It may be time to let the Windstar go

[kevink1955]

Got a brake and ABS warning almost the same time over the weekend, checked brake fluid and found it low so I topped it off. Took a quick look around underneath looking for fluid at the wheels from a leaking cylinder or piston and found nothing.

As I was crawling out from under the rear if the van I found brake fluid dripping from the spare tire, well there is no wheel cylinder there so I look further and find a badly rusted brake line that is leaking. Looked around at the rest of the lines and they all look pretty bad, fuel lines also.

For now I replaced the rear section that feeds the right rear wheel with something I cobbled up from auto store parts but the rest of the lines do not bive me a warm and fuzzy feeling.

Thinking about what would happen if a brake line failed during a panic stop or a fuel line started spraying high pressure fuel on the catalytic convertors.

I sometimes have 4 kids strapped in the back, I think the time has come to let it go. It's a shame at only 178XXX miles, still is reliable and has never left me walking home but it may be time. Wife has been on me to replace it for a few years but I need it to haul the kids and grand kids so the replacement will be another Mini Van

Also found the spare is so rusted I bet it would collapse if I tried to use it

[tomj76]

FYI, I had the same occurrence on the rear brake lines. The section of the vehicle from the rear wheels back seems a little more susceptible to corrosion than the rest of it. I even had significant rust on the spare rim (enough that I took a wire wheel to it and repainted it) for this reason. I replaced the bake lines with new plastic coated ones. They are still rust free after four years, but I can't saw the same for the body back there...

[Mustang_Driver]

my ABS & Brake Light have been on for 3 years now i have never had a braking issue with the van (KNOCK ON WOOD) but when i inquired about the part at the dealer the parts manager just about fell out of his chair so i knew this wasn't good but after he finished shaking his head i got the grand total of 1700.00cdn for just the part and another 600 for labor i only paid 2000 for the van and the abs module is 2300 not going to happen so they had a mechanic come out and do the abs check and after the long list of codes he said i could either repair it or just drive it as when the light comes on it goes into fall back power brake mode no abs which is fine with me so HE the mechanic came out and he put a piece of tape over the lights and told me to go home and just drive it as the module WILL NOT cause drive ability issues and to just remember that i only have power brakes and not abs so on the rainy and snowy days just give myself a few extra feet between vehicles and ill be fine... well i got my license without abs brakes so i can live with that.... come the end of the year i am planning on getting another van but not a ford or dodge as i have my 2008 escape 4wd to play around with till i make a decision

[scubacat]

Originally Posted by Mustang_Driver

my ABS & Brake Light have been on for 3 years now i have never had a braking issue with the van (KNOCK ON WOOD) but when i inquired about the part at the dealer the parts manager just about fell out of his chair so i knew this wasn't good but after he finished shaking his head i got the grand total of 1700.00cdn for just the part and another 600 for labor i only paid 2000 for the van and the abs module is 2300 not going to happen so they had a mechanic come out and do the abs check and after the long list of codes he said i could either repair it or just drive it as when the light comes on it goes into fall back power brake mode no abs which is fine with me so HE the mechanic came out and he put a piece of tape over the lights and told me to go home and just drive it as the module WILL NOT cause drive ability issues and to just remember that i only have power brakes and not abs so on the rainy and snowy days just give myself a few extra feet between vehicles and ill be fine... well i got my license without abs brakes so i can live with that.... come the end of the year i am planning on getting another van but not a ford or dodge as i have my 2008 escape 4wd to play around with till i make a decision

No need to replace that.. just get it rebuilt. It's just a broken solder joint. I had these guys do it for me.. cost me about $60 I believe. And, it's the same module so no "reprogramming" or anything like that is necessary. And they guarantee it for life, too.

I actually brought it to their shop in person when I lived in NE Atlanta; nice folks.

https://www.myairbags.com

[wiswind]

There comes a time in the life of ANY vehicle where one needs to say "it is time to move on".
I came here as a 1996 Windstar owner.
Windstars had a "bit" of a spotty reputation as far as reliability.
I feel that my Windstar gave me really good service.
My "tranie" went out around 100K miles.....I spend HOURS on the internet and decided to bite the bullet at get a FORD Remanufactured unit....with all the updates to overcome many of the issues that my original had.......it lasted the 129K miles (and years) until I let the vehicle go.
Under pressure from my parents (even as adults....our parents still have a influence upon us....in my case a GOOD one)....at 13 years (10 with me) I let my Windstar go and bought my parents 2003 Sienna from them.
7 years later......I faced the SAME situation as the original poster for this thread.....blew a metal brake line. My Sienna (reputation as being super reliable) had cost me a lot in repeated A/C repairs. So ANY vehicle has repair costs if you are in it for the long haul.
The brake lines on the Sienna were nicely coated.....except for a couple inches near any connection. My mechanic repaired the blown line.....and said that everything was fine.
I found that MANY location in the brake lines were seriously rusted......no surprise as they had had the SAME 16 years of salt and beet juice as the one that had blown.
I had a very slight leak in the A/C system.......due for a timing belt change (roughly $900) and now replacement of MANY spots in the brake lines......
ALSO.....I had the year before.....replaced the rear shocks......front struts (full unit with with springs), rear brakes (including wheel cylinders), parking brake lines from the pedal......and the "cat back" exhaust system.
For the "cat back" exhaust system.....I went with Walker brand (which made the OEM system)..... At just under 3 years.....that had rusted out and had holes in it.....needing replacement AGAIN.
My mechanic had told me that replacement part quality had become TERRIBLE. Another subject....but worth mentioning.

So...main point remains......I got AWESOME service out of my 1996 Windstar that I bought 3 year old.....
But with ANY vehicle, one needs to know when to move on...
There is NO set point for "all" vehicles.
I will say that I had no issue selling my 1996 Windstar once my 2003 Sienna showed up on the property. I am a 1 vehicle guy. People came to me asking......
The person who ended up with my Windstar was VERY happy.
Back to my Toyota......I sold it to Carmax and I am sure that they sent it to Auction.....
In spite of my over the top care.....I did not feel comfortable selling it to anyone I knew......
I found that I no longer really need a minivan and moved to a 2016 Camry......off lease vehicle (again). I will rent a van when I need one.
I will continue to work with this room.....as I got so much information from the internet, I tried to pay it forward.
The Windstars are getting old....and one needs to evaluate their OWN vehicle and make that HARD choice on their own.
If you still own a Windstar, you are like me......get a vehicle and get the most out of it.
My 1996 had some 229K miles on it when I let it go.
I had it for 10 years
I had the Sienna for 9 years.....was 7 years old when I got it.

Each person's vehicle is it's own situation......and we each must decide when the time has come to move on.

I prefer to buy 3 years used and keep it until it needs replacement.
Buying new every few years is SUPER expensive....even though I can "afford" it.....it does not make financial sense to ME.

I want a vehicle that I can count on......I used my minivans to haul youth on mission trips......pulling a trailer. Loading a vehicle with other people's kids raises the bar quite a bit in my book!!!!!

[12Ounce]

Wind, ... we are all indebted to you for your service to the forum. Happy Driving!

[scubacat]

I second that. Thanks for all your time in helping us over the years. We bought a new-to-us 2014 Sienna in May of 2017 which has been great. Yet, the windstar just will not die, and is still used for driving in nasty snow & salt (to keep rust at bay on the newer van) as well as for transporting the big dog since wife doesn't want dog hair in the new van. Plus the aftermarket remote starter is nice on those freezing cold days. It seemed odd to keep both, but the Windstar's barely worth anything on a trade or sale, it still serves a function, and is super cheap to keep and run. I actually am going to change the brakes again next week, so I guess she's stayin' around a little longer. Long live the 2002 Ford Windstar! hah.

[wiswind]

Thank you for the kind words.
Many of you folks helped me out over the years with your posts. So there is lots of thanks to go around.

[Mustang_Driver]

i too am at the point to where i need to make the decision of whether or not to scrap it and move on as the transmission has a slippage/surge when cold and hesitation when warm the trans shop just told me to drive it till it finally gives in and that was 2 yrs ago so it is not too bad but this last friday the alternator went bad, as for living in canada i am looking at close to 350.00 for a reman alternator and another 70 for a serpentine belt, i need to find a solution as i just filled the gas tank and i hear that you cannot siphon the gas out so i am at the crossroads as to whether or not to fix it 1700 for the transmission,350 for the alternator, so for the same 2000 i would spend on repairs i could put a lot of upgrades on my escape and goto 1 vehicle


but as i still have it i appreciate all the help i got from the users on this site and will continue to help where i can

[12Ounce]

I suppose you want to empty the tank should you sent the Winny to recycle ...??

I have been through the fuel pump replacement a few times ... just bad luck. The tank must be lowered for this procedure, as there is no access hole to the pump through the floor pan. I have emptied the tank by hooking up a hose to the fuel lines in the engine area, if the pump runs (great!) it is easier to start the emptying ....but it is not absolutely necessary. Just have the Winny tank/rear-end high enough, and the receiving vessel low enough. (think "down hill"!)

Good luck!

[Mustang_Driver]

Thanks, My Brother-in-law works at a autoparts store and as i was talking to him on saturday he gave my his cost on the parts which is still a little steep , so i told him i would think about it and i took the insurance off the vehicle at least i'll save a couple bucks per month there and next thing i knew i had a knock on the door and it was their parts driver saying he had an alternator and serp belt for me and i needed to sign for it, i put the parts aside and called him and when i asked him where/who ordered the parts he just said it's a belated birthday\early christmas present from him and my sister and not to worry about it, so i thanked him and said he didn't have to and he just said not to worry about it got the alternator swapped out but serp belt i needed 3 hands and a long 13mm for the tensioner, got it this far just need to diagnose the tranny issues now maybe i'll throw a used one at it for 400

[tomj76]

I had a used AX4S put in my Windstar many years ago, but it didn't last long as the main seal failed within six months. So, if you go that route, I'd think about putting at least a new set of seals in it while it's easy. You might even consider a new frictions and internal rubber kit, if you're up to that challenge.

However, either way, be aware that this transmission must be dropped from below (unless you pull then engine out after some on-vehicle disassembly). To do this you either have to drop the engine out with it (on the subframe), or support the engine from above and drop the transmission & subframe from below.

I took it out with the engine from above, but we have others here who have done it from below without using a car lift or anything of that nature, just some lumber and hardware.