Sway Bar Problems of Ford Windstar

Loud crackin and popping from sway bar attached fo rusted out cradle drivers side rear cradle that has rusted out and broken and has dropped down 1/2 inch and also rusted rear axle just tagged and registered it in va then noticed all the rust to subframe and rear axle van has manufactured in canada on door and a vermont car dealer emblem on back dangerous vehicle am icovered by recalls on this safty hazards.

See all problems of the 1998 Ford Windstar 🔎.

Takata recall, due to rust the sway bar bracket has broke from subframe. Didn't know it until I got it looked at for an alignment issue.

See all problems of the 2001 Ford Windstar 🔎.

My wife was driving her van when she heard a clunk. She was traveling at 25mph on a state road. Upon inspection we found the front subframe broke where the front sway bar connects. Research found a recall, but my VIN was not part of it. Ford corporate told me I was on my own to have it fixed. This is an outrage. They should be taking care of this problem. What do I do next?.

See all problems of the 2000 Ford Windstar 🔎.

Had the vehicle serviced for 2 corrosion recalls. Was driving on the freeway approx. 60mph, heard a pop in the area of the right front tire. Took van to the shop I use, where I was told it was part of the frame and need to take it to the dealership(blackwell Ford, Plymouth, mi. 48170). Dealership said the van needed a subframe assy. And right sway bar bushing bracket, and possibly more. All was due to corrosion, combination poor design and inferior material. They contacted Ford motor, sent estimate, pictures and information. Fords response is that it wasn't part of any recall, even though there has been at least two for corrosion that I am aware of. This is clearly a design and/or a material issue with my Windstar. It is not safe to drive, and there is no way, with my conscious that I can try to sell it. This is an ongoing issue with the Windstar. I'm sure this is part of hundreds if not thousands of complaints on this issue, what can be done? how many injuries or deaths have there been because of corrosion issue with the Windstar? help!!!!.

I heard loud clunking sounds in the front that were more pronounced when I went over bumps. The sway bar has broken off from the front sub-frame passenger side of the car. The dealer said the sub-frame is so rusted that the only way to reattach the sway bar is to replace the entire front sub-frame at a cost of $3,500. It is not covered under previous recalls, since the prior 2 recalls in 2010 and 2011 only specifically covered the rear axle and the separation of the front lower control arms attaching brackets and body mount attachments at the rear of the front sub-frame. This problem is so similar to the Jan. 2011 recall w/a part breaking off from a rusted sub-frame. It's the corrosion of the sub-frame that is at the root of these problems. They should have just replaced the sub-frame at that time instead of doing a patch job w/ brackets. The dealer deemed my car unsafe to drive, as I won't have control of my car on quick turns or be able to make fast maneuvers in the event of an accident or to avoid potential accidents. Another risk is that my engine may fall out the bottom of my car while driving (which I see has happened to others with my same problem), endangering my family and others on the road. I plan on parking this car in my driveway and waiting for Ford to be forced to recall these vehicles. In the meantime, if any of you have a similar problem, please report them to Ford corporation and the NHTSA, so what I believe to be an inevitable recall will be expedited. Even the Ford customer service rep encouraged me to file a report with the NHTSA because she has gotten calls with other similar complaints. She was very sympathetic to my situation but said there is nothing she can do until enough complaints get filed with the NHTSA so they open an investigation. What happened to companies wanting to help their customers w/o being forced by a governmental agency?!.

I took the van in for service and I was told the right front sway bar could not be re-attached because of excessive rust . My mechanic mentioned he thought there was a recall for this but I never received one. Is there anything I can do about it now?.

Making a left turn, heard a loud bang. The sway bar link came loose attached to a chunk of rusted metal from the subframe. The sway bar and link are fine. It is a part of the subframe where it attaches to that came off. There is no way to reattach the sway bar as the whole section where it attaches to subframe is rusted. Called Ford dealer in ithaca, this is not covered by their recalls.

At times when is col,d the abs and brake light is off while driving, when it gets hot the abs and brake light turns on and the abs fails to work. Code c1185 abs power relay output circuit failure. I got to a stop sign and the road was wet and the van skidded , the abs did not work. No one was hurt and I have seen all the complaints that Ford owners are having. I don't know if my 2002 Ford Windstar had all the other recalls done, like the brake pressure differential deactivation switch (scds) and the rear frame welds that are breaking up on the chassis of many Ford owners. I would like to verify what has been done to my Ford Windstar that I bought two months ago. I just had the inner and outer tie rod ends done along with the sway bar links at the front suspension.

See all problems of the 2002 Ford Windstar 🔎.

Front sub-frame badly rusted and sway bar welded mounts on the sub-frame have rusted and broken in half causing poor steering control and excessive body roll. As a note, this vehicle was rustproofed when new and inspected over the life of the vehicle each year. Also, Ford has inspected the front sub-frame in January of 2011 on a recall and it appears did not find a problem with the sub-frame in this area. Given the severity of the rust it would appear the problem existed at the time of inspection.

I currently keep getting grunting/popping/moaning noise from the front suspension when turning -braking-starting to move car forward . Already replaced the sway bar links and bushings but the noise still comes and goes. Also my brake-&-abs lights comes on and off for no reason. And the locks on the doors work when they want too. Just had inspection done again 3 weeks ago but they can not find the problems. Talk with Ford about the noise to try to find out if there is any danger of a crash because of this and I keep getting the run around.

The contact owns a 2001 Ford Windstar. The contact stated that while the vehicle was inspected by a local mechanic, the contact was advised that the front sway bar was fractured due to corrosion. The manufacturer was contact but denied assistance with the repair. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 121,000.

Driving 45 mph when something snapped under front of the vehicle lost steering completely hit the curb got pushed back to the middle of the 4-line road and came to a stop very lucky. Later found out that lower subframe control arm broke of the frame due to rust and pulled out axle snapped sway bar and damaged ball joints, towed it to a dealer and they are willing to fix frame but want me to pay for all the other expense sway bar, ball joints, tires, steering arm totaling over a 1000 $. Can not believe that Ford would not at least replace all needed part considering that I made it out alive and with out a crush. And all this after they have performed rear axle repair and checked the front and was informed that front was safe a year ago . About 10,000 miles and a year later I had this happened. The vehicle has 74,000 miles only.

See all problems of the 2003 Ford Windstar 🔎.

About March of 2012 my 2003 Ford wind star's lower control arm separated from the sub frame "engine cradle". I took my van to dealer. They did do a repair to sub frame, which I did not find satisfactory, Ford corp. Had them cut off what was left of any damaged brackets and clamp steel brackets onto a sub frame that is already damaged due to heavy rust and corrosion. Now about one year later "March of 2013" the sway bar mount, which is part of the sub frame has rusted out. Making driving very unsafe and unstable. This problem should have been rectified when the recall was done in 2012. I took van back to the dealer. They sent pictures to Ford corp. Ford did not approve any repairs to sub frame stating that it was not part of original recall. Now how is that possible if the sub frame and sway bar mount are all one component. It's all one welded piece of steel. There is no fix at this time but to replace the sub frame. Now if the sub frame is under recall and the sway bar mount is part of the sub frame, then I feel Ford should rectify the problem. I plan on keeping my Ford wind star for a while. I feel this is a serious safety issue and really needs to be delt with. Ford should cover this component or they get away with an unsatisfactory fix and I still have to pay for a new sub frame, which was the whole issue to begin with.

I was turning a corner and heard a loud bag, as if metal has snapped. I took the car to my Ford dealer who said that the font subframe where the sway bar was attached had rusted through and that the sway bar was now not attached to the subframe and was banging. Ford has fixed the frame on two different rust recalls under "recall 11s16", but said this was not covered and would cost $2085. 75 for the subframe plus labor and hardware. I asked if the car was safe to drive and received a non specific answer! if Ford Windstar has this much problem with there frame rusting why is this not covered??.

Driving down highway,had to swerve for animal,van started to sway back n foerth,heard metal scraping ground,got out looked to see rear sway bar hanging down. The bar had rotted out of frame. . . Is this one of the components covered in the multiple recalls of the suspension and all the problems related to them. . . Thanks.

The contact owns a 1999 Ford Windstar. The contact stated that after receiving notification of NHTSA campaign id number: 10v385000(suspension:rear:axle:non-powered axle assembly), the vehicle was taken to the dealer. After inspection of the vehicle, the dealer advised her that the rear brackets were fractured and that they would have to replace the entire subframe. The brackets were replaced but not the entire frame. After repairs, the contact noticed a loud noise from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where they advised her that the sway bar was rusted and needed to be welded back to the vehicle. The vehicle has not further repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where they advised her that they would not touch the vehicle due to how the dealer repaired the vehicle under the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 190,000.

See all problems of the 1999 Ford Windstar 🔎.

Tl- the contact owns a 2001 Ford Windstar. The vehicle was repaired in the recall under NHTSA campaign number: 12v194000 (suspension). The contact noticed corrosion in the engine cradle and sway bar mounting after the recall repair was performed. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 110,000. Da.

The contact owns a 1998 Ford Windstar. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for repairs under NHTSA campaign id number: 01v199000 (suspension: front:springs: coil springs). The technician stated that they heated and sprayed penetrating oil onto the sway bar in order to remove the bar to complete the recall but they were unsuccessful in doing so. The technician stated that the sway bar links would need to be cut out in order to perform the recall repairs and the removal costs of the sway bar links would not be covered under the recall. The manufacturer was contacted and stated they could not override the decision made by the dealer and provide no assistance because the part was not covered under warranty or the recall. The vehicle was repaired at the contacts expense. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.

The contact owns a 1996 Ford Windstar. The sway bar broke in half. The sway bar was connected to the carriage. This occurred while driving and resulted in a collision. The sway bar snapped about three inches outside of the left frame bushing. It was also rusted and corroded. It was a hollow tube that had been cracked for sometime. The consumer could tell it was cracked due to corrosion. The vehicle was taken to Ford who indicated that everything was fine. The mechanic determined that the front wheel was leaning.

See all problems of the 1996 Ford Windstar 🔎.

A loud noise came from the front of the vehicle while driving 55 mph. Vehicle pulled to the left. Consumer noticed that sway bar broke on driver's side. Dealer and the manufacturer were contacted, and both informed the consumer that the part was not covered under a recall.

While making a left turn onto the intersection and without prior warning a loud noise was coming from the rear. Consumer was able to pull over and noticed that the bracket holding the sway bar on the passenger side had detached from the frame.

I believe Ford has a serious problem with sway bar links. I own a 1995 taurus, 1998 Windstar, and 2000 taurus. They all have the same exact problem. The links on the 2000 have been repaired under warranty. I also know other Ford owners that have the same problem. I am also aware of a recall on explorers for sway bar links.

Upon entering road from store parking, a loud thump was heard from under the front of the vehicle. After inspection, it was found that the anti-sway bar had broken approximately 6 inches from its connection point to the left strut. This caused the remaining link to interfere with the front suspension (both turning and travel).