2007 TOYOTA MATRIX flat tire

233
CAUTION
Never get under the vehicle when
the vehicle is supported by the
jack alone.
7. Remove the wheel nuts andchange tires.
Lift the flat tire straight off and put it
aside.
Roll the spare wheel into position and
align the holes in the wheel with the
bolts. Then lift up the wheel and get
at least the top bolt started through
its hole. Wiggle the tire and press it
back over the other bolts.Before putting on wheels, remove any
corrosion on the mounting surfaces
with a wire brush or such. Installation
of wheels without good metal− to−met-
al contact at the mounting surface can
cause wheel nuts to loosen and
eventually cause a wheel to come off
while driving.
—Changing wheels

235
CAUTION
When lowering the vehicle,
make sure all portions of your
body and all other persons
around will not be injured as
the vehicle is lowered to the
ground.
 Have the wheel nuts tightened
with torque wrench to 103 N·m
(10.5 kgf·m, 77 ft·lbf), as soon
as possible after changing
wheels. Otherwise, the nuts
may loosen and the wheels
may fall off, which could cause
a serious accident.
10.Restow all the tools and jack se-
curely in the luggage storage
box. Then secure the flat tire in
the luggage compartment with
the tire tiedown belts and tie
down hooks as follows.
CAUTION
Before driving, make sure all the
tools, jack and flat tire are se-
curely in place in their storage
location to reduce the possibility
of personal injury during a colli-
sion or sudden braking.
1. Aluminum wheels—Before stow-ing the flat tire, remove the center
wheel ornament by pushing from
the reverse side.
Be careful not to lose the wheel orna-
ment.
—Stowing flat tire

236
Buckle
2. Put the flat tire on the rear luggage storage box lid with the outer side
of the wheel facing up. Hook the
belt clips closest to the buckle to
the rear upper tie −down hooks.
3. Pass the belts through the center
hole of the wheel as shown above.4. Attach the other clips of the beltsto the lower rear tie −down hooks.

237
5. Position the tire edge against therear center end of the rear luggage
storage box lid. Then pull the ends
of the belts to se cure the tire se-
curely.
After stowing the flat tire, check that
the tire and belts are secured.
To loosen the tire tie −down belts, see
“Tie −down hooks and tire tie −down
belts” on page 174 in Section 1 −10. 11. Check the air pressure of the re-
placed tire.
Adjust the air pressu re to the specifi-
cation designated on page 300 in
Section 8. If the pressure is lower,
drive slowly to the nearest service
station and fill to the correct pressure.
Do not forget to reinstall the tire infla-
tion valve cap as dirt and moisture
could get into th e valve core and
possibly cause air leakage. If the cap
is missing, have a new one put on as
soon as possible.
As soon after changing wheels as
possible, tighten the wheel nuts to the
torque specified on page 300 in Sec-
tion 8 with a torque wrench. Have a
technician repair the flat tire.
—After changing wheels

238
Steel wheels
Aluminum wheelsAfter repairing the flat tire, change
it with compact spare tire and rein-
stall the wheel ornament as fol-
lows.
Steel wheels—
1. Put the wheel ornament into posi- tion.
Align the cutout of the wheel orna-
ment with the valve stem as
shown.
2. Press hand firmly on one side of wheel ornament and then firmly
tap the other side around the edge
of wheel ornament with the heel
of your hand to snap into place.
Aluminum wheels—
Push the wheel ornament into the
center hole.
CAUTION
 Take due care in handling the
ornament to avoid unexpected
personal injury.
 Do not attach a heavily dam-
aged plastic wheel ornament.
It may fly off the wheel and
cause accidents while the ve-
hicle is moving.
Initial adjustment of the tire pres-
sure warning system is necessary
after you have replaced your tires
or wheels. See “Tire pressure
warning system” on page 126 in
Section 17.

239
If your vehicle becomes stuck in snow,
mud, sand, etc., then you may attempt
to rock the vehicle free by moving it
forward and backward.
Vehicles with traction control system—
Turn off the traction control system to
become unstuck to allow the tires to
spin enough to remove the vehicle from
the obstruction. (For details, see “Trac-
tion control system” on page 122 in
Section 17.)
CAUTION
Do not attempt to rock the vehicle
free by moving it forward and back-
ward if people or objects are any-
where near the vehicle. During the
rocking operation the vehicle may
suddenly move forward or backward
as it becomes unstuck, causing injury
or damage to nearby people or ob-
jects.
NOTICE
If you rock your vehicle, observe the
following precautions to prevent dam-
age to the transmission and other
parts.
Do not depress the accelerator ped-
al while shifting the selector lever
or before the transmission is com-
pletely shifted to forward or reverse
gear.
 Do not race the engine and avoid
spinning the wheels.
 If your vehicle remains stuck after
rocking the vehicle several times,
consider other ways such as tow-
ing.
(a) Towing with wheel lift type truck—
(b) Using flat bed truck—From rear —From front
If your vehicle becomes stuck
If your vehicle needs to be
towed—

257
Doors and engine hood
Check that all doors and back door includ-
ing glass hatch operate smoothly and all
latches lock securely. Make sure the en-
gine hood secondary latch secures the
hood from opening when the primary latch
is released.
Tire inflation pressure
Check the pressure with a gauge ev-
ery two weeks, or at least once a
month. See page 272 in Section 7−2
for additional information.
Tire surface and wheel nuts
Check the tires carefully for cuts,
damage or excessive wear. See page
275 in Section 7− 2 for additional in-
formation. When checking the tires,
make sure no nuts are missing, and
check the nuts for looseness. Tighten
them if necessary.
Tire rotation
Rotate the tires according to the
maintenance schedule. (For sched-
uled maintenance information, please
refer to the “Scheduled Maintenance
Guide” or “Owner ’s Manual Supple-
ment”.) See page 277 in Section 7 −2
for additional information.
Be on the alert for changes in perfor-
mance, sounds, and visual tip −offs that
indicate service is needed. Some impor-
tant clues are as follows:
Engine missing, stumbling, or pinging
Appreciable loss of power
Strange engine noises
A leak under the vehicle (however, wa-
ter dripping from the air conditioning
after use is normal.)
Change in exhaust sound (This may
indicate a dangerous carbon monoxide
leak. Drive with the windows open and
have the exhaust system checked im-
mediately.)
Flat −looking tire; excessive tire squeal
when cornering; uneven tire wear
Vehicle pulls to one side when driving
straight on a level road
Strange noises related to suspension
movement
Loss of brake effectiveness; spongy
feeling brake or clutch pedal; pedal al-
most touches floor; vehicle pulls to one
side when braking
Engine coolant temperature continually
higher than normal If you notice any of these clues, take your
vehicle to your Toyota dealer as soon as
possible. It probably needs adjustment or
repair.
CAUTION
Do not continue driving with the ve-
hicle unchecked. It could result in se-
rious vehicle damage and possibly
personal injury.
Does your vehicle need
repairing?

267
DOITYOURSELF MAINTENANCE
Engine and Chassis
Checking the engine oil level268
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking the engine coolant level 270
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking the radiator and condenser 271
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking brake fluid 271
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
. . . .
Checking power steering fluid 272
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking tire inflation pressure 272
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Checking and replacing tires 275
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rotating tires 277
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
. . . . . . . . . . .
Installing snow tires and chains 278
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Replacing wheels 279
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
. . . . . . .
Aluminum wheel precautions 280
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SECTION 7 2