Owner-reported complaints naming the seat belt system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Reports naming seat belts, buckles, retractors and pretensioners. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 1996 Ford Windstar submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 27 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
The 25 most recent of 27, in the owner's own words
DT: WHEN THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE REAR ENDED ANOTHER VEHICLE BOTH FRONT SEAT BELTS DISCONNECTED. THE PASSENGER SUSTAINED A BROKEN COLLAR BONE AND BRUISED RIBS. A POLICE REPORT WAS TAKEN AT THE SCENE. THE CONTACT WAS NOT ABLE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE. IT HAS NOT BEEN INSPECTED TO SEE WHY THIS OCCURRED. *AK
EVENFLO MODEL # 263120-P1, WHEN THE CONSUMER PUSHED THE RELEASE BUTTON TO RELEASE THE STRAPS THE STRAP BUCKLE FELL COMPLETELY APART. THE CLIP WAS STILL HOLDING THE CHILD SAFELY BUT THE CONSUMER COULD NOT REMOVE THE CHILD NORMALLY. *AK
SHOULDER RETRACTOR IS NOT WORKING PROPERLY IN THE MIDDLE BENCH SEAT. WILL NOT RETRACT ENOUGH FOR BELT TO GO AROUND CONSUMER. CAN'T PULL OUT MANUALLY. DEALER CONTACTED. *AK *JG
WHEN PLACING CHILD IN REAR BENCH SEAT ON A BOOSTER SEAT CHILD'S HEAD IS OVER THE HEADREST. *AK
SUDDEN LOSS OF CONTROL IN WINTER CONDITIONS, IMPACT WITH TREE, SEAT BELT DID NOT LOCK UP, DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR OPENED, DRIVER'S SEAT BROKE, DRIVER EJECTED AND HELD OUTSIDE OF VEHICLE IN SEAT BELT. SEVERE RIB, LUNG INJURIES WITH HEART CONTUSION. IMPACT WITH TREE LEFT FRONT QUARTERPANEL, VEHICLE TOTALED. (DOT NUMBER: NOT KNOWN TIRESIZE: 15)
CONSUMER WAS INVOLVED IN A 40 MPH FRONTAL COLLISION, HITTING THE LEFT FENDER IN WHICH DRIVER'S SEAT BELT RELEASED FROM THE BUCKLE HOUSING, CAUSING DRIVER TO MOVE FORWARD. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
STITCHING ON PASSENGER SEATBELT COMPLETELY DETERIORIATED AT FLOOR HOLD DOWN. *AK
WAS TRAVELING 40-45MPH IN FOGGY WEATHER WHEN A DEER APPEARED IN THE ROAD. HIT DEER & BOTH AIR BAGS DEPLOYED,CAUSING THE DRIVER TO SUFFER BURNS ON THE FACE & ARMS. ALSO, FRONT SEAT BELT FAILED TO RESTRAIN THE DRIVER. *AK
PASSENGER'S SIDE SEAT BELT DOES NOT LOCK, AND DRIVER'S SIDE IS TWISTED AND DOES NOT LOCK EITHER. HAS TO MANUALLY FEED THE BELT BACK INSIDE OF THE RETRACTOR. *AK
VEHICLE IS NOT EQUIPPED WITH REAR HEADREST FOR THE OCCUPANT DUE TO DESIGN. NLM
REAR SEAT BELT LOCKED, TRAPPING CHILD IN BELT. NO SAFETY RELEASE VISABLE, OR IN MANUAL. CONTACTED FORD, NO DATA AVAILABLE. FORD REFERED ME TO CONTACT N.H.T.S.A.
SHOULDER PART 0F THE SEAT BELT WASN'T WORKING PROPERLY, CAUSING THE CONSUMER TO HIT THE WINDSHIELD. WHILE DRIVING AT 35MPH ON WET PAVEMENT AND WHEN APPLYING THE BRAKES, ANOTHER VEHICLE WAS COMING HEAD-ON AND COLLIDED. THE SHOULDER BELT DIDN'T HOLD THE DRIVER. 4 OCCUPANTS SUSTAINED INJURIES. *AK
WHILE DRIVING AT 35 MPH ON WET PAVEMENT CONSUMER APPLIED THE BRAKES, AND THE SHOULDER STRAP BELT DIDN'T STOP THE CONSUMER FROM HITTING THE WINDOW AS ANOTHER VEHICLE WAS COMING HEAD-ON INTO THE CONSUMER. CONSUMER HAD TO TURN AWAY FROM THE OTHER VEHICLE. *AK
SOMEONE RAN INTO CONSUMER HEAD-ON, AND SEAT BELTS DID NOT HOLD HIM. DRIVER/WIFE AND TWO CHILDREN WERE INJURED. *AK
THE SAFETY BELTS LOCATED ON THE RIGHT FRONT, AND THE REAR SEATS, LOCK UP WHILE RIDING NORMALLY IN THE VEHICLE, ACTUALLY SQUEEZING THE OCCUPANT, SO THE OCCUPANT HAS TO REMOVE THE SEAT BELT AND THEN REFASTEN IT DUE TO THE PENDILUM LOCKING UP. ALSO IF YOU ARE SITTING IN THE SEAT WITH THE SEAT BELT ON, AND LEAN FORWARD TO PICK SOMETHING UP, IT WILL AUTOMATICALLY LOCK UP, AND AGAIN YOU HAVE TO REMOVE THE SEAT BELT, AND THEN REFASTEN IT. I HAVE CONTACTED THE FREEDOM FORD DEALER, AND THEY ADVISED ME, THAT IS WHAT THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO DO! I AM A POLICE OFFICER, AND HAVE ATTENDED NUMEROUS TRAINING COURSES, AND KNOW THAT THIS IS NOT THE PROPER WAY THAT THE SEAT BELT OPERATES, AND EXPLAINED THAT TO THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT PERSONAL, BUT THEY DISMISSED MY COMPLAINT, AND STATED, DO WHAT EVER YOU HAVE TO!.
WHILE ENTERING AN INTERSECTION VEHICLE WAS BROADSIDED ON THE PAASENGER'S SIDE BY ANOTHE VEHICLE. UPON IMPACT, AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. ALSO SEAT BELT FAILED TO RESTRAIN CONSUMER. HIT REAR MIRROR AND SPLIT HEAD OPEN AND GOT A CONCUSSION. *AK
WHEN THE INTEGRATED CHILD SAFETY SEAT IS LOCKED A GREEN INSERT IS SHOWN. WHEN LOCKING THE CSS THE GREEN INSERT SHOWS, BUT WHEN TUGGING ON THE STRAPS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE CHILD IS BUCKLED IN PROPERLY, THE BUCKLE SEPARATES VERY EASILY. *AK
THE VEHICLE'S INTEGRATED CHILD SEAT STRAPS WHICH COME ACROSS THE CHILD'S CHEST CAN POP OPEN VERY EASILY. THE CHILD WHICH SITS IN THE SEAT CAN POP OPEN THE STRAPS. *AK *SLC
CHILDREN EASILY SLIP OUT OF HARNESS OF INTEGRATED CHILD SEAT.
DESIGN OF INTEGRATED CHILD SEAT'S CHEST CLIP ALLOWS IT TO BE EASILY PUSHED BY CHILD'S FEET, FREEING CHILD TO/ STAND UP/GET OUT.
MIDDLE/REAR SEATS DO NTO HAVE HEADRESTS.
MIDDLE SEAT AND PASSENGER SIDE SEAT BELTS FAILED.
REAR SEAT FOLDS DOWN INTO A CHILD SAFETY SEAT, HOWEVER THE SEAT BELTS ARE TOO TIGHT, CUT CHILDS CIRCULATION OFF. AW
OWNER JUST BOUGHT VEHICLE AND IS HAVING SEAT BELT PROBLEMS ON THE PASSENGER'S SIDE, DEALERS DO NOT ADDRESS THE PROBLEM. *AK
THE CONSUMER'S TWO YEAR OLD CHILD WAS ABLE TO UNDO THE TOP HALF OF THE INTEGRATED CHILD SAFETY SEAT AND PROCEEDED TO WIGGLE HER LEGS OUT OF THE BOTTOM STRAP AND GET OUT OF THE SEAT WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS MAKING LEFT HAND TURN OMTO A SIDE STREET. *AK
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
Data on this page last refreshed .