2006 Toyota Matrix

COMPUTER FAILURE, QUITE SUDDENLY THE CAR STOPPED WORKING, JERKED AND SLOWED DOWN. ALL THE SERVICE LIGHTS ON THE DASH BOARD CAME ON. AFTER A COUPLE MINUTES THE CAR COULD BE TURNED ON BUT AFTER ABOUT 1.5 MILES THE SAME THING WOULD HAPPEN. THE HIGHWAY WAS AVOIDED BUT IT OCCURRED ON A LOCAL ROAD WITH LOTS OF CARS. THE HAZARDS WERE TURNED ON BUT IT WAS A FRIGHTENING AND CONCERNING INCIDENT. AAA WAS CALLED TO TOW THE CAR TO THE DEALER. AT THE DEALER A COMPUTER PART WAS REPLACED. THE CAR HAS BEEN WORKING FOR 48HRS. THE CAR WAS ONLY FOUR YEARS OLD.

2006 TOYOTA MATRIX STALLS, CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON. THE CAR HAD TO BE TOWED INTO THE DEALERSHIP, WHERE, AFTER RESTING OVER NIGHT, RAN FINE AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURNED OFF. HOWEVER, I REQUESTED THAT THE DEALERSHIP RUN THE DIAGNOTICS, WHICH SHOWED AN ERROR CODE P0607 IN THE SYSTEM WHICH MEANS THE ECM IS DEFECTIVE. I HAD THE ECM REPLACED AT A COST OF $867.57, PLUS $95.00 FOR THE TOW. NOW I LEARN THAT A TSB WAS ISSUED ON THIS PROBLEM FOR THIS VEHICLE BACK IN 2007, AND ALTHOUGH MY MATRIX WAS IN THE DEALERSHIP FOR MAINTENANCE AND SERVICE DOZENS OF TIMES, AT NO TIME WAS THE DEFECTIVE ECM REPLACED, NOR WAS I TOLD OF THE PROBLEM. THIS CAR IS PRIMARILY DRIVEN BY MY WIFE, A SOCIAL WORKER FOR A CHILD WELFARE AGENCY IN THE CHICAGO AREA. SHE IS OFTEN IN VERY UNSAFE NEIGHBORHOODS, AND WAS IN SUCH A NEIGHBORHOOD THE MORNING BEFORE THE CAR STALLED -- LUCKILY FOR US -- ONLY A MILE FROM OUR HOUSE. TOYOTA SAYS THAT THE PART WAS UNDER WARRANTY PURSUANT TO FEDERAL LAW UNTIL 80K MILES. MY MATRIX HAS 85K. TOYOTA REFUSES TO COVER THE COST OF THE REPAIR UNLESS IT ISSUES A RECALL ON THE VEHICLE. BUT UNDER THE PRESENT TSB, OF WHICH I WAS ONLY MADE AWARE THROUGH AN INTERNET SEARCH AFTER HAVING THE STALLING PROBLEM, TOYOTA HAS NO INTENTION OF COVERING THE COST OF REPAIRING THIS KNOWN AND ADMITTED DEFECT. IF THIS IS NOT RESOLVED BY A RECALL, OTHERS WILL HAVE STALLING VEHICLES ON A HIGHWAY AND GET SEVERELY INJURED OR KILLED, OR IN A BAD NEIGHBORHOOD AND GET MUGGED OR RAPED, OR ON THE WAY TO THE HOSPITAL AND SUFFER HEALTH COMPLICATIONS FROM DELAYED MEDICAL CARE, ETC., ETC. PLEASE TAKE IMMEDIATE STEPS TO FORCE A PROPER RESOLUTION OF THIS PROBLEM. BY THE WAY, WHEN I CALLED TOYOTA (800-331-4331), I WAS TOLD THAT THERE ARE SEVERAL OTHER TSBS ON MY MATRIX, BUT THAT THE REPRESENTATIVE CANNOT TELL ME WHAT THEY ARE UNTIL I AM HAVING THE PROBLEM COVERED BY THE TSB. THAT IS UNCONSCIONABLE. LOOK WHAT THAT DID FOR THE SIMILAR APPROACH WITH THE FLOOR MAT AND ACCELERATION PROBLEM.

MY COMPLAINT WAS FIRST FILED ON 3/25/2006 (ODI # 10153679). THIS IS THE 2ND COMPLAINT ABOUT THE DEFECTIVE TOYOTA MATRIX THAT I DROVE IN 2006. I WAS DRIVING A 2006 TOYOTA MATRIX AND LOST TOTAL CONTROL OVER THE VEHICLE. I WAS DRIVING ON RT 2 WEST BOUND OUT OF BOSTON DURING EVENING RUSH HOUR. I WAS TRYING TO CHANGE LANE TO MY RIGHT AND FOUND THERE WAS A CAR APPROACHING AND HONKED AT ME. I HAD NOT LEFT MY LANE YET AND TRIED TO PULL MY CAR STRAIGHT BACK. THE CAR REACTED BY SHIFTING TOO MUCH TO THE LEFT AND I TRIED ONLY TO ADJUST IT, KEEPING IN MIND THAT WAS A POWER-STEERED SYSTEM, TO KEEP IT STRAIGHT. THERE WAS A 1-2 SECONDS AFTERWARDS THE CAR SEEMED TO BE ON TRACK AND I WAS DRIVING FINE. AFTER THAT 2 SECONDS, THE CAR ACCELERATED ALL OF A SUDDEN, GAS PEDAL WAS DOWN TO THE FLOOR, THE CAR VEERED TOWARD THE LEFT ON IT'S OWN. I TRIED TO MAINTAIN IT STRAIGHT BUT IN VAIN AND COMPLETELY LOST CONTROL OVER IT. THE WHEEL WAS SO SOLID AND IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE TO STEER THE CAR EVEN JUST A LITTLE BIT. IT SPUN COUNTERCLOCKWISE OVER 3 LANES TOWARD MY LEFT AND HIT THE CENTRAL GUARDRAIL AND STOPPED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOTALED. THE POLICE ISSUED ME A TICKET ON THE SPOT. OTHER THAN COMPLAINT ODI # 10153679 FILED AT THIS WEBSITE AFTER THE INCIDENT, I ALSO FILED A COMPLAINT AT TOYOTA'S WEBSITE ON THE SAME DAY (3/25/2006). THE MATRIX MODEL WAS STOPPED IN 2007 AND CONTINUED IN 2008 WITH AN ADVERTISEMENT THAT IT WAS A COMPLETE NEW DESIGN. I LATER CHECKED THE INTERNET AND FOUND A VERY SIMILAR ACCIDENT HAPPENED IN NEW YORK STATE ON 10/9/2005. A WOMAN NAMED [XXX] , 55 OF WEST HARVERSTRAW WAS DRIVING A MATRIX. HER CAR SPUN OFF ROUTE 287 IN HARDING AND SHE WAS HOSPITALIZED AFTERWARDS. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

ON OCTOBER 3, 2008, WHILE DRIVING MY 2006 TOYOTA MATRIX I HAD TO ACCELERATE RAPIDLY TO MERGE ONTO A BUSY STREET. I IMMEDIATELY SMELLED A ODOR COMING FROM MY VENTS OF BURNING WIRING. MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I PULLED OVER AND MADE SOME CALLS TO SERVICE STATIONS AND THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP. WAS ADVISED TO TAKE IT TO THE DEALER. DID. AFTER INVESTIGATING THE ISSUE FOR SEVERAL DAYS THEY DECIDED MY ECM WAS BAD AND REPLACED IT. WITH THE RECENT TOYOTA RECALLS, I FINALLY DECIDED YESTERDAY THAT I SHOULD CHECK INTO IF I AM INVOLVED. MY VEHICLE IS TOYOTA CERTIFIED AND THEY DO HAVE RECORD OF THE ECM FAILURE TO MY VEHICLE. I ALSO WANTED TO REPORT IT TO YOU FOLKS, JUST IN CASE IT IS IN FACT THE COMPUTERS THAT ARE FAULTY. IT IS UNKNOWN TO ME WHETHER THE REPLACEMENT COMPUTER THEY PUT IN MY CAR IS A 2006, OR WHAT YEAR ECM IT IS. MY ECM FAILED IMMEDIATELY AFTER RAPID ACCELERATION AND MY VEHICLE IS NOT ON THE RECALL LIST. *TR

I WAS STOPPED AT A BUSY INTERSECTION DURING MORNING RUSH HOUR WHEN MY CAR STALLED. I TRIED UNSUCCESSFULLY SEVERAL TIMES TO RESTART THE ENGINE. AFTER ALLOWING IT TO SIT FOR SEVERAL MINUTES, THE CAR FINALLY RESTARTED. I MOVED THE CAR INTO A PARKING LOT AND ALLOWED IT TO SIT, IDLING, FOR SEVERAL MINUTES. WHEN I PUT THE CAR BACK INTO DRIVE, IT LURCHED FORWARD. DESPITE PRESSING ON THE GAS, IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE PAST 10 MPH. I HAD THE CAR TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, WHERE THEY SAID THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE HAD FAILED. IT WAS UNDER WARRANTY BUT, HAD IT NOT BEEN, WOULD HAVE COST ME $900. I PURCHASED THIS CAR NEW IN 2006, AND IT HAS BEEN SERVICED REGULARLY. *TR

I HAVE A 2006 TOYOTA MATRIX AND THE VEHICLE STARTED JERKING WHEN IT SHIFTED OUT OF 1ST GEAR. IT JERKED SO HARD THAT I HAD TO BE CAREFUL TO NOT LOSE CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE. ALSO THE VEHICLE WOULD STALL WHEN I WOULD BE IN HEAVY TRAFFIC. THE SHIFTING ISSUE OCCURRED EVERY TIME I DROVE IT AFTER THE PROBLEM STARTED. THE STALLING ISSUE OCCURRED AROUND 5-6 TIMES WHEN I WAS DRIVING. I RECENTLY TOOK IT INTO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY REPLACED THE ECM FOR A COST OF OVER $700 SINCE I WAS OUT OF FACTORY WARRANTY. SO FAR, THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN CORRECTED HOWEVER, I NOTICED A SERVICE BULLETIN IN 2007 WHICH I BELIEVE TOYOTA SHOULD HAVE INFORMED CUSTOMER'S. THIS WAS VERY SCARY WHEN IT OCCURRED AND LUCKILY I DIDN'T END UP IN AN ACCIDENT. *TR

NORMALLY SITTING AT STOP LIGHT, WHEN ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. CAR IMMEDIATELY STARTED SHIFTING VERY HARD. THE IDLE SPEED WAS ERRATIC. ENGINE WANTED TOO AND DID CUT OFF AT VARIOUS TIMES. TOOK CAR TO ROSNER TOYOTA/STAFFORD VA AND WAS TOPD THAT THE ECU WAS DEFECTIVE AND THAT ROSNER HAD BEEN NOTIFIED OF A DEFECT CODE THAT WAS PREVALENT IN THE COROLLA AND MATRIX MODELS. ASKED ABOUT A TOYOTA RECALL AND WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS NOT ONE AT THIS TIME OR IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE. THIS PART/ECU IS VERY EXPENSIVE AND INTEGRAL TO THE CAR'S PERFORMANCE. *TR