2008 Toyota Matrix Steering Problems

“Several months ago I drove through a puddle of water in our parking lot at work. It was storming with the wind blowing as well. When I drove through the puddle, my battery light came on and I lost steering. Then engine never stopped. Once I traveled a few yards, the steering started working and the battery light went off. It happened another 3 more times before I ever left my work facility. I was able to drive to a Toyota dealership for them to check it out. They found nothing wrong with the car. I told them something makes me lose steering associated with water. …”

“2008 Toyota Matrix xr....car drifts severely to the left at highway speeds...especially when in the left lane. I realize there is a crown to every road, but our other vehicles do not do this on the same stretch of highway in any lanes. To give an indication of the severity, at 65+MPH, the car would be in the median within 2-3 seconds without the constant rightward pressure on the steering wheel. I did not notice the drift on the test drive at the dealer. For what it's worth, the new roadway near the dealer is nearly perfectly flat. …”

“The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Matrix. The contact stated that there was an internal electrical short that progressed intermittently for three years. In addition, the instrument cluster flickered, various internal and external lights randomly illuminated, and the power steering failed, which caused the steering wheel to be extremely tight. The contact also indicated that the vehicle stalled multiple times without warning. The first dealer diagnosed that the battery would not hold a charge. The dealer replaced the battery and the failure recurred. …”

“The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Matrix. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 MPH and attempting to accelerate, the accelerator pedal failed to respond. The contact attempted to pull over and discovered that the steering wheel was difficult to turn after the engine and power steering fluid warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was powered off and back on, the warning indicators were no longer illuminated and the vehicle was able to be driven. The failure recurred on several occasions. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. …”