The Tribute ES is a great SUV!
The only problems I have had to change were the battery once, a fog light bulb, and a brake light bulb.
The car rides fantastic, very smooth like a car.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 27th February, 2010
Nothing but problems: Don't Buy Mazda or Ford
Transmission problem and O/D lights blinking.
ABS light on and off intermittently.
Strange and loud noise from the brakes. Looks like the ABS is involved.
This car is nothing but problems. I would never buy a Mazda, a Ford or any American car, and I would try to inform everyone else to not to make my mistake.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 8th July, 2009
This is a (cheap) Sports + Utility vehicle that's true to its name
Nothing yet, or that I know of.
This little SUV drives like a car, a cheap car that is. It's stable, noisy, and responsible. For a 2.0 I-4, it hits 80mph without flinch, considering the weight of this car, not bad.
The car is reasonably comfortable, especially the rear seats. Those are deep and wide, unlike many others of its class.
The interior feels cheap. More utility than anything else. The cup holders are many and yet only good for coke can tins. Anything bigger or taller than that is in danger of spill over any time. The plastic and the seat clothes are cheap and, but sturdy.
The noisy level is not low to say the least, and get worse as you drive faster.
The manual shifter is notchy, but precise. The engine seems to hesitate in its reponse, not as smooth as those on Nissan Mazima or Acura Integra/ Honda Accord. But it does seem to be consistent with the Mazda6 or even RX8 I've tried.
The real strong point of the Tribute for me is the handling and economy. It lives up to the name of Sports Utility Vehicle. Sports characteristics plus lots of Utilities. For one it handles like a car and drives like a car. For another, it's very spacious and tall inside. The seats are cheap yet reasonably comfortable because of their width and depth, in comparison to some of the other small SUVs I've tried. Leg rooms and certainly head rooms are very generous for this class of SUVs. Even on par with the much bigger brothers like Trail-Blazers and Pilot.
And this SUV is cheap, several grand cheaper than Honda CR-v or even its own sister Ford Escape.
But it doesn't give away from the outside. The exterior looks rather classy and not overly cute like CR-v or RAV4, in my judgement.
I just got mine basic I-4 manual 04 Tribute DX with only 9k on it today for 15K. Had I have more patience, I am sure I could have driven it home for 14K, which is totally unthinkable for the like of CR-V or RAV4.
The dealer is not exactly honest. I've only got one set of key with no manual. Being one of the largest dealership in the central coast area in California, this came as a shocker. I've bought 20 plus used cars before, most of them are a lot cheaper than this one, and yet, this is the very first time I didn't get the full key sets and manual. I think it's telling about Mazda's relationship with its dealers - no body seems to care. I learned all this after I signed the dot line. This really makes me hesitant to ever go for another Mazda after this one.
In summary, the Tribute I got is quite a catch for the money, with lots of useful space for people and cargo. As to the cheap material or lack of more sophisticated features, I guess for the money, I should complain too much. So I think if you like to drive (with a family, for a single person, this is too big I guess) and you don't like to empty your account ust for your ride, Tribute deserves a closer look. Many other SUVs I've tried over the years, large and small, don't have as much fun on the road. It's a very youthful spirited SUV indeed.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 16th January, 2006
Definitely a great price for so much car!
Nothing has gone wrong, I purchased the 2005 Mazda Tribute S + option 3,however, it does exhibit a thirsty performance (18/22 mpg.)
This SUV drives like a car.
It is very easy to park as well.
Areas I would change are the interior door handles which are plastic. They look awfully cheap and should be in the chrome color to match the center console.
Passengers sitting in the rear many find that when the front seats are extended back, there is not enough padding to properly cushion the knee caps for the passengers in the back.
Also, the 6-way power seat option is only available for the driver. The passenger must move their seats manually.
The rear seats cannot be extended back, they are stationary.
There should be an a/c vent in the center console for the passengers in the back. Most cars like the Honda pilot have it.
After all these points I still love my tribute! Especially the dark flint leather!
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 24th September, 2004
8th Jul 2009, 17:00
"This car is nothing but problems. I would never buy a Mazda, a Ford or any American car, and I would try to inform everyone else to not to make my mistake."
Here we go again... another person goes off the deep end and blasts ALL domestics because they got one that had a few issues. Our "mileage champ" was a Ford that went over 325,000 miles over 17 years with less than $500 in total repairs. Our last Dodge was sold in perfect running condition at just over 240,000 miles. It had required nothing but 2 timing belts and one heater hose. Our family's Buick LeSabre was sold last year at 277,000 miles. It never had a SINGLE REPAIR beyond routine maintenance.
On the flip side, my family's Honda was sold to a JUNK DEALER at just over 99,000 miles. Our Mazda (which was built in Japan BEFORE Ford over and drastically IMPROVED the quality) was a total lemon and was traded at 86,000 miles for a Mustang that had 139,000 miles. The Mustang was FAR better car.
Before stabbing the American economy in the back, try a new Ford. The Fusion is rated as high or higher in reliability than any Japanese car. It beats out both Camry and Accord.