Plant Company Name: Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Inc.
Plant Country: Canada
Plant State: Ontario
Seat Belts All: Manual
Series: ZRE142L / AZE141L / AZE144L / AZE146L
TPMS: Direct
Vehicle Type: PASSENGER CAR
Model year
COMPONENT
Complaint
2008
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL
SUDDEN ACCELERATION IN 2008 MATRIX AUTOMATIC: FIRST KNOWN FAILURE. CAR BROUGHT NEW IN SEPTEMBER 2007; ODOMETER: 6000 MILES. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH ON EVEN STRAIGHT SMOOTH ROADWAY, THERE WAS A SUDDEN ACCELERATION TO GREATER THAN 70 MPH. WHEN BRAKES WERE APPLIED, THEY DEPRESSED TO FLOOR WITHOUT ANY EFFECT. CAR CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE RAPIDLY. SHIFTED TO NEUTRAL WITHOUT SUCCESS. CAR SLOWED AFTER BEING PLACED IN REVERSE. COASTED TO A STOP. PLACED GEAR IN 2 AND DROVE SLOWLY HOME - APPROXIMATELY 1/2 MILE. FLOOR MATS WERE NOT NEAR EITHER PEDAL AND WERE KEPT STATIONARY BY HOOKS DESIGNED TO KEEP MATS FROM SHIFTING. CALLED TOYOTA SERVICE DEPARTMENT: TOLD THAT FLOOR MATS WERE THE PROBLEM; TALKED TO SERVICE MANAGERS WHO STATED THAT THE SEQUENCE OF EVENTS DESCRIBED WERE IMPOSSIBLE, NO PROBLEMS WERE KNOWN TO EXIST FOR MATRIX AND GREATER THAN 99% OF SUDDEN ACCELERATION PROBLEMS WERE DUE TO DRIVER ERROR. AFTER A DISCUSSION, THE CAR WAS EVALUATED BY THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT. THE FOLLOWING WAS REPORTED: FLOOR MATS HELD IN PROPER PLACE NO OBJECTS ON FLOOR NORMAL BRAKE PEDAL OPERATION NORMAL ACCELERATOR PEDAL OPERATION HEALTH CHECK - POWERTRAIN, CHASSIS, ELECTRICAL, NETWORK SYSTEMS - OK COMPUTER CODES - NO ABNORMALITIES FOUND NORMAL THROTTLE BODY INSPECTION TIRES WITH NORMAL WEAR & FUNCTION PROBLEM WAS NOT DUPLICATED ON TEST DRIVE. WAS TOLD THAT THE CAR IS FUNCTIONING NORMALLY IN ALL AREAS AND HAS NO PROBLEMS. IMPLIED THAT MY EXPERIENCE WAS A MISPERCEPTION OR MISREPRESENTATION. ASSESSMENT: THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT MALFUNCTION IN THE MATRIX WHICH COULD HAVE LED TO CRITICAL INJURIES OR LOSS OF LIFE. ONLY DUE TO THE TRAFFIC FLOW AT PRECISELY THAT MOMENT, NO ONE WAS INJURED. THE TOYOTA SERVICE DEPARTMENTS DENIED THAT THE PROBLEM EXISTS. RECOMMENDATION: SUDDEN UNEXPECTED ACCELERATION SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED UNTIL AN ANSWER /SOLUTION IS FOUND. THE FINDINGS SHOULD BE SHARED WITH THE PUBLIC. THE COST FOR REPAIRS SHOULD BE PAID BY TOYOTA. *TR
2009
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:ACCELERATOR PEDAL
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 TOYOTA MATRIX. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE BRAKING AND SLOWING THE VEHICLE TO 5 MPH FOR A TRAFFIC STOP, THE VEHICLE ABNORMALLY ACCELERATED AND CRASHED INTO THE REAR OF A TRUCK. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY UPON IMPACT AND THE CONTACT SUSTAINED MINOR UNKNOWN INJURIES. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A LOCAL REPAIR FACILITY. THE CONTACT STATED THE VEHICLE WAS PREVIOUSLY REPAIRED UNDER NHTSA RECALL CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: (10V023000 ) FOR POSSIBLE UNINTENDED ACCELERATION FAILURES IN FEBRUARY 2010. THE CONTACT HAD COMPLAINED ABOUT INCIDENTS OF SUDDEN ABNORMAL ACCELERATION FOLLOWING REPAIRS AND THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALER. THE DEALER WAS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THERE WERE NO FAILURE IF THE DEALER WAS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE AND WOULD NOT PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 27,000. 2009 TOYOTA MATRIX. THE CONSUMER WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT DUE TO VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL. THE CONSUMER STATED HE COMPLAINED IN THE SUMMER OF 2009, THE VEHICLE WAS NOT STOPPING PROPERLY, AND HE FELT AS THOUGH THE VEHICLE WAS ACCELERATING DURING CERTAIN MANEUVERS. BUT, THE DEALER CLAIMED THEY HAD HEARD OF NO SUCH PROBLEM. THE CONSUMER THEN LEARNED OF A RECALL IN FEBURARY 2010 AND WENT TO THE DEALER FOR THE REPAIR. HOWEVER, THE CONSUMER STATED AFTER THE RECALL WAS DONE, HE STILL EXPERIENCED PROBLEMS WITH THE VEHICLE ACCELERATING. UPDATED EVOQ 07/08/10 *JB
