2006 Toyota Matrix

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 TOYOTA MATRIX. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 15 MPH ENTERING THE HIGHWAY WHEN THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE RESTARTED; HOWEVER, IMMEDIATELY AFTER SHIFTING INTO DRIVE GEAR, THE ENGINE STALLED AGAIN. THE FAILURE OCCURRED REPEATEDLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHERE THE TECHNICIAN REPLACED THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 32,000. UPDATED 8/25/10 *CN UPATED 08/27/10 UPDATED 08/30/10*JB

2006 TOYOTA MATRIX. CONSUMER STATES BRAKE FAILURE *TGW THE CONSUMER STATED WHEN HE ATTEMPTED TO APPLY THE BRAKE, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO SLOW DOWN. THE CONSUMER VEERED TO THE RIGHT, BUT CONSEQUENTLY HE REAR ENDED ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE CONTINUED ITS COURSE, EVEN THOUGH THE CONSUMER WAS APPLYING THE BRAKE. FINALLY, THE VEHICLE CAME TO A STOP AFTER CONTINUING ON FOR A HALF BLOCK. *JB

MY CAR WAS RUNNING FINE AND DIED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD AND THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. LIGHT WHEN OFF LATER IN DAY. NEXT DAY - DIED ON BUSY HIGHWAY - RESTARTED AND WOULD GOING GO ABOUT 5 MILES PER HOUR. NEXT DAY TRYING TO GET TO THE SHOP DIED AND TOOK SEVERAL TIMES TO GET STARTED AND THEN 5 MILES PER HOUR AGAIN. THEY KNOW THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THIS PART -- THEY SHOULD HAVE TO FIX NO MATTER THE MILEAGE....IT IS NOTED IN A BULLETIN. *TR

MY REAR DIFFERENTIAL IN MY 2006 TOYOTA MATRIX XR 4WD WAS MAKING A WHINING NOISE THAT INCREASED IN VOLUME AS SPEED INCREASED. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP AND WAS INFORMED THAT IT WAS THE REAR DIFF. AND WOULD COST $2300 TO REPLACE. CAR HAS 68K. POWERTRAIN WARR. IS 5 YRS. OR 60K. DEALER QUOTED ME PRICE OF $2388 TO FIX?? I SAID IT SHOULD NOT HAVE GONE OUT AS I HAVE DONE EVERY MAINTENANCE ON THIS CAR. THEY THEN OFFERED ME A MEASLY 10% AS A WHINER/CONSOLATION FEE. I THEN CALLED THE "CUSTOMER CENTER" OF TOYOTA AND WAS EVENTUALLY TOLD THAT THEY WOULD UP THE "OFFER" TO $600, AND THAT WAS THEIR FINAL OFFER. THEY THEN CALLED ME THE NEXT DAY AND TOLD ME THAT IT WAS ACTUALLY THE TRANSMISSION COUPLING ASSY, AND THAT IT WOULD COST ANOTHER $400. TOYOTA SAID THEY WOULD COVER THE DIFFERENCE OF $400 SINCE IT WAS MISDIAGNOSED. I SAID THEY SHOULD COVER ALL OF IT SINCE IT WAS CLEARLY DEFECTIVE. THEY REFUSED. THEN I FOUND A TOYOTA TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN ON THE INTERNET DESCRIBING THE EXACT PROBLEM, DATED AUGUST 23, 2007. SO THEY KNEW ABOUT THE PROBLEM, AND DID NOT NOTIFY ME. I KNOW THIS MUST HAVE HAPPENED OVER A LONG TIME, AND I COULD HAVE BROUGHT THE CAR IN TO BE INSPECTED, WELL WITHIN ITS WARRANTY, BUT TOYOTA DID NOTHING. I THINK TOYOTA IS NOT STANDING BEHIND THEIR PRODUCT. $2417 LATER, TOYOTA WOULD NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THIS WAS A DEFECTIVE PART, AND FORCED ME TO PAY FOR IT. I SHUDDER TO THINK WHAT MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED HAD THIS PART SEIZED UP ON ME AT 65 MPH IN TRAFFIC, OR ON ONE OF OUR ICY MOUNTAIN ROADS IN THE WINTER. *TR

AT 10:30 AM ON A SUNNY DAY, I EXITED THE I-880 NORTHBOUND 23RD AVE EXIT. COMING UP TO A LINE OF CARS STOPPED AT THE E11TH ST SIGNAL LIGHT, I BEGAN PRESSING DOWN ON THE SERVICE BRAKE TO SLOW DOWN. AS I WAS COMING UP TO THE BMW AHEAD OF ME, I PRESSED MORE ON THE SERVICE BRAKE TO STOP MY CAR. THINGS WENT WRONG WHEN I FELT AND HEARD THE ACCELERATOR REVVING UP, CAUSING ME TO INSTINCTIVELY PRESS EVEN HARDER ON THE SERVICE BRAKE. AS THE ACCELERATION INCREASED, MY TOYOTA MATRIX'S BRAKES BEGAN SLIPPING CAUSING MY CAR TO INCH CLOSER TO THE BMW. REALIZING THAT THE SERVICE BRAKE WAS NOT HOLDING, I PULLED UP ON THE EMERGENCY BRAKE AND SHIFTED THE CAR INTO NEUTRAL, ALL THE WHILE STILL PRESSING DOWN ON THE SERVICE BRAKE. SINCE THE ENGINE WAS STILL ACCELERATING FASTER, I MANAGED TO TURN THE IGNITION KEY OFF, SUCCESSFULLY SHUTTING DOWN THE ENGINE AND STOPPING THE ACCELERATION. AFTER A BRIEF 15 SECONDS, I RESTARTED THE CAR WITH THE ENGINE IN PARK, AND THE EMERGENCY AND SERVICE BRAKES ON. THE ENGINE IMMEDIATELY REVVED UP AS BEFORE AND I ONCE AGAIN TURNED OFF THE IGNITION KEY TO SHUT DOWN THE ENGINE. REALIZING I HAD A MAJOR PROBLEM, I KEPT THE ENGINE OFF AND PUT THE CAR IN NEUTRAL SO I COULD PUSH THE CAR TO A SAFER PART ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. UPON INSPECTION, I FOUND THAT MY FLOOR MAT WAS SECURELY LOCKED INTO PLACE, AND THAT THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS IN THE UP POSITION, A FEW INCHES OFF THE FLOOR. I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER WITH 75000 ACCIDENT AND INCIDENT FREE MILES ON THE CAR, AND THIS IS THE FIRST THING THAT HAS EVER GONE WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. I HAD AAA TOW THE CAR TO ONE TOYOTA IN OAKLAND, AND THEY ARE DOING DIAGNOSTICS WITH THE VEHICLE. THEY GAVE ME A RENTAL CAR FREE OF CHARGE UNTIL THEY DETERMINE WHAT WENT WRONG. THE SERVICE DEALER TOLD ME THAT IT IS THE 2007 AND LATER MATRIX'S THAT HAVE THE ACCELERATION PROBLEM, AND THAT FOR MY 2006 MATRIX TO HAVE THIS PROBLEM IS UNCOMMON. HOPEFULLY TOYOTA WILL FIND AND CORRECT THE PROBLEM TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING TO OTHERS. *TR

ABOUT 10:00 PM WHEN I WAS JUST PULLING ON TO I-84 IN DOWNTOWN HARTFORD, CT THE MANUAL TRANSMISSION OF MY TOYOTA MATRIX MADE A VERY LOUD GRINDING SOUND AND I COULD NOT MOVE. THANKFULLY, MY MOMENTUM ENABLED ME TO GET OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY BUT I WAS STILL STICKING OUT INTO THE RIGHT LANE JUST AROUND A CURVE IN THE ROAD. A STATE POLICE TROUPER PULLED BEHIND ME ALMOST IMMEDIATELY AND PUT ON HIS LIGHTS TO WARN CARS AWAY. OTHERWISE, I AM CERTAIN MY CAR WOULD HAVE BEEN REAR-ENDED WHILE I WAITED FOR THE TOW TRUCK. THE REPAIR SHOP I HAD THE CAR TOWED TO SAID THAT A BEARING HAD FAILED AND DESTROYED THE TRANSMISSION. I HAD TO GET A COMPLETELY NEW TRANSMISSION AT A COST OF OVER $2000. THIS CAR HAD OVER 105,000 MILES ON IT, BUT THEY WERE MOSTLY HIGHWAY MILES AND THE TRANSMISSION SHOULD NEVER HAVE FAILED THIS EARLY. *TR

I OWN A TOYOTA MATRIX, 2006, WITH 49K MILES. THE CAR SUDDENLY DECELERATES AND DOES NOT RESPOND TO THE GAS PEDAL TO PICK UP SPEED AGAIN. SO FAR, I'VE BEEN ABLE TO PULL OFF THE ROAD. I STOP AND THEN RESTART THE CAR, AND IT DRIVES FINE. ALSO, THE CRUISE CONTROL SUDDENLY GOES INTO DECELERATION, WHICH IS VERY DANGEROUS WHILE CRUISING ON THE FREEWAY. BOTH THESE PROBLEMS HAVE OCCURRED SEVERAL TIMES SO FAR. THE DEALER SAYS MY VEHICLE IS NOT ON A RECALL LIST, AND ALSO CLAIMS TO KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THIS PROBLEM WITH THE MATRIX. I KNOW THAT TOYOTA FINALLY SUCCUMBED TO PRESSURE RECALLED ABOUT 50,000 SEQUOIA SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES FOR A DECELERATION PROBLEM. IS THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THE MATRIX ALSO BEING COVERED UP? WHAT SHOULD I DO? *TR