Tl*the contact owns a 1996 ford windstar. After picking up his vehicle from the mechanic, the contact noticed smoke rising from under the hood. He pulled over, opened the hood, and noticed flames coming from the cruise control switch that connects to the bottom of the master cylinder. He notified the dealer and the manufacturer and they stated that nothing could be done because there was no recall. They advised him to call the federal safety agency. The contact extinguished the fire with water, but the vehicle continued to smoke. The vehicle has remained parked at his residence since august 6, 2007. The speed was unknown. The failure and current mileages were 130,000.
1996 Ford Windstar acceleration complaints
Page 2 of 4: complaints 11 to 40 of 82, newest first, as owners wrote them.
While parked, a 1996 ford windstar caught fire due to a defective speed control disconnection switch.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving 15mph, there was a loud popping noise followed by a hissing sound. The vehicle was parked in the driveway for further inspection. The odor of smoke was present, the contact and passengers exited the vehicle immediately. Flames were visible from the front under hood area. The flames primarily surrounded the top of the transmission and master cylinder. The contact extinguished the flames with a fire extinguisher. No injuries were sustained, but the vehicle sustained moderate fire damage. The police were not alerted. The vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop who determined the fire originated from the master cylinder. The manufacturer was alerted. There was a the federal safety agency recall, # 05v38800, regarding the vehicle speed control. The vehicle was not included in the recall due to the VIN.
Dt*: the contact stated a puddle was observed under the vehicle. A week later, a small fire occurred under the hood which was extinguished by the contact. There was a the federal safety agency recall, # 06v286000, regarding the vehicle speed control. The vehicle was not included in the recall due to the VIN.
My 1996 ford windstar has been leaking brake fluid for a few months. It was determined yesterday, by my mechanic, that the speed control deactivation switch was the cause of the leak. He replaced the part and informed me that ford has a recall for this defective part. I called my ford dealership and was told that the windstar does not fall under this recall.
I smelled some type of plastic burning while waiting at a stop light. After turning into the store I discovered the smell stayed with my car. After parking, I noticed smoke pouring from under the hood. I lifted the hood and discovered a connector was overheating and melting. I pulled the connector with a wet paper towel and the smoke cleared. I later learned it was the speed control switch located on the bottom of the master cylinder shorted and caused an overheating problem causing the connector to start smoking and melting. A few days later I could smell the burning again and decided to cut the connector completely off to prevent any further shorting. A couple of days later I heard about a similar recall and decided to notify you as my model was not part of the original recall.
1996 ford windstar caught on fire in the steering column.*mr whiled parked with the engine off, but radio running, consumer saw smoke coming under hood in front of steering wheel. Speed control detection switch was the cause of fire. There is recall but consumer's VIN is not included.
Dt: contact stated on july 19, 05 while pulling into driveway and foot was on the brake the car rapidly accelerated and it ran into the garage. Contact pressed on the brakes and the brake did not respond. When she coming to a stop the engine was raced very fast, and the engine sounded abnormally loud. Contact spoke with someone at dealer's service department, and they did not told her anything as of yet. This was the first time this happened.
Dt: the contact owns a 1996 ford windstar. Two years ago around june 7 2003 while driving the van all weekend, when they got out of the van and walked into a store, were not into the store for 10 minutes and someone said that the vehicle on fire. Had problems with ABS light coming on, and they tried to have this fixed. Were not successful in getting this fixed. The vehicle was totaled, and the insurance company covered it. She believed the problem was from the deactivation of cruise control switch. The fire started under the hood.
While driving, a sudden engine fire occurred in a 1996 windstar. The ford dealer (sound ford, renton wa) states that the fire originated in the cruise control cutout switch. It is clear from the burn pattern that this was indeed the cause. The single occupant was able to exit the vehicle, and the fire was extinguished using a dry chemical fire extinguisher from a local merchant (westmarine, seattle, wa). The ford dealer has been unable so far to repair the vehicle (it's been over three weeks).
Consumer states: needle on speedometer was wobbling . Also, tire blew out with about 20,000 miles on it. The whole side wall of the tire blew out. 35 psi, b.f.goodwrich, advantage plus,1996 windstar van.
Cruise control switch shorted, caused smoke, caused cruise control to fail, replaced with new switch. Ford would not repair as part of recent pickip truck recall on this switch. Had to pay for repair.*ak I have original failed switch which leaks brake fluid into switch causing short and smoke.
Whenever vehicle is driven over 40 MPH speedometer jumps back and forth. When the speedometer jumps back and forth consumer does not know how fast he is driving.
While driving over 55 MPH and without warning speedometer malfunctioned. The numbers fluctuated up and down at high speeds. Once the vehicle got below 55 MPH the system went back to normal. Dealer was unable to find the cause of the problem.
Our 1996 ford windstar gl, which we purchased new, has 118000. We have experienced a broken (bouncing) speedometer, dome light malfunctioned, ABS and brake light malfunctioned, and more recently, leaking coolant which is linked to a blown head gasket and check engine warnings. The cost has been astronomical. According to many other consumers, all of these issues are common with the 96 model. Please investigate whether ford intends to make any recalls regarding these issues.
Speedometer needle bounces all over the speed dial. Problem came all of a sudden. Happens when you go over 30 MPH or so. This has been listed many other nthsa hotline statements on same vehicle. Will anything be done by ford??
Vehicle caught on fire while stopping at a stop sign. Consumer smelled rubber burning ,then smoke started coming from under the hood. Speed control linkages were completely burned. A recall was issued for speed control linkages, but this vehicle was not included due to VIN.
When speed exceeds 40 MPH speedometer fails to read vehicle mileage correctly.
The speedometer failed when the vehicle just passes the 30,000 miles. It is bouncing back and forth between the top and bottom of the gauge. Without an accurate speed indicator, it is not save to drive this vehicle on the highway. I think that ford ought to recall the windstar failed speedometer asap.
Speedometer is no longer showing the actual speed driven, needle jumps around, if driving 75mph it shows 120mph. This happens on a daily basis, there is also a ticking noise. Vehicle has not been examined by a dealer.
Speedometer bounces erratically, and does not register actual speed. Impossible to tell speed of the vehicle.
Speedometer failed. Buzzing sound coming from speedometer. Speedometer swings wildly from 0 to 120 MPH. Speedometer not recording actual speed.
I have been having problems with my check engine light coming on and staying on since sept. 2000 when vehicle had under 100,000 miles on it. Took it to dealer while under warranty. Now have a private certified auto tech who does my repairs and code read outs. I have had a tune up at 95,000 miles, and had to have another one at 121,000 miles. Had problems with engine stalling while driving down the interstate and up a hlll. In summer of 2001, I had the iac valve changed which corrected the stalling problem. Have replaced o-2 sensors at least twice. In past 6 months, the enging has been running very rough and I have a strong smell of gasoline . 2nd tune-up and coil replaced about 2 weeks ago. Engine now running very rough and gasoline odor is so strong that you could not light a match in the vehicle. Check engine light on again as well as brake and ABS light. Radiator completely empty for the 2nd time in 2 weeks.
The speedometer failed. The manufacturer stated it was not considered a safety issue when the consumer asked would certain vehicle's be recalled. *ak
Speedometer replacement. Mr the consumer believed that 545.00 to replaced a speedometer was expensive since it was a common problem.
The speedometer has failed on my 1996 ford windstar placing my wife and two small children at risk. The service department at tony betten ford in grand rapids, mi diagnosed the problem on march 7, 2003. Betten reported to me that a disproportionate number of speedometers have failed on 1996 ford windstars and 1996 ford escorts. I was also told by the service department that ford has not recalled the models because "they (ford motor company) don't consider a failed speedometer a safety issue." in my view ford should recall and pay for repairs. If speedometers aren't a safety issue then why don't we all drive intuitively? Under separate cover I am writing my congressman representative vern ehlers so that his office might offer you assistance.
The speedometer moved erratically and malfunctioned intermittently leaving consumer unsure of speed. Speedometer had to be replaced 2 times. *tt *jb
The speedometer was found to be faulty. Scc
The brakes make a loud sound like a rolling drum when you try to stop. It shakes, rattles and makes a loud dragging like noise until the car stops. Now you have to press the brakes all the way down in order to just slow the van down. Also sometimes when you try to accelerate the van will start to move backwards when it's in drive. Then with a hard kick which sort of feels like someone is rear ending you, the van will go forward. The brakes are so bad at this point that sometimes the emergency brake is needed just to stop the van.
When vehicle is going 65mph rpms escalate higher that normal ,and vehicle dies out. No warning is detected when sticking between gears. Please provide more information.
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