acceleration , even with base engine Roomy gas mileage

snow traction ( 16 in wheels 55 series tires) noise rattles gauges hard to read in strong light

I was in the market for a car after driving a truck for a number of years. Saw that the base model was just what i was looking for, though a 5 speed is hard to find. I am generally happy with the car, but be advised the 2wd with the 16's just does not perform like it should in the snow. I am happy with the acceration of the 130 HP motor, though it is a bit noisy. More squeaks and rattles than I expected, but not objectionable. Gas mileage in high 20's. Have had it back in because the plastic film appliques and the trim on the steering wheeel started to peel after just 1 month. No other problems. Overall a god ride so far.

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none

Somehow the doors to the Matrix lead to an interdimentional portal because the interior looks impossibly bigger than the exterior of the car. I'm 6ft 2in and even with the front seat all the way back, I had plenty of leg room. The plastic floors in the cargo area look strong enough to survive my two big Labradors. This car is VERY quiet except when accellerating to highway speed. Once there, put in some Mozart and enjoy. Over all an exceptional value

I agree that the instument pod is poorly lit even though it is exceptionally attractive. Fortunately, we got window tinting which makes it a non factor. 130HP is definitely just enough to make this car acceptable, I imagine the 4x4 version would have terrible accelleration.

After a few years of good service from my wife's 2000 New Beetle Turbo, we decided it was time for something a little more practicle. My wife had looked at a Pontiac Vibe, Chysler PT, Mazda Protoge5, and Ford Focus when we decided to check the Matrix. We already new the Matrix was essentially a Vibe but it's appearance was a bit more satisfying. Add to that the higher expected resale value and better warrenty and we were sold. I say better resale value because Pontiac is offering a $3000 rebate right now which most people don't realize enevitably drives resale down, besides it's a Pontiac.

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2000 VW Beetle GLX 2001 Ford Explorer Sport 1993 Infinity J-30 1998 VW Beetle GLS (we love bugs)

Style; quality, good sound system; fuel economy; good storage; a lot of options that are standard on XR model; roomy inside, and higher seat for the driver;

I wish the power locks with lock automatically when the car was turned on; other than that nothing so far.

I was not in the market for a new car. Took my Sienna in for routine checkup, and saw the Matrix on the lot. The next week I went to the dealership and drove the Matrix. It was love at first drive. I was tired of driving just plain cars, and loved the different look of the Matrix. Going to a smaller car again was easier with the Matrix as it is roomer than you think, and with the fold down back seats offers a lot of storage. I love the gas mileage...with my first tank I got 27 mpg with city driving and it only took $13 dollars to fill up the tank. So, far I have not hand difficulty reading the instruments. It handles well in the hwy, and is much easier to park than the mini van. I have the XR model, and really like all the options. The cargo nets are really good for keeping the groceries from sliding around. I am having to adjust to the "speed" control being on the left side rather than the right side of the steering wheel. Overall, I am pleased with the car....It brings back memories of my first car a 71 Super Beetle, only this one has a lot more options and air conditioner. The ride is not quite as smooth as my Camry, but for a smaller car, it is a good ride. I was amazed at the interior room. Since I'm not very tall, my taller friends can easily sit in the back seat. I also enjoy the sound system, mine has 6 speakers, and can hold six cds. Am looking forward to a long relationship with this car.

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71 Super Beetle; Toyota Corolla; Mazda RX-7; Mazda 626; Camry; 2000 Toyota Sienna

I absolutely love the fact that the back seats, when folded down, create a perfectly flat surface. I rave about this feature. The head room is fantastic I definitely don't feel at all crowded in the driver's seat. It has lots of neat little places to store things in and the around the dash. I get quite good milage with it and that makes my pocket book pretty happy. It's a smooth drive and the car handles quite well. The foot rest is also nice. The seats are quite comfortable as well, though more leg room is needed if you use a back support device like I do (I'm 5'7"). The seat covers are made specifically for the Matrix and they fit very well, though don't clean as well as a nylon cover would.

If it's a particularly sunny day, don't even think about reading the dashboard as you'll only get frustrated. The only thing that you can read is the 'cruise' light that's in yellow. I HATE not being able to see how fast I'm going. If it's cold out, I find the back hatch is finnicky about closing and I have to try it at least 2 times to get the latch to catch. The car also sometimes groans a bit when it's trying to gain speed on a highway on-ramp while going uphill. A few more HPs would be good. The plastic side cubbie covers in the back seem a bit cheap and I try to be careful if I open them. I REALLY wish the XR came with the 110 volt plug as I would have been so handy. Who really needs a lighter & an adapter socket? The all weather mats for the back seat cover about 1/2 of the area and I felt a bit ripped off with those. I also find the stereo volume needs to be turned up quite high while on the highway so it can be heard over the sound of the car.

This is my very first car ever (I'm 31)and I was looking for one that would last me at least 10 years. After hearing great things about Toyota, I decided to look at their cars. I was looking for a station wagon for dogs and camping gear and the Matrix fit the bill. I was also interested in good fuel efficiency as I knew I'd be using it a lot. I've been driving it for 5 months and put 11,000km on it so far without a problem. This winter it started in -28 degree Celsius weather with just a little reluctance. I've found it handles well in the snow when the conditions are respected (using all season tires). I'm happy with it and now hope it lasts me at least 12 years. It was a good purchase and I'm glad I waited for it.

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Well, I've driven lots of cars including the infamous little Peugot in England the Gag. My brother has a Honda Civic that I've driven and they are comparable. However, we both agree the Matrix has mor

Lots of room. Lots of power. Sits up high but still has a low centre of gravity. The 110V plugging in is great, I thought I would never use it but I thought wrong.

The gauges are hard to see in the day llight but tinting the windows solves the problem.

I looked at a lot of cars over six months and nothing compared to the Matrix in both price and ability. I have been driving the the Matrix for three months now and I have not found one thing I don't like about it. I can fit my bike, skiies, camping gear, etc and still have comfortable room for two on a long drive. The 6-speed is a must for the XRS. I drove both the automatic and manual but to get the most out of the 180hp you need to have the 6-speed. The tall 6th grear is great when you are on the big Highways. I have herd complaints about the tires being only summer but I have driven them this winter and had no problems. They will wear fast but they are fun to drive with. The VVTL-i is great for I wonted. Drive it under 5000 rpm and you have 130hp, crank it up past 5000rpm and you get the extra 50hp. You don't need 180hp for driving around town. If you are looking for sports car that is still functional this is your ticket.

Smooth and comfortable ride, Excellent Fuel Economy, Stylish looks, Roomy and completely configurable interior. Lots of cargo space. 6 Speaker CD changer option has wonderful sound. Excellent Handling.

Rather Loud Engine noise on acceleration. Poor Customer Support from Toyota. Delivered with Summer only tires in the middle of a harsh winter!?!? Vehicle has NO snow traction with the 17" tires installed. Interior Silver trim looks cheap (although I haven't had the glare problem on the gauges others have mentioned)

After doing tremendous research on which vehicle to get to replace our 99 RAV 4, we ended up with a Matrix XR. Originally we wanted an AWD version, but after reading numerous reviews saying the AWD was underpowered we chose the XR 2WD version. Since the XR could use a little more pep as it is I am glad we did. All in all the Matrix is an excellent vehicle with a general all-around quality to it. From the stylish looks on the outside to the comfortable and roomy interior, its hard not to recommend this car to anyone looking for a reliable yet versatile compact car. It has adequate engine power (albeit noisy), tremendous handling and storage for just about anything you can think of. Its not all good though as Toyota attempted to cater this car to just about every type of driver they could come up with...unfortunately their sales people sell all the versions as if they are the same. They want younger people to purchase the car for the sporty look and modern interior. They want the 30 somethings to purchase it for the family storage room. And they want sports car fanatics to go for the XRS version with a better engine and sport tires. Moral of the story be careful what you buy? XR and XRS versions genrally have some options that may not be suitable for all. We had the 17" tires upgrade on our XR and boy was that a mistake as the 17" that come standard are NOT for winter diving at all. We quickly replaced ours after a long fight with our dealer. Toyota will tell you its your responsibility to research all aspects of the tires, yet they never mention in any brochure or the sticker that the tires are for summer driving only and get this have NO treadlife warranty (treadlife will only be 15k to 20k tops from the standard 17" Firehawk tires) Bottom line, its an excellent vehicle, just make sure you get the version which is appropiate to your driving style and area which you live.

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2001 RAV 4 2000 Echo 2000 Corolla 2002 Camry

Good price, high mileage per gas, good inner design, 110 V power for my laptop.

No.

We study the car for a long time. And we bought one with good price including lots of features: cruise control, sport package, and advanced sport package. The mark price is more than $19,000. But we show the price for www.carsdirect.com to manage and told him Toyota Miller give me a even better price. The manage show me their invertory and its invoice $17,399. There is a $750 rebate, and the manager gave me another ~$350 discount. So my price is $16,297 and the total paid is $17,845. We are happy with the price and bought it. So far, we didn't find any problem. We will report our comments if we have some.

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Honda Accord (2001, my brother's car) Geo prism (92)

Base model is well equipped. XR and XRS has everything you could ever want and more. Versital, roomy, sporty and a joy to drive.

I'll have to jump in and complain about the instrument panel like everyone else. Recommend tinted windows to reduce the glare off the gages. To many option packages makes it difficult to configure. No manual transmition offered in AWD.

As a Landcruiser owner, I was tired of the $40+ weekly bill at the pump caused by the dismal 15.6 mpg. I was looking for an economical sport utility with good gas mileage. I found it in the Matrix. Don't be fooled by its size. This vehicle has ample room for 4 adults with amenities usually found in higher cost luxury vehicles. Many have complained of its lack of power. I found the Matrix to have a perfect balance of power and gas mileage. I compared it to the Subaru Impreza TS because of the similar size and utility. The Subaru has 160 hp, but only gets 21mpg city and 27mpg highway, and that's if you keep your foot off the gas pedal. The Subaru cost the same, but has a cheap feal to its interior components. Driveability is similar with the Toyota providing much smoother starts and acceleration due to its broad torque band. True, your not going to win any drag races but you'll be passing all those speed demons when they stop at the pump for a refuel.

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Subaru wagon, Ford Focus.

The car is attractive and is very good on gas, which was a major issue for me. If perfomes well as long as you don't have to drive up large hills. My largest concern is that my daytime lights come on when the vehicle is turned off. I have made several trips to the dealorship and they are believing that the problem stems from a faulty or missing relay switch. Of course the when the lights come on it drains the battery. Generally the lights are coming on during the night.

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1994 Corolla 1996 Camry 1997 Camry

A generous fuel economy was my selling point, even with the AWD. Storage pockets abound, with a slot perfect for your wallet on long trips, an in dash compartment that holds glasses perfectly, a center console compartment, and several change organizers. The vehicle brakes well, has good acceleration for a V4, and has a footrest for your left foot on long trips.

The seats attract lint and the interior is dark in color; the tailgate can be diffucult to shut completely and the hatch window cannot be left open without the interior light remaining on.

Whether commuting to work or to the countryside for weekend, as most of us do, my Matrix has served me with the gretest ease and pleasure of any car that I have either owned or rode in as a passenger. I have a base model that came with a power package that included power windows, locks, keyless entry, a rear bumper protector, carpeted mats and AWD. All I lack from the XR is power mirrors and foglights, aside from the 120v AC plug. It's silver and gets me about 31 MPG in mixed driving. The cargo space is incredibly easy and fits whatever you'd want and suv for outside of towing.

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