancelling the insurance and pretending I’m getting a free ride, even if it’s just a Jeep Compass….If and when Ford calls me about my Windstar, I’ll tell them they have the wrong number…they can keep it….it’ll save me the towing fee to get rid of it in the end. What I save on insurance, I’ll put toward a downpayment…on a bike….

Just brought the van out of storage for the summer and put on new tires and a fresh charge on the battery. I will be contacting my local ford dealer tomorrow regarding both the rear axle and sub frame recalls. I am prepared to settle for a rental vehicle that is equal to or better than my fully loaded 2002 SELwith 87,000mi. I am also prepared to settle for the buy back of the KBB.com value at 150%. otherwise I will be contacting Ford Motor Corp & the Michigan AG.

WELL GOT MY VAN BACK!! THEY TRIED TO GET ME TO PAY FOR A BATTERY BUT FORD TOLD THEM TO REPLACE. BUT THEY GOT THE LAST LAUGH. AFTER MY VAN SAT SINCE 10-21-10 I HAVE SPENT 500.00 IN ONE DAY AFTER BEING HOME. SOME HOW WATER GOT INTO THE OIL PAN AND THE IAC CONTROL VALVE SEIZED AND BROKE THE TIRES THAT WERE FLAT WHEN IT WAS AT FORD I HAD TO GET REPLACED. I WILL NEVER DEAL WITH FORD EVER AGAIN.

So I got my 2003 Windstar back last Thursday afternoon and it seems to be running ok other than a loud squeak from the engine belt. I believe it is the serpentine belt….the one you can see to the left (if you’re facing) of the engine. It did not make this noise when I dropped it off. I will be bringing it in tomorrow for them to check it. Could this be caused by sitting out in the Minnesota winter with tons of snow for 3 months? We are trading it in very soon and would prefer to not have the loud squeaking but I also don’t want to put any more money into it either. Thanks for your help.

Well i have been told that the subframe cannot be repaired ?????. Ford motor company will buy your van and give you a small amount.How does one get another vehicle for that amount . I think all the owners should file a case against Ford

How many of you actually wash the undersides of your vans? How many of you have your vehicles FULLY inspected every year? These accidents and problems are preventable…. MAINTENANCE MAINTENANCE MAINTENANCE Rust has always appeared on metal…. all cars rust… Do some rust quicker than others? Yes. Am I trying to pull blame off Ford? No. the design could have been better… but in most cases the vehicles have in fact lasted there expected life. (The average life of a vehicle in the US is 11 years) I’ve seen broken axles on several makes… as well as broken springs, rotted strut mounts, rusted brake lines, rotted rocker panels, frame rot on almost any car thats 10 years old in New York state. I’ve seen Isuzu frames split and separate in multiple sections, Ive seen civics, camrys, accords with multiple rust issues. I have seen rear struts blow through the back if ford escorts, Ive seen subframes on Hyundais split allowing the engine to dangle from underneath the car…. and toyota trucks with cracked frames…. I always ask people if they wash or have the underside of there cars washed here in New York State. They answer is often no. People need to wash there cars, have the proper joints and suspension components greased, especially in these salty area’s. Bring your cars in for FULL inspections to check for problems like these axel’s. A great majority of these accidents could have been prevented by actually taking care of your car. Most shops here in NY hook cars up to the NYS inspection computer, check a brake and turn signals, and slap a sticker on your car…they dont profit much from it… they get lazy about what they are looking for… Next time your in ask for a complete inspection. (Of course there are those that dont have money to fix the problems… continue driving the car… then blame the car when it leaves them stranded.) Do you blame your body when get a cavity? Probably not…. Those who complain about bad transmissions and other problems… when was the last time you had the unit flushed and had its filter changed? Most transmissions require a fluid change between 30k and 60k miles. I have had people whine that they have lost there transmissions at 100k miles… but when asked… they never had there transmission maintained. Often the fluid coming out of these poor things is coffee colored and can contain water from 10 years of condensation, ect. If you have high mileage on your car, and the trans fluid hasn’t been changed… doing it now will probably do more harm then good… its too late. Take care of your car. Maintain it by the book, bring it to the dealer once a year. Why the dealer? They know your product, its common problems, and any recalls that need to be done. Leave the muffler, tire and brake shops to do exactly that… mufflers tires and brakes. If you cant afford to maintain and fix your car, you shouldn’t be driving it. Driving around a faulty car is worse than carrying around a loaded gun. Stop blaming car companies for everything. A car is a machine, it wears out. Take care of it and it will last you longer. Just like your human body!!

Brought my 2003 Windstar in for scheduled service in mid December and was told I needed a reinforcement kit which was not yet available but that the car could be driven until it arrived, (my choice). Had a small electrical problem a week later just before Christmas and stopped by a different dealer to have a constantly on cornering light disconnected so as not to kill the brand new week old battery over the holiday. This dealer would not allow me to take the car out of the service center and felt the condition was worse then the other dealer. I have had a Chevy Cobalt rental since and no definite date on repair. Also now have heard about a front end recall but have not received any notice yet. Now that winter is over I need the Windstars cargo space for multiple projects and I have two teenage sons that need to learn to drive and cannot as long as I am in the rental. We will be starting college payments soon and cannot afford a new car.

FORD SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED !!!!!! like many of you I am in a windstar mess. I have owned Fords for 30 yrs..I AM FUERIOUS.First it was impossible to find an appt. at a dealer. Next, my 2001, w/125k on it had 4 seperate recalls, 3 of which are MAJOR safty issues. Where is the media on this, consumer protection ? look at the hit Toyota took, why is FORD BEING PROTECTED ? my van bought in 2002, had the trans. fall out in my driveway a year later. despite 4 major break jobs the ABS/WARN/LT. has been on for 4 years. ck.eng lt on constantly, 02 sensors and mainfold eltronic sensors done twice totaling 1200.00 .the door locks stick, inside lts all a mess, ..over 5000.00 $$$ of OUT OF POCKET REPAIRS and today it sits off the road waiting for a rear axel. somehow they passed the sub-frame .despite two bent lower control arms !!!! van shakes @ 50 mph and steering wheel vibrates. It just failed emission state insp for 4 out of last 5 years !!! I have called,e-mailed,written Ford to discuss a buy-back….A SOLID NO !! so in a month I will have a new axel, and A GLUED BRACKETED SUB-FRAME,…..and a illegal insp sticker, will not be able to drive untill I fix the emission eletronics, { another 400.00 est} which i feel was caused by the WIRE HARNESS RECALL !!!!. So, I am suing Ford for —TRIPLE— DAMAGES,under my sonsumer protection law because they were lax in all these recalls, late notices and timeline, couldnt even get an appt nevermind a rental ,untill I found my own. JUST think if they have your van 4 months the rental cost alone is 4500.00 add the recall repairs appx. 1250.00 = $ 5750.what a joke…they were rude on phone and .WAS TOLD THE WINDSTAR TEAM REP WILL CALL IN 2.HRS. IT TOOK 5 1/2 DAYS !!!!will not even consider ” our” issues. FORD SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF THEMSELVES……….see you in court.

My axle broke at 75 mph. I found a good used axle and had it put in. My van had over 200,000 miles on it, but a rear axle should never break. I travel all over the country and encounter a lot of road salt along the way. Since I live in Kansas, Ford took themselves off the hook by only fixing the vans in cold weather states. Have since sold the Windstar. I really liked that van, but am really disgusted with Ford on this one.

The dealership has had our ’99 WIndstar conversion van since Nov. 2010. I called today and they do not have the parts yet. There has been a second recall for the front arms. I was never offered a buy back. We do have a Dodge Grand Caravan as a rental. They had to give us something in comparison to what we owned. Rental cars were running low in our area so I am thankful for the van.

WOW! I had no idea this was such a wide-spread issue! My car was confiscated today due to a broken axle and they said something was penetrated? But I’m not sure what that something was. After reading here, I need to find out the details so that I know. I am now concerned about repairs not being properly done. We too, were put in a car too small for us and am not sure when a larger car will be available. I am surprised Ford doesn’t offer more buybacks, as that would be a lot cheaper than all these rental cars!

First I want to say I am a fan of ford motor company that is untill I purchased my first 2001 for windstar for 3000 dollars used, and I thought that was a good deal untill things started going wrong first the rearend and then the front subframe broke without warning. I had no idea that there was a recall for this I have five children and we could have died when that part failed. So after the part failed I tried to weld the frame that was broke and it never was right so I sent it to the junkyard and then bought another windstar cause the price was right now I take it to the dealer and they are giving a runaround that it is going to take a month to fix and we need to pay for a rental and ford will pay us back I dont think so after all this I dont think i will ever own a ford again

Well, it’s been 4 months now that I’ve had a rental to replace the 2002 Windstar SEL with 134,000 miles. I thought things were finally going well when they told me a couple weeks back the axle was in and they’d get it installed that coming week. Now I’ll share my “Story of the Week” with you. When they started to get the snow off/out from around the car to move it in the garage, one of the front coil springs spontaneously “popped”. Upon further inspection the other coil spring had also spontaneously broken too apparently by just sitting there motionless in the dealer’s lot (Wouldn’t you really rather have a Ford?). The service agent has been on the phone with Ford trying to decide how they’re going to get them fixed under the recall. I told him I didn’t care who paid for it, but don’t ask me to pay for damage to a vehicle I haven’t driven or touched in four months and has exclusively been under their control. It’s about $1,000 worth of work. I personally think it should be covered under the second recall to check for corrosion in the front end. Can you imagine if they had failed on the highway? Maybe there should be a third recall (smile). Till I hear from themthough, I still have a nice safe 2010 van rental. To date, the rental has been almost $5,000, a figure I would have gladly accepted back in November to buy the car outright. Now, I’d probably accept $4,000 after reading all of these entries. We wanted to take the car on a trip to Florida, but no longer. Have them do the recall repairs and eventually move the vehicle on to someone who will get a “good buy”. Before all this happened, I would have taken that car across country without blinking an eye. Not anymore. It’ll carry the geriatric dog to the dump and back and not much more. The saga continues.