Which one of you jokers is going to buy this perfect Ford Windstar?

"Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available" (whoistheleader2)
07/06/2020 at 20:11 • Filed to: Craigslist

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

The answer is none of you because this is an aesthetically perfect version of a deeply undesirable car. The Windstars were always shockingly terrible to ride in and drive, so how is this one so minty despite the 175,000 miles?

$2,700 seems fair. Not sure what you would actually do with this. They didn’t give the year so I don’t know. 1995?

When’s the last time you saw one of these? Now think back to when you saw one this nice? Most of these were thrashed and trashed worse than this within a few years.

I just don’t understand.

How did they drive it 175,000 miles without sitting in it? I’m going to guess it was sold from an estate sale. What’s your take on this?

DISCUSSION (90)

Under_Score > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:14

This dealership is DANGEROUSLY CLOSE to me. Yes, I’ve seen the other older cars they have for sale. It’s by Hardy Chevrolet Buick GMC, next to the LineX shop.

I still think Steve Lang’s lot has to be one of the most intriguing local sites.

CB > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:15

Oh sweet, one sliding door too, but captain’s chairs and not a bench?

As the kids say, money.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Under_Score
07/06/2020 at 20:16

Wait, is this that place that sells cars from estate sales for huge markups?

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:17

This seems like a Nibby thing.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:18

Hmm, wonder if he'd take a janky but desirable 1987 Volvo wagon in trade for a minty but undesirable 1995 van?

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:18

Probably purchased by an elderly person and not used as a family vehicle. I used to work with two volunteers in their 80s who each bought minivans - one because it rode smoother than a pickup truck and was easier to get in and out of (he took the seats out and slid a plywood sheet in the back, used it like a truck), the other bought one to transport his friends who could no longer drive.

Jim Spanfeller > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:18

LS swap it.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:20

“When’ s the last time you saw one of these?”

Uh....does my recent salvage yard trip/video count? ....because that was the last time I saw one. And some second-gen Windstars and a Freestar as well!

Aremmes > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/06/2020 at 20:22

I did not expect this so soon. :-D

nj959 > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:22

A windstar in this color and condition screams church van or retirement community van to me. 175k miles of shuttling sweet little old ladies around.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:28

I suppose with those miles the head gasket has probably already been done. You could do worse - these have all but vanished from the road, unfortunately, for reasons.

Aremmes > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent
07/06/2020 at 20:32

I thought of Nibby too, but his thing are Tempos and first-gen Tauri.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Aremmes
07/06/2020 at 20:34

So basically shitty old fords

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/06/2020 at 20:34

I’ve owned a Windscar. Do yourself a favor and keep the Volvo even if it catches on fire.

GLiddy > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 20:50

I sold my 2000 Windstar to the junkyard for $150. It looked pretty nice too. Here it went on its last (unpowered) trip. It was an uplevel trim with leather and lots of features...most of them broken. When I was quoted $700 to get it running again, it was time to say goodbye. It died at about 155k, after thousands of dollars in repair work (transmission, steering rack, freeze plugs, cam sensor). It had other problems too. No more Fords for me if I can help it.

Kinja'd!!!

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent
07/06/2020 at 21:08

By proxy, yes.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Aremmes
07/06/2020 at 21:08

Wait, is Nibby a dude?

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Snuze: Needs another Swede
07/06/2020 at 21:10

That would be worse than David Tracy's decision to trade his one reliable car for a totalled Kia. You would have to lose your mind to do that.

Nibby > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:11

y e s

Nibby > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent
07/06/2020 at 21:11

Y E S

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 21:11

Minivans are great; the Windstar was not. I think a smaller minivan like a Transit Connect would make a great daily if I could afford a separate fun car and regularly needed to transport many people.

Nibby > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:12

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:12

Nibby has replied in the affirmative.

lone_liberal > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:13

I’ve done my Windstar duty. I had a ‘98 that I used for winter beater duty back around 2005. That cost me $3k back then. I actually came to respect it even in its terribleness. It hauled all of my shit, got me through snow storms and generally kept on trucking. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t good in any way but it was dependable and useful which is what you want in a beater.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Nibby
07/06/2020 at 21:16

Nibby bait, sorry

Under_Score > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:21

I don’t know.

I need to go look at it, though.

FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:23

I feel like this has to be a typo for 17,500 miles. I don’t even remember our ‘95 Windstar looking that nice from the dealer lot and it was such a disaster it went to the junkyard before hitting 100,000 miles despite us actually maintaining it according to the manual.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > lone_liberal
07/06/2020 at 21:28

That was not most other people's experiences. I would not recommend this even as a beater.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Jim Spanfeller
07/06/2020 at 21:28

Be my guest. Of all the minivans to LS swap, you choose the worst Ford.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail
07/06/2020 at 21:29

You could do worse, but not by much if you chose a car in comparable condition. These were deeply terrible even when new.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars
07/06/2020 at 21:31

One of the wealthy old couples who live in a certain historic house have one that is in at least as good condition. They keep it under a car cover.

Haven't even seen a Freestar in a while that I know of. Such genuinely awful cars. . .

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > CB
07/06/2020 at 21:31

Yes, old money for old people.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > nj959
07/06/2020 at 21:32

Possibly. The only reason it wouldn't be the old lady's car is the high miles.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > GLiddy
07/06/2020 at 21:34

Good riddance. I remember these being shockingly awful in every way imaginable.

I have not known one single Ford that didn’t have spectacularly awful build quality. Even new F150s can have leaky sunroofs and misfitting plastics.

Very few Fords have been all that reliable that I know of either. Some were, but the others very much weren't.

jeepoftheseus > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:34

Last time I rode in one of these it smelled like sunscreen and rotten kid snacks. This isn’t an accurate time capsule!

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:35

Yep, the head gaskets (I think all of these were 3.8s) and I suspect transmissions, too. They vanished for a reason.

Boxer_4 > CB
07/06/2020 at 21:44

Regarding the single sliding door, I love how Chrysler had Ford scrambling with the introduction of an optional driver side sliding door on their 3rd gen mini vans . Ford enlarged the driver side door and allowed the driver seat to fold for the 1998 model year, calling it the “King Door”. A rede signed Windstar was introduced with dual sliding doors for the 1999 model year.

Kinja'd!!!

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:50

It would make one heck of a sleeper. No one would expect to be dusted by a geriatric colored Wind star.

fhrblig > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:56

Gross.

lone_liberal > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 21:58

Oh, I knew about the head gasket and transmission issues they were known for before buying mine, but it was the rare (mechanically) solid example. After I sold it to my mom she flipped it to one of my nephews (for a profit!) who had it checked by his BIL who is a Ford tech. He was amazed that it was in such good shape. That was a long time ago, though. I wouldn't touch one with a ten foot pole now.

wafflesnfalafel > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:00

I rented those a few times back in the day for work . Honestly, I liked them better than the comparable Taurus, (better headroom and driving position for me,) but still classic 90's Ford driving “experience”. That one looks absolutely incredible for 175k miles - surprised it doesn’t have multiple major powertrain issues, (or maybe it did and they have put several grand into repairs already...)

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Boxer_4
07/06/2020 at 22:01

Makes accessing that rear facing child seat easy without preventing others from getting on the back.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Nibby
07/06/2020 at 22:02

My bad. Your old profile picture had me confused.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > lone_liberal
07/06/2020 at 22:03

Then Ford examined it to see where else they could cheap out. Even the worst cars sometimes are built on a good day. Must have got a different batch of head gaskets.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > fintail
07/06/2020 at 22:04

For once, good riddance. I see more aerostats and I like it that way.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > BaconSandwich is tasty.
07/06/2020 at 22:04

And no one would believe you either.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com
07/06/2020 at 22:05

Possibly. It's not as though the ad is well put together. We don't even know the year.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > jeepoftheseus
07/06/2020 at 22:06

I don't remember new ones ever having new car smell. They went straight to gross old goldfish and vomit smell.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:06

Both of the older gentlemen I knew had Dodge Caravans (one had been a loyal Nash customer, then moved to Ramblers, then AMCs, then Eagles, then Dodges, he was a customer for life).

But, I figure, someone like my maternal grandfather, who only owned Fords his whole life* and wanted a minivan would maybe buy a Windstar without cross shopping.

*switched to Toyotas in his late 60s/early 70s, became a loyal Toyota customer for the remainder of his life, must have been a story there.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:08

The story could have been he bought a Windstar. For the life of me I don’t get why people put up with such lackluster build quality. I can’t think of a single Ford I know of that doesn’t have abysmal build quality issues.

ranwhenparked > GLiddy
07/06/2020 at 22:08

So, basically, you got to have a BMW ownership experience without getting to drive a BMW.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > wafflesnfalafel
07/06/2020 at 22:11

You say experience. I think you mean lack of one. Just soft cushy beige as far as you look. Disconcertingly free of substance . At least that’s what I’ve gleaned from being a passenger.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:12

My company runs a fleet of a few thousand Ford Escapes and and Kugas and we have had constant problems with them, between recalls and expensive repairs. Mostly transmission related, some electronic, we are going to be phasing them out soon.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:14

My only experience with a Freestar was my local congressman had one, got stuck in the mud visiting where I worked at the time, and splattered me pretty bad when I helped push him out. I don't believe I ever knew anyone else who actually bought one - there were a lot on the road, so some people must have, I just have no idea who they were.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:15

He never had a minivan, but did have a string of 4 or 5 Rangers, and before that, there was a Fairmont, a Maverick, a couple of Falcons, and a Mustang II in there somewhere.

Nibby > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:26

Kinja'd!!!

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:28

Isn't that the rwd Ford Freestyle looking thing? I just would never run non truck based Fords for fleet work. Admittedly the early 6 speed automatics are rarely known for their longevity but yeah that does not surprise me at all.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:30

People who didn’t cross shop. Dodge Caravans were much nicer places to be in general and contemporary Kias and Nissans were a little better and probably cheaper. These were before my time but the ones I was familiar with were just awful.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:33

The Kuga’s just the rebadged Escape in Europe. We have them, apparently, because someone at headquarters believes they are ideally suited for our reps in the UK, and won’t approve of the idea of buying different cars for different countries.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:33

Mustang II was fine but just not worthy of the name and had some bad associations. Rangers weren't great by modern standards but could be depended on and are tough little buggers. He at least seemed to have avoided the worst Fords by modern remembrances.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:36

You are Australia, right? The Escape wasn't well suited to anything when the Focus wagon and transit connect exist. The Escape Hybrids made sense for a while as a fleet vehicle for light duty travel but that's about it.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:36

Fortunately, yes. He did diverge twice though, he bought my grandmother an AMC Hornet Sportabout, and insisted on my mother getting a used Chevy Vega as her first car - he was a tightwad who always negotiated, but, for whatever reason, that was the first car on the first lot they saw that was in her budget, and he just decided then and there that was it. Total POS, she still talks about that being that absolute worst vehicle she’s ever experienced. Finally shredded its transmission on the way to the hospital where she was interning between semesters, after several years with only 2 working forward gears.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:36

US, apparently we had Dodge Magnums before the Escapes, but that was years before I joined the company.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:39

Being cheap doesn’t mean being miserable if you have some common sense. Both of those qualify as cheap and miserable.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:41

Sorry had you confused. Your AMC comment made me realize my error.

Dodge Magnums were pretty cool for a fleet vehicle. Better than the HHR or PT Cruiser that could have been a real possibility. I don’t think those had that many issues. Maybe poor mpgs. I bet those were sad to let go of.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:43

Yeah, some people still talk about them. Middle management all had Chrysler 300s at that time, upper management had 300Cs. They switched to Fusions and Tauruses with the move to Ford.

fintail > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:44

Come to think of it, I see more of those too.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:44

If you knew him, cheap and miserable would have been a decent description.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:50

Fusions were good but my brother’s 2012, despite having tinted windows, has an interior that has degraded entirely unacceptable amounts from UV damage. It also has the water-stain-O-matic seats that you can’t clean. I can’t say I’ve been impressed with how the interior has held up at all but the rest of it has been great.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 22:51

Sad, but true of far too many people.

You are what you drive? I think my brightly colored sensible compact sedan sums me up pretty well.

ranwhenparked > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 22:58

Escapes have the same seat fabric - feels cheap, stains easily, wears fast.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > ranwhenparked
07/06/2020 at 23:03

Yes, feels like crap, permanently and irreversibly stains on contact with water, and has all the style of pocket lint, of which it is the same color.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 23:41

I paid a dollar for my Windscar. I overpaid by 98 cents.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/06/2020 at 23:46

Sounds like profit to me. $200 worth of metal but you’d have to be paid to actually drive that hun k of junk.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > GLiddy
07/06/2020 at 23:50

Hah! I got $350 for my ‘99. And it was the stripper base base BASE model - 3.0 V6, no a/c, no rear defroster, manual windows, locks and mirrors. A penalty box. A bus pass was more fun. It had close to 200,000 miles on it and was a fucking cockroach - basically unkillable. And un likeable. Rolling apathy and proof that the malaise era continued until at least the turn of the century. There was not one iota of driving pleasure or luxury to be found. After going from a maxed-out and modified BMW E34 to that hateful turd you can understand why I contemplated suicide every time I got into it...

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/06/2020 at 23:53

I did get $350 for it when I moved and sold it to a scrapper so I didn’t do too bad. I put a fuel injector, three tires and a master cylinder into/on it and those were about my only repairs. Not bad for 4 years.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/06/2020 at 23:59

4 years in a $1 Windstar? I’m so sorry. . .

You did probably make some money on actual investments in it. Surprised nothing broke given how awful those were for reliability and we ll everything.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/07/2020 at 00:14

I don’t know if fleet maintenance had anything to do with it. Our shop was pretty good at keeping our vehicles maintained, at least when they were allowed to. Our idiot boss has them defer maintenance on some very expensive (and fragile) French- made vehicles, and it came as no surprise when they broke. Then he tried to sue the manufacturer to have it covered under warranty. In the mean time the lot was clogged with broken $300,000 machines that we were still making payments on. It took months to get the parts, and then weeks to rebuild the gearboxes. All because he wanted to save a couple of bucks. Idiot.

Mine was incredibly simple with nothing to break. A cast-iron Vulcan 3.0 under the hood, no a/c, no power windows, no power locks, no power mirrors. No rear defroster. No left side slider. You can’t break it if it’s not there, right? I used to joke that the $10 eBay factory cassette stereo I put in there doubled the value of the thing. When I parked it (because I couldn't afford registration or insurance) I didn’t bother locking it and it turned into an impromptu homeless shelter. At least someone liked being in it...

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/07/2020 at 00:20

That sounds like a rose tinted version of a pretty terrible experience. Did the impromptu homeless shelter happen often? Oh wait you meant long term. That changes the meaning of that a lot hahaha.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/07/2020 at 00:26

I have no idea how long people were living in it. I went to clean it out when I was selling it, mostly to pull the stereo and RF modulator I had installed, and found a bunch of stuff, including blankets, that didn’t belong to me. There was also a notebook, which I still have, detailing trip arrangements for a guy from Finland that was touring the US - flights, itineraries, meeting points, etc. I don’t know if he was living in the van or if someone stole that notebook from him. I tried to reach out to him via email to find out but never got a response.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/07/2020 at 00:30

Umm that trip most have gone horribly wrong in order for you to end up living in an abandoned van on a coast to coast tour or whatever. Maybe his Western Union checks never arrived.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Aremmes
07/07/2020 at 01:49

I am, if course, totally kidding.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing.
07/07/2020 at 01:50

That made me lol! Thank you!

Long_Voyager94 > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/07/2020 at 08:33

I mean if it’s a 1995, that’s only 7k miles/yr, easily doable by a little old lady running errands.

Honestly, 175k is extremely low miles for the year.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Long_Voyager94
07/07/2020 at 11:05

But you would expect it to be less. Someone else here suggested it is a typo for 17,500 miles, which seems more likely.

Long_Voyager94 > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/07/2020 at 12:07

I wouldn’t.

I just expect that it’s been properly cared for. My 1994 still looks almost new inside at 270k miles despite being our main family hauler and the PO’s family hauler since it was new.

Some people just care for their things far more than most people, I think that is the case here.

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Long_Voyager94
07/07/2020 at 12:17

Yes, sometimes that can happen. The strange thing is is that it is a Windstar, which weren't known for holding up all that well.

Long_Voyager94 > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/07/2020 at 16:01

Well if you ask most people Caravans/Voyagers are falling apart after 80k miles, so...........

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > Long_Voyager94
07/07/2020 at 16:22

I suppose it is all in the treatment, but some cars take abuse much better than others.

Long_Voyager94 > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
07/08/2020 at 06:53

From my experience, it’s generally the vehicles people say “don’t last” that handle abuse the best.

Since having extremely bad luck with Hondas and Toyotas, my family has pretty much exclusively switched to GM and Mopar. Despite what most people believe, when you generally drive hard, Honda/Toyota drivelines aren’t up to the task, whereas Mopar drivetrains take hard driving wonderfully, assuming you keep them maintained.