1996 Ford Windstar Electrical System Problems
Owners have filed 83 complaints with NHTSA about electrical system problems on the 1996 Ford Windstar, 6% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 91,623 miles. The words owners use most often: “head gasket” (13% of reports).
- 83electrical system complaints
- 91,623median miles at failure
- 1mention a crash
- 0mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- 22%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Head gasket: mentioned in 11 of 83 complaints (13%)
- Spark plugs: mentioned in 9 of 83 complaints (11%)
- Engine check: mentioned in 8 of 83 complaints (10%)
- Caught fire: mentioned in 7 of 83 complaints (8%)
At what mileage do electrical system problems happen?
Based on 21 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 83 complaints, 1 mention a crash, 19 a fire.
Ford Windstar electrical system complaints by model year
| Model year | Electrical System complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 Windstar | 3 | 13% | 140,500 |
| 2003 Windstar | 280 | 19% | 100,000 |
| 2002 Windstar | 261 | 19% | 100,000 |
| 2001 Windstar | 223 | 13% | 98,000 |
| 2000 Windstar | 222 | 13% | 111,009 |
| 1999 Windstar | 209 | 14% | 101,000 |
| 1998 Windstar | 111 | 8% | 82,409 |
| 1997 Windstar | 7 | 4% | 135,000 |
| 1996 Windstar | 83 | 6% | 91,623 |
| 1995 Windstar | 168 | 5% | 137,145 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists electrical system for the 1996 Ford Windstar. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
This is a second call for help ford corporate will not email me back. Will not verify if pcm has been updated. The van only has under 59,000 miles on it . It should not break this bad this soon makes me tell anyone on social media and our local news media and clark howards team. I do not want to…
Ford windstar brake, abs brake, cruise control, and speedometer/odometer electrical problems rear axle cracks! *tr
My abs light stays its been on for 6 months now, my cruise control wont work, and my speedometer goes crazy, no lights in my dash and got told there was a recall on several of these items and i want to know how to get past recalls on my van i've have seen all kinds of recalls and never sent…
Frequently asked questions
Do all 1996 Ford Windstars have electrical system problems?
No. NHTSA has 83 owner complaints about electrical system for the 1996 Ford Windstar (6% of the 1,386 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 1996 Ford Windstar electrical system?
No recall currently lists electrical system for this vehicle.
At what mileage do electrical system problems start?
The median reported mileage is 91,623 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
What do owners say about electrical system problems on the 1996 Ford Windstar?
The most frequent phrase is “head gasket”, in 11 of 83 complaints, followed by “spark plugs” (9).
Other 1996 Ford Windstar problems
See all 1996 Ford Windstar problems or electrical system problems across all Windstar years.