We have been driving our 1999 Windstar SEL for nine months now. We had previously owned a Dodge Grand Caravan ES, so I was anxious to compare the two.

The reason we chose the Windstar was for its excellent frontal crash test ratings. We opted to go with the side air bags, as well.

The V6 gives us plenty of power and pep when needed. The handling is nice. The ride does seem smoother than the Caravan, and with a reduction in road noise. The controls are within easy reach of the driver.

FEATURES

Our model has the automatic sliding doors on both sides. We can open the side doors from the front seat by pushing a button up above the rear view mirror. The doors can also be controlled from the second row seats and our keyless entry system. This is handy if you are walking to your van in the rain or snow. You can open your door up ahead of time with your remote, so when you get to the van, you can quickly get the kids in. I love this feature, but I must admit that it also makes me a bit nervous. The company claims that catching an arm or leg in the door would make the door reverse, but I certainly don’t want to take their word for it and get lazy about being cautious. I am very careful with the doors, and there is the option of disabling the feature if it proves to be a problem.

We opted for the reverse sensing feature. This signals that an object may be in your path while backing up at a slow speed. It will detect objects up to 6 feet away and beep at you as an alert. The closer you get to an object, the closer together the beeps will become. This isn’t made to detect small objects or low-lying objects, so it certainly is not a substitute for carefully checking behind you before backing up. I have found this helpful when backing up in crowded parking lots. The sensors are located in the rear bumper.

Our overhead console has a coin holder, sunglasses holder and a garage door opener holder that lets you place the holder inside it and close the door. The opener stays hidden in that compartment and you just push a spot on the door of the compartment, instead of the opener itself.

One feature that I have not used yet is the Home Link Universal Transceiver. This consists of three buttons on the driver’s visor. You can program these buttons with radio frequency codes of garage doors, entry gates, security systems, door locks or lighting systems. You could then do away with the garage door opener in the compartment, because you’d have it programmed in the visor, plus have room to program two other devices.

My favorite feature in the overhead area is the “kid mirror” that is located above the rear view mirror. Instead of having to stretch up and try to peek back in the rear view mirror, I can look in this special mirror that is aimed at the kids and see all of them in one shot, without having to move my position to do so. I love being able to do that, even though seeing four little ones back there makes me feel like a school bus driver!

The traction control has proven to be useful. It detects and controls wheel spin. I notice this comes on quickly when I approach a slippery intersection or pull onto a slippery highway. I noticed a remarkable difference between the Windstar and the Caravan as far as handling in this type of situation. The Caravan used to leave me spinning my wheels. When the traction control comes on, it makes a noise similar to a vibrating sound and a light alerts you that it is operating. This feature can also be turned off.

The stereo system has AM/FM radio, cassette and CD player. I have had no problems such as the CD player refusing to eject CDs or scratching them.

The audio system allows the rear seat occupants to listen to one media source while the front seat passengers are hearing another, such as CD in the front and radio in the back. There are headphone jacks for the rear passengers to plug into and listen to their choice of music. The headphones are not included.

The temperature control system seems to work well. You can heat or cool the rear compartment differently than the front. If the kids are cold back there, you can turn up the fan speed for them and leave yours turned down. There is a control for the rear located in the second row, or you can control it all up front and override their selections if the kids are fooling around with the knob.

There is a “message center” that displays a readout of vehicle information plus problems. It gives information such as temperature, distance to empty, fuel economy and elapsed driving time. You can do a system check and this cycles through various checks to report the status of oil life, charging system, washer fluid level, brake fluid level, doors closed or open, headlights and turn signals working, traction control, fuel level and distance until empty. It gives a quick status report on these and gives warnings if there is a problem. It is peace of mind for me.

The leather seats are extremely comfortable, and the adjustable lumbar supports in the front seats are a nice touch. We have the configuration of four captain’s chairs with a bench in the back. The captain’s chairs and two outboard positions on the rear seat have head restraints that are adjustable in height.

The second and third row seats are able to be moved forward or back to give more leg room, if necessary. Sliding the rear seat will give you more room in the cargo area if you have to haul something bigger than normal, but when the seat is pushed all the way forward, there is no room to have passengers in the outer seating positions in the rear bench seat, because there will not be a place for their legs. The rear seat can be pushed all the way up to the 2nd row seats. The rear seat also folds flat, and the second and third row seats can be removed, although they are too heavy for me to do this alone.

You can adjust the height of the shoulder belts in the first and second row positions. Since I am on the short side, I appreciate that feature, since it keeps the seat belt out of my face.

The front doors each have a molded plastic storage area near the bottom inside, where you could easily stores maps or books. I keep a travel sized box of Kleenex there, and have recently found out that even a pop can can be shoved in there. Not that the Windstar lacks cup holders, but who hasn't pulled up to the drive thru and found your cup holders full of *almost* empty pop cans and no place to set your new drink? I can set the empty cans in the door holder til I can get rid of them.

THE DOWNSIDE

The gas mileage is nothing to write home about. It seems to hover around 19-20 MPG. The capacity of the gas tank is larger than most vehicles, at 26 gallons, so you can go further between fill-ups, but it will cost you a bundle for a full tank!

Although the radio itself works well and has many user-friendly features, I have to say that the sound quality could be improved. I noticed that this sound just wasn’t as dynamic as that of the Caravan. It certainly is acceptable, and if you didn’t have anything better to compare it to, I don’t think you’d even notice it.

Sometimes when I want to set the cruise control, it takes several attempts before it will "take" and stay set. I hold the buttons in long enough and give it a chance, but sometimes it just won't respond. Sometimes it takes three or four attempts.

I wish I would have known that the 2000 model would be equipped with the new lower anchor and tethering system (LATCH) for car seats, that will be mandatory on all new vehicles coming out after Sept. 1, 2002. I would have waited and bought a 2000 instead of the 1999 model.

FOR PARENTS OF LITTLE ONES...

I have gotten an exceptionally tight installation of our child car seats. Of course, most of this depends on which car seats you are using. A car seat compatibility database can be found at:

http://www5.ewebcity.com/carseats/

This database will show you how various car seats are reported to fit into the Windstar when used by consumers. We have the Fisher Price Safe Embrace, the Century Smart Fit infant seat and the Next Step DX, and they fit very tightly and cannot be budged.

Tether strap anchorage locations are also provided for attaching your car seat tethers.

OUR RECOMMENDATION

The downsides I have listed are minor, and don’t detract from my opinion of the Windstar. We have been happy with this purchase and besides the vast array of features, I feel SAFE in this vehicle and feel I am doing my best to provide a safe ride for my children. That is the main reason that the Windstar is tops on our list.

Now if only the front bumper came with a sensor...even I might be able to parallel park!