2005 Mazda Tribute Review

[Spenny]

A Nice Compromise if You Need an SUV

The other day I was driving by a local gas station and found it funny that it was swimming in cars. Lineups stemmed from the station in every direction possible, with cars even extending onto the roadway. I laughed to myself and thought that if filling up the tank at anything under two bucks a gallon is a bargain, whats next? Of course, laughing aside, with gas prices averaging anywhere from $2 to $2.25 per gallon the opportunity to save a quarter a gallon just might cause me to grab a good book and join the line up soon.

That will be especially true if I keep getting SUVs as test vehicles. The recent surge in fuel costs must be causing some of the many sport utility owners to question their choice of transportation. Yet even with the astronomical (or should that be gastronomical) prices for fuel, trends of global warming and all the other threats to the environment, there seems to be more and more of them on the roads everyday.

But environmental issues aside, is this a bad thing? The booming SUV market has literally revived the declining automotive industry, keeping workers working and providing consumers and their families with safer vehicles overall (if you dont count rollovers). But reports of some change in North American buying patterns to smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles could mean the long term high fuel costs could kill the large SUV as we know it.

Why cant we bring back the good old days of price wars? It almost seems like ancient history to think that only a few years ago we could get a gallon of regular for under a buck, and only last year that I could get a gallon of regular for $1.30 or so. But I suppose we might as well all just suck it up and take our punches on the jaw. With our various governments upping the final price at the pump with taxes upon taxes and the OPEC nations hardly sympathetic to the American cause, rising gas prices are likely here to stay.

As a starving student (and part-time journalist), each week my budget dictates what I can do (activity-wise) and how much I can afford to drive depending on the vehicle I have been booked into. The same concerns would apply to anyone who is considering purchasing a car, only you have a choice as to where you spend your money. Both fuel consumption and practicality, of course, are important factors in making that decision for most buyers.

In this last week I found a sport utility with a nice balance of both attributes. Decent fuel economy and good use of interior room makes the recently upgraded 2005 Mazda Tribute worth a close look.

Recently updated? What makes the 2005 Tribute different from past model years is a new base engine, a modified suspension, a reconfigured shifter and interior and exterior upgrades. My test vehicle was a 2005 Mazda Tribute i 4WD - yes a base 4-cylinder model - so I didnt feel the grunt of the V6 engine as previously tested in the 2004 Tribute s when I drove it out of the parking lot on my first test day. But the growl of the new 2.3-liter, 16-valve, DOHC, inline 4-cylinder sounded good. What is now called the i engine increases power and torque from 130 horsepower and 135 lb-ft in the outgoing engine to 153 horsepower and 152 lb-ft of torque. In addition, the engine is approximately 40 pounds lighter which, in turn, improves fuel economy a smidge and handling a bit more.

Even better for improving handling on slippery surfaces, is Mazdas new optional full-time four-wheel drive system. The new electronic setup, deemed Active Torque Control Coupling (ATCC), uses an electromagnetic clutch to control the amount of torque sent to the rear wheels. Ultimately, it optimizes traction and wheel-speed differences between the front and rear wheels. Reaction time is said to be quicker in comparison to a hydraulic system because, as Mazda describes it, "there is no lag time waiting for a viscous fluid to heat up before splitting the power between the axles. And because the system is always on, the power transfer is performed seamlessly to the driver."

The weather being as balmy as it has been on the West Coast this year I didnt have an opportunity to experience the how well the new 4WD system works in snow, but I did play around with the new standard ABS with Electronic Brake force Distribution (EBD) system on the i trim level. I tested the brakes out in the sun and rain and it preformed quite well. Although ABS with EBD is standard, the model still only comes with front discs and rear drums.

Exterior styling has also undergone a minor metamorphosis. The 2005 Tribute sports a new front fascia that incorporates an updated Mazda grille and redesigned headlights. The rear fascia also spells sporty with its new vertical taillight design and rear liftgate with flip-up glass.

The front fascia wraps nicely around the front fenders into new wheel arch molding designs, sectioned side trim, body-colored power remote sideview mirrors and rocker panel moldings. Under the restyled wheel arches are an updated set of 235/70R16 all-season tires and 16-inch 5-spoke alloy wheels (complete with a full size spare). The wheel and tire combination complements the new exterior upgrades making it, to me, more attractive and cleaner looking. The lines and curves mesh well together and give the Tribute a classy, yet still sporty undertone.

But the upgrades dont stop with exterior styling. The Tribute now incorporates added sound absorption panels and tighter seals to reduce cabin noise, while a reconfigured balance shaft reduces engine vibration. The improved refinement makes the SUV fairly quiet inside at idle as well as cruising speeds, but when I stepped on the throttle the engine became a bit on the loud side as it reached the upper revs.

While base front-wheel drive models come with a 5-speed manual transmission, my 4WD tester featured a 4-speed electronically controlled automatic with overdrive, a high-efficiency torque converter and hill-climbing control as standard equipment. Shifts were smooth at all speeds, but a sticky accelerator pedal made transitions difficult. The pedal required more of a push than a tap to get it going, perhaps because the SUV is new and requires a little breaking in.

Speaking of flowing gear shifts, the 2005 Tribute incorporates a new flow-through console and floor-mounted gear shift lever, replacing the somewhat antiquated column shifter in the outgoing model. I like this system better as there was less visual and spatial obstruction near the instrument cluster. I also found it more convenient when using the shifter to gear down.

I took the Tribute shopping during my test week, not an unusual event, and the store I was in was playing a really good CD. I asked an associate which one it was, she told me, and then I went out and bought it. I popped it into the new standard 100-watt AM/FM/CD audio system. The sound quality is great but the stereos buttons are as sticky as the accelerator. I found them to be a little awkward as theyre very flat, making their use difficult for me (someone with longer nails). But such is a small price to pay for quality "tunage."

On the safety front, Mazda has revised the triple-H-construction body structure to improve performance in offset frontal crashes and improved passenger-seat-weight-sensing technology. Dual front airbags are standard.