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Ford Escape Mazda Tribute Maintenance and Repair

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  • craigermagscraigermags Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2006 escape with about 3500 miles on it. I am very happy with it and it peforms well. However lately I have noticed that when I come up to a stop light and come to a complete stop that in about 30 seconds later the car pulsates like it is rocking forward and backward.

    There appear to be no change in the RPM on the dash and I was wondering if the Air Conditioner could be causing the engine to surge like this.

    Any thoughts by anyone out there would be appreciated.

    Craig
  • mikezakmikezak Member Posts: 95
    I have the 2005 Mazda Tribute, AWD, with the 4 Cyl engine. It currently has 31K miles on it. Since about 20K, I have noticed that the Accelerator pedal sticks when I try to accelerate from a dead stop -- mainly when the engine is cold (first 1 - 10 miles). Sometimes I really have to put pressure on it -- and then I 'ZOOM_ZOOM' out,...other times I seem to have to 'tap' it loose.

    Anyone else have this issue?

    Thanks.
  • fuchsrrfuchsrr Member Posts: 5
    Hello Tribute owners,

    My cruise control shuts down when I turn on the headlights. Any ever had this problem??

    Thanks
  • fuchsrrfuchsrr Member Posts: 5
    Hello all,

    My bolt that holds the alternator pully wheel came lose and was spinning freely on the alternator shaft. It makes it appear as if the alternator is failing. It cost me $470 bucks to have it replaced. So please check to bolt and make sure it is tight. FU motorcraft 8 ). If you do need an new alternator go to http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/ cost half the price of a new one from dealer $489 got for $189 brand new Bosch. Cost $200 to install. Good luck all.
  • 07110711 Member Posts: 5
    Question for the host: My husband and I have driven several '05 and '06 XLT's and have absolutely loved the pickup and smooth ride. We decided we wanted to find a 2005 to buy. We recently test drove a 2005 and noted it was slower on the pickup, had to give it more gas to coast along at 40mph, and noted it was noisier (as result of higher rpm's)- a more comparable drive to the earlier year Ford's. The instrument panel also looked slightly different than other '05's we had driven. Also, though it is a V6, there was no V6 emblem on the right side of the rear tailgate. The dealer mentioned the difference in look was because this '05 was the first year production release of when Ford moved the automatic transmission from the steering wheel to the floor center console. He was unaware of any difference in the drive, but said he wouldn't be surprised if Ford had made some improvements in the next '05 production series. Are you or anyone else out there aware of any bugs with the transmission, pick-up, smoothness, etc. with this 1st round of production 2005 model - which was manuctured in 2004? If so, does anyone know if this means the cars made in this initial round might be more prone to the same types of transmission problems Ford Escapes have had in the past? Also, does anyone know (even though it's still early) if the transmission bugs might no longer occur on either the late production '05's, '06's (or even 1st round production '05) now that the shift has been moved? Thanks!!
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    There's some model changeover info in the Used Car Vehicle Overview page at Edmunds.

    Skimming the article, a new engine choice, new AWD system, new floor mounted shifter and new gauge look to be the highlights. The hybrid got all the buzz that year.

    Some owners will have to jump in on the transmission (and other) questions -- moving the shifter doesn't necessarily mean the mechanicals changed.
  • jcsteersjcsteers Member Posts: 1
    I had the same problem with my '06 Tribute and barely escaped with my life and the lives of the 2 other people in my car. I was on a 4 lane highway going into the 3rd lane at about 61 mph when the gas pedal got stuck. The car revved, like you see in the commercial - zoom zoom. You could hear it going and I could not stop it. My brakes didn't work and I went from 60 to close to 90 blowing my horn and trying to figure out how to stop without killing a lot of people. Then it became unstuck and I was able to move to the shoulder. I had the car towed and the dealership told me it was my car mat. The service manager said he took it out and the same thing happened to him. He said that the winter mats should not be in the car. I told him that whatever he sees there was put there by Mazda when they sold me the car. I'm still not driving the car since he took all of 30 mins with it and didn't check to see if there was anything else that may have caused it. There is no way a mat could cause the pedal to stick for as long as it did. He said he pulled the mat and the pedal became unstuck. I didn't do that so why did it unstick in my case?
    Any similar experiences out there????
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    If this ever happens again, just turn the key to the "off", but not the lock, position. You'll have enough vacuum reserve to use the power brake and the steering, while much stiffer, will work as well.

    Scary stuff.
  • odie6lodie6l Member Posts: 1,173
    Shifty is right just to turn the key to the Accesory postion and you can manuver. Or you could have also dropped the can into neutral and used the e-brake very softly to slow you down, the only problem with the 2nd one is, your engine would redline and more than likely blow. Does your floor mat have the little hooks in the floor to stop it from sliding forward. Floor mats can cause vehicles to have sticky pedals, the pedals will get caught on the top lip of the floor mat, just put your foot under the pedal and pull it back. As for the brakes not working...that sounds like a horse of a different color.

    Odie
    Odie's Carspace
  • mikezakmikezak Member Posts: 95
    Just to let people know, I do not have floor mats in my vehicle. What else could be the cause? Thanks
  • odie6lodie6l Member Posts: 1,173
    the only other thing I can think of is a corroded throttle body or something with the drive-by-wire system. Hopefully it's not the later of the 2.

    Odie
    Odie's Carspace
  • autocrat1autocrat1 Member Posts: 5
    we had this problem on a 99 hyundai elantra. the contacts in the taillight socket were distorted so the dual bulb contacts were bridging the taillight and brake light circuit so the cruise control thought the brakes were being applied when the taillights came on. the dash lights also came on when the brakes were applied since they were on the taillight circuit. check the brake/tail lamp sockets for worn contacts or improper bulb installation. a single filament bulb installed in a dual purpose socket will also cause this. hope this helps.
  • autocrat1autocrat1 Member Posts: 5
    the abs & brake warning lights were coming on with no apparrent reason. we had it diagnosed at the dealer since i don't know of any other way to pull abs codes on late model fords. they said code 1235 & 1236 were present (left & right rear wheel speed sensors). they also said the front pads were too worn, which could cause the brake warning light to be coming on (which i doubted, but strangely the light stayed out for 3 days after i changed the front pads). both lights came back on at random, so i changed the two sensors, which did not change the lights. anyone hear of brake warning light problems or a scanner which will pull abs codes on the escape?
  • fuchsrrfuchsrr Member Posts: 5
    Thanks! Uhaul had connected 2 of my break lights together for trailer wiring. I disconnected them and now it works again.

    Thaks,

    Rob
  • autocrat1autocrat1 Member Posts: 5
    you're welcome. glad you got it working again.
  • scape2scape2 Member Posts: 4,123
    There is a TSB for this issue for some years of Escapes/Tributes/Mariners. If you get down and look at the pedal there a plastic piece with your accelerator cable on the back portion of the pedal. Wiggle the pedal up/down slightly and you can see if the piece is loose. Don't push down though as if trying to accelerate. This piece seems to wear over time and cause a slight sticking. Really no big deal. Take it in and get it fixed.
  • scribdogscribdog Member Posts: 2
    Hello Cartalk

    In June of this year (2006) we purchased a 2002 Mazda Tribute. About a week later we was trying to back out of a parking lot on a very slight incline and it would not backup at all. It seemed to go into reverse but it would not backup the RPMs would rev but the vehicle would not move. After putting into drive and inching forward we was able to place it in reverse and backup. For several weeks we had no trouble with this again. I figured that like some manual transmissions they will get suck in between gears, or something, and you have to drive forward then you can put it in reverse, kinda like a motorcycles do. So a few weeks later we were trying to back up and this time on a gravel road going up a steeper incline and the clunking sound that was coming from underneath the vehicle was tremendous, like we were doing neutral drops or something. That was the last straw. I spent 30 min an empty parking lot making sure that I was able to reproduce the problem every time. It turned out that if I backup like one would from a parking spot at the mall there is no trouble. But if for any reason I have to back up quickly I get the clunking sounds and it will slip into neutral. We took the Tribute back to the dealer ship and said hey this isn't right, and explained how to reproduce the problem. They had a look at it and said it was one of the transmission mounts. So we had them replace it, but it didn't solve the problem. They call their 2nd level support and they said that a new transmission was needed and gave a price a couple of used ones. We were with in 1 day of moving from Oregon to Missouri at the time and were not about to postpone the move due to this and the Mazda dealership was not going to fix it, (to explain why they would not fix it would make this story even longer). Now our 4-year-old Mazda, with 67,000 miles on it, is working on its 4th week in the shop. The transmission specialty shop that it's in now has rebuilt the whole thing and we still have the problem. After talking with the mechanic at great length it turned out there wasn't anything broken in the transmission at all. There was a few warn parts that he replaced but nothing that would lead to this type of unique issue, he even tried a new Neutral safety switch with out luck. So after he researched the issue the only things it could be was the valve body or the ECU. He tried a new valve body and that didn't work. Now we are down the ECU. At this point he has the transmission back apart to double check his work. He will be having a computer hookup to the ECU specifically to monitor when the cycloids are engaging be the theory is that the cycloids are engaging in reverse when they should be. After that the ECU will be re-flashed.

    The mechanic working on it now has my complete trust for various reason AND he is not charging and arm and a leg that I would suspect out of an unscrupulous mechanic.

    So I present this story to the Internet world in hopes that somebody out there has a different theory, the Internet research I have conducted to this point has proven inconclusive.

    Please help
  • tidestertidester Member Posts: 10,059
    Incidentally, this is CarSpace, an Edmund's website. The CarTalk guys are on the radio. :)

    tidester, host
  • scribdogscribdog Member Posts: 2
    Yea I goofed ;)
    hope somebody still help :blush:
  • tunagatortunagator Member Posts: 2
    John,

    I have a 2005 Escape 4x4 with same problem. 45K miles, flushed at 30k. Did you have any luck resolving your clunk/vibration problem with the transmission? Anybody else have advise?

    Charlie.
  • dogscoopdogscoop Member Posts: 1
    Been searching the internet looking for performance chips for a 2001 model Tribute, 4 cylinder. All I can find so far are the cheap resistor type units for around $20. I'm looking for the full chip based unit... but would like to hear anyone's experience with the resistors (cold air sensors?) As you can see I'm new to this sort of thing. Just bought my Tribute a month ago and love it!.

    Cheers from Norway

    Bill Carr
  • mibell02mibell02 Member Posts: 2
    I have the same knocking sound. I have a 2005 Ford Escape XLT and I have a popping noise when I am stopping, going or turning and hit a bump. The noise is coming from my driver side door. It is not as bad but since I have heard it since August of 2005, it is annoying. The dealership has heard it and has duplicated the noise but don't know how to fix it. It was doing it all the time but now it seems to only act up when the car sits all day in the heat.
    The noise started one month after I purchased it. The funny thing is, I had a rental car from enterprise for 3 days, which was a 2006 ford escape and the passanger rear door had the same knocking/popping sound. I could not believe it. I have, at this time filed a report with the ford customer service and have requested a refund and so far, it is looking good.
  • autocrat1autocrat1 Member Posts: 5
    we found the abs problem. i unplugged the connector from the abs module below the master cylinder and one of the pins was detached and in the plug. it was pin #6 which happens to carry power to the right rear sensor. heat damage was evident, so possibly a shorted sensor, which we previously changed, could have caused it. the dealer technician said he sees a lot of bad sensors, but never a bad abs module on a ford escape. first time for everything. found a used module for $75.00 and the abs light has been normal ever since we installed it.
  • erbearecerbearec Member Posts: 1
    I bought a 2005 Escape in the fall of 2004. For the first few months, everything was going along nicely, until one day, I began to notice the transmission problems that other Escape owners have noticed. Running at 46 mph, the car would begin to jerk as through moving back and forth between gears. A few times, the car wouldn't move after being put into reverse or drive, and I would have to put it in park and start over. Now, it is just "tempermental"...if it doesn't feel like accelerating on a highway on ramp, it won't. If it feels like going 25 mph at 7000 rpm's for awhile, and giving it the gas or easing off the gas won't matter; it will. It finally decides to shift by jerking and clunking. It's especially nice when it is on cruise control, stuck in the wrong gear or in between gears, so it begins to whine and the rpm's jump up and down. I have been to my dealership, as well as another, probably about seven times now. I have heard, we'll reset the computer and it will be fine. I've heard, it came a quart low on transmission fluid from the factory, so we added some. You won't have any more problems. I have heard, yeah, we agree you have a problem, but we don't know what it is. My personal favorite is "quite wasting our time, we can't duplicate it, it's a waste of a loaner to keep it here, and we won't fix it". I want to try for the lemon law, but I don't believe I have enough ammunition, and I want to be able to bring evidence of my problem with me to the service center and to the owner of the dealership, but I haven't found many 2005 Escapes with the problem. If anyone has any advice or if anyone has a 2005 Escape with these problems, I'd appreciate it if you'd let me know. Thanks.
  • cannonlogercannonloger Member Posts: 2
    I HAVE A 2002 FORD ESCAPE. CAN ANYONE TELL ME HOW TO REMOVE THE FRONT ROTORS. I HAVE CHANGED THE BRAKE PADS WITH NO PROBLEMS, BUT THE ROTORS WILL NOT COME OFF. IS THERE A HIDDEN BOLT OR SOMETHING.
  • cannonlogercannonloger Member Posts: 2
    Sounds like you know a lot about these Escapes. I tried to change the rotors on my 2002 Escape but could not get the rotors to come off. I have done this on my previous vehicles. Is there some special tool required. Appreciate any insight you could share. Thanks
  • studannystudanny Member Posts: 4
    I kept calling Customer Relationship Center At 1-800-392-3673. And after talking to three different Ford Reps they sent me a check for $500.00. There is a problem with these transmissions and you have to keep on them to get anything done. But i am satisfyed now and i haven't had any more problems out of the 2002 Escape it has a totally new transmission in it. The pump went out of the transmission and it cracked the case so it couldn't be rebuilt.
  • tarvo1218tarvo1218 Member Posts: 1
    Master Cylinder and break booster were replaced on 2003 Tribute as part of a recall. Since the replacement, now when I come to a complete stop, I hear a whining/groaning sound. As soon as I left off the pedal, the sound goes away. (almost sounds like some type of fan/blower turns on)

    Typically appears after a bit of stop and go driving. Brought to dealer many times, and of course they cannot duplicate problem. Seems to be magnified when it rains. Service Tech friend says maybe vacuum leak. Anyone with similar problems?
  • doughboy1doughboy1 Member Posts: 2
    hey i have a 2002 ford escape xlt it clicks on start up until the motor is warmed up
    every time it is satrted and it is not at normal running temp it clicks wats wrong :mad: :mad: :mad: :confuse: :confuse: HELP ME
  • doughboy1doughboy1 Member Posts: 2
    HEY I HAVE A 2002 IT CLICKS WHEN THE MOTOR IS COLD AND NOT BEEN RUNNING BUT STOPS WHEN IT IS AT NORMAL RUNNING TEMP SO HIT ME BACK :sick: :mad: :mad: :mad:
  • debbyleedebbylee Member Posts: 1
    Is what you are referring to the 100,000 mile drive-train warranty? I began having problems at 20,000 mi. they replaced the torque converter, then, another Ford dealer said that Ford said it should have the fluid replaced, they did. It still shudders hard at 1500 RPMs and now does a small "bump" sound every so often.

    I would like to be armed when I go to them again. I am right at 90,000 miles
  • tveilleuxtveilleux Member Posts: 15
    There was a recall on my 2002 for a sticky throttle cable.
  • tveilleuxtveilleux Member Posts: 15
    The tape solved my problem.
  • nitrous93nitrous93 Member Posts: 17
    I have a 2002 escape and every time it rains real hard or there is alot of moisture in the air, it will crank but will not turn over. if you crank it 4 or 5 times it eventually will start. I have talked to a mechanic about this, and he said there is moisture getting to the electrical part of the car. Has this happened to anyone here before? Ant information is greatly appreciated. :confuse:
  • autocrat1autocrat1 Member Posts: 5
    whenever we see this problem replacing the spark plug wires (and distributor cap and rotor on vehicles that have them) virtually always cures the problem. it seems that heat causes dry rotting of the insulation which allows the high voltage spark to escape thru minute cracks especially on damp days. hope this helps.
  • micropapermicropaper Member Posts: 2
    just the other day , on my 2001 ford escape, i noticed that my interior lights dont work, my radio doesnt work, and my power locks only work when the car is running, aswell my speedomidor doesnt sum strange things when i start the car. @ first i thought i blew a fuse.. so i checked.. and i did.. the 5v radio one.. so i changed that.. but the problems sill exist..please if anyone has had this problem, or sumthing simular.. please let me know asap about a soloution to this.. thanks alot
  • explorerx4explorerx4 Member Posts: 19,304
    had the same thing with our '04 after dealer serviced it. i think they reset something to do with the security system.
    when i mentioned it to the sa, he replied with a nonchelant, 'oh yeah, it is not a problem'.
    the speedo jump to max when it was started.
    2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
  • micropapermicropaper Member Posts: 2
    no worries .. i figured it out.. it was a fuse.. that i didnt check.. in the fuse panel its labled as "room".. thanks for your help.
  • antonysantonys Member Posts: 2
    I have a 2002 Tribute with automatic transmission. Acceleration is fine until I get up to 80kph. If I get stuck behind another vehicle at that speed, the revs drop back to around 1800rpm. If I then try to accelerate the car feels as if the gear selector won't drop down a gear and the revs stay constant. If I take my foot off the accelerator, the revs climb to 2000rpm and everything feels OK. The mechanic put the car on the computer and promptly said there were no problems. Any ideas?
  • pwhytepwhyte Member Posts: 1
    have a 2003 Mazda Tribute and someone busted out or stole the passenger side external mirror (non-heated). The external casing and motor all appear to be undamaged. The only thing that appears to be missing is the mirror itself.

    I went to my Mazda dealer to see about getting the mirror replaced and they sell the part (none in stock) for about $58. However, they have no experience in replacing just the mirror. They insist that I should replace the entire mirror assmbly for about $300 + labor. They told me they could order just the mirror but if they couldn't figure out how to replace it I'd be out the cost of the mirror and would have to buy the complete assembly.

    Has anyone replaced just the mirror glass? It seems extreme that I'd have to buy a whole mirror assembly. What's left is the external casing and the internal motor with a round plate facing ringing with one large open hole and what appears to be 3 screw holes, all intact. Does anyone know how to put in the mirror glass?

    Pat Whyte
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    I'd check with a local auto glass company. If everything else is intact, I don't see what the big deal is about gluing a new piece of dual mirror glass to it. There at least one non-OEM replacement online for around $25. Usual disclaimers - I just found that link with a cursory net search and don't know anything about the company.
  • antonysantonys Member Posts: 2
    Any competent glazier should be able to cut a mirror to the shape and fit it to the frame for you. The big problem I had the last time I had a similar problem was that you basically had to undo the entire mirror assembly to get the frame out. This involved removing some of the upholstery on the door.
  • 6feb766feb76 Member Posts: 2
    Auto glass installers should be able to order a piece of replacement glass cut exactly to fit. They are usually glued in with urethane adhesive, which is the OEM method as well, I believe.
  • feenixxfeenixx Member Posts: 1
    I saw your posting about truck not starting. I had the same problem. At least one of your coil packs has a fracture, you may not even be able to see it. Pick up some J. B. Weld rated for at least 300 degrees. Cover the top of the coil pack(s) with the J.B. weld. Let dry completely. Replace. This should fix the problem. If check engine light comes on, take to Auto zone, get code. Code will tell you what cylinder is problematic. You may have to replace individual coil pack, I did. You will save a lot of money either way. Good luck!
  • breeg719breeg719 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2005 Escape that I bought in October of 2004. It has over 47,000 miles so it is not under the warranty at this time. It is currently at the dealership because it will not accelerate properly from a stopped position, which is even worse when the A/C is on. The dealership did the diagnostics and determined it is a transmission problem, however, after being there for 2 weeks and having a new transmission installed, the problem is still not resolved. Supposedly, the tech has been on the Ford hotline for at least 2 days now.

    My husband has a 2005 F-350 Powerstroke and he is currently pursuing the lemon law on that. His truck has less than 25,000 miles so it is still under warrantly. The lemon law depends on the state you reside in as to the specifics, however, in our state I believe if it has been in the shop more than 3 times or a certain number of days it would qualify. I would try to pursue the lemon law on mine but I was told that the problem would have had to have started while it was still under warranty. I know it ran hot one time before and I don't recall what the problem was with that or how it was resolved but I am going to check. Apparently 2005 was not the year for Ford! I do also know that after June 2006 Ford started doing a 5 year 60,000 mile powertrain warranty, which would include transmission work. If your vehicle was under 36,000 miles when the warranty started I would pursue the lemon law on it. Good luck!
  • bdymentbdyment Member Posts: 573
    The compass on our 2007 Limited is still missing. The dealer states that Ford Canada may have deleted this screen in March of 2007. As the sales rep. stated Ford will do anything to save a buck a vehicle. However, they are now in touch with Head Office to see if anything can be done to rectify this concern.

    Secondly why would Ford not have a recirculate position on the climate control? The only way to stop outside air from entering the SUV is to turn the dial to Max.AC or turn the system off completely. Our Focus had a separate recirculate button and if I remember correctly so did our 91 Escort.

    Bruce
  • bdymentbdyment Member Posts: 573
    I meant March of 2006.
  • mibell02mibell02 Member Posts: 2
    I agree with you so much. I will never buy another ford.
    I had a 05 Escape with a knocking sound in the door and the service dept. did not know how to fix it. The dealerhip bought that vehicle after a year from me. Good trade price. I got a 07 escape and after 3 days had the same knocking sound. "ALL YOU FORD ESCAPE OWNERS BEAWARE OF THAT ANNOYING KNOCKING NOISE", minor but aggravating to pay 20+ grand. I got out of that one after seven days and now own a HONDA Accord and love it. Honda for me from now on! :lemon: :lemon:
  • nitrous93nitrous93 Member Posts: 17
    Although I agree with you about problems with automobiles, but you have to admit, Fords quality has gotten alot better within the past 5 years. i dont think you or any one knows that when you buy from Honda, Nissan, or Toyota, some of the Money that you spent on the Purchase price, goes over seas back into the Economy of the Asian auto groups, even though they are made here, the money doesn't stay in the U.S. and when you buy Ford or GM it stays here in the USA. Keep in Mind, If you take care of your vehicle, and Maintenance it like your Manual says, you will have Minimal problems in the Future. Buy American!
  • explorerx4explorerx4 Member Posts: 19,304
    based on what i read somewhere else, i wrapped the post for the liftgate latch with some electrical tape.
    so far, my wife says she has not heard the noise since.
    2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
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