No image published for this recall

No image published for this recall

Ford

Official notice

18 Feb 2011

Last checked

18 Feb 2011

Critical riskHealth Canada

An official Health Canada notice concerns Ford. On certain vehicles, the subframe may not have been properly e-coated during the manufacturing process. As a result, the subframe of vehicles originally sold, or currently registered, in areas of heavy road salt usage during winter months (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland & Labrador), may rust over time, resulting in reduced durability of the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets and body mount attachments at the rear of the front subframe. A separation of a front lower control arm rear attaching bracket may result in a lower control arm separation. A separation of both front subframe rear body mounts may result in diminished vehicle directional control. Either condition could result in reduced steering control, which may lead to a crash causing property damage and/or personal injury. Correction: Dealers will inspect the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets and body mount attachments at the rear of the front subframe. If the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets are not cracked, perforated, or exhibiting significant metal loss, and if the front subframe at the rear body mount locations are not cracked with metal separation aft of the rear body mount, and if the front subframe is not cracked or perforated in the area between the rear body mount and the front lower control arm rear attaching bracket, the vehicle will be returned to its owner and the owner will be notified when to return for installation of reinforcement brackets. Published 2011-02-18.

What to do now

Please see corrective actions section below

Recall number

71480

Official notice

2011-02-18

The hazard

On certain vehicles, the subframe may not have been properly e-coated during the manufacturing process. As a result, the subframe of vehicles originally sold, or currently registered, in areas of heavy road salt usage during winter months (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland & Labrador), may rust over time, resulting in reduced durability of the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets and body mount attachments at the rear of the front subframe. A separation of a front lower control arm rear attaching bracket may result in a lower control arm separation. A separation of both front subframe rear body mounts may result in diminished vehicle directional control. Either condition could result in reduced steering control, which may lead to a crash causing property damage and/or personal injury. Correction: Dealers will inspect the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets and body mount attachments at the rear of the front subframe. If the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets are not cracked, perforated, or exhibiting significant metal loss, and if the front subframe at the rear body mount locations are not cracked with metal separation aft of the rear body mount, and if the front subframe is not cracked or perforated in the area between the rear body mount and the front lower control arm rear attaching bracket, the vehicle will be returned to its owner and the owner will be notified when to return for installation of reinforcement brackets.

How to check if you're affected

Compare the VIN on your vehicle against the official list. If your VIN is listed, follow the official notice.

Recall Numbers

71480

Checked manually this time?

The app watches your VIN and alerts you automatically next time — no searching, no checking back.

Turn on automatic VIN checks

Affected products

Product 1

Year: 1999, Make: FORD, Model: WINDSTAR

Product 2

Year: 2000, Make: FORD, Model: WINDSTAR

Product 3

Year: 2001, Make: FORD, Model: WINDSTAR

Product 4

Year: 2002, Make: FORD, Model: WINDSTAR

Product 5

Year: 2003, Make: FORD, Model: WINDSTAR

Risk / hazard

On certain vehicles, the subframe may not have been properly e-coated during the manufacturing process. As a result, the subframe of vehicles originally sold, or currently registered, in areas of heavy road salt usage during winter months (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland & Labrador), may rust over time, resulting in reduced durability of the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets and body mount attachments at the rear of the front subframe. A separation of a front lower control arm rear attaching bracket may result in a lower control arm separation. A separation of both front subframe rear body mounts may result in diminished vehicle directional control. Either condition could result in reduced steering control, which may lead to a crash causing property damage and/or personal injury. Correction: Dealers will inspect the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets and body mount attachments at the rear of the front subframe. If the front lower control arm rear attaching brackets are not cracked, perforated, or exhibiting significant metal loss, and if the front subframe at the rear body mount locations are not cracked with metal separation aft of the rear body mount, and if the front subframe is not cracked or perforated in the area between the rear body mount and the front lower control arm rear attaching bracket, the vehicle will be returned to its owner and the owner will be notified when to return for installation of reinforcement brackets.

Where it was sold

The source does not list specific retailers. See the official notice for where affected products were sold.

Location 1

CA · Canada

Affected area 1

CA · Canada

Company & contacts

Brand

Manufacturer

Not provided

Phone

Not provided

Brand: Ford.

Source & status

Source

Health Canada

Tier

official

Category

VEHICLES

App estimate

critical

Recall details

Recall number

71480

Source tier

official

Documents, notices & source

See the official notice and source documents for full details.

View full official notice
Something wrong on this page?

Related recalls

CA
No image published for this recall

Lincoln - Ford

Medium riskHealth Canada11 Jun 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Medium riskHealth Canada11 Jun 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Medium riskHealth Canada30 Apr 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Medium riskHealth Canada29 Apr 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Lincoln - Ford

Risk not stated by sourceHealth Canada24 Apr 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

High riskHealth Canada16 Apr 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Risk not stated by sourceHealth Canada23 Mar 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Risk not stated by sourceHealth Canada26 Jun 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Risk not stated by sourceHealth Canada26 Jun 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Medium riskHealth Canada19 Jun 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Risk not stated by sourceHealth Canada19 Jun 2026
CA
No image published for this recall

Ford

Medium riskHealth Canada10 Jun 2026

Weekly recall digest

Get next week's recalls before you need them.

One email every Monday — official-source recalls for your country, and nothing else. Unsubscribe from any email.

The digest is the slow lane — one email a week. For instant, severity-gated alerts the moment a notice is published, get the app.

This recall was published 18 Feb 2011. The next one won't wait for you to search.

RecallScope watches official sources for the brands and VINs you follow, and alerts you the moment a new notice is published.