NHTSA Complaint #715016 — 1995 FORD WINDSTAR

IN 7/99 A 'CHECK ENGINE LIGHT' CAME ON AFTER A LONG TRIP [BOCA RATON, FL TO CHARLOTTE, NC] AN OXYGEN SENSOR WAS REPLACED BY A FORD DEALER[YOUNG FORD, 704-598-2599] IN 10/99 THE 'CHECK ENGINE LIGHT' CAME ON AGAIN. WALLACE FORD [DELRAY BEACH, 561-278-0303]WAS INFORMED OF THE PREVIOUS SENSOR REPLACEMENT, AND REPLACED ANOTHER SENSOR. NO OTHER INDICATING LIGHTS HAD COME ONE AT ANY TIME. ON NOV. 14 THE CAR WAS ROUGH ON STARTUP, THEN RAN OKAY. ON NOV. 16 THE CAR WOULD NOT START. WALLACE FORD HAS FOUND A HEADGASKET FAILURE. RESEARCH ON THE INTERNET HAS INDICATED OVER 200 OF THE SAME FAILURES FOR THIS MAKE & MODEL YEAR. I WAS INFORMED THAT FORD HAD A 'PROGRAM' FOR THIS IF THE MILEAGE WAS UNDER 60K. MY UNDERSTANDING IS A RELATIVELY EASY CHECK COULD HAVE PREVENTED THIS CATASTROPHIC FAILURE THAT IS ESTIMATED AT $2100 TO REPAIR AT THIS TIME. NEITHER DEALER, WHEN MAKING THE EARLIER REPAIRS , THAT WERE LIKELY CAUSED BY THE LEAKING OF THE HEADGASKET, MENTIONED THE POSSIBILITY OF A HEADGASKET FAILURE FOR THIS MAKE & MODEL, ALTHOUGH FORD IS CLEARLY AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. A GRAPH ATTRIBUTED TO NHTSA INDICATES THE VERY HIGH NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS FOR THIS PROBLEM. I EXPECT TO BE CONTACTING FORD AT A NUMBER OF LEVELS TO VOICE THIS COMPLAINT. IS THERE ANY INVESTIGATION UNDERWAY FOR THIS? I UNDERSTAND KRON TV IN SAN FRANSCISCO RAN AN INVESTIGATIVE STORY ON THIS PROBLEM THIS WEEK.