Rear Suspension problems of the 2002 Ford Windstar - part 2

While exiting NJ turnpike, the rear beam of my 2002 Ford Windstar fractured, creating severe negative camber on both rear wheels. By the time the vehicle was towed back home on a flatbed, the rear beam was cracked in two pieces. Contacted Ford dealer the next day, and the service manager stated that he was unaware of any such problems with this make and model of vehicle. I requested that he send out a field service representative to take a look at the damage, and the service manager told me that he would only have a technician look at the vehicle if I towed it to his dealership. I am in the process of determining whether I want my local independent service shop to do the repair or the Ford dealership.

I have 2002 Ford Windstar. I took it to a local repair shop on 6-23-10 because of a rattling noise when ever it went over a bump. The mechanic told me that the rear axle was cracked almost all the way through. He told me he could get one from a salvage yard and fix it for around $700. Luckily I had it taken care of when I did because we were planning a trip out of town the next weekend and it surely would have broken in half on our trip.

Ford 2002 Windstar had a rattling sound when traveling over bumps and with a slight wheel pull to the left. Vehicle axle beam broke while car was traveling on rte 4 northbound at about 35 mph,in n. Kingstown ri at approximately 2:15pm. I was able to navigate to the side of the road without injury to any other person or vehicle. Axle beam was cracked and bent causing the driver side tire to rub against the body of the car. The car was loaded onto a flat bed tow truck and the axle broke cleanly during transport. This caused the passenger side wheel to rub against the car body during unloading. This car is now parked in a repair facility lot. Serious injury or accident were probably avoided through the fortunate combination of low speed of travel in the right hand lane combined with a light traffic situation on the highway.

I currently own a 2002 Ford Windstar, my rear axle has broken in half all the way now, I tried taking it to a Ford dealership regarding this problem because I have a warranty but I was advised that they could not fix the problem because it has rusted out and broke. I am learning that this is a big issue and this problem is too expensive to fix on my own. I am still making payments on this vehicle. What should I do? after researching this issue, I am finding that I am not the only one with this rear axle issue. We need something done.

Heard about axles cracking on Ford Windstars. Took my 2002 Windstar to my mechanic and sure enough it is cracked. He advised me not to drive it. I need vehicle to get to work and do not have $900. 00 plus to fix it.

The rear axle on our 2002 Ford Windstar limited broke when backing out of a drive way leaving the vehicle inoperable.

2002 Ford Windstar makes popping noise when turning right up a driveway. Repair shop found a crack in the rear axle.

While driving on a road with our three young children in the car, the car jerked, started making loud noises, and smoking. There was a significant amount of smoke pouring from the left (driver) side. We pulled to the side and saw that the driver's side rear tire was at an odd angle as was the passenger side rear wheel. When the tow-truck arrived and lifted it up, it was very clear that the axle had snapped for no reason. We were lucky that there were no injuries or a major accident, nor did the car catch fire but it smells of burned rubber.

Ford Windstar 2002 rear axle cracked. We were driving and noticed the van was fishtailing and there when we would go around a curve we noticed a noise coming from the back of the van. My husband got out and checked tires thought they may have been low. We have new tires on vehicle. We were driving the van the next day and it was fishtailing and the noise in the back of the van was getting worse. My husband put vehicle up on ramp and noticed that the rear axle is cracked. It is only holding by a thread.

Driving home from doctors office. I was traveling 45 m. P. H. , it was raining. I was going around a curve when my vehicle, 2002 Ford Windstar started to fishtail. I stopped the car and went around checking to see if I might have a low tire. Tires seemed fine. I noticed a bumping noise when I would go around a curve. I got home and pulled the van up on ramps and looked underneath. I told my wife we aren't going anywhere because the axle is cracked and holding by a thread. I took the axle off and upon inspecting it closer the otherside is cracking. This vehicle only has 86,597 miles on it. I have owned Toyota's and a Suzuki, which I put 250,000 miles, on these vehicles and never had to replace an axle.

The rear wheels on my 2002 Ford Windstar began to bow outward and the car was now noticeably shaking at speeds greater than 25 mph. We thought it might be a bad alignment. We took it to ntb and fortunately, they told us not to drive it any more. The rear axle had cracked and was in need of replacement. . After the replacement, I contacted Ford's regional office. I was told by the Ford regional office to refer my concern to my dealer here in columbus, but, I had already done so. Further communications with them lead to the service managers denial of any compensation for the Ford part malfunction. Rear axles on 2002 Windstars or any Windstar with those taurus chasises, should not crack and separate causing a danger to my family. The manager told me to hold on to my receipts for a month or so before responding again to Ford's office. He assured me that a recall was possible. Meanwhile, I am out the $1700. 00 it took to repair a definite flaw in the engineering.

The contact owns a 2002 Ford Windstar. While driving at speeds of 60 mph, she heard an unusual thump. Immediately, the steering wheel became hard and difficult to control. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where she was advised the rear axle had broken. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure and current mileages were 90,000.

Coming home from church one Sunday, we had to brake hard & suddenly to avoid a car that was on my side of the road. The van's rear wheel left the pavement and jerked to the side. The van handled wrong after that, and we took it to Ford to have it looked at. They replaced front drive shafts and said that the rear wheels were rubbing the wheel well, and I needed to have my shocks replaced. The van still made the same noises and had bad handling after this work was done, so took it back & had them look again for problem. They still didn't see any problem. My wife drove this van over 125 miles one day to take her sister for a medical procedure. She was nervous about the bad handling & swaying rear end, so drove slowly and stayed to the right on the freeway. She drove all the way to southern charlotte, nc on hwy. 85 from davidson county, nc. Huge amounts of traffic. When she got home she parked the van, & next day I came home from work and saw the tires were tilted in the rear. Went up & looked under the van, and the axle is broken in 2 places. My wife, her mother, and her sister were all in the van driving on the highway with a broken axle, because Ford told us that our van was all right. Called Ford and was told "what do you want me to do about it? you're driving an 8 year old vehicle! buy something else!" and also, "there is no implied warranty. Your van is out of warranty, but we'll be glad to do the work for you if you bring it in to our service department". Or "Ford makes good quality vehicles. Would you like to hear about the new car buying incentives we have in place now?" get real. I will never buy another Ford in my life. Wife called Ford and spoke with them, and the age of the van was mentioned. She stated that I drive a 1986 Toyota truck, and the axle is not broken on it yet. She said henry Ford did not have this in mind when he started making the model t. Shoddy work and inferior materials.

Recent noise on my 2002 Ford Windstar. Rear axel snapped this morning while my wife was leaving home. I read the exact same incidents on line with the Ford Windstar. Crack aprox 12-18 inches in from the rear left side. Extensive damage and I will keep photos and damaged part.

For about three to four years now, we have been having what we thought was a problem with the front end of our 2002 Ford Windstar. We had numerous front end alignments done. We had the caster/camber work done twice at a very high cost. (this requires taking the front cowling apart in order to put in new font end parts) and still the vehicle would pull in either direction at any given time. It would at times wonder back and forth on the road. About a week ago my wife said she herd strange noises. (clunks, squeaks etc. ) then today she was driving the van with my kids to church. Luckily it was local. She said she herd a bang and the van started to squeak and wonder all over the road uncontrollably. She started to smell something burning. She said the steering wheel had to be turned in an abnormal position in order to keep the van going straight down the road. When she got home I looked at the van sitting in the driveway and the rear wheels were tilted in at the top. I crawled under and found that the rear axle beam had cracked almost all the way through. The crack was about 18 inches in form the drivers side. The passenger side looked as though it would eventually crack also. When I looked closer at the crack, you could see shining metal at the top part of the crack, indicating it was a new crack. There was surface rust on the lower part of the crack indicating that the crack had been there for some time and had just gotten bigger. This explains the wondering problem we have been having. Being that this is a 2002 it is out of warranty but this is definitely a safety problem and should be addressed as a recall by Ford. I am scared thinking what could have happened if my wife and kids were driving on an interstate at 65 mph. I am also scared thinking that my 16 year old daughter who just started driving on her permit was driving this vehicle in this condition. Thank god they were driving local at the time that the crack worsened to a point that it is now undrivable.

Driving home from a family outing on 03/06/2010, we heard a loud sound/clunk coming from the rear of our 2002 Ford Windstar. Luckily, we were only doing 30 mph on our street right almost to our driveway, instead of being on the expressway doing 60 mph as we were only minutes before . The van's rear end swerved as I applied the brakes. I managed to pull into our driveway and calm the wife and kids down (who were hysterical). I have to admit that I was scared also. When I managed to park the van, I noticed that the rear tires were slanted into the van, rubbing the wheel wells at the top. I then looked under the rear of the van and seen that the rear axle beam was broke, about 18" from the driver side rear tire. I implore everone that this has happened to to call the Ford customer care number (1-800-241-3673) and report it. This is the only way that Ford will acknowledge this problem as a potential manufacturer defect. Our 2002 Windstar has only 78,338 miles on it. Our local dealer, where we bought it from, said they have never heard of this happening. I find it very hard to believe since I can bring up about 100 different complaints about this very sam thing for the model years 2000-2002.

The rear axle on my 2002 Ford Windstar broke with no warning. The car has never been crashed and is maintained very well with no visible rust. This causes loss of control but I was able to get the car stopped without incident. In an internet search I see that this is not an uncommon failure and wonder why this is not being investigated. It very dangerous.

I was driving my 2002 for Windstar and the roads were snowy and slippery. While driving the van seemed to slide and sway in the back. I assumed it was from the snowy roads and took the van home. 2 days later when the roads were pretty well cleared I took the van out again. While driving on clear pavement the van seemed to sway and slide like I was on ice in the rear-end. As I headed home it got worse and was shaking and swaying. I slowed down to about 20 miles per hour and got the van home. I had it looked at and was told that the axle is 1 to 2 inch from a complete break. If it would have broke while I was driving it would have caused me to wreck. I have researched this and have found many complaints about this happening to 02 Windstars. I cant afford to fix something this expensive. Something needs to be done before someone gets hurt.

Ford Windstar rear axle cracked.

I heard a rattle which sounded like a loose tailpipe. I brought it to my mechanic to have it looked at. The problem was that the rear axle beam had snapped. He said that it was not damaged and it looked like it was just a bad piece of steel. He had never seen this problem before. The parts did not have to be ordered because the parts were readily available and in stock at his parts dealer. After looking on the internet I found that there are several complaints about this problem. I was lucky that the axle beam did not break while I was traveling on the highway because the handling of the vehicle was severely compromised. The rear axle beam was replaced at a cost of one thousand dollars. I did not keep the old axle beam.

2002 Ford Windstar rear axle beam broke in half while making a left hand turn. The van started swaying in the rear earlier in the day and we thought it was because of ice and snow on the roads that day. On good pavement we did not experience any issues. We stopped and looked at the tires and they all looked fine , and found no evidence to suggest anything else was wrong with van. No other warning before failure. When this happened both rear wheels towed inward causing van to slide out of control for short distance, and causing damage to the vehicle. Had we been traveling on the highway at speeds of 65 miles an hour I would not like to think what would of happened. We had to have the vehicle towed to a Ford dealer for repairs. The cost of these repairs was $1782. 33 not including the towing bill. The tow truck driver said he has never seen a rear axle beam break before. This could of been a major accident, causing bodily harm or death. I had the dealer save the parts for me and I also took pictures of the failed part after it was removed. The dealer would not cover any cost of the repairs.

The contact owns a 2002 Ford Windstar. While driving approximately 60 mph the vehicle began drifting from left to right. He was able to safely turn off the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a local repair facility. The mechanic stated that the rear axle needed to be replaced at an expense of $1,200. 00. The current and failure mileages were 140,000. The VIN was not available.

Our 2002 Ford Windstar with approx. 107,000 miles had the rear axle beam break in half. The week before the break we noticed that the car felt like it needed an alignment at highway speeds. Luckily the part broke pulling out of the driveway at slow speed. The vehicle was not drivable after the break and needed to be towed. I fear that if the break happened at highway speeds we would have lost complete control of the vehicle. We have never taken this vehicle off road, used it to tow anything or been in an accident where damage would have been done to the axle beam.

Rear axle beam on my 2002 Ford Windstar fractured. Noticed vehicle handling was poor, rear end of vehicle swaying while driving straight, tires squealing around turns. Mechanic found axle beam had fractured. Costly repair, could have been more serious if a loss of control had occurred. Fortunate to have occurred at low speed.

2002 Ford Windstar had a sudden, catastrophic rear axle failure-a near complete crack through the axle causing the driver's rear tire to collapse inward, while driving at 40 mph on a straight road. The rear axle and the rear tire had to be replaced, the axle was 530. 00, and the tire 100. 00. This was with the work done by my husband. The car is in otherwise good running condition, has always been serviced by professionals. The mileage was 98,000 miles and the vehicle has always been lightly used, no heavy loads, no towing, just basically football practice with the kids.

I got a letter recently about a recall on my 2002 Ford Windstar. The recall was for the cruise control/brake light issue. As I was looking online for the name of the recall, I realized that there have been many complaints about the Windstar's axel problems. In September 2009 my Windstar started feeling like the back end was fishtailing but there was no ice. It sounded weird to. My husband followed me to the local sears auto store about 4 miles away. When we arrived he said that the tires looked like they were at a 45degree angle facing outward. When the mechanic looked at it, he said that we were luck to be alive and that the axle was holding by a one inch piece of metal. They said they were lucky they used the car life instead of the cross life or it would have broken the axle. Not one of the mechanics at that sears have ever seen a broken axle before and told me it was probably not fixable. They said they couldn't legally let us drive it because it was a safety issue. We had to have it towed to our mechanic. He did fix it but it cost over $1,000. I'm glad my family is safe and we weren't driving on the highway. With all the complaints and safety issues, why has there not been a recall on this Ford part.

2002 Ford Windstar would wander while driving,found rear axle cracked in center.

Rear axle broke, which could have caused a serious accident if I were on the highway. I was driving down the road, everytime I turned to the right I would hear a squeaking noise. I did not think much of it until I started to smell something when I looked in the rear view mirror I noticed smoke coming from the rear driver's side wheel. I pulled over and called aaa. Thank god, when the van was looked at we found that the rear axle was broken and the wheel was rubbing against the inside of the wheel well. When stopped the tires on the back of the van looked as though the tires were bent in as a direct result of the broken axle. I am so happy my children were not in the van because this could have resulted in a very bad accident. Ford needs to step up and fix this problem, I have seen quite a few complaints regarding this issue.

2002 Ford Windstar se rear axel severed. . . . Based upon my research many others have experienced the same issue between 2000 and 2003. I also contacted several Ford dealer who have informed me that they have sold an extraordinary amount of these rear axles. Please make Ford issue a safety recall on these axles. They will not take voluntary responsibility for this obvious defective part. Someone is going to get killed if this defective part fails at 65 miles per hour. You will also be responsible if you do nothing about this!.

The contact owns a 2002 Ford Windstar. While traveling at speeds of 25 mph over a pot hole, the contact noticed that the rear end of the vehicle was extremely low to the ground. The rear axle was replaced by a local independent mechanic. The failure mileage was at 120,000 and the current mileage was 134,000.

The rear axle tube on my 2002 Ford Windstar cracked yesterday and cost me almost $400 to repair. I am a Ford certified repair technician and I have seen this same concern on so many Windstars that I feel that it warrants investigation for a possible safety recall. The axle tubes always split close to the left side and not along any seams or welds. This is a structural defect and a safety hazard. If the axle breaks completely it will cause complete loss of control of the vehicle. Please consider investigating this matter.