CarComplaints.com Notes: The Toyota Matrix is the mechanical twin of the Pontiac Vibe.
Both models were a joint GM-Toyota venture, manufactured together at a NUMMI production facility in Fremont, CA. Only the heating & A/C systems are different.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
5 / 0
Average Mileage:
36,186 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 15V285000 (air bags) and stated that the part was not available within a reasonable timeframe to schedule the recall repair. The dealer did not give a specific date for when the part would become available. The manufacturer was contacted and could not provide an estimated date for when the contacts vehicle would receive the recall repair. The contact was not experiencing a failure. Updated 11/19/15
Called dealer to ask about recall, they said they would order parts and to bring car in a week later. Called today and they said they don't have the parts yet. Please advise when this recall will be fixed as it is dangerous and not acceptable to not allow passengers in the car.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. While driving 55 mph, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the air bag sensor failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact also stated that while driving approximately 55 mph and depressing the brake pedal, the brakes failed causing the vehicle to drive into an intersection. The vehicle was taken to a dealer who was unable to duplicate the failure but replaced the master brake cylinder however the failures persisted. The recall notice for NHTSA campaign number: 15V285000 (air bags) was received in August 2015. After contacting the dealer on multiple occasions, the contact was informed that the parts needed to repair the vehicle were still not available and no estimated time for receiving the parts could be given. The failure mileage was 100,000.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA campaign number: 15V285000 (air bags); however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 15V285000 (air bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced any failures.
- Haggerstown , MD, USA
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We received a notice in June regarding a recall of our family vehicle (Toyota Corolla matrix 2005) for a defect related to the airbags. According to the statement, it has to do with the air bag inflators and, depending on circumstance, could rupture and cause metal fragments to pass through the air bag cushioned material resulting in injury or death. We were told that until a remedy because available in our location to have no one ride in the passenger front seat. That was three months ago. I just looked up the status and there is still no remedy available in our area. This is not a minor issue. It's caused undue stress and inconvenience throughout the entire summer. We have a baby on the way and are concerned that there is still no remedy in place, and we feel a solution has not been provided in a reasonable amount of time. We plan on calling Toyota during normal business hours to see if there is any way we can fix the issue ourselves and then submit for a reimbursement. Simply telling customers to have no one ride in the front passenger seat and not provide any additional information--such as when we can expect parts to become available--is poor customer service. Plus, if we have to address the issue ourselves, it will cause unnecessary strain on our already tight budget.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 15V286000 (air bags); however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. The contact stated that the recall notice for NHTSA campaign number: 15V285000 (air bags) was received in August of 2015. The contact was informed that the remedy for the recall was not yet available. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.
Toyota will not let dealerships disable these defective passenger side air bags. Honda recently went through the same thing and they did disable the airbags until the parts were available to fix them. I got a complete run around from Toyota's customer service when I called them and was told "it had to go through the state." Ridiculous. If it has to be coordinated through the state then Toyota should be responsible for that. Why should I be driving around in a car that can have shrapnel flying around in it? "don't let anybody sit right in front of it" is not an acceptable solution. Not to mention they have no idea how long it will be til the parts are available - and this recall went out in June but I am only just now being notified. So 2 mos. Passengers have been sitting on the deadly side. They should not be allowed to get away with this as a business practice - totally unacceptable to put people at risk this way. Please do something about this.
The reason I am filing this complaint is I don't feel Toyota's airbag recall is adequate. I purchased a four person sedan to carry four people. Toyota is telling me it isn't safe for a person to ride in the front passenger seat, because of this recall. I feel I need to not only have my vehicle repaired but I need Toyota to purchase my car back at market value or give me a loaner that will carry four passengers until my vehicle is fixed. It is unacceptable for them to ask me to not use my vehicle for what I purchased it for. Regards, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).'
I received a recall notice for passenger air bag inflators which may be defective when in contact with moisture. I received this notice 8/15/15 but the date of the recall on the website is 6/15/15 - a difference of 2 months! I called the Toyota recall hotline and was informed that there is no remedy for my location, even though I informed the representative that my car was purchased used and came from a beach area in southern California - a humid and moist area. I was informed that there is no estimated date when parts will be available in my location but to not allow passengers in the front seat. This is certainly not reasonable and very inconvenient. It is ridiculous to have a recall and not have prepared by ordering necessary parts. I am extremely dissatisfied with the "Toyota experience" and am more than peeved that I have to wait for who knows how long to fix the situation. Until then, what do I do? I use my car for work and frequently drive clients, friends and relatives to various locations.
I do not know the exact date or mileage because I just discovered this site but my dealer would know. My airbag sensor light randomly comes on and stays on for several days to a week. I had dealer look at it and they said there was no problem....just a faulty light or something and nothing needed to be fixed. Also, clock now works off and on. I am concerned because after reading information at other sites, the information says that the airbags will not work if the sensor light is on. I have also read that the airbag sensor light and the clock are connected. I do not want to spend over $400 to replace a clock but it's a whole other story if my airbags will not work without a functioning clock that doesn't mess up the airbag sensor. I don't even know who to ask since the dealer doesn't seems to realize this either.
Two months ago, I read a newspaper article about takata airbags, searched my VIN in the federal web site, and discovered that my 2005 Toyota Matrix had been recalled because of potentially-lethal takata airbags. I immediately contacted both the Toyota dealer that services my car, and Toyota corporate. They assured me that I would be receiving written information about the recall, which would be mailed out that week, but had nothing else to offer in terms of addressing the safety of my car. Two months later, I still have not received a recall notice from Toyota. When I have spoken with the dealer or Toyota corporate, they tell me they have no idea how long it might be before the parts are available or the technicians trained to replace the faulty airbag. Toyota also refuses to provide any remediation in the meantime -- no loaner car, no disabled airbag, nothing. The only reason I know that my car -- which I share with my son -- is potentially lethal is because I happen to have checked my VIN after reading an article in the newspaper. It is also unclear to me whether the driver of a car with the faulty airbag could be injured or killed if the passenger airbag deploys. Toyota's incompetence and irresponsibility in not notifying Toyota owners, not arranging for replacement parts, not offering any interim remediation, and not training technicians to make necessary repairs is ludicrous, and, to the best of my understanding, violates federal law. Of course I will never buy another Toyota, but this type of potentially lethal negligence is not something that should be addressed by market forces. It should be addressed by federal regulators.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 15V286000 (air bags) however, the part needed to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 15V286000 (air bags). However, the part needed to do the repair was not made available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time to provide the repair. In addition, the contact stated that the passenger air bag light stayed off when a passenger was seated in the front passenger seat. In addition, the air bag light stayed on when no one was seated in the front passenger seat and the electronic clock failed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.
The airbag warning light comes on most of the time. Dash electrical system is inconsistent -- clock sometimes works for example, but usually not. Blinkers sometimes don't work as well. Primary safety concern is the airbag system though. I've had several mechanics run diagnostics. Sometimes diagnostics come up clean and sometimes not. Spent $300+ without resolve and haven't heard since initial recall notice about a fix.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Corolla matrix. The contact stated that NHTSA campaign number: 15V286000 (air bags) exceeded a reasonable amount of time for repair. The contact called the dealer on several occasions and felt he had been given the run around due to his hispanic accent. The dealer initially scheduled an appointment and then stated that the part was not available. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact had not experienced a failure. Updated 09/21/15
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 15V286000 (air bags) and stated that the part needed was not available within a reasonable timeframe to schedule the recall repair. The dealer did not give a specific date for when the part would become available. The manufacturer was contacted and could not provide an estimated date for when the vehicle would receive the recall repair. The contact was not experiencing a failure.
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Matrix. While driving 35 mph, the clock and radio failed to function. In addition, the doors failed to lock automatically and the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failures. The vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 15V286000 (air bags). The failure mileage was 55,500.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Clements, MD, USA