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If you do the math you should save more by taking the Rebate versus the Financing. This all depends on your credit rating of course. I managed to get 3.99% financing.
Good luck
1. The ignition key is almost under the steering column and doesn't light up making it even more difficult to find. Also, inserting the key is very difficult. It doesn't go in easy, it is very stiff. Checked another Tribute and it is the same.
2. The gas pedal is either too close to the brake pedal or too close to the center console housing because I find that when I lift my foot off of the gas, the left side of my shoe gets caught on the brake pedal. Anyone else notice this?
As for the ignition location...it bugged me at first too. Now that its been a few weeks I hardly notice it, although when my gf drives (rarely) she still has a little trouble finding it. As for the gas pedal I haven't noticed that problem. It might be because I am coming from a vehicle where I am more used to the pedals being closer together.
Hope this helps a little. Good luck with the Tribute!
I had my first problem a couple of days ago. I started noticing oil under my car. It is engine oil for sure(not red in color). I looked under the car at the engine oil pan area, and sure enough it is leaking oil. There is a cavity located right where transmisson(i think) meets the oil pan. It has a very cheap looking piece of rubber covering another cavity. The leaking oil seems to be coming from one/two bolts located in the oil pan. Not sure if it is leaking from the engine side or the Pan side. I am very disappointed and very upset. only 800 miles and one month of use.
Has anyone else experienced such an oil leak problem? Taking it in to the dealer tomorrow. Any help would be appreciated. I guess in my case, Ford forgot about "Quality is Job one".
I took my tribute in for the oil leak problem. After keeping the car for three days, they said they replaced the oil pan seal as it was leaking oil. Just as I was driving the car back, I noticed it was still leaking oil. Took it back, I was surprised to see it was missing the rubber boot which by the way is used to cover the cavity which houses the fly wheel. They told me that it was fixed(the rubber boot). Right!!!. Anyway they took a rubber boot from another tribute and put it in my car. (they did not have one in stock). What a poor job of engineering. Put rubber in such a hot environment.
Anyway it is still leaking oil... and I am supposed to take my summer vacation trip starting this weekend. I hope this is not a sign of things to come. Just venting I guess.
If others have had such a problem.. please let me know how you fixed it. Thanks.
Hopefully, they'll just get it fixed correctly so you don't have to worry about it on your trip. Good luck.
Well.... I was able to take my tribute back so the dealer can check it again. They found out that two of the bolts used to keep the oil pan in place were still leaking oil. They tightened the bolts. These bolts are located in the cavity in the oil pan and not on the edges of the pan. I'll have to keep an eye on this to make sure it does not start leaking again.
I will be honest with you... I am not used to oil leaks, especially in a new car(I have owned 4 Hondas and never had to worry about problems like this). It has turned me off towards the car. Anyway, I do like the power of the engine(when it not leaking oil) and the 6 disc player. I was able to take my trip to Colorado and the Tribute was able to tackle some of the tough climbs with ease. It has power to spare in passing situations.
One thing I am puzzled about is that we can put a man on the moon, why can't we build cars that are on par with the foreign(Japanies, German) automakers. Don't get me wrong I love my country just like the next guy but it's high time we start concentrating on quality rather than quantity. Just my two cents worth. Thanks.
It might interest you to know that American brands already compete pretty well with the Germans (e.g. Chevy and Cadillac beat out Mercedes in the latest JD Power quality survey). Another factor that goes unmentioned is that most Japanese cars sold here in America have been available for years in Japan before they are released to the US. They get years to fix any problems before we ever see the cars--they SHOULD be better than US cars (at least initially). Add in the fact that we only see the best of Japan's cars and it's not really a fair comparison. Trust me, you wouldn't even consider driving about 90% of the cars sold in Japan.
That said, we have some of the best engineers in the world and greater resources than the rest of the world combined, so we should be able to build better cars.
The two vehicles are incredibly similar, and I actually prefer the exterior styling and wheels of the Escape. But for the money and the options and the interior, I had to go with the Tribute.
So, I guess I'll have to buy a Cadillac CTS when I trade my TT if I want to keep proselytizing about "buying American". Damn, now I feel like a hypocrite!
My new mantra.
Just how intertwined are these two vehicles when it comes to their parts?
Thanks
Chimpy
I'm new here, so forgive me if these questions have already been asked and answered. On my 03 Tribute ES, I don't have the brushed rings around my speedometer and tach. Was there a design change during the model year somewhere? Also, I noticed that with the power doors locked, you can still open the inside front handles (I've never owned a car where you could do this when the doors were locked.) I'm guessing this might be a safety feature for easier exit in an accident? Thanks for your help!
thanks
BL
The other major mechanical difference is that on the V-6 models, the Mazda has a quicker steering rack for more responsive handling.
Most of the cosmetic stuff is Mazda though, which is why they look quite different.
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
I towed a 1400 pound tent trailer with my 03 Tribute last weekend. I travelled about 500 miles round trip. The mileage was around 18-19 miles per gallon. Tribute was able to tow this trailer along with 4 passengers plus our camping gear etc. I also used the A/C pretty much the whole time. It seems to have good pulling power.
Here are a few things I'ed recommend;(a) Speed up gradually from a stop. (b) Leave more distance between you and the car ahead of you. (c) It takes much longer to stop with a trailer(hard breaking will burn your breaks FAST). (d) If you find that the tribute is shifting out of O/D frequently, turn off the O/D on the shifter. Also, read up on the Owner's manual.
Lastly, make sure the tow hitch is low/high enough so the trailer is parallel to the ground and take a few lessons in reverse parking the triler before you get to the campground.
Happy Camping....
This may sound stupid but I am going to ask anyway. I just recently purchase a '01 ES Tribute. I am very happy with it but one thing puzzles me. I have the optional perimeter alarm but have yet to figure out what makes it go off. I have tried a couple different things but they haven't worked. Does anyone have any suggestions
:-P
I think that sets it off.
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
hope this helps
Odie
perhaps the Trib is similar?
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
Thanks in advance.
I took it in to our dealer at 8:00 am yesterday and by 11:00 they called me and said it was ready. I was expecting to get the old routine, "we can't duplicate the problem," but instead they said there is a bulletin to correct the problem. They flushed the transmission and flashed the pcm and this worked. We had not noticed how hard the transmission had been shifting in all the gears before the fix. Now it is very smooth with no shutter going in or out of overdrive.
We've had one experience with the Tribute's motor dying while driving at 35 mph and going downhill about a year ago. We took it in and they said they fixed and we have not had another incidence like that. With 27,000 miles so far, we have been very pleased with our vehicle.
By the way the tires still look new. Continental Conti tracs.
(with rear bumper plate, perimeter alarm,cargo tray and including 2500 rebate).
the sales guy said no real break-in required.. just for the 1st 500 miles..don't keep going at the same speed for too long. i.e don't use cruise control.
shouldn't be a problem if i drive at 75/80 in the highways.. no need to keep the speed under 55mph like the older days.
is his advice true ? i haven't read the manual yet...but atleast didn't find anything like this in the index. any advice/comments ?
whats the mileage people are getting on their tributes ? I did a search in this forum.. and found people saying 18-20 mpg in city and 23-25 in highways. does selecting the 4 wheel drive reduce this mileage ? if yes, by how much ?
thanks for ur feedback.
As far as break-in is concerned, vary the RPMs the first 500 miles and you should be fine (the dealer is mostly right). The valves in the engine still need to be broken-in by assuring that the gasket heads are rotating smoothly, basically varying the RPM/speed shaves the gaskets/valves of any imperfections that would inhibit good engine performance. Also, consider changing your oil at 3000 miles instead of the recommended 5000 mile first oil change.
Was the Valvoline guy right? Or was he just trying to avoid having to get the container and fill it and funnel it into the car w/the 5W-20? (usually they have the oil come right out of a hose that's linked to a barrel somewhere but they must not have a high calling for the 20 weight, so he had to do more work to fill it).
Also, my manual doesn't say anything about synthetic or non-synthetic - what do the dealers use?
Thanks a million
chimpy
-happy '03 ES Trib owner
Frankly, anyone who owns their car and intends to keep for >50k miles should be using a synthetic.