How many miles will a 1998 Ford Windstar last?
Half of the 390 NHTSA owner complaints on the 1998 Ford Windstar that list mileage came after 93,000 miles, and 1 in 10 after 159,000 miles. NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026 holds 1,433 complaints on this model year; each mileage is the odometer when an owner reported a safety problem, not how long the vehicle lasted.
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See what the paid report includes →Of the 390 complaints on the 1998 Ford Windstar that list mileage, the middle half came between 65,000 and 127,000 miles; 157 (40%) came after 100,000 miles, 52 (13%) after 150,000 and 10 (3%) after 200,000.
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How many miles will a 1998 Windstar last?
The 390 mileages owners gave run from 5 to 250,000 miles. A quarter are at or under 65,000 miles, half at or under 94,000, three quarters at or under 126,700 and nine in ten at or under 160,000; 157 (40%) came after 100,000 miles, 52 (13%) after 150,000 and 10 (3%) after 200,000.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 1998 Windstar wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Lowest mileage listed | 5 miles |
| 25th percentile | 65,000 miles |
| Median (50th percentile) | 94,000 miles |
| 75th percentile | 126,700 miles |
| 90th percentile | 160,000 miles |
| Highest mileage listed | 250,000 miles |
| Complaints after 100,000 miles | 157 (40%) |
| Complaints after 150,000 miles | 52 (13%) |
| Complaints after 200,000 miles | 10 (3%) |
Every model year together: Half of the 6,646 NHTSA owner complaints on the Ford Windstar that list mileage came after 100,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a Ford Windstar last? →
Common problems with the 1998 Windstar
NHTSA's file holds 1,433 owner complaints on the 1998 Ford Windstar. Owners named the powertrain most often: 332 complaints, and half of the 81 that list a mileage came after 88,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Power Train | 332 | 81 | 89,000 |
| Suspension | 229 | 84 | 112,000 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | 196 | 52 | 84,000 |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 177 | 39 | 89,875 |
| Steering | 143 | 32 | 71,000 |
Of the 1,433 complaints, 54 report a crash, 65 report a fire and 37 report an injury (59 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Is the 1998 Windstar a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 1998 is a good or a bad Windstar: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 1998 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 1,433 complaints, the 1998 ranks 6th of the 11 Ford Windstar model years from 1994 to 2004 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 1995 (3,326). The fewest: the 1994 (23).
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 Windstar | 23 | 4 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1995 Windstar | 3,326 | 222 | 99,000 |
| 1996 Windstar | 1,386 | 215 | 86,000 |
| 1997 Windstar | 192 | 43 | 88,890 |
| 1998 (this page) | 1,433 | 390 | 94,000 |
| 1999 Windstar | 1,522 | 870 | 105,000 |
| 2000 Windstar | 1,675 | 1,148 | 104,000 |
| 2001 Windstar | 1,686 | 1,332 | 108,000 |
| 2002 Windstar | 1,353 | 1,117 | 103,000 |
| 2003 Windstar | 1,510 | 1,280 | 98,000 |
| 2004 Windstar | 24 | 23 | 123,500 |
1998 Ford Windstar recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 14 recall campaigns that name the 1998 Ford Windstar (11 vehicle campaigns and 3 equipment or tire campaigns that name this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
| Campaign | Report received | Component |
|---|---|---|
| 15V608000 | Sep 29, 2015 | SUSPENSION:REAR:AXLE:NON-POWERED AXLE ASSEMBLY |
| 12V195000 | May 3, 2012 | SUSPENSION:REAR:AXLE:NON-POWERED AXLE ASSEMBLY |
| 12V193000 | May 3, 2012 | POWER TRAIN:AXLE ASSEMBLY |
| 10V385000 | Aug 26, 2010 | SUSPENSION:REAR:AXLE:NON-POWERED AXLE ASSEMBLY |
| 09V399000 | Oct 13, 2009 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL |
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 1998 Windstar lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 1998 Windstar.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 1,043 of the 1,433 complaints on the 1998 Ford Windstar give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA name counted: WINDSTAR. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only this one.
- Recall-file name matched: WINDSTAR.
- NHTSA also holds 11 complaints filed as the 1993 Ford Windstar. EPA's fuel-economy catalogue lists the Ford Windstar for 1995–2003 only, so that model year has no page.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
1998 Ford Windstar questions
How many miles will a 1998 Ford Windstar last?
Half of the 390 NHTSA owner complaints on the 1998 Ford Windstar that list mileage came after 93,000 miles, and 1 in 10 after 159,000 miles. Of the 390 complaints on the 1998 Ford Windstar that list mileage, the middle half came between 65,000 and 127,000 miles; 157 (40%) came after 100,000 miles, 52 (13%) after 150,000 and 10 (3%) after 200,000. These are mileages at a reported problem, not a lifespan: the file holds no 1998 Windstar that never had one.
What are the most common 1998 Ford Windstar problems?
NHTSA's file holds 1,433 owner complaints on the 1998 Ford Windstar. Owners named the powertrain most often: 332 complaints, and half of the 81 that list a mileage came after 88,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 1,433 complaints, 54 report a crash, 65 report a fire and 37 report an injury (59 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Is the 1998 Ford Windstar a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 1998 is a good or a bad Windstar: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 1998 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 1,433 complaints, the 1998 ranks 6th of the 11 Ford Windstar model years from 1994 to 2004 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 1995 (3,326). The fewest: the 1994 (23).
How many recalls does the 1998 Ford Windstar have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 14 recall campaigns that name the 1998 Ford Windstar (11 vehicle campaigns and 3 equipment or tire campaigns that name this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 1998 Ford Windstar before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 1998 Ford Windstar.