If you thought Toyota's recall woes were over, think again. The federal government is now probing several complaints from customers who claim that their vehicles will randomly begin to stall.
The stalling concerns affect about 1.2 million Toyota Corolla, Toyota Matrix, and Pontiac Vibe models that were made between 2005 and 2007. Though the Pontiac Vibe was made by General Motors, the Pontiac Vibe is included in the investigation because it was made in the same plant it is based on the same platform as the Toyota Matrix, so the two vehicles share many parts.
The problem stems from a defect in soldered joints within the engine control module (ECM). After a period of time, the solder can loosen causing the ECM to short. When the ECM shorts the engine cuts off creating a stall or no start condition.
Toyota, wants the faulty ECM problem to be handled under a Technical Service Bulletin, or TSB, rather than a recall. The reason for this, is that TSB's are typically handled on a case by case basis, rarely make it to the mainstream media, and reduces the amount of liability Toyota would have to take on if the vehicle was recalled.
It should also be noted that Toyota believes the problem affects less than 0.8% of the vehicles built within that time period. This amounts to roughly 960 vehicles.
Toyota also believes that no power situation is not a major safety concern, since a vehicle can still be steered and braked without power; though, it does take significantly more effort to do both. The fix to the problem will be a new ECM, which, from my understanding, is straightforward and simple swap out.
theCD's take: Do you think this is a safety concern? Ask yourself this the next time you mere onto the highway.
Source: Motor Trend & USA Today
Comments
Correction: The Toyota Matrix was produced in Canada, However the Toyota Corolla and Pontiac Vibe were produced together in the same Freemont, Ca. Plant For more information, check out www.genvibe.com
To be clear, the Pontiac Vibe is indeed a rebadge of the Toyota Matrix. But only the Vibe was made at the NUMMI plant in California.
This was due to the relationship between GM and Toyota to make different vehicles at the same plant, to jointly explore manufacturing improvements.
@Chris @Neil: Thanks for the correction
I’ve recently started a blog, the information you provide on this site has helped me tremendously. Thank you for all of your time & work.
I have a 2006 Corolla that until now has been very reliable. While approaching an intersection the engine died and steering and brakes were rendered almost useless. Thank goodness we were going only 20 MPH. It's a safety issue in my opinion and we now have second thoughts about owning another Toyota after almost 20 years of having nothing but...
Valuable info. Lucky me I found your site by accident, I bookmarked it.
We have a 2007 Vibe. Which yesterday started stalling and not starting. Check engine light came on. Went by Auto Zone They checked & said It was the ECM. Is Toyota or GM covering the expense to replace the ECM?
My pregnant wife just got stuck in the left hand lane of a very busy street due to this problem, I think. We have a 2005 Pontiac Vibe and it stalled with no warning. It scared her and me. Yes. This is a safety issue, Toyota!
Thought there might be something wrong with the computer in my 05 vibe? I was driving when suddenly it lost all power and i was in heavy moving traffic, i was lucky enough to be able to coast across 2 lanes and straight into a thortons station. I tried to restart it several times but it continued to die.I had it towed home instead of to the garage, i have messed with it for several days trying to save the cost of the dealership guys( i use to be one) anyway after several attempts to scan for trouble codes with no success i found this sight, thank god,,confirming my conclusion of a bad ecm,,check engine lights on but no trouble codes,,now just to get it replaced ..yes very very dangerous safety issue-- pontiota
Well, it was the ECM and my local GM dealer in DeKalb took care of it saying it was under warranty. Needless to say, I was pleased that I didn't have to shell out the 600 dollars to get a new ECM. Pontiac was responsive and I appreciated it.
Terrific work! This is the type of information that should be shared around the web. Shame on the search engines for not positioning this post higher!
I was driving on 70 near Akron,OH when the ECM went out on my 2005 Vibe while pulling a pop-up camper. Very dangerous when the steering got hard. Thecar has been great and has super mileage ~ 38-40 mpg. I take very ggod care of it and never had any problem before. I hope Pontiac will stand by this car since other than the ECM problem it has been a dream.
Any update on whether Toyota is issuing a recall on this. My ECM went out at 83,000, and Toyota won't cover it under its TSP, which maxes out at 80,000. Pretty lousy of them. If there is a recall, I will get reimbursed.
This just went on our 06 VIbe, luckily in a car park and not on a busy highway.....just imagine stalling out on a freeway, with a semi taking aim at your rear end !.......Really makes you wonder where the motor companies thoughts are about this....."we'll wait for a few deaths ?"
My wife has an 06 Vibe, Just spent $520 having the cat replaced because the car would drive a block then stall, drive a block then stall etc etc... PCM/ECU reported a faulty cat, needless to say it was the PCM/ECU that appears to be having the issues. Going to have to shell out another $600 or so to get that repaired. 960 vehicles... whatever Toyota. They need to man up and accept full responsibility for shoddy soldering on the PCM/ECU and give me my money back for the repair or face a class action lawsuit.
Route 10 NJ, left hand lane, 50 mph and the check engine light came on. My 2007 Vibe stalled a few seconds later and wouldn't restart right away. Scary situation with traffic. I was lucky to actually have two cars behind me stop. One guy even jumped out and helped me push the car to the curb. I wish there was something to check ahead of time. If the welds on the ECM are really the problem this should probably be a safety recall. The situation the ECM created was most definitely unsafe.
My check engine light came on two weeks ago and it started shifting hard. I went straight to Advance Auto Parts and had them check the code, electrical fault of pressure control solenoid D. I have an extended warranty, so I took it to the dealer and they determined that it was the ecm. If this affects only 960 vehicles, why was the ecm on back order nationwide? It took a week to get one. But my gas mileage is much better now. But yeah, I'd say this is a safety issue. Plus, it could have done serious damage to my transmission.
However, now my blower motor is vibrating on the top two speeds now. I found a screw on the passenger side floor and now I have to take it back to the dealer to have them finish their work.
See where Toyota has issued a recall to replace ECM on 2005-2008 Toyota Matrix and Toyota Corolla with the 1ZZ-FE engine.
http://pressroom.toyota.com/pr/tms/toyota/customer-faqs-for-corolla-corolla-168496.aspx
I have a 2005 Pontiac Vibe with the 1ZZ-FE engine, but I called Pontiac and right now there is no recall for the Vibes. Maybe it is just too early, Toyota just made the announcement today, but you would think Pontiac would be making the same announcement at the same time since this is essentially the same car as the Matrix. But right now, no official recall for the ECM on the Vibes.