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Matrix Transmission Problems

556 messages,  Last post on Mar 07, 2013 at 5:41 PM

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What is this discussion about? Toyota Matrix, Transmission, Wagon

Messages Page 53 of 56

#516 of 556 Re: 2003 trans problems [circuitsmith] by marjo

Jan 07, 2012 (5:18 am)

Replying to: circuitsmith (Jan 06, 2012 7:23 pm)
You're obviously one of those gullible people that refuses to believe these cars are crap. Why would kbetto take the car anywhere for a new engine for any amount of money? It was junk. Would have died no matter how long the light was on. I was one of the early posts on this way back in fall of 2007 when I also replaced my Toyota junk with a Honda Fit and am loving it. May be smaller but it's way faster and better built. That matrix was gutless on the highway.

#517 of 556 Re: 2003 trans problems [marjo] by circuitsmith

Jan 08, 2012 (9:15 am)

Replying to: marjo (Jan 07, 2012 5:18 am)
You're obviously one of those irresponsible people that refuses to take any blame ever for problems in your life.
When something goes wrong you start pointing the finger in all directions except inward.
Your post is pure venting and pretty nonsensical.
You like your Honda then good for you, however it's not suitable for my needs.
I owned a Civic and 3 Accords and liked them all too.
I've had 5 trouble free years with my Matrix and I'm convinced it's not "junk".

#518 of 556 Re: 2003 trans problems [circuitsmith] by marjo

Jan 08, 2012 (9:27 am)

Replying to: circuitsmith (Jan 08, 2012 9:15 am)
I'm the one that will be laughing at you when your matrix dies too. It's at that ripe age of 5y. Mine was gone at 5.5y and had NOTHING TO DO WITH THE WAY I DROVE IT OR MAINTENANCE OF IT! Pure junk. Enjoy the day you get stuck on the side of the highway like the rest of us.

#519 of 556 Re: 2003 trans problems [circuitsmith] by marjo

Jan 08, 2012 (9:34 am)

Replying to: circuitsmith (Jan 08, 2012 9:15 am)
Oh, and don't ever call a person irresponsible when you know nothing about them. You keep insisting in every post that these problems are the drivers' fault which is completely untrue. The bearings do not get enough oil, they pit, and then they fail. They possibly don't all have the same bearing from the same manufacturer so perhaps some won't fail and those owners are simply the lucky ones, not the more responsible ones.

#520 of 556 Re: 2003 trans problems [marjo] by circuitsmith

Jan 08, 2012 (6:47 pm)

Replying to: marjo (Jan 08, 2012 9:34 am)
Oh, and don't ever call a person gullible when you know nothing about them.
I'm not insisting on anything, I just stated fact.
If someone continues to drive with the oil (pressure) light on for more than a brief time the engine will be toast.
Doesn't matter if it's a Toyota or a Bentley.
And now you've confused transmission bearing problems with kbetto's engine failure.
 
Maybe kbetto's engine could have been saved if he/she hadn't continued to drive it with the oil light on.
Maybe it just had a clogged oil pickup screen, not unusual if the previous owner was stingy with oil changes during the first 50,000 miles.
 
You have no evidence that EVERY transmission or engine failure is Toyota's fault.
The hand full of people on the internet with problems multiplied by 100 isn't even 1% of the Matrixes out there on the road.
Clearly you have some axe to grind with Toyota, but you'll never match wits with me.

#521 of 556 matrix trans by stan83

Jan 29, 2012 (1:05 pm)

bought 09 matrix 1st trans replaced under warranty at 14000 km didnt think to much about it ....in shop now for 2nd trans at 54000km being replaced under warranty.....dealer great about it no hassles just replaces trans like alls normal...driven standards for years never replaced trans even in younger days driving older vehicles..car serviced only by dealer and wife drives conservativly...i agree toyota needs to look into and correct these problems.

#522 of 556 Another Maxtrix trans problem at 110K by jchan01545

Jan 31, 2012 (4:55 pm)

Purchased new in April 2004 (manual 5-speed, XR model). Started making scraping noises 109K about a month ago (sounded a bit like brake rust, "hissing" or "growling" when accelerating or decelerating, but with clutch down the noise quieted down). Got worse (louder and more obnoxious) over the past week so I tried changing the transmission fluid this past weekend (fluid was the color of black coffee - I'd never changed it since new) with no noticeable metal swirls. Noise was reduced by maybe half for a couple of days.
 
A hundred or so miles later, the noise is back but worse. The growling is accompanied with more "chatter" and shifting gears is stiffer but all gears still work. Took to an Aamco shop, they had one Matrix 2003 failure like mine (replaced the transmission since they couldn't find parts). Claimed that they saw some metal swirls in the transmission fluid and recommended that I do the same for $3900. I opted out and will likely try to do the repair myself. I'll just have to figure out how to get the Matrix high enough off the ground to drop the transmission out onto a dolly and back.
 
If it's just bearings, I'll order a transmission rebuild kit for $300 - $350 and swap out the bearings. I suspect its the input / output bearings or both since the noise is present even in 4th gear (which I hear bypasses the throwback bearing). If the gear(s) are shot, I'll try to find a used C90 6-speed transmission and toss that in.
 
Interestingly, the Aamco manager told me that he sees a lot more Honda Odyssey transmission problems than Toyotas, any given week they see several in the shop. They were three in the shop while I was there.

#523 of 556 Re: Another Maxtrix trans problem at 110K [jchan01545] by matrix09

Jan 31, 2012 (8:32 pm)

Replying to: jchan01545 (Jan 31, 2012 4:55 pm)
Thank you for the thoughtful post - being a 'shade tree mechanic' i appreciate your approach and anticipate the same as mine developes.

#524 of 556 Re: Has anyone made progress with lawsuit or NHTSA? [sthomas4] by rexroots

Feb 02, 2012 (9:53 pm)

Replying to: sthomas4 (Sep 19, 2011 4:18 pm)
I am in for the lawsuit.

#525 of 556 Re: Another Maxtrix trans problem at 110K [jchan01545] by jchan01545

Feb 29, 2012 (1:01 pm)

Replying to: jchan01545 (Jan 31, 2012 4:55 pm)
It's taken a month (augmenting my tool collection and working on the car after-hours and weekends) but was finally able to drop the transmission out and get it open. Me thinks that the Toyota manual is deliberately vague to protect their service revenue, lots of hurdles to overcome.
 
For anyone who's interested, below are pic's of my blown output bearing along with the shattered ball bearing cage and 5th driven gear that sits above the bearing:
 
http://i1222.photobucket.com/albums/dd495/littlome/ef19cd03.jpg
 
http://i1222.photobucket.com/albums/dd495/littlome/ae456d2e.jpg
 
One of the bearings was rattling around (only a matter of time for the others to break free, the cage was cracked in mulitple places). From the photo you can see that the ball bearing is pretty pitted. I spotted chunks of metal and several of the other balls were also pitted.
 
Long story short, I don't recommend driving on a transmission that has my previously described symptoms. I cringe at the thought of an output shaft seizing from failed bearings going at highway speeds.
 
Next up, checking the other other bearings and synchro's...

Messages Page 53 of 56

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