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Maintain your cool This page discusses the Windstar's repair and maintenance issues. We hope this will be a very empty page! After all, escaping the "Oh-no-not-another-repair-bill Blues" is one reason we all buy new cars, isn't it? The Ford Canada warranty on our 1998 Windstar is a 3-year 60,000 km bumper-to-bumper warranty with Roadside Assistance. It covers pretty much everything, apparently, from burned out headlights to rattles and squeaks. The Firestone tires have their own warranty. One of the really cool things about new cars these days is how little scheduled maintenance they require. The last time we bought a new car was in 1985, and while it was inexpensive to maintain, the '98s promise to deliver even less service "downtime". We say "Great!". If you squint your eyes and take a really close look at the photo above, you'll notice a really useful feature; anything that you can and should check yourself, like oil level, washer fluid, etc. is clearly labelled and highlighted in yellow. For us mechanically-challenged types, this is user-friendly design, and we like it! If you manage to read the owners manual for the Windstar, you'll eventually get to a part that tells you that at the 800km mark you should return to your dealer so they can check and re-tighten the wheel lugs. So we did. It didn't require an appointment, and took about 15 minutes. First
Service Totem supplied a loaner car through Budget rentals for $11.50 for the day. We had a list of things for them to do in addition to the scheduled service; the passenger door would not shut properly, the sliding door's lock was very stiff to turn with a key, and the black paint (undercoating?) applied to the frame rail was very uneven and spotty. At the end of the day, Totem phoned to say the car wasn't ready, but it would be by noon the next day. At noon the next day I picked up the Windstar. The scheduled servicing was done and the passenger door was adjusted. The new lock unit had not arrived for the sliding door and the body shop had not got to the frame rail. That work was done a couple of weeks later, and took two days to complete. This was not a problem as Totem's Service Manager arranged a loaner car at their expense (the "A" plan). The Totem Service Centre is a very busy place, but the staff is positive and courteous under pressure. Second
Scheduled Service They also tackled a rattle that developed in the passenger door at around 9000 km. A few rivets were replaced on the window motor mount under warranty and that seems to have done the trick. Third
Scheduled Service We reported an intermittent squeaking sound from the steering and steering wheel that had developed recently. Intermittent problems are always a pain because if you can't duplicate them you don't know what to fix. Totem inspected the problem and near the end of the day were able to locate it. The decision was to replace the tie rod ends (!!). Fortunately this is under warranty, so total bill for this visit was $41.50. Fourth
Scheduled Service After an orientation with service manager Peter Scholtz, I went for a walk and the students got to work. In addition to the scheduled service they replaced a mud flap screw that I had noticed was missing the last time I'd washed the van. As part of their learning experience, they also ran a complete engine diagnostic test. The total bill was discounted as part of the promotion, so we were back on the road one hour later for just $28.45! Fifth
Scheduled Service The bill came to $204.14, plus a loaner car rental of about $13. Sixth
Scheduled Service The next day we set off on vacation. With the windows down we noticed a squeaking noise that disappears when the brakes are applied. Hmmm. And on the last day of our vacation the fuel gauge stopped working correctly. After 200km of driving on the Coquihalla Highway the gauge indicated we still had a full tank of gas. I don't think so. By the time we had covered 500km we still had over a quarter tank showing. So we were back in the shop on August 30, and they replaced a faulty brake pad. We were advised to fill the gas tank and then let it run as empty as we dare before filling the tank again. The gauge is working more reliably now, although when you fill the tank the gauge goes over the "F" Full mark. Seventh
Scheduled Service BIG-O
Power Locks
Mr. Lube
Once again the fuel gauge has gone wonky, so once again we're trying to let the tank run as low as we dare to try and correct the problem. That's twice now it's happened after filling up at a particulat Mohawk station in Penticton. Coincidence? Evil gas pumps? We don't know, we just hope we don't run out of gas. We've heard from some other Windstar owners who have experienced the exact same problem. We have recently
noticed an occassional squeaking noise from the front end. It's hard to
tell if it's suspension or steering. Anyway, after a while it stopped
and hasn't happened again.
50,000km Scheduled
Service Fuel
gauge repair 55,000km Scheduled
Service At four years old, there are two little wear items that we're noticing. 1. The defroster fan is making an audible clicking noise at low settings and 2. the rear power windows' mechanisms sound creaky 60,000km Scheduled
Service 65,000km Scheduled
Service 70,000km Scheduled
Service, February 2003 We also inquired about our faulty gas gauge. in August 2002 I spoke with Peter Scholtz, the service manager at Totem Ford. He quickly understood the problem and said it sounded as though the fuel sensor they had replaced in October 2001 had failed. The part had a one year warranty so we'd be covered. Problem was, we were moving to Kelowna from Vancouver that month and couldn't make time to get the van in. I was travelling back and forth from the coast to the interior every other week. So we moved and got super busy opening a new school in Kelowna. Finally got the van in to a dealer only to find that the part warranty had expired and the estimate to fix the problem was $500! What to do? They suggested we phone Ford. We did. They essentially said "too bad". Then we got a follow up form from Ford asking what we thought of the help we got from phoning in. So I filled out the form and wrote a letter, basically explaining what happened. I understand the rules are the rules, but it's more than a little disappointing when we were still paying off the van and this problem is not our fault, we just didn't get to it in time. May 7 2003 update - Ford Canada have concluded that they have dealt appropriately with our faulty fuel sensor problem; which is to say we're on our own. They have expressed "regret" that in this instance they have been unable to meet or exceed my expectations to satisfy my complaint. All I want is for Ford to offer to pick up some of the tab to fix this. We've been really happy with the van and the care so far, but I think it's fair to expect Ford to help us out on this. June 1 update - We've been contacted by Elizabeth Pagliuca at Ford since we've e-mailed Mr. Gilles Contant, VP of Customer Service. We also got support from our original dealer's service manager, Totem Ford's Peter Scholtz, who has spoken with Ms. Pagliuca on our behalf -- thanks Peter! She has asked us to take our Ford into a local dealer to verify the problem, then they will consult with that dealer about a resolution. Fair enough. June 27 update - We spoke with Elizabeth at Ford again. She had done a lot of work looking into our problem with the fuel gauge. She was very thorough. In the end, we were told that it is normal and within the design intent that the Windstar's fuel gauge will travel down more slowly for the top half of the tank and then the bottom half will appear to go through fuel more quickly. After speaking with dealers and Ford's own techies, it seems as though replacing our fuel sensor will probably not fix the problem, even in the short term. On our last attempt to gauge just how much fuel we have in the tank, we drove 562 km before stopping to fuel up. We put 70 litres of gas into our 74 litre tank, with the gauge still showing a quarter tank. 4 litres of course is nothing like a quarter tank of gas. We estimate we were getting 12.5l/100km around town (which is pretty good) and that we had about a 32km range left before we would have run out of gas. So now we have to continue to rely on resetting the trip odometer every time we fill up and understand that 1/4 tank means pretty well empty. This is the end of our attempt to resolve this issue. The fuel gauge certainly didn't work that way for the first 3 years, but Ford says this is within design parameters, so that really is that. I suggested to Elizabeth that she make a note on our behalf to the engineers that their design intent is not really good enough in this regard. It's easy to picture travelling a mountain highway in B.C. with what you think is a quarter tank of gas and running out 50km from the nearest town. At least I feel as though I got a thorough response to my concern, after a little effort on my part. While we were getting the fuel gauge thing checked out, we also got our front rotors machined at Orchard Ford. Total bill, $131.61. They didn't charge us for inspecting the fuel gauge system. 75,000km Service, August 2003 Oil change, replaced very first burned out bulbs (over rear plate), flushed the coolant system, fixed a clicking sound (front hubcap was the culprit). Kelowna Lincoln Ford washed it too, badly needed because we've been conserving water and not washing the minivan for a couple of months. Total bill $136.78 80,000km Service, December 2003 Oil change. Total bill $36.77 85,000km Service, March 2004 Oil change, tire rotation. Total bill $53.73 90,000km Service, June 2004 Oil change, front brake pads replaced, brakes serviced. Total bill $258.28 95,000km Service, September 2005 Oil change. Total bill $36.77. Also replaced original Firestones with new ones at around 93,000km at a cost of $564.41 98,000km Service, September 2005 First tune up, plus wiper blades and another oil change. Total bill $492.76. 120,000km Service, June 2006 OK, so we haven't reported a few oil changes but we haven't been skipping them. We get the oil changed every 5000km. We also needed a tire rotation, flushed the cooling system, steering system, replaced the original battery, and ordered a part to fix the driver's window which is coming off the rails or whatever the real tech term is. Total bill $470.60. When the part came in and the window was fixed, that was another $123.17 125,000km and 130,000km Service, September/November 2006 Another oil change and at 130,000 we had to fix up the rear brakes with new pads etc. The side door lock also needed servicing as it was sticking badly. Altogether, $477.60. Broke Down! at 132,000km, December 22, 2006 11pm, out at a student film screening, and the Windstar won't start. We phoned BCAA and about 45 minutes later we're up and running. The fuel pump is dying. First thing next morning (Saturday Dec. 23) phoned the two local Ford dealers. Both have a pump in stock, and one of them can get us in there in the morning to replace it. Alright! That is, if I can get the mini-van started. On the second try it started. Drove with the snow falling to the dealership (my apologies to the driver of the red Toyota who saw me coming and stayed out of the way as I blew through a red light, completely unable to stop on the snow and ice--my fault, going too fast). Dealer got the new pump in, and now it looks like my fuel gauge really is working within its' original design parameters. So the good news is we have a great mini-van that works just in time for the holidays and all that running around. The bad news is today cost me $608.90. The folks at Visa are going to love my holiday bill! Kudos both to Kelowna Ford and Orchard Ford for their cooperation and assistance today. March 2007 Oil change at 136,906 (yes, a little late). $41.22 at Pennzoil in Kelowna. Actually costs a little more there than getting it done at Kelowna Ford! November 2007 150,000 servicing. OK, we had oil changes at 140,000 and 145,000KM, and now it's time for the BIG 150. Are you ready?
January 23, 2008 ABS light flashed on once or twice and we have a big road trip coming up, so decided to get it checked. Also noticed a bulge in the sidewall of one of the new snowtires. After $99 worth of diagnosis, it seems the ABS module might be malfunctioning. That, we're told, is $1100 to replace! As for the tire, we hit the sidewall on a curb and apparently it was enough to break the inner mesh on the BF Goodrich Blizzack. The tire had to be replaced, at our expense ($110). Ouch! We'd only had it two months. Total bill today $274.77.
September, 2008, 168,000km
So there have been a couple of oil changes since our last entry, but then in September we went in to Kal Tire thinking we needed a possible front end alignment, as the van was pulling to the right. Turns out our second set of Firestone's were coming apart! Holy Crap! After 80,000km these tires are disintegrating. They were warranteed for 110,000, so Kal Tire bought them back pro-rated, and we got a new set of Chinese-made tires. We'll see how that goes. They're guaranteed for 80,000km, that's all. While it was in we had the front brake pads done, new fluid, coolant, new rotors, another alignment and got out for just under $1400.00. A very expensive day. The good news is the van is running great, plus the exterior paint job is holding up real well after 10 years - way better than the Pontiac or Dodge we used to have.
January 10, 2009, 173,698km
Change the oil and put new spiffy windshield wipers on the front. Everything else checked out OK. $108.65
August, 2009, 186,000km
Couple more oil changes since the 173,000 mark. The passenger window door is sound a little odd, kind of a rattle when you close the door with the window open - but it's still working OK. May need some looking into. One of those spiffy new windshield wipers I bought a while back was not doing a very good job, so the shop replaced at no charge. Kudos to Great Canadian Oil Change for doing the right thing. Call it another $100 since our last post.
Total maintenance
bill so far after 10 years, 7 months and about 35 scheduled service stops: $8722.16 service and about $74.00 car rental. That translates into approximately $65/month for service since we bought it new.
Safety recalls
are listed here
Ford
Canada Stays in Touch In September
of 2001 we received a letter from Ford of Canada, stating "Effective immediately,
Ford is providing additional coverage for front spring replacement." The
letter is very well written and basically states that the front coil springs
on our Windstar could potentially fracture due to corrosion. This is most
likely to occur on vehicles operated for an extended period of time in
high corrosion areas (where salt is used on the roadways in the winter).
"This additional
coverage program will be in effect for 10 years from the vehicle's original
warranty start date, regardless of distance travelled."
My feelings
on this are a bit mixed, just because I wonder about the safety implications
of front coil spring failure. However, it seems that Ford is trying to
do the right thing with this pro-active approach. The west coast of Canada
is not an area that uses a lot of salt on the roadways, so we don't anticipate
having to invoke this extended warranty clause for our '98 3.0L.
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