Mazda Tribute Reviews and Owner Comments

My 2003 Tribute was bought brand new and I still own it. It has now 140 miles. I had to change front & rear suspension. Tune up twice, needed motor mounts replaced and normal maintenence.
Now we have an oil leak and the ai conditioning system doesn't produce cold air and we can't figure out why.
I would appreciate any helpful comments.

Overall love my 2011 Tribute bought used in 2013. Now it's at 78,000 miles my family loves it too. Never give us problems runs well with zero issues. It's a great commuter SUV very pleased with everything on the Mazda would love to have another one.

I have a problem with the Electrical System. After starting the Engine, the car will mnot move in Drive. Fuses # 6 and # 32 fail often. It was checked and cleared by Almaden Mazda Dealership in March (07- 2014) and the car had the same problem on 4-26-14. The dealership had given an OK on 3-7-14, but the problem persists

I bought my Mazda Tribute 2001 year of make and its a 1920cc engine from BEFORWARD Japan (Used Car)in 2012. The engine has developed some problems like it gets too hot in less than three minutes drive and the idling has since changed to high it, cannot stabilize at one point as a results it consumes alot of fuel (Gasoline).What could be the problem my fellow Mazda Tribute users. If Idling sensor, which website can I contact.

Bruno
Malawi

Had problems with the drivers seat beat. The light stayed on. Took it to the dealership, they replaced seat beat straps.Did not work. Problem never solved
Had to have it idle up. Always cutting off.
Misfiring now.
Overheating

I bought my Mazda Tribute new (48MILES. It has been the best vehicle I have ever owned!! Just now starting to have engine light come on and off and engine is cutting back. Any ideas? I have replaced the fuel pump & new battery.

I love my Madza Tribute 2005 I have had my car going on 8 yrs now.

I am supper happy about my mazda. I am really appy to say. I was involved in a rear end collision where I was hit and my car thankfully held up to the test. although their was framedamage. My daughter and I came out with no injuries and the tribute held up so well to saftey. Thank you Mazda for saving my life!
The other car was a total wreck!!!

I bought my Tribute used in 2010. It already had 140000 miles on it. I have had to replace the brake pads, struts & shocks, which is normal wear. I also need to repair the interior door panels (glue down fabric on the door) However, I love my Tribute, drives great. Couldn't ask for a better vehicle. My neice also has a 2002 Tribute,that she loves also. I would buy another Tribute.

have had a 2005,a 2008, and this 2009 tribute cannot say anything bad about any of them . the 2008 i had for 6 months and had 11000 miles on it and it was totalled by a collision on both ends , replaced it with the 2009 only problem i have had before the check engine lite came on , was that the seat covers are wearing out too fast.

Nothing but problems, alternator 2 times, intake manifold gasket, brakes all the time, transmission, brake booster all before 100k. There is more can't recall off the top of my head. Worst car ever!!!

Just bought at car aution.Overheating problem,sounds like a thumping noise in hose.If head gasket needed to replace, and someone put some of that headgasket sealer in engine,will it mess up the rest of the engine or just have the head gaskets replaced? Please send response.Thank You!

I have 287,000 miles on my Tribute, and never had a major issue with the SUV. I put between 35,000 to 40,000 miles a year. This vehicle owes me nothing. It's never let me down and always starts. I do change the oil every 6-7 weeks and change radiator and other fluids once a year. I'm looking to another 100K out of her before I retire the SUV to one of the kids.

Other than catalytic convertor plugging up 2 times and needing replacement its been an ok vehicle, but I am curious has anyone else had catalytic convertor issues with this vehicle and if so what was root cause.

2003-Purchased new. No problems. I keep all my fluids clean and fresh which I feel is a key.

58000 miles and just need new brakes now. Never has any issues with engine or electrical. Had 1 minor mechanical issue with rear gate getting stuck. fixed under warranty and NP any more. I change oil only every 6 to 7 000 miles and still OK. I have 2 wheel drive 2.3 liter 2006 Tribute.

runs great if maintained well. Be sure to replace fuel filter every year or two to keep fuel system clean.

This is by far the best car we have owned for the money, the only thing we did was required maintenance, 69 thousand miles and never had a problem, original front and back breaks I just replaced for $79.99 that was for very good break pads, they cheap ones run 49.00 Labor was free since i did them my self. Last winter we got caught in snow drifts, it spun the tires some but we got through the 15 inches of snow, It has a very good AWD transmission....If if ever breaks I will redue the review...

I bought my 02 Tribute ES used in 2004 with 50K miles on it. I had the certified used car warranty which covered repairs up to 100K miles. Replaced Transmission at 86K miles under warranty, Replaced rear diff seal, all axle seals at various times due to leaks again covered under warranty. Have just replaced the right front half shaft because abs ring broke. First repair I have paid for. Currently have 130K miles on it and it is running great. Hoping transmission holds up. I change the fluid annually hoping that helps. Tribute is excellent in the snow. I ended up buying a 2008 tribute and still think it is a godd value. It is just the right size and powerful enough for my needs.

I've had my 01 Tribute since late 2000 and it has been extremely reliable, requiring for the most part only routine maintenance. The most annoying problem has been the leather/cloth inserts on all 4 door panels that have come off and Mazda (at least locally) doesn't fix it.

We bought a 2001 Tribute new. We had to replace the transmission at 72,000. My wife was stranded 50 miles from home. Seatbelt sensors were replaced 3 times under warrantee and after warrantee the dealer soldered the wires for a more permanent fix. Brakes are poor and need to be replaced often. Rotors warped and master cylinder leaked. Just replaced it. Transmission linkage failed down at a plastic bushing at the transmission, again stranding my wife far from home. This is my last Mazda! 2001 ES-V6 4WD.

Is anyone willing to send around some sort of petition for mazda to honor certain repairs under a lemon law? I have read numerous complaints online about poor starting, idling, and ignition problems. Here is what is going on. Faulty ignition coils are causing misfires in one or more cylinders and even on occasion causing the coil drivers inside the PCM to malfunction, causing a dead cylinder, even if the coil is replaced. If driven with a misfire, one or more of the 3 catalytic converters can become plugged or damaged causing poor acceleration, lack of power, and exhaust backpressure strong enough to blow out the EGR valve.

My 2002 Tribute LX has been nothing but trouble after 36k miles. I bought the car new, and now some 7 yrs later i still only have 84k miles on it. around 50k miles my alternator goes out.. $750 because you have to take the axle out to get to it. My brake rotors warp and i have to contantly change me breaks and rotors. IAC had to be replaced or cleaned to prevent poor idle. At 80k miles my transmission goes out $4000, Now I have some type of acceleration problem and exhaust prob. I blew apart 2 EGR valve (on my 3rd replacement), I replace my PCV and hose, but the car still accel poorly.. this car is junk. But worked fine the first 4 yrs, 50k miles... :( 6cyl/FWD

I've had my Tribute for 4 years now and I love it!!

I'm about to get my annual rotor cutting for the breaks.
I just paid $235 to replace the cheep plastic inside door handle.
I was going to change the plugs until I was told that the intake manifold had to be pulled to get at the rear ones. Another $200+ job.
The crome has worn off of the hood protecter across the front of the hood. This happened the first year.
On my forth set of tires.

I have owned this vehicle for over 8 years, and I still love it. I, too, have had problems with the airbag sensors over the years, but I just wiggle the wires under the driver's seat, and the airbag light goes out. They seem to get lose under there from things getting pushed under the seat. Otherwise, I have only performed routine maintenance over the years, and it still runs well. I am currently replacing the vacuum lines (PCV valve system) and spark plugs at 100,000 miles.

I have had to repeatedly take my Tribute in for the airbag sensors that keep failing on both sides of the vehicle. If you google that you will see more people with the same problem. Mazda still can't figure out the solution. As soon as they change the sensors, a week later quit again. Now I'm riding around with no airbags due to this problem. Also, some nuts behind the wheel rusted off and caused my brakes not to work correctly until replaced.

Except for needing new brakes a little sooner than I thought should be necessary, this has been the most reliable car I've ever owned. The 4 wd I would not get again as the gas mileage is only 15-19 combined.61,000mi and ZERO problems!!