ok so on Thursday i was driving my van on the interstate going about 70, Slowed down for an exit, noticed i lost all dash lights, blinker was stuck on, lost window control, door ajar open dinger came on, van started bogging down and we smelled a faint burning smell. made it to a gas station, put some gas in then went to start it and the battery was dead. got in jump started by my pops and now today, monday its doign it all over again except i made it home this time at 12:30 am with no headlights, windows not working, heat neither and no dash lights. get home and turn it off and the battery is dead again! but my headlights keep flashing....help!!!!

I was a dwindling Ford fan until I bought this van. Losing confidence in them over the years, this POS was the straw that broke the camel's back. Bought with 110k miles and not a single problem, I have found the following major issues over the last 20k miles: (please note, this doesn't cover the "small" complaints like the spare tire carrier not letting me lower the spare to use it, or the factory jack buckling on level ground and letting the van fall with no front tire on it, or the shoddy front suspension, or the cheap interior parts, or etc.......)

It is riddled with odd electrical problems like random door locks and windows working intermittently, ABS sensor failures that magically go away, only to come back the next day, and the transmission control computer randomly deciding to throw the thing out of gear at highway speeds.

The van has also developed a strange oil leak that only surfaces while driving it, which splatters the oil all over the place, making the leak impossible to detect without pressure washing the engine, driving a quarter mile, then getting out to see if it leaked or not. Imagine a few miles of that only to find that the oil came out quickly during the last quarter mile, soaking everything again and hiding the leak again in the process.

Let's not forget to mention the transmission issues that plague MANY newer Ford vehicles... This one is leaking fluid all over the place and has broken a few teeth off some of the gears, leaving them sitting in my transmission pan for me to find during a routine fluid and filter change. Add this to the electrical issue with the transmission control computer, and you've got a real pain in the ass problem, a time bomb. I'm sorry, but to be the company that pioneered the planetary gear automatic, I really thought they'd have it down to a science... Ford seems to be going down the toilet instead.

I GUESS IT'S COOL IN A REALLY DISTURBED WAY THAT ALL MY GAUGES BOUNCE TO THE BEAT OF THE MUSIC! OH IS THAT NOT NORMAL?WELL, IT IS FOR MY VAN. I BOUGHT IT USED & IT'S DONE IT EVERY SINCE WE PULLED OFF THE LOT. MOST THE TIME, I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH GAS I HAVE, HOW FAST I'M GOING, IF THE VAN WILL BLOW UP FROM rpmS BEING TOO HIGH OR IF IT'S OVERHEATING!!!! I TRIED TO PUT BETTER STEREO SYSTEM IN & THE PASSENGER SPEAKER DOESN'T WORK @ ALL NOW (B4 IT CAME ON & OFF ,BUT WOULD STAY ON IF YOU BEAT ON THE GLOVE BOX) & THE DRIVER SIDE COMES ON & OFF. SO I BLOW MY KIDS EARDRUMS IN THE BACK TRYING TO HEAR MY FAVORITE SONG. !! OH YEAH, JUST TO DROP THE DASH IS GONNA COST $500 & THEN WHO KNOWS HOW MUCH TO FIX WHATEVER THE PROBLEM IS- i CAN'T GET A SOUND QUOTE ON THAT!!!! NEXT COMPLAINT OF THE ENTIRE VAN IS ABOUT THE TRANSMISSION! WHAT ISN'T WRONG WITH THIS VEHICLE? IS THIS FORD'S JOKE CUZ I'M NOT LAUGHING? WOULD I EVER BUY ANOTHER WINDSTAR-NOT IF SOME1 ELSE BOUGHT IT FOR ME!!!

Electrically... the van is a mystery. My wife took it to get emissions tested a year ago. When the attendant plugged into the computer he gave my wife his number and said to give him a call. It was weird. She called and he said we had some serious "issues" Anyway since then we've been plagued with multiple problems from idiot lights coming on like the e-brake (when it isn't set )or the ABS or the light out indicator when no lights are out. The lights stay on after you shut the van off or just one light such as the right tail light will remain lit. Sometimes the rear air fan will not come on and our fix is to shut it off and restart the van... sometimes this works. The left door also will not auto open or close and the backup warning module was fried the first time we tried to use it. The engine seems to run good though.