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IS YOUR GARAGE PROTECTING YOUR CAR BETTER THAN YOUR BARGAIN-RATE CAR INSURANCE? I W i itutt )iu t anyone lo tnw rc your car. me W ayne M cG ill 2345 Wycxmti Rd. * 2 1. ( Xikvillc 905-847-5671 BEST WHEELS An Oakville Beaver Automotive Feature · To advertise in this section call 905-845-3824 or Fax 905-337-5568 f if t n il ® Jc v J *0 tirV j t o * v|» j > ,'( ?v t> J5 ql r - y w r:A'-'> " a & -V - £ £ Toyota Matrix hits target by being hip and affordable You'd think with all the trucks it already has in the lineup, the last thing Toyota needs is to add another. After all. there are the 4Runner. Highlander and RAV4 SUVs on top of two pickups. So why add another SUV/crossover vehicle? Toyota has never been one to gel the pulse of con sumers wrong and they see in the Matrix a need for what they call 'street perform ance utility1 . The idea is to blend the perform Jim Robinson ance of a sporty car with Ihe practicality of a SU V and wrap it all up into an eco nomical to operate package. This combination w ill attract younger buyers who see the RAV 4 as too dowdy and the Highlander and 4Runner as too big and expensive for their modest needs. It is interesting that General Motors came to the same conclusion and that has resulted in The General having a Toyota build its Vibe for them in California. That is. however, another story. The Matrix is proudly built in Cambridge. Ont.. and is a feather in the cap of the workers there who landed the contract. It also goes to prove, that like Honda in Alliston and GM in Oshawa, the people who assemble vehicles in Ontario are the best in the entire world. Hats off to them! The Matrix is built in three models, the Matrix, the X R and the XR S. The Matrix and X R are both offered with a choice of front-wheel drive with five-speed manual or four-speed auto matic transmission or with four-wheeldrive and a four-speed automatic trans mission. The engine tor both is a 1.8-litre, twin cam. four-cylinder producing 130 hp and 125 lb/ft of torque in the FW D version. Because of the rather compli cated exhaust system, the 4W D version is offered with 123 lip and 118 lb/ft of torque. The X R S is the sports car of the three and gets a hot version of the 1.8litre producing 180 lip and 130 lb/ft of torque. It is also fitted with a six-speed manual transmission with a four-speed manual optional. Pricing was a consideration from the outset in order lo attract the target mar ket. The Matrix front-drive starts at $16,645. the 4W D starts at $20,135 and the X R S fully loaded costs $24,540. Tested here is the Matrix 4W D in X R trim. The 4W D system is a new one for Toyota. Called V-Flex it operates in nor mal conditions like a front-driver. If slippage is detected at a front wheel, a viscous coupling ahead of the rear dif ferential starts to route power to the rear wheels.-When the front wheels are back within normal traction parameters, all power comes back to the fronts. Another thing that makes the 4W D different is a unique rear suspension that uses double wishbones instead of the twist beam of the front-drive ver sions. This is to allow the rear half shafts to articulate up and down. The Matrix and X R come with front venti lated disc brakes and rear drums. Of your order the X R S, four discs with A B S are fitted. In terms of equipment, the Matrix comes with an AM /FM CD stereo unit, 60/40 split rear seats, racy looking fivepod gauges, tilt steering wheel with three spokes, cargo area tie-down and tonneau cover and a plethora of storage areas beside and under the cargo area and in the doors. The best part is the tlip-up rear hatch glass that opens with a twist of the key to the right while the entire hatch opens with a twist to the left. The X R adds air. cruise, keyless entry, power locks-windows-piirrors. illuminated entry, alloy wheels and a bunch of body-colour parts. My tester was the base Matrix (yep, wind-up windows) but it came with 'Package B' that offers much of the equipment on the X R but for $2,730. This added the 16-inch alloy wheels and tires, air. clean air filter, cruise control, KllIII U IIK T H V Ik T he 2003 Toyota M atrix has a youthful look to it and is particularly clean sided, thanks to no add-on ru b b er cladding. body colour power remote mirrors and keyless entry. So for a list price of $23,045, I was getting the benefits of the XR , hut with out superfluous stuff like map lights and the plastic body cladding that is so swiftly going out of vogue. In fact, a friend who is driving a Pontiac Vibe 4W D commented that he preferred the clean sides of the Toyota. Without a doubt, the sliding track system of the Matrix cargo area is the new benchmark for small SUVs. There are eight tie-down rings bolted to the body shell and that is bolstered by more on the cargo floor. There are tracks built into the cargo floor that make securing loads simplicity itself. The rear seat back can also be folded dead flat and the cargo tie-down tracks are carried along the seat backs. Long loads like ladders are no problem. Being a Toyota, it is stoutly built with the usual Toyota attention paid to noise, vibration and harshness (N VH .). This includes foam in the roof rails and pillars, silencing in the dash panel and hood to minimize noise transfer from the engine bay into the passenger area, asphalt sheeting on the floors and cross braces in the roof panels to increase rigidity. There's more, but you get the idea. The Matrix certainly is a jaunty little beast to look at. Quality is typical Toyota, which means no disappoint ments. When you turn the key. the engine spins into life freely without valve lash or clatter. This is what Toyota quality is all about. Power in the 4W D tester was ade quate. meaning it can handle most situ ations without the driver getting white knuckles. However, this is definitely not a street racer like the XR S. It does, however, have the advantage of 4W D which in Canada. I maintain, is something everyone should consider. It is that one or two times a year when the four-wheel-drive system kicks and gets you through a emergency situation or a freak ice storm that the few hundred extra dollars pay for themselves several times over. I was also impressed with the turning circle and handling at low speeds. With full-time 4WD. trying to make tight turns into underground parking spots can result in multi-point turns. Because the Matrix functions primarily as a front-driver. it was a cinch to snap into the hard-to-get spots in the underground of a local shopping centre where I go for my noon-time power walks. The Matrix is one of a new kind of vehicles that are designed to appeal to a quickly diversifying lifestyle of North Americans. No longer is a fistful of sedans and trucks enough to get you by as tradi tional makers on this continent have found out through declining market share. Looking to the future and the next generation of buyers means making vehicles that people aspire to own. By being hip and affordable, the Toyota Matrix hits that target. No paym ents 'til 2004 O .A .C . Exam ple: 1998 Pontiac Sunbird, S ale Price S10000.00 + adm in and taxes = S11748.85 am ount financed, S237.66/mo. Fo r 60 m onths, @ 7.9% A P R . Total paym ents S14259.60. C o s t of Borrow ing S2510.76 or S502.15/yr. All program veh icles clearly marked. Call dealer for details. r tt A U TO P A R K O O l w I r E i l l O D C D O T I V ^ n D E E N. S e r v ic e R o a d in B u r l i n g t o n 905-331-8500 B e tw e e n A p p le b y a n d W alkers Line w w w .a u topa rksu p erstore.com Em ail: info@ autoparksuperstore.com off the Q E W in B urlin g ton " T H E D R IV IN G F O R C E , W H E R E S E L E C T IO N IS E V E R Y T H IN G !"