I have a 2003 Toyota Matrix I bought new and have loved it until now. At 72000 the clutch burned up. I have seen a lot of posts on this site about clutch problems. Do I have any recourse? I'd always heard Toyotas would last forever. I want to keep this car for a few more years but after reading all the posts I am wondering if it is a defect. I have never been hard on the clutch or transmission and I am very disappointed.
Reply 1 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
72,000 can be a good mileage for a clutch depending on driving skill/condition(proper break in has alot to do with it too). If you ride the clutch alot, and/or if you have alot of stop and go driving the clutch will wear out quicker. It is a wear part and like breaks wear out over time.
Reply 2 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
Sounds like normal wear.
Running gear is basically identical as the Corolla, except the Matrix weights a couple hundred pounds more. Even with a light touch, 8 years/72K miles on the OEM clutch is considered pretty decent. I've seen people go through clutches every 30K or sooner, if they are "spirited" drivers, a little more life if the drivers are more relaxed.
There are a few that have more than 100K miles on the original clutch in mixed driving, but those are few and far between. As mentioned above, stop and go traffic, low speed driving, even if you are light on the clutch can wear it out over time. Being a wear item from the first generation/ first model year Matrix, there isn't much recourse for you at this point.
Did you get to see the old disc, how it was worn out?
Reply 3 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
I posted yesterday about my clutch going out on my 2003 Matrix. Found out later that my transmission is shot. Asked them what happened to transmission and they didn't know, had not taken it completely out. Will cost over $3600 for both. Tried to make me think maybe I'd tried to shift to reverse without clutching. Been driving a manual for over 20 years. Don't think so. What is interesting is in August '09 I took my car to dealership because I was hearing a "noise" when going down the road. I couldn't tell where it was coming from. I'm a woman for pete sake. Took it to a few places; they couldn't figure it out so I took it to the dealership. They kept it over night, drove it, acknowledged the noise and told me it was "normal engine noise". Sometimes these Toyotas did that, he said. Suggested maybe cleaning the fuel injection system would help. It didn't. I told them it might be normal for them to have it but it was not normal. Period. They told me is was absolutely NOTHING to worry about. So I left. Sometimes I'd hear the noise and sometimes it wasn't noticeable. About 10,000 miles later is when the transmission went. The only noise I heard when the transmission started acting weird was THAT noise, getting louder and louder and then my car stopped. I am so frustrated I don't know what to do. But I will be exploring any options I have. That's just not right.
Reply 4 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
Quote:
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Originally Posted by fishexpo101 
Sounds like normal wear.
Running gear is basically identical as the Corolla, except the Matrix weights a couple hundred pounds more. Even with a light touch, 8 years/72K miles on the OEM clutch is considered pretty decent. I've seen people go through clutches every 30K or sooner, if they are "spirited" drivers, a little more life if the drivers are more relaxed. There are a few that have more than 100K miles on the original clutch in mixed driving, but those are few and far between. As mentioned above, stop and go traffic, low speed driving, even if you are light on the clutch can wear it out over time. Being a wear item from the first generation/ first model year Matrix, there isn't much recourse for you at this point. Did you get to see the old disc, how it was worn out? |
Reply 5 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
I've been trying to read as much as I can on manual transmission issues with the Matrix. I just did the clutch in my 06 at 80K mi. I consider this a premature failure. My old 96 Subaru went 160K mi, and my old 93 Civic went 250K mi on the original clutch. My driving style and commute have not changed. So 80K is not acceptable to me.
Although I was expecting the clutch to fail early because of the tall 1rst gear in the Matrix. Actually I think all the gearing is too tall for the engine. You see many complaints about the Matrix being underpowered. The 1ZZ-FE engine is actually a pretty decent engine, but it's hobbled by probably the worst manual transmission I've ever owned (I've had quite a few over the years).
So from what I've read, only 80-100K is pretty normal for clutch life on this car. Probably due to the poor gearing.
However, it sounds like this is not what you are experiencing.
The 5-spd manual in the Matrix/Corolla also seems to suffer from internal bearing failures. I'm not sure what the real failure rates are, but there are a huge number of complaints about it on various web sites. (i.e.,
Take some time and read through the Edmunds site. Not very encouraging.
Reply 6 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
Another factor can be the thickness of the clutch itself. Some clutches are designed to last longer plain and simple.
Reply 7 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
Thanks. I have read some of the comments posted and have printed out about 20 pages. Think I will take Toyota a copy of them when I go talk to them. I'm really mad because now I feel like the rattle I've been hearing all this time has been coming from the transmission and maybe all of this COULD have been avoided. I've talked to a lot of Toyota owners in the past few days and they all are shocked that a Toyota manual transmisison would tear up with 72,000 miles. I may not get anywhere but I will go down fighting.
Reply 8 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
^^^ Good point above, both thickness and composition can vary significantly from manufacturer to manufacturer for a "street" or OEM like replacement disc.
Car manufacturers also have varying life expectancy for wear parts - the manual transmissioned Toyotas that I've owned had their clutches run to 100K-120K or so, before they started slipping too much. Some can get over 200K, some get significantly less. Like they say, YMMV.
Also, since you took the car in to be inspected the last time - there is some paperwork/workorder that should be in the system. If they put on the sheet, "noise was heard, declared normal", then you have some traction to get this potentially covered under warranty. Keep your cool, don't go in guns blazing, that will get you no where. Escalate this up the chain all the way to Toyota Corporate, if this doesn't get you anywhere, contact the BBB or similar consumer group - almost guarantee that someone will give you a call back.
Reply 9 : 2003 Toyota Matrix clutch problems
There's no point in not being nice about anything, even though it does make me mad. And I don't want something for nothing. After reading on line the past few days and thinking back to when I took it in, I really think they should at least fix the problem for less than full price. I said something to the manager on the phone about the noise problem and he just said it didn't have anything to do with it. Of course he's going to say that. I had not had time to get on line and do any research at that time. I will go up as far as I have to and I've already thought about the BBB. I know I will get a response if I file a complaint with them. Don't worry. I'll be nice. Fair is fair and that's all I want. Will keep posted. Have to get back to work now.
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