1999 Ford Windstar...Continued

Ride: The 1999 Windstar rides more like a near-luxury sedan than a light truck. On a really long trip, the ride was not fatiguing. On city streets, highways and two-lane mountain roads, the Windstar is truly a pleasure to drive.

What We Like Most: Windstar is content rich with a load of standard features making it a real value. The power sliding doors controlled from the key fob, the middle seat indexing and most of all the Reverse Sensing system -- these are fantastic features. Additionally, the really comfortable almost luxurious interior, sedan-like ride and performance and most of all the emphasis on safety make Windstar an incredible value. Never has a U.S. manufacturer taken the issue of safety to heart in the way Ford has with this vehicle. While NHTSA will not test the 1999 Windstar until it goes on sale, we are confidant -- as is Ford -- that it will retain its five-star rating with NHTSA for front impact making it the minivan of choice for those who put safety first.

What We Caution You About: The brakes. We think all vans that are heavy like this one need to have four-wheel disc brakes. Drivers of minivans without them need to take this into consideration and drive cautiously, as always.