I just bought this van a couple months ago and already had to put on four new tires and a front tie rod. I also had the recall done on the back axle. The last time I drove it, it ran fine on the highway; but in town it started jerking. I thought it was the brake rotors grabbing. I went to a friend's house and he noticed fluid on the ground. I checked it and it was tranny fluid. It was pouring out when I started the van. I took it to a garage and they want $2,650.00 to fix it! They said it is coming out the front seal and replacing the seal alone will not fix the problem! When it is parked, I don't lose as much fluid. I went to another garage and he wants $3,000.00.

This is my only transportation. I sold two vehicles to buy this one because it has less than half the mileage on each of the other cars! Now I am walking. It is impossible for me to come up with this kind of money. I am a disabled veteran and live on a fixed income.

Bought this Windstar 2000 minivan...changed tps, neutral switch, flowmeter, etc... Thought all was well when all of a sudden van starts smoking and all, and I mean all, the transmission oil was on the road... I had to call a tow truck and the mechanic calls me in morning (good mechanic known him for 20+ years) and tells me he put in transmission oil checked for leaks and found NOTHING... Drove the van and no leaks....parked the van then moved it, no leaks visible on road...

How and why would all the oil to just leak out???? Feedback please...I am so confused at this point..

I was a dwindling Ford fan until I bought this van. Losing confidence in them over the years, this POS was the straw that broke the camel's back. Bought with 110k miles and not a single problem, I have found the following major issues over the last 20k miles: (please note, this doesn't cover the "small" complaints like the spare tire carrier not letting me lower the spare to use it, or the factory jack buckling on level ground and letting the van fall with no front tire on it, or the shoddy front suspension, or the cheap interior parts, or etc.......)

It is riddled with odd electrical problems like random door locks and windows working intermittently, ABS sensor failures that magically go away, only to come back the next day, and the transmission control computer randomly deciding to throw the thing out of gear at highway speeds.

The van has also developed a strange oil leak that only surfaces while driving it, which splatters the oil all over the place, making the leak impossible to detect without pressure washing the engine, driving a quarter mile, then getting out to see if it leaked or not. Imagine a few miles of that only to find that the oil came out quickly during the last quarter mile, soaking everything again and hiding the leak again in the process.

Let's not forget to mention the transmission issues that plague MANY newer Ford vehicles... This one is leaking fluid all over the place and has broken a few teeth off some of the gears, leaving them sitting in my transmission pan for me to find during a routine fluid and filter change. Add this to the electrical issue with the transmission control computer, and you've got a real pain in the ass problem, a time bomb. I'm sorry, but to be the company that pioneered the planetary gear automatic, I really thought they'd have it down to a science... Ford seems to be going down the toilet instead.

Father in law bought the 2000 Windstar at an auction for a really good price! Offered it up to us for an even better price! Well, drove it from WI to MO, and pull in to the gas staion to get gas, van start smoking the a quart or better of transmission fluid all over the ground. Take it to the mechaninc Torque converter seal!! same as the picture above!!! exactly! Now do I pay est..1400 to replace a seal or scrap it or replace the transmision.. Due to the fact that more than likely the transmision is going bad hence the pressure that blew the seal anyway!!

I am a single mother who's now a nursing student and this is my only means of transportation for school and work as well as to get my children back and forth to school. I always had my vehicle serviced regularly. There was a recall on the brake switch and I had it repaired for free after only being contacted by Dept of Commission on vehicle safety because the vehicle could have caught a fire while I was driving it and the brakes did malfunction a couple of times where I had to use the emergency brakes to stop.

I feel that the Ford Company should be more reliable on making and selling vehicles because family lives are at stake and there is no way to replace a life. Darn I really feel, driving a Ford vehicle is the same as a drunk driver running into you head ONNN!!!. :( and now the transmission is leaking at the rear seal , just a piece of junk Be aware the 2000 Ford Windstar is a LOAD F JUNK AND TROUBLE!!!! or for that matter to me all Ford vehicles.

Well... it started with a little bit of a leak on the drive way about 3 months ago. This was noticed only when the van was driven and stopped. Other times when the engin is cool, the leak was not there. It did not have problems with the gear shifting. First, I thought that the transmission fluid was leaking from the gasket around the pan. So, it was replaced. One day we drove for a good 30 mins and we stopped on the way. That's when the big leak was noticed. It was really bad. My camera was with me at that time. So, I took a few pictures to find out where the leak is. Sure enough, the leak was from the seal. The seal has broken. So, I drove to the garage. When I arrived to the garage, I checked to see if the leak has stopped. But, it was leaking like it would never end. The garage suggested that I should not have it fixed, because it will cost me more than what the van is worth. So, I am selling the van as metal scrap. The end of the story was sad. I owned it for the last 10 years (since 2000). I have a 93 Honda Accord. This Ford Winstar van has costed me alot more money than a Honda Accord. I will not buy any more northamerican cars.

Bought The Van in February 2009 for my family (3 kids and a wife). Van drove ok after my mechanic got it in tip top shape or so I thought. Next thing I know I see tranny fluid all over my driveway. I take it to my mechanic and he drives it for two weeks and sees no leakes. I get the van back and the first day I'm driving it, it starts leaking again. My mechanic said it sounds like the Torque converter seal is bad. Sounds like a small job you know just seal it up. Too bad you have to take the whole tranny out to put a small plug into it that cost maybe 10 dollars? Not to mention that the seal may not be enough. Well I call Ford and ask them how much a rebuilt tranny would cost given the fact it will cost in the range of $1000 to fix the seal and they said the tranny is and I quote "$1,995 plus tax sir". Are you kidding me? So your telling me that a transmission for the van cost 2 grand and the book value on the van is only 3 grand? So basically my van is almost totaled because of a stupid seal? I'm not going to kill Ford completely because I have a '95 Explorer and it hasn't ever given me a problem in the almost four years I've had it, but the Windstar is a piece of junk! Especially the 2000 model, for some reason that specific model's tranny cost more than any of their other models whether it be the ones before it or after it. I also see that alot of the complaints of other people are on that model. Oh well mines hasn't gone completely but I know its only a matter of time. I have had the o/d light flash already so I'm just gonna dirive it around local and put tranny fluid into it like my mechanic said until it dies and then get a REAL van, maybe a Toyota Sienna, I drive those at work and they are solid.