Mazda recalls 26,000 Tribute SUVs in Oz

MAZDA is recalling 26,000 Tribute SUVs sold in Australia between December 2000 and February 2007 because the the throttle might stick open due to insufficient clearance between the cruise control cable and engine cover.

The issue is identical to the recall issued last week for 8798 examples of the closely-related Ford Escape SUV.

Ford and Mazda each sold around 30,000 units of the shared SUV in Australia but Mazda public relations manager Steve Maciver told GoAuto the number of Mazdas recalled is higher due to factory cruise control being standard-fit on more variants.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission recalls website describes the issue as potentially allowing the engine to be “stuck at full power when the accelerator pedal is fully or almost-fully depressed”.

“A throttle that is stuck fully or almost fully open may result in very high vehicle speeds and make it difficult to stop or slow the vehicle,” said the ACCC.

“The risk exists regardless of whether the cruise control is being used or not.”

Mr Maciver said there have been no reported cases of the issue in Australia and that Mazda will start contacting affected owners soon.

“We have a slight delay on parts, so we are just waiting on further information as to when the parts will come through, but we will start contacting customers as soon as we can,” he said, adding that the recall work takes around an hour to complete.

The ACCC recommends Tribute owners avoid the problem by “not fully or almost-fully depressing the accelerator pedal”, and provides advice on what to do if the problem occurs.

“If a driver experiences a stuck throttle, the driver should firmly and steadily apply the brakes without pumping the brake pedal, shift to neutral, steer the vehicle to a safe location and switch the engine off after the vehicle has completely stopped,” it says.

A vehicle identification number (VIN) list of affected Mazda Tributes is published on the ACCC recalls website www.recalls.gov.au.

Another recent recall affecting co-developed Ford and Mazda vehicles was for dual-cab versions of current-generation Ranger and BT-50 one-tonne utes due to a potential failure of the rear seat back latch to engage.

The recall affects 3500 Mazda BT-50s and 4258 Ford Rangers in Australia and owners are advised not to use their vehicles with a rearward facing child seat until recall work has been carried out.