AI Damage2004 Toyota Matrix: common problems
Owners of the 2004 Toyota Matrix filed 138 complaints with NHTSA, most often about powertrain and air bags. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 138
- involving a crash
- 18
What fails most often
- 1 Powertrain 27% of all complaints
- 2 Air bags 25% of all complaints
- 3 Vehicle speed control 11% of all complaints
- 4 Visibility 10% of all complaints
- 5 Electrical system 7% of all complaints
- 6 Steering 6% of all complaints
- 7 Structure 6% of all complaints
- 8 Fuel system 5% of all complaints
- Powertrain: 37 complaints (27% of all).
- Air bags: 35 complaints (25% of all), 4 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Vehicle speed control: 15 complaints (11% of all), 6 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Visibility: 14 complaints (10% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Electrical system: 9 complaints (7% of all).
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 1.8 L · petrol · 4 cyl
- automatic, 4-speed
- manual, 5-speednamed in 10 complaints
- manual, 6-speednamed in 10 complaints
Drive: FWD, AWD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 138 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain | 37 | 0 | 0 |
| Air bags | 35 | 4 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 15 | 6 | 0 |
| Visibility | 14 | 1 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 8 | 6 | 0 |
| Structure | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Fuel system | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| Tires | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| Suspension | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Electronic stability control | 2 | 1 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
At that moment, which was not a severe front end hit, I saw fire, an explosion, and the airbag blew out the entire dash on the passenger side, and flew to the back seat behind the driver's side. Also, the driver's side airbag deployed. Metal was flying out of the passenger side airbag in the front.
The air bags did not deploy. A police report was filed and there were no injuries. The vehicle was destroyed. It was unknown if the vehicle was towed because the contact could not remember.
My daughter said the steering totally locked while being driven. Her & her boyfriend could not get the steering wheel to turn at all. They were not speeding because it was on wet roads. They both suffered mild concussions & my daughter has a severe neck sprain.
Updated 09/18/15 the consumer stated the air bag never deployed in two separate head-on collisions. The consumer has since traded the vehicle. Updated 09/22/15
While the vehicle was stopped at a traffic light, the contact heard an abnormal noise and the vehicle accelerated on its own. As a result, the contact crashed into two parked vehicles. A police report was filed.
2004 matrix steering,the steering locked up. When I try to turn it, there is a harsh jerk it unlocked,causing the car to go from left to right then it did a 360 spin and went into the bushes,this all happened on 07/07/07 on the northern state parkway long island new york, my wife was driving the car at the time of the…
After last oil change, oil was gel-like, engine made tapping noise...took to dealer with a list of other problems, ac not cold, heater not blowing hot, window jumping when rolling down, and tires making funny noise.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving at various speeds, under normal driving conditions the vehicle veered from left to right and this condition became worse while stopping. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection. Upon inspection it was determined the tires were the cause of the steering problems.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 2,817 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 8% most complained about).
On average one model year of the Matrix has 91 complaints (13 years in the data). This year has 138, above average.
What to check before buying
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
- Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
- Vehicle speed control. Accelerator pedal, cruise control, throttle codes.
- Visibility. Wipers, mirrors, defrosters, cracked glass.
Other years of this model
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 2004 Toyota Matrix?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: powertrain, air bags, vehicle speed control. Total complaints: 138. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: knocking, grinding or other noise (11%), windows, sunroof (9%), transmission slipping (5%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 2004 Toyota Matrix?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 2004 Toyota Matrix from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 2004 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.