2003 Toyota Matrix XRS: Regular Car Reviews 

I’ll never forget the guy passing me down the highway doing about 80 in 2007 riding in one of these with the hatch door open revealing an ungodly large speaker mounted to it blasting Rammstein’s Du Hast.

Nobody: Toyota Matrix: *Exists* Scotty Kilmer: *Heavy breathing*

I saw this thumbnail and was like: oh yeah. That’s a regular car.

My parents owned one of these, it got stollen twice, got broken into 4 times and survived me learning to drive. Good car in my book

Owner looks like hes coming straight from a late 90's dutch hardcore rave

Inflation adjustment is substantial for early 2000s car. We are getting old.

I had a '04 Matrix Base, most practical car I've ever owned. Loved it! Not fast, not great handling, but super reliable and the hatch space was killer!

I've had this car's NUMI twin, the 2004 Pontiac Vibe GT, since new. Once you know how to drive it, it's kind of fun. And absolutely reliable. Drove it off the dealer lot in 2004 and never went back. Not once. Ever. My only complaints are with the transmission and it eats tires.

when you only upgrade engine

Someone just killed my 2003 XRS by rear ending it hard. It's been a sad week. Loved that car.

I hauled a teardrop trailer across half of America in one of these, couldn't go over 70 without hitting 7 on the RPM and going up the mountains of Colorado felt like participating in American Gladiator while hauling a two-door refrigerator on your back but goddamn it I did it.

A friend of mine had one and the best thing he ever did was install a TRD short shift kit, upgraded oil pump system and an LSD. He said it made a world of difference to the driving enjoyment. Loved the engine and ended up doing a small turbo kit to help low end torque and the thing was a hoot with 300whp and 285wtq.

The AM radio thing=I'm dying. 😂😂

That's the best comparison for a Toyota interior I have EVER heard

I was waiting on a Keanu Reeves "Matrix" reference but the bird poop story was well worth it.

YES on the Cable Throttle Bodies!!! I miss them so much!!! 😢

Bar-O-Metal ®

I have a lot of memories with the Matrix. We had a blue 2003 base model with the 5 speed manual. I remember being chauffeured to 1st grade in it when I was 6, to learning stick on it when I was 15, to driving it to and from school when I was 16, right up until the day we sold it for $125 with 285,000 miles when I was 18. It didn't break down a single time while we owned it, and everything except the cassette player worked by the end of its time with us. It was comfortable, surprisingly fun to throw around, and decently equipped for a cheap car. Windy windows and all.

Toyota matrix: one of the very few “hot hatchbacks” we get in the states. I love Toyota

I drove the Plymouth Vibe version of this car from Detroit Michigan to Nicaragua and back over 9 months. It was driven over catastrophically poor roads, with questionable fuel quality and it never ever failed to perform. We sold it to a high school kid whose mom wished she could replace her own GM SUV with it. It was a manual, in electric blue. Her name was La Delfina. I love her still.

I own a Lotus and this is totally feels like a Lotus hatchback - no place to comfortably rest your left elbow, no steering wheel telescoping, one-wheel burnouts, awful shifter feel, dreams of one day doing a k20 swap distracting you from driving, and not being able to run it fast without your mind being fixated on the oil starvation issues

This video was... shockingly normal. Run out of peyote or something?

70mph in 3rd gear? I tested out my Fit and it went to 80 in third. Which is fun.

So basically with about 5000 dollars worth of parts and a good tune this would be an interesting as hell sleeper.

WAIT A GOD DAMN SECOND, I thought I recognized that on ramp. Better get yourself checked after being in Columbia

I have been red lining line my 2zz for 5 years. There's nothing wrong with my oil pump then. 😂

I bought an XR model a year ago for $5,000 after insurance, taxes(CA!), and registration(ALSO CA!) I do enjoy the car and am glad I bought it. I hope to get several years out of it. Thank you for the review.

When you're from Pennsylvania and you suddenly realize you know exactly where RCR was filming

Long time listener, first time poster for "Birds In The Burbs" on 1360AM

Thanks for using my car 🤟🏾. You guys are the best

A regular car on Regular Car reviews? Has hell frozen over?

I love the rear glass hatch in my '06 VIBE. The Matrix/VIBE are great cars.

Japan got the Vibe instead of the Matrix for some reason (built in the same California factory as our Vibe and Matrix, but RHD), and called it the Voltz. They barely tried to hide the Pontiac styling, all they did was replace the arrow badge with one of their own design and use some of the Toyota version's interior parts.

I had this car. It was by far one of my favorite cars I ever owned. Absolutely underrated and loads of fun.

Wow. My mom had one of these. Never knew it was this cool and why she seemed to love it so much. I have an 07 Civic Si now. I think I understand now.

I have a 04 Matrix XR with 165k and it has it's original drivetrain and ac, pwr steering and everything. Best car I've ever owned. It may not be the best looking but it's been damn reliable.

The Toyota Corolla Matrix: The Dan Bell dead mall series on wheels.

I have a 2003 matrix xrs that has over 200,000 miles on it . And still drives like when I bought it in 2003.

The 1zz models of the matrix and vibes are phenomenal cars.

I've got an 09 Pontiac Vibe 1.8L. 200k miles. Love it to death.

This has to be one of the best new classic-style RCR videos you've made.

I love my old Matrix. It is such a fun car to drive

And just by this video the xsr variant just went up in resale value.....

TBH, I didn't even know the Matrix XRS existed before I saw this. Once I saw this video, I knew this would be the perfect first car. Beforehand, I was debating between a manual IS300 and an EP3 Civic Si, but I couldn't find either in my price range. Here I am a year later, happy as can be with my 04 XRS, such an amazingly fun car! Thanks, Mr. Regular!

I used to autocross one of these. Not sure but i felt as though- with enough work- I could really utilize the weight of the hatch to flick this thing around corners. Super fun car to drive. The 2zz is an awesome engine... despite it's few flaws.

I love my stupid Pontiac Vibe, but that chrome gauge trim is shit. I pulled that and the steering wheel badge off and hit it with 500 grit sandpaper.

I lost my 03 matrix xrs New Year’s Day 2019. 220000 miles of smiles. I miss it.

180HP in this segment back then was a big deal, most cars back then were 130HP or so. There was Corolla XRS too, I saw one on a dealer lot a few months ago and was just surprised.

The euro corolla T Sport Compressor had this engine WITH a supercharger... Yep… the sound of vvt with lift and supercharger whine is godly!

"redline is 8200 rpm or 8400 rpm depending on who you're arguing with" 😂🤣

Absolute base 285,000km 2005 Toyota Matrix that has been daily driven to this day (not by me, only owned it for about 8 years but was in the family) with no A/C, no power windows, no power locks, 5 speed trans, and the 1.8l 4 cylinder this car just works. Pulls well on the highway as the review states, gets good fuel economy, will spin tires pretty damn easy and accelerates damned well around town, and the back storage area folds perfectly flat. The last part is key, it is a hard plastic storage area with tie-downs so tons of space to carry stuff. I regularly use mine to carry tools, a full size spare, and lumber with no concerns fitting them or damaging anything. 8'-0" lumber will fit perfectly between the hatchback door and front console. As a wagon this thing works damned well. I plan to drive this fun little wagon till it rusts into the ground (because Toyota). Has been running flawless although I expect a clutch will be required sooner then later.

ex wife had one of these she bought new. we drove that puppy all over the US. got a consistent 30mpg. great cargo space. Threw a rod out the block like a gunshot at 201,000 miles.

>tfw you put the good engine in the fat hatchback instead of the mid-engined two-seater sports car

I think I just watched a car review? That's not why I come here!

Why Rev hang exists, if anyone is curious: At full throttle in a port fuel injected car, the inside walls of the intake runners will often get "wet" with fuel, and if you snap the throttle closed, this fuel will pour into the cylinders with very little air to go along with it, resulting in a temporary, extremely rich air/fuel ratio. This is bad for emissions and can damage the catalytic converter over time, so engines with electronic throttle bodies will keep the butterfly slightly open for a fraction of a second to make sure the excess fuel gets burned efficiently. Thanks for coming to my TED talk, I got this information from one of the Smoking Tire podcasts.

As an owner of one of these, YES. YES. YEEEEESSS! You were so on point for this! The wheelspin, the steering wheel, and the glass and all that. The only thing I disagree with is the suspension. I have an 04, so it may be different, but the roll isn't too bad, and it takes corners fine with minimal understeer. This was a good one, RCR, thanks.

Good morning Mr. Regular. I miss the Valley and watching these vids help.

Morning Mr R nice vid Edit:took me a minute to realize this but my dad used to have a Pontiac Vibe in silver. It was a automatic and just a little commuter car that he bought because of side airbags (ooh aah we were coming from a 03 Ford Escort 2 door which had maybe 2 airbags and only in the front). That was the only Pontiac my dad owned apart from a base model beat up 88 firebird back in the 90s Edit2:8:28 is guy that hauling hay in his Jeep

My friend has a vibe. It's pretty much the same. That thing takes a beating. He lives on a dirt road and would pack a couple bales of alfalfa in the back. It's got 300k miles on it at this point too.

I been going back thru your catalogue lately to have something to binge all day so I don't have to focus on the things I'm doing... The comment about a mechanical throttle body, it's so real... It's something I consistently lust after 😩

I miss my 2000 Celica GT-S (with 2ZZ)... Smiles is what it made. Not fast, but fun. Note: Highest mileage I got ever recorded was 39.5 MPG.

My girl has one of these. You can fit sooo much stuff in the back..it defies physics.

The Matrix had pretty groundbreaking style back in it's day.

Thanks for the quality video. Lots of different concise elements in this video. I’ve never been fond of Matrix’s. I recently bought a Civic Si from this era, so its neat to know Toyota had something to compete.

B I R D B R O W N

The dying mall reference was gold. I've always had a liking for these. I comb auctions for them and they seem to sell for higher prices. Pontiacs do well too. I guess dealers and car nerds knew this long before I did. Now you put it all out there !!! Well done . Do you have a Buick Rivera or 89 reatta with the first touch screen comming up?

How did I miss this when you first posted it? I had an 03 Matrix XRS from 2009 to 2017. It had the automatic. Oh god what a criminal thing to do to this car. It sapped all of the joy out of it. I bought it to replace a base 03 Matrix with a 5 speed that got totaled. The base Matrix was not trying to pretend it was something it wasn’t, unlike that automatic XRS. When my XRS was nearing end of life I used it like a pickup truck, hauling all manner of crap in it. I even used it to haul sod.

I absolutely loved my 2006 vibe. Base model, but it had the "Monsoon" sound system (I added my own boombooms). The seats are still the most comfortable things I have ever sat on. I de-badged it and made my own dash emblem that said "Veeb". Because "EEEEEEEVES THE VEEB" I was 17, don't judge me.

I have an 05 with factory JBL sound system with the subwoofer, all electric trim with sunroof and only 85 000 miles on it, i love it i think its so confortable and smooth for long drives

Can't wait to see him review the Corolla XRS lol

I had a Matrix for 10 years, I wish I had the XRS but it was just the XR, very reliable, my favourite feature was being able to fold the front passenger seat flat when loading the car up with stuff, sadly I miss that on my new car

The 2ZZ is what the AE86/FRS/BRZ should've come with...

It's 4am and about to put in for the night and see RCR just posted a new video 15 mins ago, gotta watch it.

I was shopping these when new, ended up going with the Acura RSX Type S because it was nicer inside, more power, and mainly because that shifter sucked balls. The room would have been much better for me, being tall... but you nailed it Mr Regular. The 6 speed in the early aughts in the RSX-S and the 5 speed in the thunder guppy skinny tired Si was soo sooo smooth.

A friend's dad had one of these when we were growing up, and I always had a soft spot for it

Thank you for making this video. I miss my xrs. Seriously thinking about buying another one.

I've an '06 XR w 230K mi and I love mine! 5spd and still going strong!

I just bought one of these. A 2008 Xr with a automatic. I love it. It's rust free and runs like new. Got it for $2,900.

Thank you Mr regular for explaining something about my Celica transmission I couldn't explain

I have been waiting for this review a long time, really great video the ideal regular car.

OMG YES! I am the second owner of my 05 Matrix XRS after it was given to me by my Dad and this was the first year they did the refresh of the 1st gen Matrix. They addressed that awful looking orange instrument cluster with a black, red, and white color scheme and I LOVE IT!!!! Looks way better and it's easier to read. I also see what you're saying with the clunky feeling of the shift feel. It is rough and I like to push my Matrix in the canyons and if I shift too fast it just grinds. To fix that, just change the transmission fluid to something a little thicker I believe? If you go on Monkey Wrench Racing (a company that specializes in Toyota / Lotus cars) website, they'll have different kinds and thorough descriptions of each one that would work. In case anyone is interested in purchasing one. I have 233,000 miles on the original engine and then the valve train blew out on me last year. I couldn't give up on this gem of a Toyota so I went all out and bought another 2ZZ-GE engine from Monkey Wrench Racing and upgraded the connecting rods, port and polished the heads, upgraded the valves, valve springs, and retainers, increased the compression ratio, AND went with stage 2 cams. I just saved enough money to buy the engine and just had it installed last week and so far I can feel it pull way harder compared to the stock engine!! I haven't pushed it to the limit yet, still gotta break it in but I honestly can't wait to hear the LIFT KICK IN!! But there are still a couple of issues I have to address so we'll see how it goes. I would highly recommend the Matrix XRS! It's so underrated!

You finally did previous car (Well I had an 2005 Pontiac Vibe AWD which I loved to death). I have 2019 Honda Fit now. Vibe died in a wreck.

Always kinda likes these to be honest. Glad you made a video of these, was curious how they drove.

I like the matrix series. My mom and my aunt got one, and I just got one for my wife. Swapped the clutch, and you know what? It is a fun little car that doesn't suck for practical stuff. Honestly feels like it has less body roll than my brother's Mazda 3 hatch that is several years newer. I didn't think I would ever want one, having driven my mom's XR automatic. But with a manual, it does what you want when you want.

xrs corollas are like the ultimate sleeper car

Awesome video! I've had my 2003 Pontiac Vibe GT (same as the Matrix XRS) and it's been a perfect college car. Tons of space with the seats folded down, decent gas mileage, and with somewhat high ground clearance for a FWD hatchback I get around fine with snow tires in the winter where we get over 350 inches of snow a season (I go to Michigan Tech). Plus, it's very fun to rev it out from first to third! One of my friends from high school has had a couple of them and recently turbocharged his. It's now making around 240-ish HP at the wheels. Very interested to see what it's like this summer when I'm back home.

I know this is an older video, but to Mr. Regular: on my Rav4 with a five speed, I changed the shift cable bushings out to 608rs skateboard bearings. I really only did it because I couldn't find shift bushings for sale, but it also made a dramatic improvement in shifting

i love these reviews keep them coming. great content

Early morning crew where are you?

Man, that bird guy story made me realize how much we're going to appreciate one another after this pandemic ends, if only for a little while. Talking to a random old fart about his racing pigeons sounds like a pleasant dream right about now.

So, I don’t really know much about cars and a lot of this is over my head, 😆 but this is the car I’m going to look at tomorrow and I enjoyed the stories and anecdotes along the way lol. Thank you 🙏😊

It appealed to my parents as we had to scrape our 1997 corolla. The hatch back makes it seems to be able to haul more stuff which is very true. Haul even better, sits more comfortable than a Mazda 3 hatch. It taught me to prioritize comfort when the time comes to have my own car. Thank you for reviewing this car.

I have the factory spec TRD XR model from 2003. While it only has a 1zz-fe, it does make up for it by having a TEIN coilover setup and that awesome supercharger. I've done too many mods to list them all here, but I am eventually going to twin charge this engine by adding a turbo and swap in an AWD manual from a Celica GT4. It's been a slow process but I have enjoyed this build. It's such an unsuspecting car but so much fun to rip. I recommend them to anyone who is looking for a reliable car that's cheap and fun to drive. Good luck finding a TRD supercharged model though. Only 500 of those were made for the entire world. I'm the only one that I know that still has one in Pennsylvania.

Yesss I have a 2004 Matrix. Thing beats all the other hatch backs

When I saw the title I had to read the comments about Scotty Kilmer. I'm so proud of you.

Thank you for this, It brought back so many decent memories. I just retired my 2003 "corolla" matrix that had around 389,000km(241,000ish Miles) on it(had to keep track of the mileage with the trip meter due to the 299,999km glitch). The engine and transmission was still sound but the body up here in Newfoundland was really starting to get eaten by the environment. That and I lost a rad, water pump and it needed so much exhaust and suspension work that I just ended up selling the new winter tires for it and selling it to a salvage yard. Put the $600 into the work I needed to get a 2012 V6 Rav4 to pass inspection.

Ha my dad had the Pontiac version of this car, the Vibe GT. He bought it new in 2003 and just got rid of it last year with over 300k miles (the odometer stopped counting at 299,999). It had the 17" wheels and navigation. I learned how to drive stick with this car when I was 16, and it is by far the hardest manual transmission car I've driven to date. I work at a dealership now and I've driven a WRX, Focus ST, Focus RS, Mustang GT, GT350, S4, Camaro SS 1LE, Wranglers, Tacomas - all easier to drive. I would stall at every hill and most stoplights with this torqueless car and it's sensitive friggin clutch. I kind of didn't like the car but it sounded nice and handled pretty well.

FINALLY!!! My childhood car gets reviewed!

The peninsula legit made me laugh out loud. I know what you're talking about. I can finally fully relate to a video I'm watching. Going from 2nd to 3rd, I thought was me. So happy it's not just me.

Base Matrix was on my list before I found a decent first gen CRV. Good to know these have such high value.