Ford Windstar: Parent Friendly

Windstar Moms Team Engineers Parent-Friendly Design

Michelle Brecht, one on a team of more than 30 mothers and mothers-to-be who helped develop the 1999 Windstar, never considered a minivan until she had children. Then, three years ago, a frightening thing happened when she was driving her Windstar.

"I was on my way to my interview for my current position," recalled Brecht, design supervisor for the Windstar's front door trim panels, "and was broad-sided by another van. I was 14 weeks pregnant at the time. My Windstar spun around and went over a curb into a ditch. Both airbags went off, and I was hugged by the front seat.

"I am glad to say that I was able to walk away from that accident, and my healthy daughter was born in September. Since that time, I have been a great advocate for the Windstar van and family safety."

As the parent of a teenager who drives, she has also received the phone call that parents dread: "My 17-year-old daughter was hit by another van," she said, "and although the Windstar suffered damage, she did not."

The new Windstar's excellent safety features have special significance to Joan Scheske, crash development engineer. As a result of efforts by Scheske and her team, last year's Windstar won the government's highest rating, five stars, for its performance in head-on crash tests on both driver and passenger sides. The 1999 Windstar is likewise designed to achieve the five-star rating for what would be the fourth consecutive year. (Five stars, the government says, means a 10 percent or better chance of serious injury in a head-on collision.) A new headliner and interior pillar trim have been engineered to meet new federal standards for interior head impact protection, and the newest Windstar is available with front seat combined head and chest side impact air bags — the only minivan to offer this feature.

Having so many mothers on the team has given the 1999 Windstar features that will build on its success, said Vehicle Line Director Mary Ellen Heyde. "As we developed the 1999 Windstar, the team focused on quality, on safety, on seating, and on value," she said. "And those are the main features our customers want us to focus on."

Environmental concerns were also addressed: Even with the most powerful engine available in a minivan today -- the 200 h.p., 3.8-liter V-6 -- the new Windstar will be cleaner than most cars on the road. It will be the first and only gasoline-powered minivan to meet nationwide low emission vehicle requirements and for "green" states, ultra-low emissions requirements.

The team has created other family-friendly features as options on the 1999 Windstar:

two power sliding doors that can open with two clicks of the key fob;
a reverse sensing system that beeps to warn the driver backing up of objects in the way;
an audio system that allows back-seat passengers to listen on headphones to a medium different from front seat passengers, (so kids can listen, for example, to a girl band on CD while their parents play a reggae cassette);
smart locks, which keep the locks from activating when the key is in the ignition, preventing the accidental locking of keys inside the vehicle;
a storage bin under the radio that holds folded diapers;
rollers on the second and third row seats that make it easy to switch the two rows, so that seating, luggage, children, strollers, cribs and other gear can be stowed easily in the rear; and
a 26-gallon fuel tank, the largest fuel tank in a minivan.

As engineers, the Windstar moms are proud of the vehicle’s leadership in safety. As parents, it gives them peace of mind. "At work, I am committed to making the Windstar as safe as I can, and at home, I am committed to keeping my family safe," crash development engineer Joan Scheske said. "And, of course, I drive a Windstar."

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