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In post 1615, Jetfly65 wrote:
"My recent problem has been a hissing air noise whenever I take my foot off the brake pedal. I took it into the dealership and they said that this is a normal sound for this braking system (even though it never made this noise the first year of ownership). They also said that they checked new models on the lot and they also make the same noise."
I have recently started noticing the same noise in my car when I let off the brake pedal. The dealership says this is normal, but I'm surprised it took so long for a "normal" noise to appear. Any other people have this noise or have thoughts on it?
Dave
"To confirm the Ford Customer Relations line answer, I have been told by
Customer Service and the transmission folks that for normal customer use,
the CD4E transmission fluid is good essentially for the life of the vehicle,
to be checked and changed at 150,000 miles as indicated on page 33 of the
scheduled maintenance guide (CD4E falls into the "other" category)."
Same with the '01 RAV4; it calls for changing the tranny fluid at 120k miles only under "Special Operating Conditions." Otherwise, not at all.
Hard to figure, when you'd think the manufacturers would like to throw as much business to the dealer service departments as possible, within reason.
My dealer service department wanted to change the RAV4's ATF at 30k miles, and I let them. Don't think I'll go for it at 60k miles, though.
Gurgling sound.. Sounds as if the water draining from the windshield is maybe getting trapped someplace??
It has attached velcro ties in it.
Odie
so it should look like this;
Driver's Side ---------------- Passenger Side
small cargo net box----------------sub woofer or compartment
Odie
odie!
I am looking for a small SUV to replace my spouse's 99 Regal GS and the Tribute we drove a couple of days ago seems to fit the bill. The particular 2003 ES we drove did seem to have excessive wind noise, and some noticable road noise. Is this a phenomonom one should expect in SUV's of this size? We also drove the Buick Rendevous, which was nice, but also had what we felt was excessive road noise, and it had a 5000 dollar higher price tag, albeit with more features than the Tribute. I have read the owner's feedback pages and most people have had a pleasant experience with either iteration of the Ford/Mazda SUV, but a lot of them are concerned about fuel mileage. My wifes drives 70 miles per day to work and back, and mileage was one of the major considerations. Her Supercharged Buick Regal gets her about 23/24 mpg. Can she expect better or worse mileage from the Tribute/Escape? We live in the DFW area of Texas, so there are no hills, and she travels open hiway most, but some stop and go traffic.
I apologize for the long post...
officeroz
Fuel mileage in any SUV is very dependent upon driving style. A lot of people have a heavy right foot, whether they admit to it or not, which greatly reduces their mpg.
I tend to take the "this ain't a sports car" view when driving our Escape. On our last long trip, ~500 miles of hilly highway, we calculated about 25 mpg (24 point something if I recall correctly). I had added an extra 3-5 psi above what Ford recommends in each tire to compensate for some extra weight. My over-compensation resulted in a slightly bumpier ride (not enough to complain about though) and the extra couple of mpg's.
The Escape goes to and from work each day as well. It's about a 14 mile round trip, all city with large hills, and we average about 20 mpg. Sometimes more, sometimes less.
Hope that helps.
After an entire weekend, well Fri/Sat anyway, we finally bought a car. Strange how the process works, even after reading all the info provided by Edmunds regarding negotiating. Tried the internet sales approach, but had an S plan pin number, so was passed around to different folks in nearly every dealership. Bottom line, you have to REALLY hammer these folks if you have a trade in, as they tend to low-ball the trade, regardless of miles, year model, or condition. Hiley Mazda in Arlington, TX was where we finally ended up, but it was a 5 HOUR ORDEAL. However, we got a car with the equipment my spouse wanted, although not the color, and were fairly satisfied with the transaction. Tribute ES with lux package and cold pkg, with the rear bumber plate, the cargo tray, and perimeter alarm. List 25,089. and S plan yeilded 23,303. Kinda felt they could have done better without the S plan, since a dealer a few miles up the road was advertising 2K off sticker, no add ons, plus the 1k rebate. but we got them up on her Buick nearly 2K more than thier original offer, so we felt pretty good with the deal. The pebble ash color was not her first choice, but that was the only color in stock she could get with the packages she wanted on the ES.
Of course, it was standing tall under the dealer's canopy after they washed and got it ready, but driving it home in the rain took care of that. Also purchased the drive train plus extended warranty for 60 months/75k miles for under 700. Nice driving car, and hope it is as trouble free as the Buick has been for the past 4 years and 65k miles, required nothing more than a set of tires at 55k, and normal maintenance every 3k miles. Still had the original brakes too...
Thanks for the responses.
officer oz
I bought an 01 Escape, (late 01) and after 20,000 miles its performed flawlessly. I use mine to tow 2 watercraft, skii, fish ect... and I really enjoy the vehicle...
Good luck! let us know what you buy...
Sorry to hear that. :-(
I follow this thread because I have a friend whose first new vehicle purchase ever was an '03 Tribute LX V6. So far he has 12K miles since last August, and nothing out of the ordinary, just oil changes. Knock on wood!
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
I get about 20-21 mpg in our hilly city. I am not a lead foot with the Escape in my opinion.
Does your friend check the tire pressure regularly? A few psi can really make a difference. He could also try different brands of gasoline.
Right now I’m being steered toward many different types by various dealers, which basically seems to be whatever type they have in stock and/or have the most of (and even different sizes, which I’m really not sure about). Some of the brands I’ve never even heard of before.
Right now I’m leaning toward the Yokahama Geolander HT or Michelins – either the LTX M/S or Cross Terrains, all of which I’d have to order since none are in stock anywhere near me. This is based on the reviews I’ve read at TireRack.com, which believe it or not has a lot of consumer reviews, good and bad, for all of the many tires they sell. It’s amazing so many people take time to write about their tire experiences.
Any advice on these two types, or any other recommendations? Now that these vehicles have been around for a few years, what types have you other Tribute/Escape owners used for replacements, and with what results?
As for Rain / Snow/ Dry traction.. I have not had a single problem, plus I've been deep enough in mud that the middle hub was hitting mud, and didn't need any help getting in (or out) of the situation.
Odie
All in all, I love my Escape, probably the nicest vehicle I have owned.
but the Escape in the consumer reports 2002 rating book is rated as very good. Which was the same rating for the Honda CR-V...
if you want reliability the isuzu isnt the palce to shop...according to consumer reports.
Honda hides information/TSB's from the public.. Go to www.alldata.com and try to look up TSB inforamation on Honda...
My experience is mostly with Ford vehicles, and I've had several that have gone over the 100K mark easily, and my family has as well. These include many Ford Escorts, Taurus' (or is that Tauri?), an F150, and Ranger all surpass the 100K mark with no major problems, and definatley not leaving me or my family stranded. The Ranger is still going strong at 220k miles, but did need a 5sp tranny replaced at just over 200k miles.
The other Fords I've owned (Probe, Windstars) also went 50 to 70k miles before I chose to trade them in to match my lifestyle changes. My current Fords are an 00' F250 SuperDuty at 55k miles, no problems outside warranty, (replaced IAC under warranty), and an 01' Escape with 22k miles which stalled once (many months ago), and I had the TSB applied, and no problems since.
I have to admit that I do not, and never had, as it it just too inconvient to drop it off and arrange other transportation for the dealership visit.
what is the deal with the tailgate mounted spare - pure stupidity.
Personally, I like the spare tire on the door. That way, it isn't inside the car taking up precious cargo space, and it isn't underneath the car, so when you are stranded with a flat, in 20 degree weather, wind blowing 30mph, in the dark, that you have to crawl underneath the vehicle and retrieve the spare tire before you can even change it. With the spare on the door, it saves that from happening. However, the drawbacks are decreased visability through the back window, and the possibility of backing into something with it. Those can be prevented, but a flat tire often cannot. My sidekick has the tire on the back door as well, and at first it took some getting used to by not being able to see very well out the back window, but I don't mind it now. I use my side mirrors more anyway. Good luck! Hope you get your trib back soon so you can get on the road in a Honda.