2001 MAZDA TRIBUTE Complaints

I WAS SHOPPING AT THE LOCAL WALMART WITH MY WIFE, WHO WAS DRIVING THE VEHICLE. WE WERE PARKED IN THE WALMART PARKING LOT. ON LEAVING, SHE ENGAGED THE CAR IN DRIVE AND BEGAN TO EASE OUT OF THE PARKING SPACE. THE CAR SUDDENLY SURGED FORWARD AND SHE WAS UNABLE TO STOP IT EVEN THOUGH SHE WAS APPLYING THE BRAKES VERY HARD. THIS HAD HAPPENED TO ME SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE BUT ALWAYS IN A PLACE THAT WAS SAFE AND WHERE I COULD BRING THE CAR TO A STOP. IT ALWAYS HAPPENED AS I WAS MOVING FROM A PARKED POSITION. ON THIS OCCASION, IT WAS NOT SAFE, AND WE CRASHED INTO ANOTHER CAR. THE TRIBUTE WAS DAMAGED AT A COST OF $5,000 TO REPAIR. THE OTHER CAR ALSO HAD EXTENSIVE DAMAGES. I ASKED THE DEALER WHO REPAIRED THE CAR TO EXAMINE THE CRUISE CONTROL AND ACCELERATOR PEDAL FOR A DEFECT. HE ONLY TOLD ME THAT IT LOOKED "NORMAL". MY WIFE IS AFRAID TO DRIVE THIS CAR NOW AND I HAVE A LOT OF APPREHENSION WHEN I FIRST START THE CAR AND BEGIN TO DRIVE. I THINK THAT THERE MUST BE A SUBTLE DEFECT IN EITHER THE CRUISE CONTROL OR THE ACCELERATOR THAT CAUSES THIS UNEXPECTED SURGE WHEN FIRST STARTING FROM A PARKED POSITION. *NM

I FILED A COMPLAINT YESTERDAY. MY COMPLAINT # WAS 10163178. THIS THE DEALERSHIP HAS FINALLY DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM WITH THE CAR AS A BAD ALTERNATOR. WE HOPE THAT THIS WILL FIX THE PROBLEMS WE HAVE EXPERIENCED TO DATE. HOWEVER, THE SITUATION WAS DANGEROUS, WITH THE CAR SHUTTING OFF WHILE RUNNING. IN ALL FAIRNESS TO THE DEALERSHIP, THE SERVICE TECHNICIANS HAVE BEEN VERY NICE AND THEY DID GIVE US A LOANER CAR. WE STILL HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM OF THE CAR IN GENERAL (WITH ALL THE THINGS GOING WRONG AT ONE TIME). HOWEVER, WE TRUST THAT WE WILL NOT BE HEADING TO THE DEALER ANY TIME SOON. *NM

ON JULY 3, THE IGNITION, STEERING WHEEL, AND WHEELS OF OUR 2001 MAZDA TRIBUTE FROZE WHEN WE TRIED TO START THE CAR. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO SENATOR IMPORTS, ON FLORIN ROAD, IN SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA. ON JULY 7, ALTHOUGH THE DEALERSHIP SAID THAT THE CAR WAS FIXED, THEY COULDN'T GET THE CAR TO WORK WHEN WE TRIED TO PICK IT UP. ON THE EVENING OF JULY 12, WE STARTED THE CAR. THE LIGHT ILLUMINATING THE GEAR SELECTION WAS UNTIL, SO WE COULDN'T SEE WHAT GEAR WE WERE IN. ON THURSDAY EVENING, JULY 13, WE STARTED THE CAR AND THE BATTERY WAS TOTALLY DEAD. WE RE-CHARGED THE BATTERY, BUT IT WAS DEAD AGAIN IN 2 HOURS. WE TOOK THE CAR IN TO HAVE THE BATTERY PROFESSIONALLY CHARGED. THE BATTERY WAS PURCHASED IN APRIL OF 2005. ON THURSDAY, JULY 20, THE CAR WAS RUNNING AND JUST STOPPED DEAD. WE AGAIN JUMPED IT AND TOOK IT TO OUR PRIVATE MECHANIC. ON FRIDAY, JULY 21, OUR MECHANIC DID A DIAGNOSTIC TEST ON THE CAR. IT CAME UP WITH A DIAGNOSTIC TEST CODE ERROR THAT SAID THAT THE KEY PROGRAM CODE WAS ENTERED IN ERROR. OUR MECHANIC REBOOTED THE COMPUTER, TO ENSURE THAT THE PROBLEM WAS NOT RELATED TO A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN ABOUT THE TRIBUTE JUST SHUTTING OFF. WHEN HE TRIED TO RESTART THE CAR, THE CAR WOULD NOT START. (LONG STORY SHORT, THE DEALER LOST OUR SPARE KEY. WE HAD TO COME BACK FOR IT ON JULY 11, AND THEY REPROGRAMMED BOTH OUR KEYS TO THE NEW IGNITION.) OUR MECHANIC SUGGESTED THAT WE HAVE THE CAR TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, AS HE CONSIDERED IT UNSAFE TO DRIVE. TODAY, JULY 22, THE DEALERSHIP SAID THAT ALL THEY COULD FIND WRONG WITH THE CAR WAS A DEAD BATTERY. WE ARE BEGINNING TO LOSE CONFIDENCE THAT THEY ACTUALLY KNOW HOW TO FIX THE VEHICLE. *NM

DRIVER ACCELERATED, WITH PEDAL, WHILE CRUISE CONTROL WAS SET AT 70 MPH. REMOVING FOOT FROM ACCELERATOR PEDAL AND APPLYING THE BRAKE DID NOT SEEM TO DISENGAGE THE CRUISE; "THE ENGINE SEEMED TO SURGE". THE CRUISE CONTROL OFF BUTTON ALSO SEEMED TO HAVE NO EFFECT ON THE CRUISE. THE RESISTANCE IN THE BRAKE PEDAL INCREASED AND ENGINE CONTINUED TO SURGE AS THE VEHICLE SPEED WAS DECREASED TO AROUND 50 MPH. DRIVER SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL; THE ENGINE RPM SHOT UP. DRIVER THEN SHIFTED INTO PROGRESSIVELY LOWER GEARS AND APPLIED THE BRAKE UNTIL VEHICLE STOPPED. DRIVER THEN SHIFTED INTO PARK, AND SHUT OFF THE ENGINE. SMOKE WAS COMING OUT OF THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. VEHICLE WAS TOWED AND DETERMINED TO HAVE A BLOWN ENGINE. OWNER ALLEGES THAT MAZDA DEALER (FLOW MAZDA IN FAYETTEVILLE) STATED THAT THERE IS RECALL CAMPAIGN (00V-210 002) FOR THIS ISSUE, BUT THAT HER VEHICLE IS NOT COVERED DUE TO HER VEHICLE'S BUILD DATE. PER RELEVANT 573, THE EFFECTED BUILD DATE RANGE IS FORD'S KCAP 4/17/00 THROUGH 7/24/00; SUBJECT VEHICLE BUILD DATE IS UNKNOWN. VIN RANGE IS [XXX] THROUGH [XXX]. OWNER'S VIN IS [XXX]. OWNER ALLEGES TO NEVER HAVE RECEIVED AN OWNER NOTIFICATION FOR THIS RECALL. *NM UPDATED 07/16/2012 *JS INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR HANDLE FAILED, I WAS TRAPPED INSIDE THE CAR ON THE DRIVER SIDE. I HAD TO LOWER THE POWER WINDOW, REACH OUTSIDE OF THE CAR AND OPEN THE DOOR. I PURCHASED A HANDLE AND PAID TO HAVE THE DOOR HANDLE REPLACED ON 6/29/2005. THE PASSENGER SIDE DOOR HANDLE FAILED , LEAVING THE PASSENGER TRAPPED INSIDE THE CAR ON THE PASSENGER SIDE. PASSENGERS HAD TO LOWER THE POWER WINDOW, REACH OUTSIDE THE CAR AND OPEN THE DOOR. I PURCHASED A HANDLE AND PAID TO HAVE THE DOOR HANDLE REPLACED ON 3/13/2006. RECENTLY, EVERY TIME I CRANK MY CAR A LARGE CLOUD OF GRAY SMOKE COMES FROM THE TAILPIPE. TODAY, 6/16/2006, I WENT TO PUT THE KEY INTO THE IGNITION AND THE KEY WOULD NOT GO IN. AFTER SEVERAL ATTEMPTS THE KEY WENT INTO THE IGNITION BUT, THE KEY WOULD NOT TURN. I WAS UNABLE TO START THE CAR. WITH ASSISTANCE FROM A LOCAL MECHANIC, AFTER NUMEROUS ATTEMPTS, THE KEY WENT IN, TURNED AND THE CAR STARTED. IT WAS SUGGESTED TO ME, DO NOT MAKE ANY STOPS ON THE WAY HOME THAT WOULD REQUIRE TURNING THE CAR OFF. ONCE I ARRIVED AT HOME I TURNED THE CAR OFF AND ATTEMPTED TO START THE CAR AGAIN. THE KEY WILL GO IN BUT, AFTER SEVERAL ATTEMPTS, THE KEY WILL NOT TURN TO START THE CAR. WITH THE MAZDA BEING MY ONLY VEHICLE I FEEL THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE FOR MY SON AND I. WHILE DRIVING THE MAZDA THE REAR GLASS ON THE HATCH OPENED. I PULLED OVER TO CLOSE THE GLASS AND IT WOULD NOT CLOSE AND LATCH. WITH THE HELP OF A LOCAL MECHANIC HE WAS ABLE TO CLOSE AND ENGAGE THE LATCH ON THE GLASS DOOR. WE AVOID OPENING THE REAR GLASS BUT ON ACCIDENT THE GLASS DOOR WAS OPENED AND IT WAS THE SAME SCENARIO. *NM

THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF (ENGINE STOPPED) WHEN COASTING DOWNHILL TOWARD CONSTRUCTION BARRELS. WAS ABLE TO AVOID BARRELS BY TURNING INTO UNOCCUPIED TURN LANE. POWER STEERING HAD GONE OUT. POWER BRAKES HAD GONE OUT. HAVE OWNED THE CAR FOR THREE WEEKS. OCCURRED ONCE. NOTICED THAT A RECALL (CAMPAIGN ID # 04V175000) THAT REQUIRED REPROGRAMMING OF THE PCM MODULE, AND THE SYMPTOMS OF WHICH EXACTLY DESCRIBED THIS PROBLEM, EXISTED FOR THIS VEHICLE MODEL YEAR. MADE AN APPOINTMENT WITH DEALER TO CHECK THE CAR THE FOLLOWING DAY. THE DEALER TOLD ME THAT THERE WERE NO OPEN RECALLS ON MY VEHICLE SO I DECIDED TO PAY FOR A DIAGNOSTIC TEST. THE TEST UNCOVERED THAT THE PCM MODULE DID NEED THE REPROGRAMMING WHICH THE DEALER DID, BUT THEY ALSO TOLD ME THAT THE CAR NEEDED ADDITIONAL PARTS TO COMPLETELY RESOLVE THE PROBLEM WHICH I HAD TO PAY FOR. FROM WHAT I CAN TELL THE RANGE OF MY VEHICLE ID DOES FALL WITHIN THE RANGE OF VIN NUMBERS AFFECTED BY THIS RECALL AND THE ASSEMBLY DATE(12/00) ALSO FALLS WITHIN THE DATE RANGE FOR THIS RECALL. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THE DEALER DOES NOT SEE THIS AS A VEHICLE THAT SHOULD HAVE AN 'OPEN RECALL' AND WHY THE ENTIRE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM WAS NOT TAKEN CARE OF TO REMEDY THIS. WHEN THE VEHICLE SHUTS OFF THE DRIVER HAS NO CONTROL AND THIS IS AN EXTREME SAFETY ISSUE. *JB

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED THE INSIDE DOOR HANDLE ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE SHEERED OFF. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO OPEN THE DOOR THE PLASTIC HANDLE BROKE. THE ONLY WAY OF EXITING THE VEHICLE FROM THE DRIVER'S SIDE IS TO ROLL DOWN THE POWER WINDOW AND OPEN THE DOOR FROM THE OUTSIDE. THE DEALER WAS ALERTED AND THE DOOR HANDLE WAS REPLACED.

THE PORTION OF THE INTERIOR DOOR HANDLE WITH TRIGGERS THE LATCH SUDDENLY BROKE OFF, MAKING IT EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO EXIT THE VEHICLE. THIS HAS OCCURRED ON BOTH THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER FRONT DOORS OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS. INCIDENT DATE RECORDED IS THE DATE OF THE SECOND HANDLE BREAK. AS A RESULT OF THE FAILURE, THE VEHICLE IS DIFFICULT TO EXIT, REQUIRING EITHER A) ROLLING DOWN THE WINDOW AND PULLING ON THE EXTERIOR HANDLE, OR B) PUSHING EXTREMELY HARD ON ONE END OF THE LOCK, WHICH WILL TRIGGER THE DOOR TO UNLATCH. WHILE WE HAVE NOT EXPERIENCED ANY NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES ASIDE FROM INCONVENIENCE, IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY THIS COULD MAKE THE VEHICLE DIFFICULT TO EXIT, ESPECIALLY IF HANDLE FAILURE OCCURRING SUDDENLY TO SOMEONE NOT EXPECTING THE NON-FUNCTIONING HANDLE. THE VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY UNDER ESTIMATE FOR REPAIRS. THE OLD PART REMAINS ON THE VEHICLE AND WILL BE RETAINED ONCE REPAIRS ARE COMPLETED. *JB

I OWN A 2001 MAZDA TRIBUTE. THE VEHICLE STALLS UNPREDICTABLY. THE MAZDA DEALER AND MAZDA CORPORATE ARE SUGGESTING THAT THE TWO POWER TRAIN CONTROL MODULES (THE ORIGINAL) AND THE REPLACEMENT MODULES ARE CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO STALL. IF THIS IS CORRECT, THEN THERE MUST BE SOME INHERENT DEFECT WITH THESE PCMS THAT MUST BE INVESTIGATED. *NM

2001 TRIBUTE RACK AND PINION AND SHAFT BROKE INTO PIECES MAKING IT DIFFICULT FOR CONSUMER TO STEER. *TS THE MASTER CYLINDER HAD TO BE REPLACED DUE TO AN IRREPARABLE LEAK. *NM