This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
I have a 2002 Ford Windstar sel. In October of 2009 my van started pulling to the left and became hard to control on the road. When I looked at my van from the back I could see my back tires were bowed outward. I took my van to the auto shop and was told the back axle was cracked and ready to bust. I have read about this same thing happening to other consumers with 2002 Windstar and I think it's a major safety issue and a recall should be issued. I had a large repair bill and my brand new back tires were completely destroyed and had to be replaced due to the bowing of the tires as a result of the busted axle.
Yesterday, March 15, 2010, I was driving back to work after lunch and noticed an unusual rubbing and rattling sound at the rear of my 2002 Ford Windstar van. I pulled into a parking lot to look at the tires (I thought one might be defective) - I didn't notice anything unusual. I continued on to work (approximately 1/4 to 1/2 mile away and parked my vehicle. I got down and looked under the rear of the vehicle and saw that the rear axle had broken completely in half and the right rear tire was leaning into the fender well. It was obvious that I would not be able to drive the car so I called a tow truck to have the vehicle removed to a repair center. The result was that I had the part welded back together but the tires are still cocked out at an unusual angle which I am pretty sure will cause the tires to wear in an unsafe way. Not only that but the rear end of the van sits at an odd angle now. I just purchased the car in October 2009 and it only has 52K miles on it. I went online and checked to see if there have been any complaints regarding this problem and found that there have been numerous complaints about this model vehicle with the very same problem. I was surprised that were so many. I sent an inquiry to Ford Motor Corp and am awaiting a response in regards to repair or replacement parts support.
Our 2002 Ford Windstar SE on chrstmas night on our way home from in-laws the rear axle snapped in half, after searching online I found that this happened to 2 other people and feel this is a life threatening problem and Ford should make a recall on issue. Being this happened on a holiday we have to wait till Monday morning when our mechanic opens shop to find out what we are going to do. Also our insurance company was notified and is sending someone on Tuesday to appraise the damage. Here is the link to those people this happened to www.youtube.com/watch?V=sunu9D7ejmu this one even made the news. Thank you for taking your time to review this issue.
The contact owns a 2002 Ford Windstar. During an oil change a mechanic discovered frame corrosion. The vehicle has not been driven because the engine can fall out without any prior warnings. The current and failure mileages were 80,000.
When driving my 2002 Ford Windstar mini van on the highway we noticed a loud slamming noise from the rear causing the vehicle to lose control, swerving to the right shoulder and stalling with the tail end still in the middle of the two lane highway, as the tractor trailer behind us who was very alert nearly missed a rear end collision with our vehicle. Upon inspection of the underside of the vehicle we noticed the rear axle beam was split in two, rusted and rotted out and hanging to the ground, a tow truck was notified and the operator stared in disbelief that the axle had broken in half. This obvious defect could have cost us our lives. This defect needs to be addressed immediately before a some lives are lost as a result of the Ford Windstar rear axle beam breaking while occupants and passengers are riding in this vehicle. This incident was reported to the Ford customer service assistance center and they took the information about the vehicle and the nature of the complaint advising me to speak to a Ford service manger and for the defective vehicles broken axle to be inspected by a Ford dealer.Ford customer assistance rep advised me not to return a call to them because they have the incident on file and the Ford service manager would follow up on the complaint. Upon speaking to the Ford service manager he asked a bout the type of problem year and model of the vehicle. Being a 2002 Windstar with 153,000 miles he stated that because of the mileage and the age of the vehicle Ford would not assist me in getting this situation resolved. He also stated that the cost to repair this problem would be 5 hours labor charge @ $100 per hour and the cost of the axle beam would be $500 plus what ever other damages incurred. As these would be my out of pocket costs plus a $275 tow charge. Needless to say how costly this event became as well as the possible worst case scenario a fatal accident could have occurred as a result of this defect. This must be addressed.
- Poughkeepsie, NY, USA
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I was traveling at approximately 30 mph, heard an unusual noise, felt like I hit a bump, momentarily lost control of vehicle, traveled approximately 50 more feet to side of road with all kinds of intermittent bumping, screeching and unusual sounds. I got out and saw my driver's side rear tire folded into the wheel-well. I saw the same thing on the other side. Had to have a flatbed take it to a garage. Rear axle had broken in two and will be replaced. There is some other possible damage to equipment near rear axle that has yet to be determined.
My 2002 Ford Windstar has a cracked rear axle! my fiance noticed it "fishtailing" alot and a noise from the rear of the van. I checked right away and saw the tire leaning in on the passenger side. Upon looking underneath I saw the axle cracked almost completely in two! searched the internet and got hundreds of hits on Windstar with the same problem!!
While driving at a low speed (35 mph), suddenly and without warning or apparent reason, the rear axle snapped on my 2002 Ford Windstar minivan, locking the rear wheels and causing me to lose control of the vehicle. The axle, (Ford calls it a "housing" looked as if it had simple snapped in half. - at the dealership, I learned that a similar incident had been reported a month earlier. - my concern is that this may occur repeatedly and to others traveling at highway speed. The Windstar minivan is the vehicle of choice for people with young children. This failure caused both rear tires to fail to move, and in my opinion is a catastrophic failure of a critical component of the vehicle.
Clunking noise heard in right rear of 2002 Ford Windstar. Inspection by owner found crack in rear axle beam. Ford dealer replaced axle beam stating it was cracked due to improper jacking. They pointed out two "dimples" in the underside of the axle beam as evidence of the improper jacking, and stated that the crack started there. After the rear axle beam was replaced, I investigated the underside of the new beam, and found the identical "dimples" were present on the new beam. These "dimples" are, I believe, caused by the forming of the beam by the manufacturer and not due to improper jacking. I believe that the rear axle beam of my Ford Windstar cracked because of an inherent defect caused during the forming process.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Canton, OH, USA