Problems with 2000 Ford Windstar POWER TRAIN

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. while driving 70 mph, the rear axle detached from the vehicle. the contact was able to coast the vehicle to the side of the road. the vehicle was towed to westland ford (located at 3450 wall ave, ogden, ut 84401, (801) 629-5500) where it was diagnosed that the rear axle needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired due to the repair fees. the contact stated that the vehicle was previously inspected regarding nhtsa campaign number: 12v193000 (power train). the manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided case number: 16366106. the approximate failure mileage was 212,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. while driving various speeds, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration and the abs sensor indicator remained illuminated. as a result, the vehicle failed to accelerate properly. while the vehicle was undergoing routine service, the independent mechanic also discovered that the front driver side control arm was damaged and needed to be replaced. the cause of the failures was not diagnosed. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer and local dealer were not notified. the vin was invalid. the failure mileage was approximately 200,000.

Complete transmission failure after od light is flashing. from my research , this is a common widespread problem and ford should recall these transmissions. it is very dangerous to have a vehicle suddenly stop accelerating when driving at high speed or when pulling into traffic. i was pulling onto a busy highway at night when my transmission failed.

My grandson(4year old)and i was driving home from bank on 15 april 2017,then suddenly on puritan ave the drivers side rear tire started to rub frame and smoke entered vehicle ,i got out to check and notice the rear axle on drivers side was cracked and tire was leaning in and rubbing frame because of cracked axle. i was 2 blocks from home, so i drove home very slowly ,once home i made online appointment to take car to dealership which was for 17april 2017 at suburban ford of ferndale 21600 woodward ave ferndale,mi 48220 tel: 248-399-1000. i had to call aaa michigan and have van towed to dealership and once there the service personell told me that i would have to pay to have van repaired because the recall had expired in 2015 they did'nt even inspect to see what was wrong just assumed ,so i showed him the recall letter which he said it don't matter so i had to have van towed back home where it sits now, i wasshocked and harden by the rude treatment of the dealership, so i call ford motor company and was told the same thing that i would have to pay for repairs myself and that recall was only for a re-inspection,just sad how i was treated,i'm a disabled veteran and needs my vehicle for doctors appointments and wife appointments also.

Under recall# 15s27, ford has declined to replace rear axle with at reduced cost. (see attached recall notice.) this rear axle corrosion problem was persistent in this model.

The rear axle on the drivers side has a crack in the repair bracket but dealer told me i missed the deadline on ford paying for recall

2000 ford windstar. consumer writes in regards to axle broke in two pieces, while driving. *smd

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact stated that while driving at 10 mph, the engine and the transmission failed. the contact stated that the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. the contact was informed that the vehicle was extremely corroded from the front of the vehicle to the rear, which caused the engine and transmission to separate from the sub frame of the vehicle. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 200,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer for nhtsa campaign number: 15v608000 (suspension) and the remedy for the repair did not work. the contact stated that the dealer also inspected and serviced the transmission, but a failure occurred after the dealer's repair. upon leaving the dealer, the suspension was unstable and the vehicle stalled without warning. the vehicle was unable to be restarted. the vehicle was towed back to the dealer for further inspection and diagnostic testing. the contact was still waiting on the dealer to provide a permanent remedy for the condition of the vehicle. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the vin was not available. the approximate failure mileage was 129,405.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. while driving at low speeds, there was a loud abnormal noise coming from the rear of the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the rear axle was fractured. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 12v193000 (power train:axle assembly). the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 115,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact stated that all the gauges on the instrument panel failed to function properly. the contact mentioned that the fuel gauge would display full when the fuel was low. in addition, the vehicle would be in drive and the instrument panel would display that the vehicle was in reverse. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 157,007. the vin was not available. ma 10/15/2015 *cn

I was driving down on 896, in the left hand lane, when my 2000 ford windstar lx van stopped running. i was going about 50mph when all of a sudden it just stopped. (i did have some transmission slipping previously but it had stopped.) (i thought that it was because the van hadn't been driven for about 4 months). i immediately put my hazards on and called the delaware state police. if this had happened on the interstate, i would have been killed. as it was. it happened this morning while i was on my way to work. i had people come flying up behind my vehicle and blowing their horn at me. thankfully it was not rush hour otherwise i would not be here right now, which means my children would be motherless!

I was driving and without any warning the van just made a huge sound, and went left to right and back several times. very scary! i almost lost control of it. i had just left the highway! i managed to slow down and move the van by the side of the street. after full stop, went to look and noticed that the rear axle was almost touching the ground and looked broken in half! i remember the van went thru a recall in 2012 (07-19-2012) and had been taking care by suntrup ford. i found the papers today about that recall and the invoice from the dealership with the listing of the work done per ford. my take is that the recall was not done properly or the recall was not demanding enough. the brackets installed did not do the job to make this vehicle safe! i took photos. *tr

My 2000 ford windstar was repaired last year on a recall for the possible rear axle failure. ford installed brackets on the rear axle as a remedy. on saturday 8-30-14, the rear axle failed. the axle is actually broken and the break can be seen inside of the bracket they installed. i called ford and they told me they don't warranty the recall remedy repair. what are my options to have this remedied in good faith? *tr

I was driving home from work at about 915 pm june 22 2014, when i hear my back tires sound like they were catching a flat. i slowed down and pulled over into a restaurant parking lot. when i pulled in i hear a loud scratch sound and i smelled burning rubber really bad. my cousin came on the scene to pick me up and he looked under the van and took a picture. the axle cracked in half and the back tires looked pushed in at the top and protruding out at the bottom..if i had been going the speed limit of 50 mph i would have had an accident. i have 5 children waiting at home for me when i get off work. im just thankful i didn't have an accident. but now i don't know how i can continue working without my van. *tr

My van has had weird swaying issues when going very slowly or fast like highway speeds. finally the other day, the axle broke. the rear one. that was recalled. they were so bad in these vehicles, ford was buying them back and giving people rental cars until they were fixed. i was told they won't fix it at a dealership, then ford said the same! they won't fix a part that is broken after having a known problem, so known that there was a huge recall and they were doing buybacks because of it? but they won't fix mine? i have to walk miles to the grocery store and miles to work. this shouldn't be my problem. my entire family was in the van when it broke. they all could have died! ford doesn't care! they won't even fix a part that they know they screwed up on and were fixing! such crap. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact stated that the dealer inspected the vehicle and stated that there was erosion and cracking around the axle. the contact received a recall notification for nhtsa campaign id number: 10v385000 (suspension), however the contacts state was not apart of the recall, as it only covered the north eastern part of the united states where concentrated use of salt on road surfaced was used to melt and/or break up road surface ice. . the manufacturer was made aware of the issue. the approximate failure mileage was 148,900. the consumer stated while working on the rear air conditioning unit, a crack was observed on the rear axle. the crack was located on the axle a distance from the left rear, driver's side wheel. the consumer stated during the examination of the rear suspension system, it was easy to see that there was an opening in the axle structure where the coil spring interfaced the axle. the opening allowed salt concentrated road spray to enter the internal structure of the axle and settle to its lowest point. since the axle had no drain holes to allow for trapped road spray to drain away, the salt concentrated road spray would in fact set up corrosion within the internal structure of the axle which, over time would weaken the strength of the rear axle allowing fatigue cracks to appear. updated 07/16/14 updated 09/16/14*lj updated 1/15/15 *js

Transmission started leaking fluids all over the road and started slipping to where i couldn't get home with it. *tr

Was traveling at 58 mph, the transmission made a loud noise, the van jumped a couple of times, then just completely stopped moving in the middle of the highway. *tr

i currently own 2 - 2000 ford windstar vans. both of my vans are wheel chair conversion vans, rear entry type. they are used to transport my son, a student in college at mississippi state university. he has cerebral palsy, and uses a power wheelchair. his friends, and attendants use the vans to transport him. last spring i had one of the vans taken to the dealership for the key programming. without my knowledge, the repair to the rear axel was made, which involved installing support brackets to the axel. these brackets are clamped together on the top of the axel. this increase in axel height caused a problem that took several months for me to diagnose. anytime the van drove over a bump, a severe jar, and loud bang happened. a couple of weeks ago, both vans were sitting next to each other. i was describing the problem to one of my drivers, and began to show him what might be the problem. and i saw it, the installed brackets were hitting the bottom of the wheelchair floor. it was metal against metal, and had began to bend into the floor pan. i took the van back to the dealership, who stated they did what was required, and that was all they could do. but now all the weight of the van is pounding on these brackets, which are designed to strengthen a weak spot on the axel. they decided to place a piece of rubber above the bracket, but this only increases the axel height. i feel the axel should have been replaced. the factory bump stop no longer functions, as this new dealer designed bracket is my new bump stop. i'm concerned this constant slamming of the body into the corroded axel is more dangerous than what i was facing originally. calls to ford has been pointless. i have read dealers have discretion of replacing vs repairing *tr

Abs light and traction control lights coming on. sliding doors not fully locking coming open while driving. *tr

When shifting the car into p, r, n, or d, it makes a loud thumping sound and makes the whole car jerk. when i turn the steering wheel you can hear a loud grinding, creaky cracking like noise coming from the front of the car. *tr

11s16 example template, front lower control arm: see suspension and structure of vehicle. i do not see a recall that visibly includes california as a recall state. i have definitely experienced this or a similar issue. there appears to be a large scale recall and buyback program. my vehicle was positively identified for the cruise control/speed control recall and serviced at gosch ford in hemet, ca. i experienced more issues than only that, or even than that and the above. contact for more information. not limited to only this recall, vehicle experienced several issues, many of which were attended to with out of pocket funds, either to prevent, or due to, mechanical breakdown/failure. please also consider axle recall, and additional for this vehicle. i need an assessment done on my ford 2000 windstar lx so i may be compensated for the total costs and damages and have the vehicle replaced or completely repaired to a safe, drivable condition. (right front corner of vehicle collided with an object, part(s) failure apparent as what appears to be the front lower control arm is detached. a separation of a front lower control arm rear attaching bracket may result in a lower control arm separation. a separation of both front subframe rear body mounts may result in separation of the steering intermediate shaft. either condition could result in significant loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash. front *tr

The first time my wife was driving our 2000 ford windstar van lx. she was crossing over a bridge and the rear axle broke in have.the van was towed to our mechanic he put another rear axle on, to the tune of 1,750 dollars. the year that was 2007. fast forward to feb.2, 2013 i'm backing out of our driveway and guess what happens, you guessed it the rear axle breaks again. *tr

2000 ford windstar. consumer writes in regards to defective rear axle assembly in vehicle. *smd the consumer stated she noticed a clunking sound when she backed out of her driveway, but didn't think much of until the second week in february, when it happened again, but it was much louder. the rear end of the vehicle felt as though it was swaying, when she drove over a bump in the road, the consumer took the vehicle to a mechanic, where a huge crack was fond in the rear axle's man bar. the mechanic informed the consumer a recall had been issued for the same problem. when the consumer and the mechanic contacted the local ford dealer, they were told there we no recalls associated for the vehicle identification number.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact stated that while driving approximately 10 mph, the rear axle fractured. the vehicle was towed to the dealer for diagnostic testing. the technician stated that the rear axle needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact that the vehicle was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 12v193000 (power train). the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 144,000.

I have 2 problems with the brakes, problem 1 the master cylinder is leaking, causing the brake light to come on. problem 2 the abs light will come on when driving, it turns itself on and off. power train, the o/d light will flash when starting up, will turn off after a couple of minutes. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact stated that he took the vehicle in for repairs under nhtsa campaign id number: 10v385000 (power train:axle assembly). after the repairs, the contact discovered that the rear axle was still fractured. the vehicle was not taken back to the dealer and the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure and the current mileage was 160,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. while at a stop light the contact heard a loud bang and the vehicle became resistant to acceleration. the vehicle was towed to the dealer where the technician advised the contact that the transmission would have to be replaced. the transmission was replaced. the contact also noticed that the brake lights were illuminating without depressing the brake pedal. the failure recurred intermittently. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostics where the technician stated that the battery should be replaced however, the failure continued after the battery was replaced. the vehicle was not further repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 79.000.

Sitting at a stoplight, foot on brake. when light turned green, normal pressure on accelerator. loud bang sound. no forward or reverse gear. put vehicle into neutral and pushed into nearby driveway. vehicle towed that evening. faulty transmission. ford dealer says possibly bad torque converter. rebuilt transmission installed. cost to me $3000. ford claims no recall on the part or the assembly. *tr

The rear sling door has door latches locks linkages problem it does not close all the way the door latches do not latch and lock all the way close make it unsafe that the door could open at any time from 0 to 75 mpr it's a 2000 ford windstar and i called ford and ask about the rear axle recall and did not want to fix my rear axle at all or any of the recalls that it has. *js

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact attempted to accelerate forward from a complete stop when she heard a loud pop. she was unable to accelerate forward however, she was able to accelerate in reverse. the vehicle was towed to a private mechanic where he noticed that water was in the transmission and advised the contact to have the transmission replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. no repairs were performed. the current and failure mileages were 107,000. the vin was not available.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact noticed a leak coming from underneath the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a faulty transmission. the manufacturer was aware of the failure; however, offered no further assistance. no repairs were performed. the current mileage was 115,965. the approximate failure mileage was 115,800.

I was driving on the highway and all my instrument panel needles (gas, rpm, mileage, temperature) were all jumping around. this went on all the way home. i parked the car but the rpm needle was stuck and i could not shift the car into park (p) and could not turn off the car. i called a local mechanic and he came over and put the car in neutral (n) and turned off the car. the car had to be towed to the mechanic to have the instrument panel checked. the mechanic was able to move the rpm needle so that i could shift the car but the instrument panel continues to sporadically go from working, to not working at all, to all the needles jumping around. the mechanic was aware that i had the transmission done 3 times since i bought the car in sept. 2003 and told me that the malfunctioning instrument panel may be contributing to the transmission issues. *tr

While driving my 2000 ford windstar in a grocery store parking lot, preparing to go onto a very busy road, the van made a loud bang and slammed to a stop. i was alarmed as i had my foot on the gas pedal at the time and i was going about 10 miles an hour. the jolt from the sudden stop was enough to jerk myself and my 3 children forward, it was rather shocking. if i had been going 65, or if there had been a car close behind me, and it slammed to a stop, it would have had catastrophic results. i pressed the gas to go, and nothing. the only gear that would work was reverse. i had to park it and call a tow truck, it was taken to a ford dealer who determined the transmission needed to be replaced. the van had 115, 552 miles on it. *tr

2000 ford windstar van, i think when ford made these vans , so many of the part was defects , that's why so many recalls , there are 12 recalls on the van and more to come, please recalls the windstar , not just part but the whole car before more deaths occur , there's some thing serous wrong with this van , with all the noise under the front , and the steering, the van some times smells like some thing is burning , i check all the fluids and the smell is still there, transmission problems , the van has had more then one tranmission that i know of replaced, the door pop open while driving( side sliding door) , please recall the whole van, don't let our children lives be in danger . *tr

Hi i owned a ford windstar 2001 and having trouble for the past months.. we took it to auto shop mechanics and got transmission rebuilt paid almost $2,000 for it. then got that fixed then i drove it for a while then all of the sudden driving on the freeway the engine quit so i called for help tow truck was there then brought it to auto mechanics to get it fixed problem was alternator got that fixed paid over $500.00 .now runs okay .. but now every time i turn the van on the engine lights on all the time while driving and abs lights on then the brake lights on too.. and the smoke that coming from exhaust from the rear smoking so bad...i need help this is could be part of a recall for fordwindstar.. i just don't have money to pay for the fixing ..i hope ford realized this i think i'm not alone out there dealing the same problems...thank you looking forward for the response... *tr

2000 ford windstar, the control arm front passenger side detached from the frame while my wife was driving to work on 11/19/10. luckily there were no other cars coming or she would have hit them head on. all vehicle controls were lost; no steering , no transmission drive train. the vehicle swerved out of control until luckily, the vehicle stopped partly on the side of the road. the vehicle had to be towed. i also noticed a hole in the rear axle which there is a recall for. the vehicle obviously cannot be driven and i am unsure if the transmission is damaged due to the drive axle being pulled out of it. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact was driving 35 mph, the vehicle suddenly stopped moving forward. there were no prior warnings. the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the contact was informed that a gear in the transmission needed to be replaced; the part had been re-engineered as it was defective. the vehicle was repaired. the current and failure mileages were approximately 72,000. the cruise control module and wheel bearings had to be replaced. updated 05/23/11

I was traveling on the chicago interstate i-290 at around 3:30 am when my rear axel snapped on my 2000 ford windstar minivan. the incident occurred on the morning of september 27th, 2010 on a clear day with ideal road conditions but in a long term construction zone. i was traveling about 45 miles per hour and in light traffic when the axel snapped on the passengers side causing me to jerk violently to the right and through construction barriers into an open lane and onto the shoulder a short distance later. any other time, this could have been tragic but given the early hour of my travel to work and the reduced speeds due to ongoing construction i was able to control the violent movement to the right without injury or mishap. the car was towed a short time later to a local repair shop and i searched for information on broken axles and windstars i found the information on the ford recall. a local dealer paid for towing to their lot, and arranged for a long-term loaner vehicle and for vehicle rental insurance. the car was maintained in a regular fashion but was 10 years old and had 184 thousand real miles on the odometer. it remains at the ford dealer in elmhurst, illinois awaiting word from ford motor company on any repair or replacement discussions. no offers of correction, repair, or replacement have been made to this time, october 20th, 2010 best regards, *tr

My 2000 ford windstar just died as i was pulling into the driveway today 9/26/2010. the car wont move forward in drive, but goes backwards in reverse. for the last few years its been jerking and racing and i called ford and told them about it. they said the jerking when you shift is normal. i took the vehicle to the dale jarret ford in charlotte nc to service another recall and i mentioned about the jerking when you shift and the needles flipping out. he said that his wife's car had similar issues and it was the alternator. the salesman shifted the gear up and down and said it was definetely the alternator and it would cost $350 to fix. i took it to another place that said the alternator was fine, it was the cluster that made the needles flip out. nice goin' ford guy!! the overdrive light had been flickering since saturday morning and by sunday afternoon, the transmission looks like it is fried. please let me know if there is a recall or any other options. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

2000 ford windstar returning from trip to virginia from baltimore; o/d light starts flashing and then fluid and smoke pour from under car at 55 mph, found mechanic right off freeway exit, mechanic finds that transmission self-destructed. replacement with good warranty is $3500. looked online and there are many, many same situations but no recall from ford. this could have been very dangerous on the washington beltway. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. while driving in reverse 2 mph, the contact suddenly noticed a loud bang coming from outside of the vehicle. the contact discovered that the rear axle was fractured in two. a mechanic was sent from the dealer to diagnose the vehicle and informed the contact that the rear axle would need to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired and there were no prior warnings of the failure. the current and failure mileage was 86,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar sel. the contact was driving approximately 25 mph when both rear tires suddenly slanted. the contact discovered that the rear axle was fractured. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not contacted. the current and failure mileage was approximately 124,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact was accelerating from a traffic stop at 5 mph when the rear axle fractured. the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the dealer confirmed that the axle would need replacing. the manufacturer was not contacted. the vin was unavailable. the failure mileage was 89,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. the contact was traveling 30 mph when the vehicle began to drive as if there was flat tire. the contact later discovered that the rear axle was fractured. the vehicle was not repaired or inspected. the failure and current mileage was 95,000.

2000 windstar-cruise control slowly stopped working, almost like a loose button or wire was the issue, then completely stopped, abs light randomly going on and off then finally staying-stopping distances increased, tach, speedometer, and other dash gauge needles swinging wildly while driving- tach stopped working first then speedometer(witnessed by iowa highway patrol), od off light started coming on at random times. finally stayed on, transmission slipped occasionally when at stop signs. took it to trans. shop no codes found, next day the van would not shift into any gear. van is now a yard ornament. issues ongoing over the course of about a year. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford windstar. while driving 30 mph, the contact heard an unusual noise from the rear of the vehicle. the contact stated that the rear axle had fractured. the dealer advised replacing the axle yet the part needed was not readily available. the dealer ordered the part and the contact was awaiting repairs. the failure mileage was 146,950 and the current mileage was 146.972.

While driving a 2000 ford windstar that had been regularly maintained and brought to the dealership for every checkup, the transmission decided to go out. i had parked the car and when i went to go forward, nothing happened. the car had been running great up until this point and there were no warning signs of the transmission being ready to give. i had to get the car towed to get a rebuilt transmission. i do not have the old part, but have heard it is a rather common problem among '99-'03 windstars. *tr

i own a 2000 ford windstar lx, my problem is that my wife, daughter and her two children, and one older adult was minutes away form getting into a serious highway accident due to the fact they were less than 1,000ft ft of getting onto the expressway when the rear axle of the van snapped almost into two pieces for no reason at all. after getting the van towed to my residence which was a 1/4 mile. after further inspection the rear axle seamed to have rotted from the inside out, there is no rust on the outer surface of this hollow axle that would of shown signs of breaking. i contacted a couple of used auto parts dealers and they had stated that they have my same model van but all of the axles on them are gone due to being sold to other people that had needed them. i am asking has there been other reports of this happening to this or later model years. my family could of been seriously injured or killed, and i have just recently done a trip to waukegan illinois and back to toledo ohio which was 950 miles of toll roads with speeds of 65-75 mph if this had let go at these speeds i will probably not be sending in this report. is there a recall for these style axles on this vehicle. thank you. *tr the consumer stated the axle broke for the second time. updated 02/04/15