Problems · by component
1996 Ford Windstar wheels problems
41 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 1996 Ford Windstar cite wheels, 3% of all 1,404 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
41
3% of all complaints
Crashes
2
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
2
Reported by owners
What owners say about the wheels
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“HAD CHANGED BRAKE PADS A WEEK EARLIER. DRIVING 55MPH AND THE CAR CRASHED DOWN ON IT'S AXLE AS THE TIRE AND WHEEL PASSED BY US GOING DOWN HIGHWAY, IN 37 NORTH. STUDS HAD ALL BROKEN OFF. THE DISC BRAKE IS RUINED FROM SKIDDING ON IT. TRAFFIC WAS MODERATELY HEAVY. WE SKIDDED TO A STOP ON A BRIDGE AND FEEL LUCKY NOT TO HAVE CRASHED INTO ANYONE. *TR”
“THE ORIGINAL WHEELS ON MY 1996 WINDSTAR HAVE DEVELOPED AIR LEAKS AT THE WELDS. THE FIRST TIME THIS HAPPENED, I WENT TO A SALVAGE YARD FOR A REPLACEMENT, AND THEY SAID WINDSTAR WHEELS ARE SCARCE BECAUSE THIS SEEMS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM. I HAVE REPLACED ALL FOUR WHEELS WITHIN THE PAST TWO YEARS. I BELIEVE THE OEM WHEELS ARE DEFECTIVE. (IN 34 YEARS OF DRIVING, I'VE NEVER HAD THIS PROBLEM WITH EVEN ONE WHEEL ON ANY CAR. 4 OUT OF 4 WHEELS WITH THE SAME PROBLEM ON THIS VAN TELLS ME SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH THE PRODUCT.) OUR DRIVING IS ON GOOD ROADS, SO IT CANNOT BE ATTRIBUTED TO ROUGH USE. THE ONLY CONSEQUENCE SO FAR IS THAT TIRE PRESSURE IS SLOWLY LOST, LEADING TO LOW PRESSURE. OUR ONLY EXPENSE SO FAR IS THAT WE HAVE HAD TO REPLACE ALL THE WHEELS, ONE AT A TIME. THIS PROBLEM CAUSES INCONVENIENCE AND EXPENSE AT THE VERY LEAST, AND COULD RESULT IN WHEEL FAILURE, INJURY AND DEATH IF NOT ADDRESSED.*AK”
“PROBLEMS WITH TIRES ON 1996 FORD WINDSTAR.*MR THE CONSUMER PURCHASED A SET OF NEW TIRES FOR HIS VEHICLE. AFTER 50,000 MILES THE CONSUMER HAD A FLAT TIRE SHORTLY WHICH RESULTED FROM RIM SEPARATION (A SEPARATION BETWEEN THE OUTER RIM THAT HOLDS THE TIRE AND THE INNER PART THAT HAS THE LUG HOLES). THE CONSUMER PURCHASED ANOTHER RIM AND EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEM TWO MONTHS LATER. TC”
“1996, WINDSTAR EXPERIENCED NUMEROUS BROKEN WHEEL STUDS ON THE LEFT FRONT AND RIGHT FRONT WHEELS. TWO STUDS BROKE ON RIGHT FRONT WHEEL ON FEBRUARY 15, 2004. *AK”
“CONSUMER STATED THE LUG NUTS ON THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE WHEEL WERE SHEARED OFF. CONSUMER STATED WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT ABOUT 50 MPH, THE VEHICLE STARTED TO SHIMMY VIOLENTLY ALMOST OUT OF CONTROL. *PH”
“LUGS: NUTS HAVE REPEATEDLY BROKEN OFF WHILE CONSUMER HAS DRIVEN VEHICLE. CONTACTED DEALER, AND THE DEALER HAS ALREADY REPLACED LUGS: BOLTS FOUR TIMES, BUT THEY WILL CONTINUE TO BREAK. *AK”
Showing 6 of 41 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 9, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.