Ford Windstar

Is your Ford Windstar a lemon?

The Ford Windstar is considered to be one of the quickest minivans on the road. Its acceleration is powered by strong 200-horsepower V6. It is also among the largest of the minivans, with a specially designed interior that caters to multiple needs. It can easily carry up to seven people and large loads of cargo.

The Ford Windstar comes with antilock brakes (ABS), electronic brake distribution (EDB), dual airbags, and dual sliding doors. In addition, the Ford Windstar also offers color-keyed bumpers, childproof door locks and a tire-pressure monitoring system.

Common Problems

• Fuel System and Gasoline problems
• Ignition Switch Fires
• Stalling and Brakes
• Transmission Problems
• Head Gasket Failure

Most online bulletins concur that the brakes of Ford Windstar are unimpressive and that its soft suspension wallows as it takes corners and generally dives under hard braking.

Specific cases of recalls are as follows:

There have been a few after-market fuel filters sold under the Purolator brand name that have been used in the Ford Windstar. But due to incorrect design, the quick connectors did not fully seat with the tube interface, even though it appears that the quick connector is fully attached. This malfunction can result in fuel spillage In the presence of an ignition source, a fire could also occur.

The "child restraint anchorage system" has been another source of recalls. Certain minivans have been found not to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards during testing. It was found during testing that a third row bench floor-to-seat latch released before the strength requirement was met. Moreover, identical latches are used in the second row of seats.

The consequences of such a problem could be grave. If the latches on the second or third row seats are released during a crash, the probability of passengers getting injured increases tremendously.

There are numerous potential problems with the Ford Windstar. For example, one owner reported in an online forum:

"I have a Ford Windstar. The other day while pulling out onto the highway my van all of a sudden lost its gears. I had to coast into a parking lot then tow it home. Did my transmission go out or is there a control module that is bad? I had my rack and power steering pump repaired two weeks earlier."

All these problems unequivocally suggest that Ford Windstar could prove to be a lemon, one that might require huge expenditures of money and time at repair shops.

Legal Rights

See the listing at the above right for things you can do.