I was recently driving with my son in a 1999 Windstar when the lower control arm housing broke away from the frame. The car was completely uncontrollable and we went all over the road. If anyone had been coming the other way we would have had a serious accident.
Every mechanic who has looked at the broken housing said that they had never seen this happen before, even on much older vehicles, and that it shouldn’t have happened. Most of the mechanics I have spoken to feel that a faulty weld caused this structure failure, and that it cannot be repaired without installing an entire new sub-frame. The Ford dealer who sold me the van, and the Ford Customer Service Center at the Ford Headquarters, said that considering the age of the vehicle, the problem was probably from rust. In addition, I was told that since there has not been a recall for such a defect on the 1999 Windstar, that this is my problem. In my opinion, I interpret this to mean that Ford considers it acceptable for the structure of their products to have a usable life of less than 10 years. If that is the case, think of how many of our lives are at stake on a daily basis because of 9 + year old Fords on the roads. My wife is driving a 2002 Ford Taurus. Is my family safe in it?
This problem had nothing to do with a lack of maintenance on my part. There was nothing I could have done to prevent this, so it is not my fault. So who is at fault?
The various problems I have had with this 1999 Ford Windstar, from water leaks and electrical problems to replacing the transmission at well before 100,000 miles, have been a nusiance, but things that I could live with. However, this last problem with the structure failure is unacceptable. After having purchased or leased a total of 8 Ford vehicles, I will never own another Ford.
The same thing happened to my daughters vehicle, while her baby was in the car. The mechanics said the same thing never seen this before. It was the same make and model as yours and we figured it was faulty welding too. If you own one you might want to periodically check your sub frame.
99 Windstar with 124,000 r/f sub frame snapped due to rust from the A/C drain tube located above the sub frame. Poor design and no help or concern from Ford.
My lower control arm rusted off the subframe on my 2001 Windstar with 89,000 miles on the vehicle. I was very lucky that it happened pulling into my drive way right after my steering pulled to the left. Ford definitely has an issue with this area on the subframe. Now the search for a new subframe!
I will certainly check the sub frame on my '03 Windstar and reroute the discharge hose if needed.
1999 Ford Windstar subframe rotted out by the mounting bolt. Bent control rod and tie rods - will be over $2000 to repair - just put a new transmission in last year. Time to scrap the vehicle.
My 1999 Ford Windstar control arm rotted off the sub-frame. Lucky it happened while pulling in my driveway. Cost $1400.00 for a new subframe, CV joint (which it pulled out of the transmission when front end dropped, plus bent other things underneath). Could have been a lot more serious had we been going at any rate of speed. I plan on contacting Ford, but it doesn't sound like I will get anywhere with them.
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