There are 4 owner-reported electrical system complaints for the 2009 Toyota Matrixin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
I JUST NARROWLY MISSED AN ACCIDENT WITH A TRAIN. MY CAR ENGINE SHUT OFF RIGHT OVER THE TRAIN TRACK TODAY. MY 2009 TOYOTA MATRIX FIRST PROBLEM STARTED STALLING SUDDENLY IN TRAFFIC LAST YEAR, BUT NOW VERY FREQUENTLY STALLS EVEN ON HIGHWAYS AT HIGH SPEEDS. NO WARNINGS. WHEN STALLED ALL LIGHTS COMES ON IN DASH, INCLUDING "CHECK ENGINE" LIGHT. COMPLETELY TURN OFF IGNITION AND RESTARTING IS THE ONLY WAY TO START THE CAR AGAIN. AFTER RESTARTING THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT GOES OUT. OCCURRED SEVERAL TIMES IN ALL SORTS OF WEATHER, BUT MORE FREQUENT ON HOT SUMMER DAYS. RESTART CLEARED ENGINE COMPUTER, DEALERSHIP HAD DIFFICULT TIME REPLICATING FAILURE. BUT, ADVISE TO REPLACEMENT THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE AS IT WAS A WELL KNOWN SAFETY RECALL FOR THE YEAR MODELS UP TO 2008. DEALER REFUSE TO ASSUME THE COST OF REPLACE THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE (ECM). NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 10V384000
WHILE DRIVING, THE CAR STALLS. EVERYTHING TURNS OFF AND I'M DEAD ON THE STREET, TURNPIKE OR HIGHWAY. I HAVE TAKEN THE CAR IN TWICE, BUT TOYOTA HAS NO IDEA WHAT IS HAPPENING. SOMETIMES IT DOES NOT HAPPEN FOR A WHILE, AND THEN IT WILL START STALLING AGAIN. I HAVE TAKEN THE CAR IN AGAIN AFTER STALLING ON THE PA TURNPIKE. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE. I AM STALLING ON CITY ROADS, HIGHWAYS, TURNPIKES, AND I RISK AN ACCIDENT OR BEING KILLED. THIS IS A DANGEROUS ISSUE. I HAVE INFORMED THE TOYOTA CAR DEALERSHIP THIS WILL BE THEIR LAST TIME TO FIND THE PROBLEM AND FIX IT.
ALTERNATOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACE. *TR
2009 LOW MILEAGE TOYOTA MATRIX STALLS SUDDENLY IN TRAFFIC, COMPLETE STALL, MUST RESTART. OCCURRED SEVERAL TIMES IN ALL SORTS OF WEATHER, BUT MOSTLY IN HUMID CONDITIONS. RESTART CLEARED ENGINE COMPUTER DEALERSHIP HAD DIFFICULT TIME REPLICATING FAILURE. FINALLY REMEDIED WITH REPLACEMENT OF ELECTRONICS PART IN JUNE 2009. *TR
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026