Ford Recalls 525,000 Windstar Minivans

Ford Motor Company is recalling approximately 525,000 of its 1999-2003 Windstar minivans to repair defective parts that could "result in a loss of vehicle directional control, increasing the risk of a crash," according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

The vehicle safety recall was issued on January 26, 2011, but letters of notification from Ford to Windstar owners only began showing up in mailboxes this week. According to the recall letter I received on February 17, 2011, "the front subframe lower control arm rear attaching flanges, or both rear body mounts" of my 2002 Windstar "could separate from the vehicle subframe after operating in high corrosion areas for an extended period of time."

Ford's latest recall affects approximately 425,000 Ford Windstars registered in 22 cold-weather states of the United States (Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin and the District of Columbia), and 100,000 of the minivans registered in Canada, where salt and other corrosive chemicals are used to treat roads in the wintertime.

According to the February 2011 recall letter issued by Ford, owners of Windstar minivans should contact their local dealer and schedule the recall work to be done as soon as possible. A two-step repair process is involved. Dealers will inspect all affected parts to see if there are any cracks or perforations. If there are none and the vehicle passes inspection, dealers will perform an unspecified "authorized reinforcement repair." All work (parts and labor) will be done free of charge to vehicle owners.

If the initial inspection reveals the presence of cracks, perforations, or fatigue to affected parts, Ford will, at its expense, provide Windstar owners with a rental vehicle until parts are available and repairs can be completed. Ford "will extend a vehicle refund offer" to consumers "in the rare case it is determined that a vehicle cannot be repaired under the recall."

The January 26, 2011 recall is the latest in a series of costly safety recalls affecting the beleaguered Ford Windstar minivan. In August 2010, Ford issued a similar recall for 575,000 of the vehicles in northern tier states and Canada for potential corrosion-related cracks and perforations to rear axles that "could cause catastrophic failure and loss of vehicle control." Many recalled Windstars (including mine) passed the initial inspection, but six months later are still awaiting the arrival of "reinforcement repair" parts to complete all steps in the recall. Many other affected minivans aren't so fortunate. Most of the ones that failed inspection are today sitting forlornly in local dealer parking lots, in need of backordered replacement rear axles.

In October 2009, Ford recalled over 1.1 million 1995-2003 Windstars to repair defective speed control deactivation switches (SCDS) that had the potential to catch fire. It was part of the largest vehicle recall in history, involving over 16 million Ford vehicles worldwide.

SOURCES:

NHTSA Recall information - Structure: Frame and Members: Underbody Shields January 26, 2011

Ford Recall Notice - Rear Axle

Ford Recall Notice - Vehicle Speed Control Deactivation Switch

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