16th Apr 2006, 08:22
I think that people have missed the point here. The author is not complaining about doing the oil changes, or having to buy new tires, but the fact that he or she has done these these things and spent the money for a vehicle that has suddenly died. Nobody wants to sink a lot of money into a vehicle, expecting to be able to use it, and then have to park it in the back yard.
16th Apr 2006, 12:59
I can't agree. Changing oil, tires, and brakes are part of owning any car. That's why the mileage went as high as 204,000. If she had never changed oil, the car wouldn't have run to 100,000. The point is that there are routine maintenance items that wear out and need to be replaced, and if you begrudge that, then you have unrealistic expectations of what a car is. Operating any car costs money, that's just the way it is. If somebody makes a big deal about changing oil, then you have to suspect that they weren't real diligent on checking/changing the transmission fluid and performing other routine maintenance. That's why cars end up parked in the back yard, but nobody ever believes it is anything they did or didn't do. If she got 204,000 miles out of a car since 1999, then she got her money's worth and has little cause for complaint.
10th Jun 2006, 09:49
I own Ford Windstar 1999. My advice is "Do not buy this car". This car is costing me $6000 per year on repairs. Every year transmission, check engine light, brakes and power locks. Every time you go to dealers, they charge $1000 to fix any problem.
Overall, it is piece of garbage box in nice colours, and now I understand why FORD stands for Fix Or Repair Daily.
24th Sep 2006, 13:37
I agree with the first author about the high cost of owning a 99 Wind star.
We bought ours brand new and performed regular maintenance (oil, grease, etc).
As soon as it was paid for (and out of warranty) the bills began piling up. I was patient with the anticipation that there would be a threshold of repairs I would cross and I would get a free year.
This was not to be so. Over the past 3 years it has averaged $4000 per year for repairs.
I would not buy another Ford. It now stands for Fix or Deal.
24th Sep 2006, 16:04
TO the British guy or girl, do not listen to these people about these Fords. My family has always owned Fords and they have never had one problem out of them. My grandpa for example has a 88 Ford Ranger with almost 300,000 miles. My great aunt has a 96 Windstar I believe it is and it has many miles on it.
5th Apr 2006, 19:48
I wouldn't trust Ford techs, those guys are incompetent and will tell you the same thing everytime "there is nothing wrong" or "that is the way the car is". I used to deal with these guys when my car was in the shop (I went to 6 different dealers and they are all the same). But as soon as your car is off warranty, they will tell you what's wrong and charge you an outrageous amount to fix it, and half the time they don't even diagnose it right.