2008 Toyota MATRIX - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2008 Toyota Matrix 4-DR. w/SAB has received excellent ratings in frontal crash tests with a 5-star rating for the driver side and a 4-star rating for the passenger side. In side crash tests, it also scored well with a 5-star rating for the driver's side and a 4-star rating for the passenger side. The rollover rating is 4, indicating a lower possibility of rollovers. The car comes equipped with optional electronic stability control, which can enhance safety on the road.

Unfortunately, the overall safety rating is "Not Rated," which may raise some concerns about the comprehensive safety of the vehicle. Additionally, the car does not feature forward collision warning or lane departure warning systems, which could have further improved its safety features.

On the maintenance side, the car has had 38 complaints reported and 2 recalls issued. While the crash test results are quite good, potential buyers should be aware of these complaints and recalls as they could impact the overall ownership experience and safety of the vehicle.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

38

Recall Count

2

Investigation Count

0

Safety Rating

Not Rated

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Safety Features

2008 Toyota Matrix 4-DR. w/SAB Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2008 Toyota Matrix 4-DR. w/SAB

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Optional
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

No
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2008 Toyota Matrix 4-DR. w/SAB Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2008 Toyota Matrix 4-DR. w/SAB Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2013 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 5 5 Not Rated
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 4 4 Not Rated

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2013 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 3 5 Not Rated
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 4 4 Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2013 Score
Rollover Rating 4 Not Rated 4
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated

Complaints for the 2008 Toyota MATRIX

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"i have a manual transmission car. when i started it in my driveway and put in reverse the car immediately when speeding backward out of control. i engaged the clutch while the car continued to speed in reverse then moved to 1 gear and the car started speeding forward out of control. i was able to put the car in neutral and turn it off to stop the acceleration of the car."
Components Involved: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Date of incident: 2016-06-11

Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 toyota matrix. while attempting to accelerate from park, the accelerator pedal was depressed and the vehicle accelerated excessively. the contact had to depress the clutch and shift the gear shifter in neutral in order to stop the vehicle. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 150,000. the vin was unavailable."
Components Involved: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Date of incident: 2016-06-11

Complaint:
"on february 28th i was stopped at the corner of vine and galbraith at a light. the car suddenly accelerated forward and when i pressed on the brake it kind of locked and did not stop the car- i pulled the emergency brake up and the car stopped. there was a pedestrain that was crossing the street that i nearly hit. *tr"
Components Involved: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Date of incident: 2012-04-02

Complaint:
"after purchasing gas at 6:30 a.m., i started my 2008 toyota matrix and was rolling slowly out a slight incline to the street. the car lurched forward and i jammed first one foot then both feet on the brake while pulling up the emergency brake. it felt like holding back a horse at the starting gate. i put the car in park and the engine began racing like it does during an auto emissions test. i turned the car off and it stopped. i finally got the nerve to start the car again and it performed normally as it has since. i took the car to performance toyota in fairfield ohio on april 3rd as instructed by the service department so they could try to recreate the situation and have it on record that i experienced this incident. *tr"
Components Involved: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Date of incident: 2012-06-03

Complaint:
"tl*the contact owns a 2009 toyota matrix. the contact stated that while driving at approximate speeds of 35 mph in rainy weather, a vehicle ahead of him applied the brakes. the contact attempted to depress the brakes; however, the vehicle continued to accelerate. the vehicle proceeded to crash into the preceding vehicle and also a third vehicle. one of the vehicle occupants was injured. the police were called to the scene. the contact was not given a copy of the police report. the vehicle was driven to a local repair shop for an assessment of the damages. the failure mileage was 6,000 and the current mileage was 10,000."
Components Involved: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Date of incident: 2010-02-02

Complaint:
"my 2008 matrix engine races up, and reaches speeds of 90 with out my foot on the gas. it happened for the first time almost a year ago. i was told that it was nothing, could it have been the mats.... i didn't have mats in my car. i haven't been able to use my cruise control, the engine rpm goes really high, like it is going to race. my husband was driving the car over the weekend and it raced, he was able to stop the vehicle. went to the side of the road. every time i have brought my car in they say they can not duplicate the problem. it usually happens after i have been driving my car for 30 or minutes. i'm trying not to worry about it, but i'm sure that there are other people out there who are having problems with their cars, take them to the shop and are being told that they can not duplicate a problem. any one who knows anything knows anything knows that 9/10 the mechanic can not duplicate the problem. *tr"
Components Involved: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Date of incident: 2009-01-08

Complaint:
"2008 toyota matrix developed a grunting/rattling sound when the cruise control was activated about a year ago. deactivating the cruise control didn't solve the problem but first disappeared after pulling off the high way, shutting off the engine and hence resetting the systems. which problem has been fixed by toyota newburgh ny swiftly, with the remark that this was something they had never experienced before. in the light of the accelerator problems that continue to plague us all this might be an item of interest on your behalf? *tr"
Components Involved: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Date of incident: 2009-01-05

Recalls for the 2008 Toyota MATRIX

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"toyota is recalling certain model year 2005-2008 corolla and corolla matrix vehicles. the engine control module (ecm) for the subject models equipped with the 1zz-fe engine and two-wheel drive may have been improperly manufactured. there is a possibility that a crack may develop at certain solder points or on varistors on the circuit board."
Consequence:
THERE ARE A VARIETY OF WARNINGS AND CONSEQUENCES ASSOCIATED WITH THE DEFECT. THE ENGINE WARNING LAMP COULD BE ILLUMINATED, HARSH SHIFTING COULD RESULT, THE ENGINE MAY NOT START, OR THE ENGINE COULD SHUT OFF WHILE THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN. AN ENGINE SHUTOFF WHILE THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN INCREASES THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy:

DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE PRODUCTION NUMBER OF THE ECM AND REPLACE THE ECM IF NECESSARY. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. TOYOTA WILL MAIL AN INTERIM OWNER NOTIFICATION THE MIDDLE OF SEPTEMBER 2010 TO ADVISE OWNERS OF THIS DEFECT AND RECALL. THIS INTERIM NOTIFICATION WILL INFORM OWNERS THAT THEY WILL RECEIVE A FUTURE NOTIFICATION WHEN PARTS BECOME AVAILABLE TO HAVE THE FREE REMEDY PERFORMED ON THEIR VEHICLE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON NOVEMBER 29, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT TOYOTA AT 1-800-331-4331.

Component(s) Involved: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Date of incident: 2010-08-26

TOYOTA Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

TOYOTA ranks 3 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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