There are 5 stored owner reports matching the body & structure leading-label group for the 1997 Ford Windstar in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 5 of 5 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1997 FORD WINDSTAR. THE CONTACT STATED THAT AFTER HAVING THE VEHICLE INSPECTED, HE WAS NOTIFIED THAT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO PASS THE STATE INSPECTION DUE TO THE SUB FRAME BEING COMPLETELY CORRODED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT THE SUB-FRAME NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 130,000.
THE SUBFRAME ASSEMBLY ON MY 1997 FORD WINDSTAR HAS BROKEN/CRACKED IN TWO DIFFERENT LOCATIONS * ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS. THE FIRST REPAIR WAS IN SEPTEMBER OF 2002. THE MOST RECENT REPAIR WAS SEPTEMBER 2003. THE SERVICE MANAGER AT DENNISON FORD (STEVE BOWNS) SAID THAT IF IT HAPPENS AGAIN, THE SUBFRAME PROBABLY WILL NEED TO BE REPLACED. MY IMPRESSION IS THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH WINDSTARS. WHEN I CALLED TO SET UP AN APPOINTMENT THE SECOND TIME AND STARTED DESCRIBING THE PROBLEM, THE SERVICE REP SAID THEY USUALLY BROKE AT THE STRUT. WHEN SEARHING THE INTERNET, I HAVE FOUND OTHER WINDSTAR OWNERS WITH THIS PROBLEM. IN A DISCUSSION WITH SHELDON (#2052) AT (1 - 800 392 FORD) WHEN ASKED IF THIS WAS A SAFETY ISSUE, HIS RESPONSE WAS "I AM NOT IN A POSITION TO COMMENT IF THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE." WHEN ASKED IF HE CHECKED WITH THE SERVICE MANGER IF THIS WAS A SAFETY ISSUE HE RESPONDED. "I DID NOT ASK HIM SPECIFICALLY IF IT WAS A SAFETY ISSUE. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW IF IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE, YOU WILL NEED TO TALLK TO THE PERSON THAT IS WORKING ON YOUR CAR." I INDICATED TO SHELDON THAT I WANTED TO TALK WITH A FORD REPRESENTATIVE THAT COULD TELL ME WHETHER OR NOT A SUBFRAME BREAKING WHILE DRIVING WAS A SAFETY ISSUE. HE INDICATED ONLY THE PERSON WORKING ON MY CAR COULD DO THIS. SHELEDON INDICATED THAT HE (SHELDON) WAS NOT QUALIFIED TO DO THIS. IS THIS A SAFETY ISSUE? * THE SERVICE TECH SAID SEVERAL TIMES THAT IT WAS A DIFFERENT LOCATION. WHEN SHELDON CALLED THE DENNISON FORD SERVICE MANAGER, STEVE BOWNS, THE SERVICE MANGER INDICATED THAT IT WAS THE SAME LOCATION ACCORDING TO SHELDON.
WHEN DOORS WERE SHUT/ ENGINE OFF, INTERIOR LIGHTS STAYED ON. DEALER DETERMINED A SHORT IN LEFT FRONT DOOR. *AK
THE FLOOR ON THE PASSENGER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE IS DAMP / WET DURING THE OCCASION WHEN THE AIR CONDITION SYSYTEN IS TURNED ON. WHAT I FIND MORE DISTURBING IS THAT I TOOK THIS VEHICLE FOR REPAIR ON 5 SEPARATE TIMES TO THE SAME MAROONE FORD SERVICE STATION FOR REPAIR AND THE FINAL CONCLUSION IS THAT THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF THIS PROBLEM. IN OTHER WORD - THEY CAN'T FIX IT. ON THEIR FIRST INSPECTION OF THE VEHECLE ON 08/21/01 THEY THOUGHT THAT THE VEHICLE NEEDED DRIVER'S SIDE WEATHERSTRIP , THEREFORE THEY REPLACED THE WEATHERSTRIP AT A COST OF $363.62. SOON AFTERWARDS, I'VE NOTICED THAT THE FLOOR AT THE DRIVER'S SIDE IS STILL WET. TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT, I'VE TAKEN THIS VEHICLE 5 TIMES TO THAT SAME FORD AUTHORIZED SERVICE STATION AND I CONTINUE TO HAVE THIS PROBLEM. I'VE BEEN CHARGED FOR AN UNNECESSARY REPAIR AND I WANT THE VEHICLE REPAIRED PROPERLY. THE FORD AUTHORIZED DEALER IS: MAROONE FORD OF MIAMI. 16800 NW 57TH AVE, MIAMI FLORIDA 33015 TEL: 305-557-5580 EXT 318 (AGUSTINE FALCON) CELL:305-216-7830. YOUR HELP AND FEEDBACK IS MUCH APPRECIATED.*AK
TAILGATE INSTALLED WITH IMPROPER ALIGNMENT WITH BODY. CORRECTED ONE YEAR AFTER PURCHASE.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: May 4, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.