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Mazda Tribute Transmission Problems

wedding1wedding1 Member Posts: 3
I'll give you a little history on my Tribute experience. In March 2005 I purchased my brand new Mazda Tribute. Like many others I felt like I got a lot of car for the $, now I know why. I drove my Tribute off the showroom floor with 4 miles on the odometer. Two days later I had to return the vehicle to the dealer because the transmission was junk. After experiencing the worst experience possible with the dealership, I contacted Mazda Corporate. The Consumer Compliance Specialist that was assigned to my account was wonderful and supplied me with a vehicle buy back. I had my NEW Tribute delivered within a few days and said good riddens to my other one. My NEW Tribute now has 45,000 miles on it, and once again the transmission is starting to go out. I took it to the dealership and they advised the vehicle has some serious issues, but they couldn't pinpoint the problem. They had requested that I leave it with them so they could run a diagnostic online with Mazda Corp. technical service. I just got the call today from a differenct Consumer Compliant Specialist and he advised this is a characteristic of the Tribute. Keep in mind, my car is almost out of warranty. After disputing with the dealership, they advised their hands are tied by Mazda Corp., meaning they won't fix it under warranty. To say it like it is, Mazda is waiting for my warranty to run out so they won't have to fix it. When I replied back to the Consumer Compliant Specialist that the dealership advised this was abnormal and a serious defect he replied back that it doesn't matter they call the shots, and this is what he decided. He also noted that he has to do everything in his power to lower the cost of warrant repairs for Mazda. On top of this, he advised the dealer would make a note on the ticket stating, "if the transmission fails while the car is out of warranty they would possibly fix the problem". After talking to a lawyer friend of mine, this statement would not hold up in court. After confronting the Specialist on his comment he laughed and said too bad. I will never buy a Mazda ever!!! I soon will be paying approx. $3000 for a new transmission.
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Comments

  • hatestoyotahatestoyota Member Posts: 3
    The torque converter went bad on mine at 45,000 miles. At 45 mph the car would shake. Mazda put in a new transmission. They busted an axle while doing it, so it went back to be fixed. A few weeks later transmission fluid started coming out. I was told the torque converter seal needed to be replaced. I just picked the car up again....today. Of couse they busted the other axle this time while taking the transmission out again. When the transmission problems first started I explained to Mazda that I was told the story of "this is a charteristic of the car" from Toyota with a 2004 Camry. They started to tell me the same thing and acted as if they would not fix the transmisson in the beginning. I stood there and had a melt down until they agreed to fix the transmission the first time. Do not back down from Mazda......they know they have a problem with these things. Go to the Ford dealer they will tell you the same thing about the Escapes.
  • wedding1wedding1 Member Posts: 3
    Thank you very much for the information. I am actually bringing my car back in on Monday because I am now getting approx. 8-10 mpg. The dealer responded by saying, "your transmission problem could be caused by a sensor in the fuel line". The dealer and Mazda are full of it. I have lost complete faith in Mazda. I've owned Honda's in the past, and I think it's time to go back. Unfortunately I am upside down on the hunk of junk. Good luck with your Tribute and thanks again for the info.
  • mitso1mitso1 Member Posts: 1
    I also own a Tribute it is a '02, my transmission lasted me 75K miles, and when I called the dealer for an estimate to rebuild it, their response was that Mazda does not recommend to rebuild a faulty transmission and that I should get a brand new one instead, I laughed and told the guy that Mazda had screwed me once when they sold me the car and that they were not going to do it again, and hung up. :mad:

    I found out that Mazda does not sell replacement parts to rebuild a transmission, in order to rebuild existing one they have to use aftermarket parts, which I am hopping are better than Mazda’s so I don't have to worry about this happening again before I am ready to buy a new car.

    I was very pleased with my purchase until it crossed over the warranty miles and suddenly it seemed like everything started to fall apart, it is almost as if them SOBs made them with a 5 year life expectancy. :lemon:
  • wtruebritewtruebrite Member Posts: 3
    I'd take a second thought about Honda automatic transmissions. They are, by far, the worst in the industry. If you're interested do a search for "transmission problems" on the following Honda's: 99-05 Odyssey, 03-07 Accord, 99-04 Acura TL. Honda made a huge impact on the US car market for at least 2 decades. I'm guessing that the people in charge of that impact have now retired.
  • bachmanbachman Member Posts: 31
    I had problems a while back (2003 EX model) and the trans felt like it was surging and not wanting to shift even at 3000 rpms or more !! They found it to be a ground wire or shoddy connection somewhere in the transmission. It's a CD4E and a friend of mine told me he rebuilds them often and the box of parts has all kinds of '' check this , don't do that'', kind of suggestions .... very touchy to diagnose and service apparently. I did lots of homework to give the dealer some hints on what to check hoping it would get caught and repaired correctly. They did good since it was indeed an intermittent problem.
  • andrew2506andrew2506 Member Posts: 1
    Guys are talking about issues with automatic transmissions? How about manual transmissions, does anybody know about issues with this type of transmission?
    Thanks
  • bdymentbdyment Member Posts: 573
    The Tribute does not have a manual transmission.
  • bdymentbdyment Member Posts: 573
    Oops! I goofed. The 4 cylinder certainly does have a manual transmission. I was thinking of the V6.
  • wedding1wedding1 Member Posts: 3
    Sorry for such a delayed response to my first comment on my Tribute. FYI - I actually pursued this issue over and over with corporate, meaning I literally bugged the crap out of them, and they actually gave me a 100,000 mile, total care package, with a 0 dollar deductible, extended warranty at their cost. I actually had a Mazda Corp. Maintenance Tech come from out of town to test drive my vehicle, and after that I got the call from Mazda Corp. Consumer Compliance stating they would give me the warranty. I was willing to pursue this issue with the Corp. CEO if I had to. My vehicle still runs horrible and it literally feels like someone is rear ending me while I drive, but I have a little less worry now, knowing it's covered for 100,000 miles. Keep pursuing this issue with them and don't give in. FYI - they also replaced the fuel sensor line in my car and it didn't fix the problem. I am also extremely upside down on my vehicle and can't afford to get rid of the hunk of junk. Keep telling Mazda Corp. that they will be getting a letter from your lawyer if they don't comply. You may be better off to spend a few extra $ and have a transmission shop run a diagnostic. I kept telling Mazda corp. that I was going to do this and once the shop found the problem I would be sending them a lawsuit. I agree - I have had the best luck with Honda's Never again will I buy American. Good luck and keep me posted. If you need names or more info. let me know. Also threaten your dealership that you are going to make an appt. everyday to have your vehicle looked at. Trust me it works.
  • scape2scape2 Member Posts: 4,123
    I notice no one here mentioned doing preventive maintenance on thier automatic transmissions?? I have owned both an Escape that went over 70,000 hard miles/towing/hauling with no transmission issues. Wife owns a Tribute with just over 50,000 no transmission issues. I know it is because I had the transmission flushed on both at 30,000 miles.
  • jules20jules20 Member Posts: 8
    I have a 2001 Tribute and have about 110,000 miles on it. It has been good to me and currently I am having the issue mentioned previously of the transmission surging and not wanting to shift. I actually have had this happen for most of the years that I have owned this car. It will do it for a period of time then go away for a long period of time and come back. It is going on about 2 weeks now and I am getting ready to take it in to get checked out. I have kept up with the maintenance of this car and have done a trans flush. Anyway - hope this isn't the end of this vehicle for me. I used to work for Ford corporate - quickest way to get a response is to get to the big wigs of the company. Things happen if you get through.
  • azdaneazdane Member Posts: 1
    I bought my 2001 Tribute June15, 2001, by July 6, 2001 it was in the shop. Apparently there is a very touchy screw on the four wheel drive transmission connection and this one was screwed too tight. It got replaced. The whole four wheel drive!
    About 6 months later the fuel sensor light went on. Faulty, got replaced.
    A few other minor items replaced through warranty in the next few months, sensors, four wheel drive stuff, free, but a pain in the butt. I did always have a free rental, though.
    Then right around 25K miles when I accelerated going 60mph or more, the engine would just rev and no gear would catch. Well, we got a new transmission, which they say was rebuilt, because they couldn't get new(??whatever - man-talk). I had it in for this four times until the service guy finally went on the highway with me and then he saw.
    I still have the ole girl, she's topping 120K. She is still cute and since the design hasn't really changed too much, doesn't look old and dated.
    She will have her belts, hoses and fluids changed in the next couple of weeks.
    I have been using synthetic blend oil since 50K miles.
  • jules20jules20 Member Posts: 8
    If mine ends up having to replace the transmission I will buy a new vehicle. Too much work for a vehicle with 110,000 miles on it. I see that there is going to be a Hybrid Tribute next year - it is being sold in CA currently. I would like to check out the Escape Hybrid too. But - after reading all of the posts with the transmission issues I may turn back to Toyota.
  • skippyjohnsonskippyjohnson Member Posts: 4
    Here's my take (based on my limited mechanical aptitude) on the problem I've got with my Tribute.

    I retrieved my Tribute this weekend when some family borrowed it to go on a road trip. I've only got 60,000 miles on the car, so it seemed like a reliable car for the trip. While they were driving on the freeway, the engine revved a little. The driver turned off the cruise control and the car started slowing down. When he hit the gas to get the car going again, the car had no power. With the car in drive, the engine revs, but doesn't move. Tried the same thing in reverse.

    When the tow-truck pulled the Tribute into the out of town dealer, the dealer looked at it and said that there was some metallic noise in the transmission and they'd need to take the transmission out to diagnose the problem ($600 to pull it out and put it back in). They also noted that the transmission fluid was very high - looked like it had been overfilled. Instead of having the out of town dealer do the work, I hauled the Tribute home on a trailer.

    When I took it to a local transmission shop, they said that most likely the "pump shaft" was broken in the transmission. The high transmission fluid level was one of indicators they used to diagnose the problem because when the engine turned on, the transmission fluid wasn't getting pulled down into the transmission. The guys at the shop were also surprised by the transmission used in the Tribute. I think they said it was the same transmission as the one in the Explorer?

    At the end of the day, the transmission shop said they needed to rebuild or replace the transmission. The bill was $2300 minimum to rebuild the transmission. If they put a new transmission in, the bill is closer to $5000 or $6000. Depending on what's broken when they pull the transmission apart, I'll need to pay for additional parts in the transmission.

    For a car that I bought new and had all the regular service done, 60,000 miles is an absurdly low number to lose the transmission. The transmission work is starting today. I'm way out of warranty and haven't been impressed with the dealer service here locally. Any other options? Anybody else have a similar problem? I saw one post that almost looked similar, but there weren't enough details to know if the problem was the same.
  • jules20jules20 Member Posts: 8
    First I am happy to say that I purchased a Toyota Prius and traded my bad transmission Mazda Tribute in. My transmission fluid was also too high. The transmission is the same as the Ford Escape. They are built on the same line in the plant. The Tribute has a history of transmission issues and to have the issues you are having at 60K - that is tragic.
  • skippyjohnsonskippyjohnson Member Posts: 4
    Tell me more about the high transmission fluid? Was that before your transmission went out?
  • jules20jules20 Member Posts: 8
    It was during the transmission issues. My Tribute wasn't accelerating properly. It would stick and not shift into gear. So I had a friend look at my car and he said that my transmission fluid was too full. I also had my car at the dealer for over a week and they concluded I needed a new transmission. I kept driving the car for about 6 weeks though - Prius had a waiting list. Fortunately it didn't break down before I got my new car.
  • jds427jds427 Member Posts: 6
    I have an 02 tribute with 85,000 miles. When it is shifting into or out of overdrive around 50 mph sometimes the transmission makes a rumbleing sound for a few seconds. It feels like the car is going over the rumble strips. Does anyone know if this is a major problem. It has been doing it for about the last 10,000 miles and doesnt seem to be getting any worse. what would it cost to fix? Also, I am not sure if the transmission fluid was ever changed. i got the car with 45,000 miles and it now has 85. I was thinking about changing the fluid and am not sure if i should change any of it, all of it, or just half of it. i have heard stories of transmissions failing because dirt get loosened up.
  • tveilleuxtveilleux Member Posts: 15
    For the rumbling problem you are describing the fluid change is a good starting point. I was having this problem much earlier in the transmission' s life (30,000 miles) at I eventually changed the fluid and the problem disappeared. Other forum members and those on other forums have had similar results which is why I tried it.
  • wbdzynrwbdzynr Member Posts: 1
    I'm just now reading this because our 2003 Tribute is in the shop getting a new transmission put in - at 60K miles. The truck has been good to us, and we have done all regularly scheduled maintenance on it - basically everything that we could do to ensure it would last a long time. We even did the transmission maintenance at 32K. The dealer called it a "fluke". For something that is going to cost almost $4000, I have another term for it... :cry:
  • gereminatorgereminator Member Posts: 1
    Wow, I am just in awe. On Monday, our 2004 Mazda Tribute (87,000 km) konked out. My husband was driving on Highway 1 to Calgary, cruising at 120 km/hr. He pressed on the gas a little, heard a bang, the car slowed down. It picked back up and when he got to the first traffic light, he pressed on the gas - nothing. The Tribute was done. AMA (thankfully!) came and got him right away, sent him to the Mazda dealership and voila - we need a new transmission! Apparently gears 4 and 5 were shot. So the Mazda is in the shop right now, getting the transmission rebuilt. Total: $3900CAD. Awesome.

    Is it just me, or should a 2004 vehicle with only 87,000 NOT be brought into a shop to get a new transmission?!

    Soooooooo just out of curiosity..... can we sue?? Does it not seem like there should have been a recall?? Can we do ANYTHING? Can we contact head office?? Anything?? This just seems like it's WAY too common to go unmentioned!
  • bdymentbdyment Member Posts: 573
    This is rather low kms for a transmission to fail. You say that gears 4 and 5 were shot. Is this a manual transmission? Automatics only had a 4 speed.
  • captcmcaptcm Member Posts: 1
    My 2003 Mazda Tribute had performed beautifully since I bought it new. I have the 2WD model. It has 105,000 miles on it, and I have had the transmission oil changed twice. The transmission died on a trip to Santa Fe. Luckily family lived there. It took 1 week with expedited shipping and $4500 to replace the transmission. I was also charged 16 hours of labor. Seems like this should have been a recall item, seeing what is listed on this web site. I also was told that there is no successful "rebuilding" of the transmission as the transmission is "baked" after assembly to set the parts; therefore, a rebuild shop can't do the job correctly. It's sad, I love the car, it fits my needs perfectly. Now I have a year warranty to shop for a different manufacturer of the same style to avoid future transmission problems.
  • MadMommyMadMommy Member Posts: 1
    I have "had" a 2005 Tribute and yesterday I was driving in rush hour traffic and after coming to a complete stop, I tried to hit the gas and I got RPM's but nothing else. The dealership is now telling me $3500 to put a "new" transmission in or they can sell me one that has 58k miles on it (almost identical milege to the one that went kaput) for $2995. I am at a loss for words, its just out of warranty and Mazda unlike nearly every other car manufacturer does not have a powertrain warranty. I ahve no idea what i'm going to do. I just want a new car at this point and I think Mazda needs to eat what I owe on the vehicle!! i'm pissed!!!!! :mad: :mad:
  • jgrace88jgrace88 Member Posts: 2
    I hope this makes you feel better...
    My Tribute has 58 K on it and I had the same thing happen to me on New Year's Eve. Here's the kicker.....Out of warranty and 3 months left on my lease. The repair guy said the Ford transmission is at fault....
  • skippyjohnsonskippyjohnson Member Posts: 4
    They say exactly what was wrong? In my case it was a broken pump shaft but the symptom sounded the same. The solution was to replace the transmission. The mechanic also said it was typical because the Ford transmission on the SUV was designed for a Ford sedan (I forget which one). Apparently it has some issues when they put the transmission in an SUV.
  • whitpaynewhitpayne Member Posts: 3
    I am having the same problem with my tribute and i was just wondering if you found out what was wrong with it or if it is just something that it does. I am a little concerned because i dont have the money to fix a transmission right now.
    Thank you :confuse:
  • jds427jds427 Member Posts: 6
    I changed all of the transmission fluid and have not had the rumble since then. I have driven about 7 thousand miles since changing the fluid.
  • msdee42msdee42 Member Posts: 2
    I just took my 2009 Tribute (3 wks old, 525 miles) into the dealer with the check engine light showing. After about 15 minutes I was told I needed to have the transmission replace. They are sending a new transmission from the factory and will replace rather than repair the current one. He said there was a recall or bulletin on them. Has anyone heard of this. Can't find anything on the internet for the 2009.
  • bdymentbdyment Member Posts: 573
    What model Tribute do you have? V6 or 4 cylinder?
  • mfortmfort Member Posts: 2
    We just picked up a 2005 Tribute S - 6 cyl with 56,000 miles and haven't noticed anything about the trans, just a lot of tire noise we are trying to resolve. Anyone have any idea how wide-spread the transmission problem is? There do seem to be a lot of good reviews on this car but not necessarily on ones with higher miles on them. Just wondering if we should try to sell it before anything goes really wrong. I know that there are lemons in any model line, just wondering if anyone's got any insight into what the likelihood of this happening may be...thanks.
  • msdee42msdee42 Member Posts: 2
    I have a 4 cly. Just called the dealer and was told there is a bulletin on them. When the chech engine light comes on and they get a certain code, they are to replace the transmission rather than repair it to avoid further problems.
  • jds427jds427 Member Posts: 6
    if you have continetal contitrac tires that is your road noise problem. I had them and the car would shake when i would go over 40. Look at the reviews for the tires at tirerack.com
  • mfortmfort Member Posts: 2
    Thanks...we do have Continental and are aware that they need to be replaced with a better tire. We are also looking into the camber and toe adjustments before we put new ones on, since apparently the Mazda specs tend to cause more wear on the inside edge. Supposedly they are set up that way for handling purposes.
  • mphopkmphopk Member Posts: 1
    I took my car (156K miles) in for an oil change and transmission fluid change and tran filter change after a 800 mile round trip after traveling through the west virgnia/virgnia mountains...due for both services. I told the service dealer not to flush the transmission. Long story short, I got a call asking if I had been having problems with my transmission...I told them no. Well when I picked it up, as they said the car was having a hard time going forward when acclerating but once up to 30mph it was fine, and that it was hard to put into reverse. I thought all of this to be strange being that the mechanic backed my car out of the parking space and drove around the back to bring into the bay. Now my car is at a transmission expert (Aamco) because the car will not move when put into reverse and as they said the car is having a hard time in 1st and 2nd gear but drives fine after I get up to 30 mph. Can someone tell me what when wrong here. I've never had any other problems outside of recalls.
    Thanks,
    Single female in Ohio looking for honest answers.
  • smontysmonty Member Posts: 1
    as i sat here reading these messages, i was thinking - this is as if everyone has read my thoughts, has heard my concerns, or has driven my car. we just paid to have major transmission work done on it, but my car is back at the mechanic's, doing the same thing it was doing before. not only does it not move when it's put in gear, but the O/D continously flashes. if so many people are having the same problems, why has there not been a backlash on mazda from the consumers? from what i've read here today, these problems aren't isolated to any particular year. some attorney general shouldve already been contacted by someone, somewhere in the country. does anyone know if this has been done? :sick:
  • pg08pg08 Member Posts: 1
    Hi,

    I have been reading a lot of stuff on transmission problems with the Tributes for various years, but I havn't found anything for the 2008 Tribute. I noticed that maybe 3 months after I bought mine brand new there was a little bit of jerking of the vehicle when I would stop and then contine driving for about a minute, then it would go back to normal. Of course by the time I made the appointments with the dealership, this jerking would stop and they couldn't detect the problem! Problem is, it has happened 3 more times this past year and I was wondering if anyone else has had the same problem?
  • tork49tork49 Member Posts: 4
    Had a similar problems with my MPV. After a minor fluid and filter change, trans acted as if it dying. I had been in the auto repair business for over forty years. So hopefully, I can honestly explain what "may" had happened? Either they had used the wrong fluid, there is no such thing as universal fluid! Or used the incorrect bolts while installing the trans filter? The trans filter has different sized bolts, what I means is that one is slightly longer than the other by 1-3 mm (they are different). and they are placed just below the trans body. An incorrect placement of a bolt will touch a sensor and will create the. lack of power or correct shifting. Correct placement or pattern is very, very important! What they did wrong, I had to correct! I had to drain the fluid and correct the bolt pattern to the filter. Did not have to buy or get another transmission. Also, the the idiot, did not notice the bad vac line to the trans mod. Hopefully, this would be of some help to you?
  • bronxsotobronxsoto Member Posts: 1
    Thanks for the information, i had my trans fluild change at pep boys and having the same signs. I will get this check as soon as possible.
  • momesq33momesq33 Member Posts: 1
    The transmission on our 2004 Tribute just failed at slightly over 70,000 miles--days after being serviced--$4,000 to replace it, so we elected to get a new vehicle (NOT a Mazda or a Ford). Sadly, we had just been talking about how the car had never needed a major repair. Bottom line: this should NOT happen. We are very upset about it!
  • jules20jules20 Member Posts: 8
    This is not an isolated issue. This has occurred in many different years of Tributes and I am sure Mazda/Ford are aware of it and obviously are still putting the shotty things into their vehicles. I switched back to Toyota which I had before I purchased my Tribute. My experience with the Toyota is excellent and probably won't buy anything else again. Sorry to hear your news. My cost was about the same which was almost what the vehicle was worth so I decided to get a new car as well.
  • ecc12ecc12 Member Posts: 1
    We had a really bad experience with a 2005 Mazda Tribute about a month ago...we had to replace the transmission with only 85,000 km's on the vehicle. We had no indciation whatsoever that there was something wrong with the transmission...got up one morning to go south and heard a few loud noises and then the truck would not go any where. The truck will only be 4 years old the first part of August. First initial estimate was $5000 - 6000 for a Mazda rebuilt transmission and then we purchased a "rebuilt" ford transmission installed for $3900. Mazda Canada will do nothing for us....said if any good will issues would have to come from the dealer. Does anyone know of the track record with these vehicles or even the 2005 Ford Escapes? We are definitely going back to Toyota!! :cry:
  • jules20jules20 Member Posts: 8
    All you have to do is go through the Edmunds threads on this subject and you will see the pattern. Also - go out on the internet using Tribute transmission.....keywords and you will find the pattern. My tribute was a 2001 and I have seen this issue in every year.
  • motrcyclrmotrcyclr Member Posts: 12
    " After a minor fluid and filter change, trans acted as if it dying. I had been in the auto repair business for over forty years. So hopefully, I can honestly explain what "may" had happened? Either they had used the wrong fluid, there is no such thing as universal fluid! Or used the incorrect bolts while installing the trans filter? The trans filter has different sized bolts, what I means is that one is slightly longer than the other by 1-3 mm (they are different). and they are placed just below the trans body. An incorrect placement of a bolt will touch a sensor and will create the. lack of pow"er or correct shifting. Correct placement or pattern is very, very important! What they did wrong, I had to correct! I had to drain the fluid and correct the bolt pattern to the filter."

    After reading numberous posts about having trouble shortly having tranny service done, and reading the above post, it seems painfully obvious to me that many "expert transmission" places that employ minimum wage employees and demand fast work are contributing to the demise of Tribute trannys. I'm going to have my newly bought 100K mile Tribute serviced soon, and plan to pass on the above quoted advice to my servicer. Am I overlooking something obvious, or being too dismissive in mazda's treatment of tranny problem?

    p.s.- has anyone else noticed how wrong the estimated labor cost is for changing plugs on a V6 Tribute engine? the estimate I looked at on edmunds said $30 labor.
  • lobster4lobster4 Member Posts: 1
    Last night I went to "wally world" went to back up and there was a thump and later I went to work and couldn't back up. I got it to roll back and reved up the engine and it kicked in. It works fine in drive but is the end near as far as reverse goes. The other thing that is goofy is when in the winter(only winter) it sometimes will buck-bad!!!!. Will take any suggestions HELP!!!!!! :mad:
  • cjadcjad Member Posts: 6
    Get rid of it now before the transmission goes out. I'm on my third transmission with only 59,635 miles on my Tribute. It's a 2003. My 1st. transmission only had 18,000 miles on it and that's how it started, no reverse. Mazda puts junk for transmissions in their vehicles. Actually the V6 is a Ford engine with a Ford transmission. No more Mazda or Fords for me.
  • cjadcjad Member Posts: 6
    I have a 2003 Mazda Tribute (bought new in 2004) with 59,635 miles on it. The miles are at least 80% highway miles. I'm 64 years old and I don't abuse this vehicle. I'm on my third transmission. The first failed with 18,742 miles on it. Polar Mazda (White Bear Lake, Minnesota) replaced that transmission with a rebuilt one. The second transmission failed 7-19-09 with 59,635 miles on it. I am now on my third transmission.
    This third transmission (rebuilt) cost me $3,200.00 to have it installed. I shopped around to get the best price. I called Kennedy transmission and they wanted between $2,800.00 and $3,500.00 to have the transmission tore apart and fixed with second party parts. I figured they would've charged me the max, $3,500.00.
    I decided to have Polar do the work, because I had a $300.00 coupon from Mazda. We got the coupon because of the problems we were having with my wife's 2004 Mazda 6 which was about to go off warranty with only 16,000 miles on it. Yes we were stupid enough to buy two Mazda's! I believed the good reviews at the time we bought the vehicles. The total price of their transmission (rebuilt) was $3,500.00 - $300.00 = $3,200.00. They also told me (over the phone) their warranty was 3 years or 100,000 miles, which sold me on having Polar do the work. Kennedy's warranty was two years.
    When I picked up the Tribute I asked the manager about the warranty. He said it was a one year warranty. Another manager agreed with him about the one year warranty. I told them they lied to me and I was going to call Mazda about the situation. When I got home the manager from Polar called me and said the parts dept. got a bulletin and the warranty was a three year warranty. God manager huh! You would think he would get all the bulletins and read them.
    I would never buy another Mazda again. We have had many problems with both our vehicles, too many to mention. One day when we were at the dealership a girl brought her Mazda 6 in and the transmission was going out. I suppose it's the same trany as the Tribute with the V6. It's a Ford engine and transmission.
    My advice to everyone who reads this, stay away from Mazda. The next vehicle I buy will be a Toyota.
  • cjadcjad Member Posts: 6
    I forgot to note, three days after I brought home my Mazda Tribute (with the 3rd. transmission) there was a big transmission fluid mess on my garage floor. Good job POLAR MAZDA OF WHITE BEAR LAKE, MINNESOTA. Get some mechanics that know what they are doing. The leak (they say) was caused by the speed sensor. It took them FOUR DAYS to figure that out.
  • jules20jules20 Member Posts: 8
    I hope you only paid for one transmission and even that - did you check the value of your vehicle? I got rid of mine because my value was maybe 5K and the new transmission would have been about $3,500. Not worth it to me. Like I said previously - I am back in a Toyota again. The Prius is awesome and saves me alot of money with using less gas. I am planning on this car lasting a while and if I have no problems I don't see me switching to any other car brand. Good luck with your Mazda!
  • jules20jules20 Member Posts: 8
    That is exactly how my transmission issues started with my 2001 Tribute (which I no longer have thanks to Toyota!). I took mine in and the dealership didn't find anything wrong the first 2 times. It lasted several more years when the transmission finally started to go. I got rid of it due to the cost to value ration and am happy I don't have to worry about it anymore.
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