In january 2001 both front tires would go flat overnight. After 2 or 3 visits to tire shops found out there was a failure of both front wheels due to broken welds and not a tire problem. In july of 2001 the third wheel failure occurred and now in sept. 2001 the fourth wheel has failed. Dealer denies knowledge of any defect or complaints from other customers; however a non-dealer company manager who sold replacement wheels to me says both he and wholesaler know this to be a problem with ford windstars.
1995 Ford Windstar wheels complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 38 of 38, newest first, as owners wrote them.
While driving the lug nuts came off. Claim# 22-v658-695
While the insured was driving, the vehicle wheel came off. Claim# 13-7361-978
Four studs broke while remaining on nuts.
Wheels - 2 wheels (rims) warped without reason. Caused constant vibration. Had checked 3 times before problem found. Found at non-ford garage. Rearview mirror fell off while parked. Windshield wipers have never worked properly, constantly smear. Replace at various times.
Rims cracked allowing air to leak out of the tires. Nlm
Recall for engine head gasket, wiring, also had cracked wheel and transmission problems.
While driving about 5-10 MPH the wheel on the left front cracked. The dealer is aware of the problem. The wheel has been replaced by owner at his expense.
On the cylinder head gasket issue, I received a letter from ford last may 1998 and took the vehicle to the dealer to have it inspected. I was told that they check the vehicle and there was no problem with the gasket. Now I am face with major repairs on the engine. The fuel tank is extremely slow filling. I fear a potential fire or explosion related to the fuel filler issue. The transmission groans mostly in the morning and at times does not engage in drive or reverse. Also the form wheel bearings failed early in the vehicles life , another expensive repair was necessary. There is no temperature control to modify the rear heater temperature.
I've had two rim/wheel failures within six months, both of which caused loss of tire pressure. Luckily there were no injuries but I don't believe wheel rims should fail.
As stated previously, the left front wheel on our ford windstar suddenly cracked as she was backing out of our driveway this morning. We immediately took the van to the dealership where we bought it (we are the original owners) and were told they had never seen a problem like this before and that it was no longer under warranty. I believe the wheel is defective perhaps from metal fatigue, but in any event a serious accident could have occured and owners of this year model should be notified and the wheels checked. I also think that ford or the dealership have a responsibility to pay for replacement of this defective wheel.
Transmission stopped working. Also multi-function switch failed, and stress fractures on steel wheels.
Front wheel cracked through diameter of metal, possible safety problem with stress fatigue due to overheating of front brakes or just plain cheap metal. Have another windstar at work and have had to replace 2 front wheels due to similar metal fatigue cracks. That is 3 of 8 wheels cracked within 50,000 miles. Very unusual don't you think. Contacted ford customer service to no avail. Wheels should be recalled as safety problem. Wheels did make noise indicating problem before replacement.
While driving, when stopping at a light and taking off again reaching up to 25 MPH, the wheel rim fell off, it bounced off and hit the car when it bounced back. The dealer cannot duplicate the problem.
Missing/not properly tightened lugs:nuts:bolts.
Possible electrical failure causing ABS, air bag, check engine, and brake light indicators to remain on. Mjs
One of the lugs:nuts:bolts broke off. Manually removed four lugs:nuts:bolts from the others. Noticed these lugs:nuts:bolts were not firm.
Wheel studs snapped off, causing wheel to fall off and front end to collapse.
Stress crack in wheel caused noise from wheel
Noise started coming from the left front side of the vehicle. Dealer inspected vehicle and found a stress crack in the rim.
Noise started coming from the left front side of the vehicle. Dealer inspected vehicle and found a stress crack in the rim.
Intermittent operation of both left and right front windows from the driver's controls. Drive assembly and electrical regulator replaced on the right side window, however the problem continued.
Driver side front wheel fell off of vehicle, while in motion.
Driver side front wheel fell off of vehicle, while in motion.
The front rim cracked at weld.
Inner weld on wheel rim developed a leak, causing tire to go flat.
Passenger's side lugs: nuts sheared off wheel, causing vehicle to be in a crash.
The wheel hub bolts on the front wheel are severely rusted. Tt
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