A new face with an old soul

I know that I have addressed value in a text I wrote a good while back but I wanted to revisit the subject once more. The reason for it is the week-long road test I just completed at the wheel of a 2008 Mazda Tribute, the near identical twin to the 2008 Ford Escape. The Escape, along with the Tribute, has been the best selling compact SUVS in Canada for a number of years now. And, I ask myself why this is. In the very vast available selection of compact SUVs to choose from, the Tribute has one of the oldest platforms and powertrains in the entire segment. Why is it popular? Because of the perceived value of the product.

The redesigned Tribute proudly looks the part of an SUV.

I am an SUV, not a crossover
The Tribute has undergone a thorough makeover for what I like to call "everything you can see" for the 2008 model year. To differentiate them from the crossovers, Ford and Mazda have given the Escape and Tribute a more truck-like appearance. The SUVs look boxier and more muscular. At first, I thought I preferred the Tribute over the Escape, styling-wise, however I have changed my mind: The Escape is way more attractive thanks mostly to its distinctive Ford truck grill.

In any case, the squared-off shoulder, strictly vertical and horizontal lines separate the Tribute from the visually lesser-impressive Honda CR-V and 2008 Saturn Vue. Although the new Tribute may look more substantial, its new body is far from being a departure from the original design first introduced in 2001.

If room is your top priority
The Tribute has a functional reasonably well thought-out interior. The front seats are comfortable while the rear bench is as supportive as a church bench. The trunk is large, there is plenty of storage space and generally speaking, plenty of head, elbow and legroom.

Now is when things start to come undone for me. Most of the plastics used for the dashboard, door panels and trim are very hard and cheap. Almost everywhere you look, panel gaps are large and uneven. Next up on my rant list, the dashboard center-stack. Perhaps I should have taken the time to count the multiple small identical-looking buttons but I did not. In daylight, figuring out which one does what is not so bad, however at night, the blue glow makes them impossible to decipher. And last but not least, it has been a long time since I have last experienced a car radio with such poor reception. I cannot figure out if the old-style whip-antenna is at fault or not.

The two-tone plastic treatment of the tested Tribute is thankfully no-longer available.