wondering if there is any major problems with the 2012 1.8 I4-SFI engines or major concerns with this vehicle. Trying to purchase off ebay.
Do you really want to buy a vehicle that you have not seen in person or driven ? Also I can’t understand why so many people ask if there are problems with a vehicle. Not all of them have the same problems . You can’t find a local vehicle that you can see and have a mechanic inspect it for you?
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Well I have owned many Toyota’s and test drove a 2010 Matrix just wondering about the I4-SFI engine on 2012. Haven’t found too many complaints on 2012 models.
Thanks
Pretty much a bullet-proof model. Here’s some proof for you. That said, you are crazy not to have a mechanic inspect a used car that has no warranty.
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It’s a 7 year old used car with an unknown history as to how it has been driven and maintained.
This means that it’s a gamble at best and without a pre-purchase inspection the house holds all the cards.
One 2012 Matrix with high miles may be in fantastic shape. Another 2012 with very low miles may be flirting with a car crusher. You simply can’t compare one to the other.
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I don’t know anything about them but isn’t there a 10% sales charge on Ebay? So you have to ask yourself why someone would be willing to pay that fee rather than just selling it locally. To me it is a bad idea unless dealing with a rare or vintage vehicle.
While I would never attempt to sell a flawed vehicle to somebody, if I was of that ilk, I would definitely advertise it on ebay, so that an unsuspecting person in a distant state would buy it without a chance to view its full maintenance history, and without an inspection by his own mechanic.
In the old days, this type of purchase was usually called “a pig in a poke”.
I bought my camper locally though an Ebay auction and I inspected the camper before placing the bid. An Ebay vehicle doesn’t have to be a blind purchase, set your search area for a distance that you are willing to travel.
There’s been some kind of valve sealing problem and diagnostic code saying a/f mixture imbalance reported with the 2ZR-FE engine. If you got that code present, a cylinder leak down test is how to tell. To minimize the chance of having this problem but no code, make sure the CEL comes on when you turn the key to on but don’t start the engine, then goes off immediately after starting the engine, and verify that all the readiness monitors have been completed.
If you don’t have that code, probably isn’t an issue. Other than that, I’m not seeing anything significant in the way of known problems.