Yatming 1:18 2003 Toyota Matrix XRS

One of the most popular vehicles in Europe today is the hatchback car: it's versatile and easy to fit in tight city streets and parking places.  Even as SUV's dominate the US landscape hatches are more preferred in Europe and other parts of the world.  In fact, the new crop of smaller SUV's such as the Fiat 500X, Nissan Juke, Mazda CX3, and others take the shape of a compact hatchback and heighten it up a bit to create a small SUV.  One of the early forebarers of the SUV/hatchback craze was this unique Toyota Matrix and here is a 1:18 scale made by Yatming.

The Matrix was an unusual take on a compact car hatchback that lacks the boxy wagon look of past compact hatchbacks and also gears more in line with an SUV thanks to an upright profile.  It was a unique look that quickly went into production in 2003 alongside the updated 2003 Toyota Corolla on which it's based.  Also joining the momentum is the Pontiac version called the Vibe and both are built at the GM/Toyota NUMMI venture plant in California (now owned by Tesla).  The sleek hatchbacks also have a sporty look all while resembling nothing like the Toyota Corolla.  Even inside the interior has a higher seating position with a unique dashboard that features the shifter high on the dashboard.  The cargo area has hard plastic to take on the abuse of cargo inside.  Powertrains ranged from the 1.8L DOHC I-4 to the upper-level 1.8L with DOHC variable valve timing and the same engine used in the Toyota Celica GT-S to produce 160 horsepower.  Transmissions were five-speed manual and four-speed auto for the standard 1.8, while the upgraded 1.8 can be had with the six-speed manual transmission and only in the XRS trim level.  That engine and trim level would also trickle down to the Corolla a few years later.  Unfortunately, Toyota lost their way in the second-generation by dropping the XRS model and making the Matrix seem too generic and unexciting, plus not to mention the short-life of the Pontiac Vibe after a brief run in 2009 led to the demise of the Matrix in 2014.

Yatming makes two different versions of this casting: the first is the Pontiac Vibe GT based on the R concept car shown at the SEMA show back in 2002.  Complete with wings and body graphics for a wild look.  On the other side was an unusual take, but one that was more stock and simple, this Toyota Matrix.  The light blue is relaxing and clean by comparison with a hint of sportiness in the profile.  The front has large projector headlights that have some offset inner projector designs, black honeycomb grille with Toyota badge, and a lower bumper with ground effects, side gills, and grille area with foglights.  The side profile has a fastback look with sloping rear roofline and rising character lines over the rear wheels.  Nice touches include the 5-spoke wheels and body-colored mirrors, though the brake calipers in chrome lack any further details.  Out back the rear window wraps around to the side windows, a rear spoiler on the hatch, and high-mounted taillights with red brake lights and lower signal and reverse lamps.  The hatch has Toyota and Matrix logo's that lead down to the bumper with chrome exhaust tip.

The base underneath shows off the platform that includes the front subframe with exposed engine and transmission details inside, the exhaust system that leads to the rear where a twist beam rear axle resides.  Again all of this based on the Corolla platform.  Open the hood and you'll find the XRS 1.8 I-4 under the hood with large valve cover and equally large intake runner up front.  Outside of the engine you can find detailed resovoirs and battery on a mostly plastic engine pan cover.  Inside the interior is a light gray color with front seats that have some rather upright back supports and a spacious rear seat.  The center console has an armrest and flows down to the parking brake to the left.  Door panels have a nice grain texture for the soft elbow rests in the middle and all four doors have detailed door panels.  The dashboard has that sporty look that starts with the black 3-spoke steering wheel, round gauges with detailed orange gauges inside, and a center stack with navigation system and HVAC controls below.  The shifter is nice, but for a manual vehicle looks too much like the automatic shifter so I added some details to make it look more like the 6-speed manual.  If that's not bad enough despite the detailed floor mat recesses the pedals are two-pedal layout, so again I had to add a clutch pedal to the left of the brake pedal.  Oh and for a XRS model it still has the XR badge on the rear hatch.  Speaking of hatch the rear opens up to show off the spacious cargo area that will fit one 1:64 scale car and the ribbed panel details, but I added some silver to give it that lighter-color design found on the real Matrix cars.

This is a very nice casting that is unique as Yatming is the only maker of the Matrix in diecast, and given the demise of Yatming and the popularity of JDM cars this is one of the sought after pieces out there.  Glad I found mine now at a resonable price!