Vent-2003 Ford Windstar transmission

[snowqueenof3]

While we were on vacation our 2003 Ford Windstar transmission went out. Took it to be repaired and it cost $3400 for them to put a new one in. The van has only 46,000 miles on it and talked to Ford and they won't stand behind their faulty transmission. Is there anyone out there that has/had trouble with their Ford transmission? Thanks for letting me vent!!!

 

[LoveDopey]

Yes, same van, same year. I had 71,000 km on it -- not sure what the conversion is to miles. And, no they wouldn't stand behind it.

 

[scoutmom41]

We had a 1996 Ford Windstar and coming home from WDW the transmission blew on our way back from Florida.

No - Ford did not do anything, we had to replace it.

FYI - they also seem to be having problems with cataylic convertors with their Escapes, won't do anything about them either.

Sorry - I know how aggravating this is for you!

 

[Talock]

Yes, same van, same year. I had 71,000 km on it -- not sure what the conversion is to miles. And, no they wouldn't stand behind it.

That's 44,117 miles. I think you guys have the grounds for a class action suit if you can find more people.

 

[Geoff_M]

We had to have the transmission rebuilt on our 1999 Windstar with about 90K on it. I guess we were lucky, it "only" cost us $1,800 from a local reputable shop. The guy that owned the shop said that the part that failed in the transmission was a very common failure and you could expect that particular Ford transmission to last around 100K miles. If you own a Ford Windstar... fear the "Blinking OD light"!!! Fortunately, this happened about two months BEFORE we were set to drive to WDW.

The bigger problem was when they went to replace the steering rack on it in early 2008 and discovered that the right-front sub-frame had almost completely rusted through!!! If it had failed, the right-front wheel would have started pointing in a direction separate from its partner! The van was effectively "dead" and unsafe to drive from that point on... it was about 10 years old and the body and interior were in great shape.

 

[suejai]

We had a 2001 Windstar that had a transmission problem. But Ford replaced the transmission and covered the cost of a rental vehicle for a month while it was being fixed. I loved that van.

I'm sorry to hear you all are having problems with Ford, our experiences with them have been nothing but good. We are on our 4th lease and will likely finally purchase another one when this lease is up next year.

 

[MerMom60_94]

FYI - they also seem to be having problems with cataylic convertors with their Escapes, won't do anything about them either.

Sorry - I know how aggravating this is for you!

Back in April I had a Ford Escape that died by the side of the road. It turned out to be the catalytic converter. We were told by our mechanic that it was covered under warranty so he had it towed to a Ford dealer. It took a full month for them to replace the part. By then we had run up a months worth of rental car charges and wanted restitution. They wouldn't cooperate so I filed a complaint with the Massachusetts Attorney General's office. They assigned a mediator and guess who got a reimbursement check. Part of the reason they may have caved, though, is that they had said up front that it would only take a couple of days and kept saying "in a couple of days" until finally it turned into a month.

The sad thing is, when I finally got my car back I went immediately and turned it in for a Honda CR-V. If Ford had only taken care of me from the beginning I would have bought another Ford. Penny wise and pound foolish.

 

[trip]

We had transmission problems on our way to DisneyWorld years ago. Our Ford 85 econoline van had less than 30,000 miles on it. Ended up leaving the van for the week in Gainesville to have the transmission fixed, rented a car and continued on our way. Ford wouldn't do anything but we didn't let it ruin our vacation. (thank goodness for credit cards!) We haven't owned a Ford since and when we look for new vehicles my DH won't even set foot on a Ford lot.

 

[1PrincessMomma1]

.

 

[Mickey's Minion]

My Aerostar's transmission went out at 72,000 miles.

Last year, my Windstar's engine seized at 78,000 miles (the oil had been changed and a full service had been done on it 3 weeks prior).

Ford never stood behind either of them.

Our next car was Japanese and have had the most wonderful service experiences with it.

To give Ford credit though, we still have a '98 Expedition with 150,000+ miles on it that has never had to have anything done to it but basic oil changes, etc.

 

[snowqueenof3]

The sad thing is that new transmission has a 3 year, 100,000 mile warranty but the original one had a 3 year, 36,000 mile warranty. Why the difference? Too many complaints about the transmission? Also this van has been notorious for brake problems, lights blinking off and on inside and the driver passenger door lock never automatically unlock when you press the button. Our car doesn't even qualify as a Clunker for Cash, too good of gas mileage. We got an e-mail back from Ford and said that nothing is wrong enough for a recall of it. I guess if my transmission failed on the highway and I was severly injured or died, would that qualify to get a recall through. The inconvenience and money does not bother Ford. We will never own another Ford again!!!

 

[wvjules]

Why would Ford (or any company) cover any repair that was no longer under warranty? It was your decision to not purchase the extended warranty.

 

[kellyg403]

My 1994 Ford Aerostar just turned 100,000 miles. She is 15 years old. She only just turned 100,000 miles because most of her life she has been in and out of the shop. Her transmission went out at 32,000 miles, she has an ignition issue that was a recall in every year but hers, she has a transmission seal issue that was recalled in every year but hers. You can't drive her over 55 miles per hour and you can't drive her in the summer because the heat causes the seal to leak transmission oil.

We love Bertha but she is one of those cars I wish I had never bought. We keep her because she is good for the teens to drive back and forth to school.

Yeah..I would say the transmission stuff is definitely an issue in most Fords.

Kelyl

 

[Mickey's Minion]

Why would Ford (or any company) cover any repair that was no longer under warranty? It was your decision to not purchase the extended warranty.

They certainly don't have to.

But if they want people to come back to purchasing domestic cars, they need their cars to last more than 70,000 miles without major repairs needing to be done

 

[KristinBelle]

Why would Ford (or any company) cover any repair that was no longer under warranty? It was your decision to not purchase the extended warranty.

Yep

 

[1PrincessMomma1]

Why would Ford (or any company) cover any repair that was no longer under warranty? It was

 

[RitaZ.]

While we were on vacation our 2003 Ford Windstar transmission went out. Took it to be repaired and it cost $3400 for them to put a new one in. The van has only 46,000 miles on it and talked to Ford and they won't stand behind their faulty transmission. Is there anyone out there that has/had trouble with their Ford transmission? Thanks for letting me vent!!!

With only 46K on it? That stinks!

We got rid of our 2001 Windstar last month. It had almost 90k miles on it. We paid $1200 for a transmission leak repair which led to the van needing a new transmission. The mechanic gave us quotes for the cost of a new transmission and a re-built one. We decided that it wasn't worth putting more money into the van when it was worth less than the total costs for the transmission.

 

[Cindy B]

We had a horrible time with our 95 Windstar. First it was the head gasket (common problem), then 7 of the 14 engine sensors and then the transmission.

We gave up!

 

[snowqueenof3]

Why would Ford (or any company) cover any repair that was no longer under warranty? It was your decision to not purchase the extended warranty.

If my vehicle had 100,000 miles, I would understand. But my vehicle had 46,000 miles, was bought brand new when I bought it, thinking I would not have any problems with it. A extended warranty is their way of milking money out of you to cover their own faulty things that they need to be responsible for. So basically if you have an extended warranty (that you pay for) it would take care of their problems that they should be responsible for.

 

[Mom2Nick]

If my vehicle had 100,000 miles, I would understand. But my vehicle had 46,000 miles, was bought brand new when I bought it, thinking I would not have any problems with it. A extended warranty is their way of milking money out of you to cover their own faulty things that they need to be responsible for. So basically if you have an extended warranty (that you pay for) it would take care of their problems that they should be responsible for.

Companies give a standard warranty for a reason - it's because they are stating that for this period - that they are entitled to determine - that they will cover any repairs due to defect. Anything past that they will not cover unless you make other arrangements. If you do not like their terms you have a choice to not buy from them or to buy the extended warranty.