1998 ford windstar cruise control deactivation switch is leaking brake fluid onto connectors below causing a fire and safety hazard.
1998 Ford Windstar acceleration complaints
Page 2 of 4: complaints 11 to 40 of 73, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 ford windstar. The contact noticed a burning plastic odor coming from the engine. He exited the vehicle and noticed that the speed control pressure switch was melting and smoking underneath the hood. The vehicle was able to be driven, but he had to disconnect the speed control pressure switch. The contact is in the process of taking the vehicle to the dealer for inspection. The manufacturer will be notified. The failure and current mileages were 99,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 ford windstar. On two occasions when the brake pedal was depressed, the vehicle dramatically accelerated. There were no warning indicators illuminated prior to the failure. The risk of serious injury and a crash were significantly increased. The dealer could not duplicate the failure and no error codes were provided from the diagnostic tests. The contact is in the process of notifying the manufacturer for assistance. The failure and current mileages were 130,000. Updated 03-06-09 *bf updated 03/09/09
Abs fault light and brake light. Cruise control inop.
I had the cruise control set on my 1998 ford windstar. It acted like the engine revved up a couple of times then smoke started rolling out from under the dash. Now the turn signals don't work and the van isn't performing well.
Malfunctioning cruise control.
I have a 1998 ford windstar that I have owned since new, and the cruise control stopped functioning. I determined that the brake switch on the master cylinder failed and was causing the loss of cruise control. I have followed that ford has a major recall on these switches on many of their vehicles do to engine fires. My car is not on the recall, but fluid is leaking into the switch. I have unplugged the switch to prevent the potential fire, but ford says that these switches do not have the problem of earlier switches, I disagree as there is the same indication of failure and leaking fluid. They are just waiting for more fires before they act....
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 ford windstar. The contact stated that the vehicle leaks brake fluid, which causes him to constantly add more fluid in the vehicle. He also stated that the cruise control does not operate. The manufacturer stated that the VIN was not included in the cruise control recall. The recall number was unknown. The current mileage was 100,000 and failure mileage was 90,000. Updated 02-01-08. *kb the consumer stated the fuses blew out in the cruise control. Updated
Even though the van I just purchased does not seem to have a recall on it I had total brake failure due to complete leaking out of all the brake fluid through the cruise control deactivation switch, the dual master cylinder is supposed to prevent this but it didn't. The switch on the bottom of the master cylinder and the fact that the rear wheel cylinders were seeping allowed all the fluid to leave after only three weeks of driving. I just purchased the vehicle. I had mechanics check it out and the switch is the same type that is causing the fires. I have to wonder if the leaking dripping on to hot motor parts could cause the fires as well as some electrical overload due to the brake fluid eating through plastic and rubber . I truly regret purchasing this vehicle before researching. I may be asking the dealer to trade me into another vehicle just due to not wanting to die at an early age due to fords lack of quality control it is a shame that any manufacturer can build any piece of junk without regards to end result and only worrying about the profit of selling and the fact that risk management after the fact of waiting for many to be effected by death or loss of vehicle to have a recall forced and fixing a bad design once pressed to do so. I feel the master cylinders whole safety is in that one chamber is most likely functional under most system failures of wheel cylinders , hoses, etc but having a part directly attached to the front chamber and with the common likelihood of rear wheel cylinder leakage at some point could lead to total system failure like I experienced. The fact that this master cylinder is hidden from easy view does not allow the owner to easily visualize a leak at this part. Why is brake fluid needed to actuate a deactivation of the cruise control wouldn't a switch (electrical or mechanical) placed with the brake pedal arm activating it a simpler way of making this happen.
Dt*: the contact stated while the vehicle was idling the ABS and parking warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was driven to an independent mechanic where the contact was informed the vehicle needed to be inspected by an authorized service dealer. The service dealer mechanic replaced some fuses and the cruise control deactivation switch. There was a recall #06v286000 pertaining to the deactivation switch. The vehicle was not included in the recall due to the VIN.
Consumer has a question as to whether or not the 1998 ford windstar cruise control switch will be recalled.
In september, 2002, I had to replace the speed control pressure switch on the master brake cylinder of my 1998 ford windstar, because it started leaking brake fluid. I also had to replace the drivers side tie rod end because the leaking brake fluid damaged the ruber bushing.
On 4/12/02 59,173 miles. Windstar had ABS & brake light on. Disc brakes replaced and rotors machined. 2/26/04 82,240 miles all ABS sensors,disc brakes,brake fluid reservoir/float assembly replaced,rotors machined. 95,487 miles brake light on. 3/05 cruise control on and off. Abs light flicker on & off. Dealer said not worth money to fix. 9/04/05 fire under battery tray. Van off 2 to 3 minutes. Dealer said cruise control module ignited fire. Brake fluid leaked into it. The ABS pump overheated wire caused leak. Our van is now at chapman ford awaiting our approval to repair problems at a cost of $2200.00. We are now without a vehicle and don't want to approve repairs without talking to someone from your office. Please respond and let us know what our next step should be. We are a one income family so getting a new vehicle is not an option. Your prompt attention would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Cruise control malfunctioned & turned on causing vehicle to begin to speed up. I was in the wal-mart parking lot, when my van suddenly revved up & raced towards 2 pedestrians. I first tried the regular brake - no luck, so I threw the van in park & turned the ignition off. When I would turn the van on again the rpms would jump up immediately to 4000+. I had to be towed in. I did not have the cruise control on at all during the trip so I (as well as the repair shop) was surprised that the cruise control module was the culprit.
Dt: the contact states while driving for about five or ten miles ,if the contact goes to make a right turn or stop, the vehicle will stall. This occurs while decelerating. He states that everything works fine while he is driving the vehicle. It just when he goes to stop that he has the problems. He took the vehicle to his personal mechanic , and they replaced the idle control ,and cleaned the injectors. However, vehicle still has this problem. The vehicle shuts off with no warning. It will start back up as soon as it stalls when he puts it in park. The contact states that this has happened more than 100 times. Vehicle has automatic transmission. The vehicle is regularly maintained. It started about a year ago and it wouldn't do it all the time and now it is doing almost every time you slow down. Has came very close to causing an accident.
Cruise control deactivation switch caught on fire.
Engine ramped up by itself during high-speed drive.
While driving if transmission reaches a certain temperature it drops out of 3rd gear down into 2nd. Engine rpms increase and vehicle vibrates and shakes.
Vehicle surged forward while driving. Consumer has checked to see if the cruise control was engaged. Malfunction caused vehicle to speed up and miss judge turning which interfered with driving ability. Dealer was contacted. Please provide more information.
Accelerator went down on its own while in reverse, no brakes to stop, resulting in a accident. Steering vibrates, recommend rotating the tires. Interior seats slightly twisted, door locks works sometime, interior lights work sometimes.
Vehicle lost power, rpms went up, transmission slipped while travelling 55mph on local expressway.
We were stopped at an intersection. When the light turned green, the transmission locked up, and the engine revved as if it was in neutral. I took two men to push it to the side of the road on a downward slope. The dealership claimed to know of no problem with 1998 windstar transmissions. We know of 3 other owners of these vehicles who have had the same problem.
Vehicle starts to accelerate on its own whenever consumer is trying to slow down. Not taken to dealer yet.
After coming to complete stop and applying accelerator pedal again, vehicle will not respond. Engine revvs, but will not move forward. This happens 2-3 times, then vehicle will move forward again. This happens frequently. Vehicle taken to dealer twice, cannot find problem.
The cruise control failed. Nlm
Vehicle would slip in and out of gear while at a light or stop sign (while in drive gear). Required high rpms to engage causing the vehicle to lurch forward. Transmission replaced at owner's cost.
Vehicle does not shift down into gear at stop, resulting in vehicle rocking backwards until gas pedal is depressed to go forward which results in car lurching forward violently. Inspected by jenkins and wynn ford dealership on diagnostic computer. It was found to have a defective aluminum drum and piston assembly which sticks if there is not enough pressure built up for it to go forward. This was confirmed by the service manager john cornejo at jenkins-wynn on 08/27/01. At this time ford motor company refuses to replace transmission as was recommended by the service staff at this location in clarksville, tn. A ford motor company representative was contacted and told of the problem. She then contacted larry bryant, service manager at this location, who then proceeded to give erroneous information to the representative. The ford motor representative then became indifferent to our situation. We requested to speak to someone of a higher authority and were told that we would be contacted back by her supervisor within 48 hours. Meanwhile mr. Cornejo, stating that the first option of flushing out the transmission would not benefit us, as originally suggested to us by mr. Bryant as an alternative to a rebuilt transmission, admitted that this was not a remedy for this type of defective part. We are currently awaiting mr. Cornejo to contact us on 08/28/01 regarding this fact after he consults with mr. Bryant. As ford motor corp. Customers, we are expected to foot the bill on a defective part that will cost us $2500 to repair through no fault of our own. Defective part is made of aluminum. Ford motor only makes this replacement part in steel now due to the realization that aluminum will fail at some point.
On various occasions when coming to a stop, the van attempts to accelerate. The van will not move forward. Upon pressing on the accelerator, the engine revs up. After 10-15 seconds, the van shifts into gear and lunges forward. This is a problem because there's no indication when this type of movement will occur. On occasions when breaking to slow the vehicle down, the vehicle slips into neutral and will not accelerate without warning. It goes back into drive mode. This again causes another safety hazard. The vehicle has almost been rear-ended nearly causing an accident.
Although there have never been any accidents or injuries, we fear there is a good possibility for a rear-end collision. Intermittently, the vehicle does not react when depressing on the accelerator, the engine does not race. Then, the vehicle lurches forward, almost as if the clutch was released quickly. After each occurrence, we have taken the vehicle to a repair shop. To date, they have not been able to detect the problem.
When driving on the highway at 60 MPH the windstar speedometer dropped to zero, the engine revved and the car lost forward drive for a few seconds. This occurs intermittenly. Crossroads lincoln-mercury rebuilt the transmission about 3 weeks ago and charged $2400. Last wednesday while driving on the highway at 60 it again lost power and seemed to be out of gear again, for a few seconds. It again would not move forward. This occurred twice more in the next few minutes. We pulled to the side of the highway and were able to get it to drive again. We returned it to crossroads lincoln mercury last thursday. They still have it and say it doesn't do it when they drive it. They have not opened up the transmission to look at it again. The electrical problem is that sometimes the interior lights don't shut off. The door ajar light on the dashboard stays on. The chimes stay on under 15 MPH. The locks can't be locked. When the locks are locked with the door lock buttons, they automatically unlock.
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