This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
I have a 1998 Ford Windstar. It first started with my cruise control switch catching on fire and causing wires under my hood to burn... now for the last year I have been having problems with my passenger sliding door..the sensor on the dash would show that the door was ajar(not closed) I could take the battery cable off for a while and the door light would go off. Now I have had to remove all the bulbs in the lights inside the van to keep my battery from running down this morning I get up and my battery is dead and acid from the battery is all over the post and cable wires. I talk to my mechanic he says this is due to some problem in the electrical system he said he has had to work on several Windstar for the same problemsome kind of sensor fault defect.
Two weeks ago our 1998 Ford Windstar minivan, with 220,000 miles on it, caught fire under the hood while parked, and was totally destroyed. We had been carefully following the maintenance schedule from Ford Motor Company. During the week before the fire, we had problems with the interior lights not always turning off when we exited the van.
The door open/close indicator light remained on. Sometimes the light remained on for about an hour after the car was parked and turned off. This is an intermittent problem that has been occurring for about a year.
Continual problems with interior lights and locks because of the door ajar monitor. All doors are closed and door alarm monitor remains on which causes the interior lights to remain on at all times. Have to remove #29 fuse just to get interior and dome lights to shut off, even after ignition is off and key removed. Otherwise battery will die as lights do not go off as they are supposed to. Driving with dome light continuously on is a very big safety hazard, especially at night. However removing this fuse also results in loss of electric window function which should also be a safety hazard. This has been happening for at least four years. Everytime I take it to the dealer, it would stop for a short while and then subsequently act up again. I am the sole owner of this vehicle and purchased it new in 1998. I feel these parts should have been made correctly to begin with and/or should have been recalled to be repaired. I will never buy another Ford vehicle because of this safety hazard.
- Warren, OH, USA
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Have a 1998 Ford Windstar van and the problem is that my interior lights and sensor showing that your door is open does not turn off. Even all the door are closed. Sometimes the interior lights go off but the beeping noise does not stop.
Continual problems with interior lights and locks because of the door ajar monitor. Have to use passenger side door to enter because drivers door normally sets it off, and have to unplug battery to let system reset, so battery does not go dead which normally takes a couple of days. Locks will lock and unlock on their own while driving. Door ajar will also activate with the other doors on its own while you are driving. This has been happening for at least two years. Everytime I wanted to take it to the dealer, it would stop and the dealer said they could do nothing unless it was happening at the time.
Door ajar light stays on all the time. Chimes stay on when car is started until the speed reaches around 15 mph. But as soon as I slow down and stop, the chimes come on again.
Interior dome light stays on until 15-20mph is reached. Dash light indicator says door is open. Isolated problem to sliding door on passenger side. Problem is intermittent. Take to Ford dealerships on 3 seperate ocassions and all 3 times the problem mysteriously went away. Also when this happens the rear wiper doesn't work all the time.
Light that indicates door is open stays illuminated. Light gets so hot that it may cause a fire. The switches have been replaced. The Ford company is aware of the problem and doesn't want to fix unless consumer pays out of pocket. The sliding door was replaced.
The interior courtesy lamps do not go out when doors are closed. Door ajar light comes on. Ford is well aware of this problem and its a safety issue as driver cannot see during night driving unless fuse is pulled. Interior lights cannot be shut off with the dimmer switch!!.. dealers play dumb when you discuss this issue. Three neighbors have same problem. This is an accident waiting to happen!!!!!!!!
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.
Without prior warning door warning light comes on panel, and light will stay on. Interior light will go off, but the sound of the chime will not stop. Dealerlership is aware of problem.
Door ajar light on dash is on constantly when all doors are shut. Chime is also going off at all times. When chime is on it is not possible to lock doors. Vehicle at dealership at this time.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Quitman, MS, USA