Problems with 2001 Ford Windstar STEERING

My abs light/brake light is on - started 2007- was told it would cost 1200.00 dollars to fix it; that it was ok to use the car in this condition. 8/14/14- replaced the wheels bearings on the front right and left wheels-after the bearings / and sway bars were replace still hear a grinding noise front the right front of vehicle. noise becomes more pronounced the longer you drive the vehicle . also the abs/brake light is still on when you drive the car. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 ford windstar. while driving 56 mph, power steering fluid was leaking from the end seals of the rack and pinion, which caused the power steering to fail. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and they stated that, in order to repair the vehicle, a whole new rack and pinion steering system was needed to replace the seals. the repair would cost $600 without any reimbursement. the vin was unknown. the current mileage was 59,000 and failure mileage was 57,000.

This is a 2001 vehicle. after warrnaty expired we have invested almost $2000 in repairs and things continue to break.*jb

I have a 2001 ford windstar. the vehicle currently has 100,205 miles on it. i have had to replace the front strut bearings and struts at 75,000 miles and again at 100,000. i have also had to replace the inner and outer tie rods at 69,000 miles. and the left outer tie rod again at 100,000. i have had over $2,500 in repairs in the time frame of one year, not including 4-wheel brake job. i brought the vehicle in for service at 82,000 miles and told the ford dealership that i was again hearing the "bad strut noise". at this time the 1 yr, 12,000 mile warranty would have picked up the cost of the repair. i was told that there was not anything wrong with the struts. i would be interested to know if anyone else has had ongoing strut and tie rod problems. *nm

I purchased this 2001 ford windstar sel 11/18/04 from pohanka chevrolet. on my way to kansas on 11/20/04 the cd/cassette player went out. than i started hearing a noise in the steering. when i returned they eventually replaced the stereo and after numerous times in, they replaced the power steering pump. after that i started hearing a grating sound when coming out of a parking space. pulling out in reverse, or going forward, after turning the wheel to go straight it would make this sound. they could not figure it out so i took it to a ford dealer who said this was normal for a windstar. it doesn't feel normal and i hope they will replace anything it may be damaging. also, after the power steering was "fixed" i started feeling and hearing this whirling sound from the engine. a few times the car almost cut off at a stop light, but i put it in neutral and it continued running. again, they said this is normal for a windstar. i now see why there are no new windstars. i just wanted it noted that this has been addressed a number of times with pohanka and ted britt ford, to not avail. pohanka even offered me a chevrolet malibu, plus more money out of my pocket, as a replacement. i wanted a van, not a car.

Numerous things have gone wrong since we bought the vehicle. items covered under warranty: electric seat stopped working twice, and transmission wouldn't shift when it was supposed to. items not covered under warranty: brakes replaced at 30,000+ miles-told was normal for them to wear out so quickly; rack and pinion replaced at around 55,000 miles; months after brakes replaced, brakes grind loudly when coming to a stop (brakes checked numerous times, but was told they were ok); abs brake light comes on and stays on after driving (not illuminated on start up, but comes on later); back dome light not secure-falls out; dome lights sometimes come on when braking; check engine light on for months, didn't have it checked, but turned off by itself; sliding door drags-rusted on vechicle frame.*ak

I ran out of gas and the steering wheel locked up on me. i was stuck in the middle of the road. i didn't know what to do. the first time it happened, my husband was in iraq. since the steering wheel was locked, it wasn't like i could just put it in neutral and get my van out of the way. it was stuck in the middle of the road. it happened again. luckily, my husband was back and it was by church, so i was able to get help right away. i have never owned a vehicle where the steering wheel locks up. i am going to look in to an attorney about it because what if i was on the highway and my van broke down for whatever reason, the steering wheel would lock and i would get in a wreak. what if my kids where with me. that's just not right. i have bought ford vehicles all my life and i am telling you what, i don't know if i will ever buy another one after this. that is soooo unsafe. i have tried to call ford twice and they have given me the run around. so i don't know! i will have to talk to legal council i guess. who knows! i just love all the things us military have to deal with and now this! *la

While driving at low speed and turning, the vehicle stalled with out any warning. also has problem with the steering wheel and the turn signal working intermittently. *nm the dealer replaced the upper intake manifold gasket and the idle air control valve, however the vehicle stalled again and the dealer replaced idle air control valve again. the power steering fluid was low. *jb

We purchased our 2001 ford windstar with approximately 24,000 miles on it. one week after we purchased the van the indicator light for the air bags would not go off. we took the van to the dealer and they fixed the problem. shortly after that incident the rear heat and a/c would not operate. we took the van to the local dealer again and they repaired the problem under warranty. a few weeks after that the check engine light came on and they tried to fix it but it came back on. they charged us for that visit. the check engine light is still on we now have around 70,000 miles on the van. when the van had accumulated about 35,000 miles the transmission started shuddering. the van would shake all over during driving. recently i had to have the transmission replaced. there is a leak around the passenger door on the left side of the van. there is a clicking noise when i brake that no one seems to know what it is or how to fix it. now there is a loud humming noise coming from the automatic power steering fluid pump. it is so loud that it can be heard even when the radio is turned on. it used to be loud when i turned a corner or onto another street but now it is loud when i am sitting at a stop light. when we first purchased the van there was a foul odor coming from the venting system. i asked the service tech at the local dealership about this but he did not know why this was happening. we still have an odor even after changing the filter twice for the vent system. we are very unhappy with our purchase and would never consider buying another windstar.*ak

2001 ford windstar lx 40,000 miles we had to replace the "worn out" (stated by ford mechanic) rack and pinion steering, pump and reservoir for a cost of us$ 1,100.00. i did research online with other 2001 windstar owners and found several cases of this exact same repair. the entire steering assembly cannot have an effective life of 40k miles, this should be a recall service for ford to make good on. *nlm

Power steering system failure. traction control failure. anti-lock brake (abs) system failure. tire pressure monitor system failure. *tt

I had my van for 1 year. recently, the inner tie rod on the drivers side had to be replaced, because it was already worn out with just 56,000 miles on it. i had this done because the vans steering had a lean to it. it would feel like the left tire was leaning when i would go through a turn. at normal speeds, i have even had the van lurch to the right about 3 feet when making a left turn on a curve. i am putting it back in the shop, because my mechanic can't find the problem. we looked today(04-01-03) and when you turn the wheel, the entire rack will move. it moves before the tires even move. a definite safety issue to say the least. definitely not what you would expect from a $27,000 dollar van with mostly highway miles on it. *jb

While driving theft light on dash comes on rear wiper comes on by it self and engine turns off leaving vehicle moving with no power, no steering, no brakes. after stopping vehicles ignition is locked out with no power/no crank.*ak

Fluid from power steering system leaked onto some hot engine component, probably the exhaust system, and produced a rolling fire at the rear of the engine compartment below the firewall. vehicle was being parked in a parking space in front of a service station when fire erupted. my son who was inside the station, saw the fire and rushed out to warn us out of the vehicle. station personnel brought a fire extinguisher and my sons (the other was driving) raised the hood and extinguished the fire. the fire was burning fiercely and was difficult to reach, but was extinguished before any fuel system components became involved. smoke had come from under the engine compartment twice previously during the day, but we assumed that the transmission had been overfilled and the excess was being vented and boiling off on the transmission. i called ford with the assumption that excess transmission fluid was leaking and was told that the transmission would probably be alright. since this was my mother's funeral, we decided to continue in the vehicle to the cemetery. smoke again came from under the hood when we parked at the cemetery, but cleared quickly. we had driven about 10 miles from the cemetery when the fire occurred.

Brakes failed on three different occasions (repair dates: 3/22/02, 4/1/02 and 4/15/02). first, my wife noted the brake pedal was going all the way to the floor before there was any response. the dealership advised that this was normal. we insisted that it wasn't, until there lead technician found and replaced a faulty hcu. the second failure came while i was driving my wife and 6 month old baby from mo to va. while on the west virginia turn pike, the anti-lock brakes failed again and eventually the brakeing system failed all togoether by the time we reached our destination of suffolk virginia. barton ford, in suffolk va, replaced the hcu and the ecu and repaired a brake fluid leak. the third incident occurred while driving back to mo. once again the brakes did not respond normally. once back in o'fallon, mo. the dealership found a air bubble in the brake line and they reprogrammed the abs module. each brake failure also affected the traction control system and the speedometer. we have also had to have one window replaced, the drivers side sliding door adjusted, a seal inserted in the rear of the vehicle due to a recall item, and bolts tightened at the engine cradle mounts. recently, the fuel cap indicator light illuminated for a period of 5 days for unknown reasons and we are currently unable to fill the gas tank to its normal capacity. this vehicle is unsafe and hardly worth the $27,220 that we are paying for it.

Noticed a squeaking sound under drivers side found two defective tie rods.*ak