Consumer Complaint Detail

FORD / WINDSTAR / 2003

Recalls
0 Injured
Investigations
0 Death
Complaints
No Fire
Components - Details
NHTSA Complaint Number: 005019790 Incident Date: May, 09 2005
Consumer's City: PALMYRA Consumer's State: PA
Vehicle Transmission Type: AUTO Manufacturers Name: Ford Motor Company
Model Name: WINDSTAR Model Year: 2003
Vehicle Involved in a Crash: No Component's Description: Power train:automatic transmission
Vehicle Involved in a Fire: No Persons Injured: 0
Vehicle's VIN#: 2FMDA52443B Date added to File: May, 23 2021
Date Complaint Received: May, 11 2005 Complaint Type: IVOQ
Incident Reported To Police: No Purchase Date: Oct, 27 2004
Was Original Owner: Yes Anti-lock Brakes: Yes
Number of Cylinders: 6 Date of Manufacturer: -
Was Vehicle Towed: - Description of the Complaints: 03 windstar was parked on a slight incline with the engine running, a/c was on. my wife and i unloaded the children from both sides of the van (manual sliding doors) and i unloaded a stroller from the back of the van closing the tailgate. we placed items in our garage and i moved the kids toys out of the way so i could pull the van in the garage. my wife needed help taking items in the house and i followed the children into the house. we heard a loud crash. i opened up the door to our garage to find our windstar had engaged and drove up the drive, through the garage and into a deep freezer and refrigerator, pushing them both through the back wall of our home. the back wall of our house was moved 8 inches off the foundation and the appliances were crushed. the bumper and hood of the van was damaged. the van was idle and still running as it pushed against the appliances. i opened the driver door, took the van out of park and backed it out into the driveway and turned off the van. we are thankful that there were no injuries or deaths. the van was taken to a ford dealer immediately. the ford dealer was concerned and had three techs look for issues. the tech reps could not find any issues with the van and stated that it would be impossible for the vehicle to move forward while in park. in a professional manor they advised me to always turn a vehicle off and remove the key as well as set the parking brake prior to exiting the vehicle. i have a hard time understanding how the van was able to accelerate while in park but was witness to the results. the mechanics stated that strange failures can occur in any machine and confirmed that the van was safe to drive.