Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WHEELS - CAP/COVER/HUB | |||||
| 13396 | 10/01/1999 | 6092185 | Some vehicles equipped with starburst type wheel caps may exhibit wheel caps that rattle or appear loose. *tt | 11/27/2000 | |
| 7309 | 10/01/1999 | 6090885 | Subject regarding starburst type wheel caps that rattle or appear loose. *tt | 03/31/2000 | |
| 7134 | 10/01/1999 | 6090751 | Some vehicles built from 5/20/98 to 12/31/98 equipped with starburst type wheel covers may exhibit a loose wheel cap or rattle noise from the wheel caps. *tt | 03/29/2000 | |
| 13256 | 09/01/1999 | 6090662 | Information regarding starbusrt wheel caps loose/rattle. *mjs | 03/22/2000 | |
Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WHEELS | ||||||
| EA03004 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 04/10/2003 | 08/30/2004 | WHEEL STUD FRACTURE | ||
| The subject vehicles range in age from 4 | ||||||
| PE02085 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 11/18/2002 | 04/10/2003 | WHEEL STUD FRACTURE | ||
| Analysis of odi and ford data has identified 1619 incidents of wheel stud fracture in my 1998 through 2000 ford windstar vehicles, including 69 wheel separations and 11 crashes.ford has not been able to identify any design or manufacturing defects in its analyzis of the problem.ford maintains that the failures are caused by either:(1) inadvertent overtorquing of lug nuts during removal or installation; or (2) fatigue due to insufficient clamp load between the wheel and the brake rotor or drum and hub assembly.according to ford, corrosion, dirt, or damage present on the road wheel at the nut inteface could contribute to the latter condition. analysis of odi complaint data indicates that the subject vehicles experience wheel stud failures at significantly higher rates than peer minivans.this investigation has been upgraded to further assess the frequency, scope, and trend of the alleged defect condition in my 1997 through 2000 windstar minivans. | ||||||
| WHEELS - LUGS/NUTS/BOLTS | ||||||
| EA03004 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 04/10/2003 | 08/30/2004 | WHEEL STUD FRACTURE | ||
| The subject vehicles range in age from 4 | ||||||
| PE02085 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 11/18/2002 | 04/10/2003 | WHEEL STUD FRACTURE | ||
| Analysis of odi and ford data has identified 1619 incidents of wheel stud fracture in my 1998 through 2000 ford windstar vehicles, including 69 wheel separations and 11 crashes.ford has not been able to identify any design or manufacturing defects in its analyzis of the problem.ford maintains that the failures are caused by either:(1) inadvertent overtorquing of lug nuts during removal or installation; or (2) fatigue due to insufficient clamp load between the wheel and the brake rotor or drum and hub assembly.according to ford, corrosion, dirt, or damage present on the road wheel at the nut inteface could contribute to the latter condition. analysis of odi complaint data indicates that the subject vehicles experience wheel stud failures at significantly higher rates than peer minivans.this investigation has been upgraded to further assess the frequency, scope, and trend of the alleged defect condition in my 1997 through 2000 windstar minivans. | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| WHEELS | |||
| 02/24/2012 | 200000 | 1 | |
| Skimmed to a stop,vehicles are dangerous,brakes tied up and would not respond took it to have it checked out advised system was good,now i read you guys are having this problem and it happen to me,proving its a defect i want to be given credit for a new ford windfree. *tr | |||
| 02/24/2012 | 200000 | ||
| Skimmed to a stop,vehicles are dangerous,braked tied up and would not respond took it to have it checked out advised system was good,now i read you guys are having this problem and it happen to me,proving its a defect i want to be given credit for a new ford windfree. | |||
| 06/21/2010 | 88562 | ||
| Week of june 21st,2010 on west kimberly road van began to waver on dry pavement and i got it home safety.inspection revealed right rear wheel at a extreme angle left rear wheel also is at a slanted angle.rust has damaged rear axle bends where rear wheel are secured. left in garage as i can't drive it safety and do not have available money to get it repaired.right rear wheel is rubbing the underneath of van. old part is still on the van. | |||
| 06/08/2008 | 77000 | ||
| Our 1999 ford windstar began to shake and then rear axel cracked in half while traveling approx. 60 mph on the highway. luckily we were able to get to the side of the road safely...i still do not know how my husband was able to do that as there was so much smoke (from the metal rubbing the road and the tires riding at an angle) and it was dark outside and we had to get over 2 lanes. part was replaced at our own expense. this was not the first one the mechanic had seen. this incident happened spring 2008 but i just read on the internet of the pending investigation and had not previosly known where to report it. when we reported it to ford, they just tried to get us to want to buy a new car from them. also, we told friends of ours that have a 2000 windstar to watch out for the shaking and to get it checked. well several months later they began to experience shaking and took it in and the mechanic saw that it was ready to break and replaced it before any harm was done. thank god we were all unhurt...the next people may not be so lucky! we no longer own this vehicle. | |||
| 12/03/2004 | 100495 | 3 | |
| Consumer was driving through an intersection and while making a left turn passenger's side front wheel came off, pulling the axle out of the transmission. vehicle has front wheel drive. consumer contacted the dealer, and was told that the sub frame had to be replaced. *ak......according to a few dealerships the subframe has ha dnumerous problems causing the manufacturer to alter the manner in which the tie rod is mounted on the windstar subframe when the tie rod failed rusting completely off . vehicle was pulling out from a stop sign making aleft turn when the wheel shifted and brought vehicle to a complete stop. if it happened earlier it would have happened at 55 which would have been much worse. cost by ford was $1155.00. *ak | |||
| 11/15/2003 | 76000 | ||
| * vehicle leans since purchased sept 13, 2003. * allignment problems. * transmission does not properly change gears. * low treads on tires. * a frame problems. * suspension steering makes a clunking noise. * brakes must be pumped to stop, and make a ticking noise when applied. * vehicle has overheated. * power steering fluid leaked. * gears do not shift properly. * primer scotch guard on seats wearing after coat applied. | |||
| 07/15/2003 | 54000 | ||
| Left rear and left front hub and bearing assemblies began making loud humming/grinding sounds suddenly at 51,000 miles. ford dealership diagnosed and replaced defective hub and bearing assemblies for the standard price as it is no longer under warranty. this item should last much longer without failing. steering pump began intermittently making whining/hissing sounds when the slightest turning input was applied. by the time the failed power steering pump was diagnosed, and the whining was constant, it had caused the rack and pinion seals to fail and steering fluid to leak from the rack and pinion sleeves. when steering fluid got low and steering was no longer power assisted, my wife almost had a collision with a vehicle full of children. not trusting ford anymore, i ordered the parts myself and hired a local mechanic to replace the power steering pump and rack and pinion. in most vehicles these components should last beyond 100,000 miles. upon further investigation i found that failing power steering pumps, leading to failed rack and pinion seals, is a consistent problem on 1999 windstars, and that ford is aware of the problem and trying avoid addressing it. | |||
| WHEELS - LUGS/NUTS/BOLTS | |||
| 06/23/2006 | 62068 | 1 | 06/03/2000 |
| Stud bolt on passenger (right) front hub failed and broke off while conducting routine maintenance- lugs have been torqued to specs- 1999 ford windstar van has only has 62,000 miles- no evidence of cross threading/stud threads were clean. not yet repaired. *jb | |||
| 12/29/2003 | 4 | ||
| Wheel stud breakage in my 1999 ford windstar vehicles. *la | |||
| 07/01/2003 | 1 | 07/05/1999 | |
| Ford windstar auto - 1999 - steel studs broke off from one of my wheels. sears auto had to fix that. washington post, april 15, 2003 , page e@, article indicated nhtsa is considering recall. what are you waiting for? we drive the car with fear that the whells might pop off because of faulty studs>*ak | |||
| 07/02/2003 | 1 | ||
| The retaining nuts: bolts were loose causing the front right wheel to separate from the vehicle. technician replaced the nuts, but problem still recurring. *ak | |||
| 06/07/2003 | 1 | 02/01/1999 | |
| 3 wheel studs on front right wheel of our 1999 windstar van broke - creating a dangerous situation where the wheel could have fallen off at any speed. the mechanic (craven auto and tire of gaithersburg, md) repaired the wheel and told me that at least one other person had the same problem with a 1999 windstar. the first symptom noticed was a rattling noise around the right front tire area. then on saturday 6/7/2003 we pulled into our drive and heard a very loud clunk. i quickly realized the van was undriveable and had a tow truck take the van to our mechanic.*ak | |||
| 08/01/2002 | 1 | ||
| While driving less than 20mph front pax wheel came off.*ak consumer stated all 5 lugs snapped at the rotor, causing the wheel to separate from the vehicle, indicating that the lugs were loose.*jb | |||
| 02/19/2000 | 1 | ||
| While driving, consumer heard a rattling noise and pulled over, there were 2 lug nuts that had sheared off, consumer continued driving when the wheel came completely off, the vehicle crashed into a cement wall, claim 55-s208-332. *slc | |||
| 1 | |||
| Lugs: nuts: bolts on right front wheel have sheared off. dealer will inspect and correct problem.*ak | |||
| 06/02/2000 | 0 | ||
| Consumer was a the stop light and while turning right front passenger's wheel fell off. vehicle was towed to the dealership. mechanic told consumer that wheel lugs: nuts were too tight, and all five were severed.*ak | |||
| 03/09/2000 | |||
| Was making a lfet turn right front passenger's wheel flew off. this was caused by 5 of the wheel bolts breaking off in half. it made a loud boom & then a bang type of noise. contacted ford & informed not their fault & will not pay for repairs. *ak | |||