Vehicle Overview
Ford owns a controlling interest in Mazda, so there's a close kinship between the popular Ford Escape sport utility vehicle and the related Mazda Tribute. Both SUVs were introduced for the 2001 model year and upgraded for 2005. When comparing the two, you'll find subtle styling differences, unique interior features in each and different suspension tuning.
Serving as the sportier member of the pair, the car-based Tribute attracts considerable interest even if its sales totals lag well behind the Escape's. Both models compete against the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4.
New Tribute i and s trim levels replaced the previous DX, LX and ES for 2005. A new 2.3-liter four-cylinder in i models produced 153 horsepower, versus 130 hp in the prior version. For the first time, four-cylinder models could be equipped with an automatic transmission. Little has changed for the 2006 model year.
Front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive are available, but the Tribute and Escape aren't considered true offroad machines. Mazda says its intelligent full-time Active Torque Control Coupling four-wheel-drive system reacts faster than a hydraulic unit.
See also:
Safety
Electronic stability and roll mitigation systems are standard. The Tribute
also gets front airbags that can sense the weight of occupants and how far the
driver is sitting from the steering wheel, ...
Immobilizer System
The immobilizer system allows the engine
to start only with a key the system
recognizes.
If someone attempts to start the engine
with an unrecognized key, the engine will
not start, thereby helpi ...
Brake/Clutch Fluid
Inspecting Brake/Clutch Fluid Level
The brakes and clutch draw fluid from the
same reservoir.
Inspect the fluid level in the reservoir
regularly. It should be kept at MAX.
The level normally drop ...