NHTSA Complaint #747919 — 1996 FORD WINDSTAR

ORIGINAL TRANSMISSION FAILED AT 37900 MI. - DETECTED WHEN TRANS FLUID LEAKED ONTO HOT ENGINE PART AND SMOKED. ORIGINAL WARRANTY EXPIRED AT 36,000 MI. DEALER TOLD ME THAT FMC WOULD SELL ME AN "EXTENDED POWERTRAIN WARRANTY" FOR $250. THE WARRANTY WOULD COVER THE PREVIOUSLY DIAGNOSED TRANSMISSION FAILURE AND WOULD COVER ANY OTHER MAJOR TRANS/ENGINE PROBLEMS UP TO 75,000 MILES, PROVIDED I AM STILL THE OWNER OF THE VEHICLE. I PURCHASED THE EXTENDED WARRANTY AND WAS GLAD I DID WHEN THE REPLACED TRANS FAILED TA 42,952 MILES. THE DEALER REPLACED THAT TRANS, I HAD TO PAY A $50 DEDUCTIBLE. IN JAN. 2001 (58,100 MILES) THE WARRANTY HAD TO BE USED AGAIN. THIS TIME IT WAS FOR "UPPER AND LOWER MANIFOLD SEALS". HOWEVER, THIS TIME IT WOULD COST ME $213 BECAUSE THEY ALSO HAD TO REPLACE THE SPARK PLUGS, WHICH WERE NOT COVERED BY THE EXTENDED WARRANTY. JUST LAST MONTH, 6/22/2001 THE VEHICLES ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN, JUST AS IT HAD IN JANUARY 2001. THE VEHICLE WAS RUNNING ROUGH, STALLING, ENGINE WAS 'MISFIRING". THE END RESULT THIS TIME WAS REPLACEMENT OF THE SPARK PLUG WIRES, COIL ASSEMBLY, A-S SENSOR, AND A SPARK PLUG. THIS VEHICLE WAS SOLD TO ME AS "NOT NEEDING A TUNE-UP UNTIL 100,000 MILES". SURE SOUNDS TO ME LIKE I'VE ALREADY HAD THAT TUNE-UP AND I'M ONLY 1T 65,000 MILES!! THEN THERES THE A/C PROBLEM(S). IN JUNE THE A/C WAS ONLY BLOWING AIR THROUGH MY DEFROST VENTS ON TOP OF THE DASH. THE DEALER REPAIRED A "VACUUM LEAK" AND NOW THEY REPLACED A HIGH PSI SWITCH, COST WAS $100 EACH TIME. *AK