While driving my 1999 winstar the overdrive light came on, so I looked in my rearview mirror and saw smoke comming from under the vehicle. So, I pull over to the side of the road and stop, transmission fluid was leaking out. My winstar van broke down out side of nashville, tn with 70,401 miles on it. The costs at john barker's two rivers ford in nashville was $2017.81.
1999 Ford Windstar electrical complaints
Page 6 of 8: complaints 131 to 160 of 208, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Was driving 40 MPH, the right side sliding door caught on fire. The driver managed to pull to the side of road and got out the of vehicle. Another vehicle was passing by and stopped to extinguish the fire . The vehicle was towed to the dealership, but the mechanic was unable to resolve the problem with the sliding doors. *ak the fire dept believed the door lock motor caused the fire. *jb
After vehicle had been sitting for 20 minutes with the engine turned off, the vehicle caught on fire. Dealer had been contacted. *ph the cause was due to an electrical fault on the passenger side of the vehicle where the controls were for the rear A/C. Possible recall # 12117. *scc
While driving, the vehicle lost power steering which made the vehicle difficult to control. *jb the power steering pump was replaced, and also the wires were burnt. Ph
The driver's window did not roll down by using the switch due to an electrical short.
Horn is very hard to activate. I see that many people have already filed this complaint, but I don't see any action taken. Ford has sold a car with a useless horn, which must be in violation of some safety regulation.
We purchased a 1999 ford windstar in september of 2002. The dash lights, especially the odometer and radio blink. They will dim and brighten, dim and brighten. There is no specific pattern. It is a random thing. It's almost like there is a short in the wiring or something. The incident date below is today, but this has been happening for months. I have been checking recalls religiously to see if this was one of them. Also there is rust under the driver's seat. The carfax report did not show any water damage to this vehicle. It almost appears like this piece did not get painted.
While driving the dash lights illuminated, the heat went on and off, and it gave off a burning smell.
The vehicle caught on fire, the investigator determined the fire started in the wiring harness in the rear passenger wheel well.
The horn is near impossible to activate in an emergency and even not in an emergency.
My van was barely out of warranty when the o/d off light began flashing and the check engine light came on. The ford dealer told me that the check engine light was a result of a broken sensor weld on my intake manifold to the tune of approx. $900. They also stated that the o/d off light meant that the entire transmission needed replaced to the tune of $2,700. All this for being 1 month and 500 miles out of warranty. Plus, I see that many people with ford windstars are experiencing the same thing at 35,000 miles and 70,000 (twice) so I see that I will undoubtedly have something to look forward to when the warranty runs out on the transmission... Almost like the darned thing is deliberately designed to create a huge repair bill the moment it is out of warranty.
Consumer states that while driving at highway speeds the vehicles engine shut down. No warning. No injuries. Consumer was not able to restart, vehicle was towed to dealer. Dealer states the instrument cluster needs replacing. Please provide any further information. Ts
No summary. Dt
Interior lights flicker frequently for no apparent reason. Light switch manipulated but does not seem to affect it. Radio volume changes. Failure occurrence several times per day. Last occurrence was yesterday (9/26/02) where the lights flickered three separate occasions. Ts
Horn assembly is hard to locate on steering wheel. Dealer has been notified. Please provide further information.
Fire under hood: previous electrical problems: interiors lights coming on and staying on, dealers unable to find problem or duplicate. Radio turning on and changing stations, components on its own. Replaced on 03/06/2000. Sliding doors opening while vehicle is moving and refusing to close. Dealer unable to find cause. Computerizes keys not working in ignition on two occasions. System being reprogram both times. Am side of radio not working at night five days before fire. Noted that when headlights are turned off, am works, but when turned back on nothing but static. 2) transmission: several occassions it would hardly pull up a hill, others the car would stay at one speed although my foot was not on the accelerator. Extra braking was needed to slow vehicle down or stop. 3) computer module replaced several times and still worked erractic through 08/16/2002. 4) speedometer cluster performed erractic until relaced to include mileage doubling for any mileage driven on a given day. 5) suspension problems: spindle connecting rod replaced 03/07/2002, struts and ball joints replaced 05/29/2002, and lower arms and tie rod ends replaced 06/07/2002.
While driving 5-10 MPH consumer noticed smoke coming from under the hood. Consumer pulled over, before fire department arrived vehicle burned to the ground.
Horn does not work. Dealer checked vehicle, and installed a new horn assembly, but horn still does not function.
Electrical system cutting off while driving.
Vehicle had been sitting all day and it suddenly caught on fire. Vehicle was totalled. Fire department stated that fire started in engine compartment on driver's side. Dealer has been contacted.
Engine light illuminates, indicating a malfunction within computer. Dealer has reset the computer on numerous occasionswithout any permanent results. Please give any further details.
There was a short in the alternator, causing a fire, claim 28-3093-207.
Insured pulled off the road to stop at a stand and the vehicle caught on fire, fire was found to have resulted from faulty cooling fans/wires, claim 59-v539-348.
01 v 262 000/auxiliary A/C blower motor wiring: this recall repairs was made on the 7 dec 01 by louisburg ford; louisburg, ks; phone # 913/837-5333. On the incident date while traveling 45 MPH a fire started in the engine compartment, beleived this may be the cause of the fire. Dealer/manufacturer was notified. Feel free to provide any further information concerning this matter.
Vehicle failed to start 11 times. Each time the dealership indicated the car was "fixed;" however, within weeks the same problem occured again. The dealership only contacted the ford manufacturing company to request assistance in ascertaining the nature of the problem and subsequent recommendations for correcting the problem after legal representation was obtained. A comprehensive diagnostic work-up was completed which revealed no information relative to the origin of the problem. As a result, we were informed we could, most likely, continue to exprerience the same type of problem with the vehicle as long as we owned it. Despite the ongoing difficulty we have experienced with this vehicle over the course of the past year, the dealership has refused to work toward a resolution in this issue by refusing to either reimburse us for the cost of the automible minus wear and tear or pay the difference between the present value of the vehicle and another vehicle for which our automobile could be traded.
Horn is very hard to press, and at night symbol is very difficult to see. Contacted dealer, and dealer noted that problem is normal for a vehicle. *ak
Horn button is difficult to operate. It is also impossible to modulate, resulting in all-or- nothing operation.
The main processor failed. Nlm
While driving cruise control would not work.airbag light came on an off once every three weeks. Also, locks started to lock and unlock by themselves. Headlights were flickering off and on. Finally, then horn failed. Consumer replaced horn, and horn still did not work. Consumer felt problems may have been related to clock spring. Please provide any further information.*ak consumer wrote in saying the name and address belongs to her, however the vehicle is not hers, nor is any of the information along with it.
Consumer states he has never been able to activate horn, have been unable to activate during dangerous near-crash situations.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 1999 Ford Windstar?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history