There are 3 stored owner reports matching the visibility & wipers 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 3 of 3 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)ON AUGUST 20TH, WHILE IN A REPAIR SHOP HAVING THE MOTORS REPLACED IN THE WINDOWS OF MY FORD WINDSTAR 1997, THERE WAS A FIRE UNDER THE HOOD WHILE THE CAR WAS OFF. THE MECHANIC PUT THE FIRE OUT AND I TOOK IT TO MY MECHANIC THE SAME DAY. THE CRUISE CONTROL MECHANISM WAS WHAT CAUGHT FIRE. AFTER SEEING MY MECHANIC I CALLED THE FORD HOTLINE AND ASKED ABOUT RECALL INFORMATION. THEY SAID THEY WOULD GET BACK AHOLD OF ME IN TWO DAYS, AND THEY DID NOT. TODAY, AUGUST 30TH, WHILE IN WAL-MART WITH MY CHILDREN I WAS PAGED TO THE PARKING LOT. MY CAR HAD CAUGHT FIRE AGAIN, WHILE OFF AND WITH NO KEY IN THE IGNITION. THE ENGINE WAS DESTROYED, AND LUCKILY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ARRIVED IN TIME TO PUT THE FIRE OUT BEFORE THE INTERIOR OF THE CAR WAS DESTROYED (CAR SEATS, STROLLERS, ETC.). *NM
IN COLD WEATHER CONDITIONS INSIDE OF WINDOWS BECOMES EXTREMELY FOGGED, CANNOT BE DEFROSTED, CAUSING POOR VISIBILITY. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS.*AK
WHILE DRIVING THE WINDOWS ICED UP WITH AN 3/4 INCH OF ICE AND THE DEFFOGER DID NOT DEFROST THE WINDOWS EVEN AFTER DRIVING FOR A DISTANCE. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
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.