I just paid our local Ford dealership (van was in for a nys inspection) to perform weld repair on the "front strut/control arm support rod" bushings because they were loose and, in the dealers words, a safety hazard (loose due to corrosion and questionable weld quality by Ford manufacturing). Degradation of welds on a major suspension component under normal wear & tear conditions- isn't that a significant safety issue" how many Windstar has this happened to" I can see replacing components (I.e. brakes, alternators, tires, etc.) over the live of a vehicle but weld repair on the suspension sub-frame" based on other complaints, is this a viable condition or did the dealer fleece me"

- Macedon, NY, USA

The car has been riding rough and when you went over bumps in the road or the surface was not even, the engine felt like it was about to fall out of the car. I had the shocks and struts checked and they were fine. I did receive an extended coverage announcement in the mail on 8/2001 (program #01M03) for the front coil springs and assumed that was the problem. I brought it to the Ford dealership and they said the springs were fine but, they had to "weld both of the lower control are brackets back on to the car". they did not go into any explanation as to why this happened but I got the feeling from their tone of voice and body language that this was not suppose to happen.

- Cambridge, MA, USA