Since the Pontiac Vibe is the same as the Matrix and made on the same assembly line I would think those cars would also be affected. I would contact GM and see if they are also following this recall for the Vibe, and if not, find out if different parts were used or if Toyota will also be taking care of the Vibes also.

With so many snow birds that drive back and forth, Floridians should definitely be notified.

how did Ohio not make that list?

I wonder what "extremely low temperatures" means. It can get just as cold in Indiana as in Illinois... so, strange that it isn't on the list.

Are they allowed to do that? What if you're driving out of state?

@howismydriving: Actually, the Vibe and the Toyota Voltz (export to Japan) were made on the same line in Fremont. The Matrix is built in Ontario, Canada. So I don't know if the same parts were used.

Is the xD the one that looks like a box on wheels? Just curious.

@tbax929: That's the xB. xD looks like the Smart Car's big brother.

@DPGumby: Yes, I don't get that either. Indiana borders both Illinois and Michigan. They're on the list, but not Indiana? We have a cottage we close for the winter in N. Indiana. Even though we put antifreeze in the toilets, one of them froze and the bowl broke last winter. It wasn't even a harsh winter last year!

@TinkishDelight: Exactly. I would think they are opening themselves to some serious lawsuits. In this case they CLEARLY knew about the problem, but specifically made an effort to exclude a group of owners despite knowing the consequences.

@intellivised:
I see. I guess it's the xB that I often see and wonder about taste in vehicles. I'm sure some people like that boxy look, but it doesn't look like it has any style to me at all.

And California is excluded because Toyota thinks that the Sierra Nevada mountains are all in Nevada?

And Indiana, which is next door to Illinois all that warmer?
What, does Toyota think that all the steel mills next to Lake Michigan keep the state from freezing?

@zombies.like.lattés.too:Same question for Utah.

No, it is cheaper to notify most everyone, and book a liability for any oversight later on...than to value human life, and notify all owners of the cars. The mountains of NC get rather cold sometimes ... this will be interesting to seee.

They really ought to notify everyone, regardless of where they live. The whole point of cars is that they're supposed to move around...

Why'd they leave out Missouri? It gets fracking cold here during the winter!

@tbax929:

It's actually rather roomy and useful on the inside, I assisted my college bound sister in purchasing one. It even gets decent mileage!

what of your moving to one of those states? or travel to one of those states?

@tbax929: what about the new Nissan? that's even more of a box and they're not afraid to say it!

So if I am in Kansas City Kansas, I get notified, but if I am in Kansas City Missouri, right across the river, I don't?

Toyota ought to notify everyone, even in warmer states. I mean, you might live in Florida but drive up north.

Gasp! You mean the mighty Toyota has problems too? It's not just the domestic cars that have issues?

@tbax929: It's a toaster. They took a toaster and put wheels on it.

"Daddy, where were you when Toyota declared war on Canada?"

@ximmaculatex: That was the first thing I thought: "Because people never move??"

@Greasy Thumb Guzik: If a car breaks down in the Sierras, there's a tacit agreement that the smallest, weakest or most tender passenger provides life-sustaining protein to the others until rescue.
So, for most of us, it's not too urgent a concern.

@intellivised: Yup. My aunt has a green xB. It gets a lot of stares in her small town.

Pretty sure this includes me. Boo. Oh well.

@Raekwon: Yet Kansas appears on it. Strange indeed.

@SarcasticDwarf: It sounds to me like it's a problem that occurs gradually. If you're living somewhere that regularly experiences "extremely low temperatures" for long periods, you may eventually start to experience lengthened stopping distances.

@HogwartsAlum: Wow. Considering Kansas made the list, that makes no sense at all.

@wgrune: Toyota is well on it's way to being the New GM.

I was just as baffled by the selection/omission of states as the rest of you, so I called Scion about this yesterday and they got back to me today.

According the representative that I spoke with, the notifications being sent to in September are just the first wave. At least one other round of notifications will be sent later in the year to customers in the remaining states. They couldn't give me the exact timing, but said it would be 'before freezing temperatures normally begin'.

So...avoid mountain passes after September if you can, at least until they can service the rest of our cars.

I just got myself an xD and like it a lot. The xB on the other hand . . . Anyways, too bad I can't blame my bad driving on this recall considering I'm in Socal.

Note that without power assist, the brakes still work -- you just have to step on them a lot harder.

I had this happen to a vacuum line in the HVAC system of a Volvo once. It requires weather so cold that the engine compartment doesn't get hot enough to melt the ice, even after the car has been driven and parked. If it's warm enough that the snow melts off your hood from engine heat after you park the car, this kind of problem is unlikely to happen to you.

@tbax929:

Bask in its radishness:
[www.scion.com]

@HogwartsAlum: Just because it GETS cold doesn't mean it stays cold. If you read the description, the problem is the result of long periods of extremely low temperatures. States in the lower Midwest don't get 4 months straight of 20-degress-or-lower.

@vladthepaler: But it's where you stay that matters. The problem happens when cars are in cold temps for long long periods of time. Not just a vacation.

@cmac: The snowbirds that drive back and forth in the winter spend the majority of the cold temperature season in Florida where it's warm. The problem is due to long-term exposure to cold weather.

According to the USA Today article- there will be a second round informing all owners that they'll be covered. It sounds like they're taking care of these 19 states first.

@chinadoll724: That makes sense. If they can't handle all of them at once, they'd want to prioritize the states where people would be most likely to experience the problem.

Silly me. I scanned the list, looking for my vehicle, and breathed a sigh of relief when it wasn't on there. And then it dawned on me: I don't even drive a Toyota! I drive a Nissan!

@Framling: What if you move North permanently? Are they going to at least notify warm-weather Toyota owners that this is going on?

@Trai_Dep: Small and weak may be obvious, but how is "most tender" determined?

@wgrune:
I guess you never owned a Toy back 20+ years ago with a 22R engine. Front engine cover would always blow it's seal by 90k miles and all my ball joints were replaced by 75k miles. Datsun/Nissan, Toy, Honda, Ford or Chevy...I've owned them all and none were any better than the other. Notice I did leave one major manufacturer off the list due to it being well below par.

@yagisencho: It's missing sticker decals all over the place and nos tanks.

I drive an 2007 tacoma with a standard transmission and when its -15 out in the morning it barely shifts. Toyota says they are aware of the problem and they recommend letting it warm up for 10 min before driving but not only does that not work at all thats the exact reason I got rid of my old truck because I hated waiting for it to warm up before I could drive.

@howismydriving: I was wondering that, but we have a 2009 Vibe with the 2.4 liter engine. I wonder why only the 1.8 liter engines though?

@menumbers: was thinking the same thing... As someone who spent 2 winters in Black Mountain living in a cabin heated only by a wood-burning stove... Take it from me, NC can get COLD

@yagisencho: this actually makes sense... deal with the consumers most likely to have problems first, while they're manufacturing more parts
My aunt had a problem with her Avalon (08 i think) wherein the oil line pretty much exploded - this happened to a bunch of Avalons at the same time, so they didn't have enough parts ot repair them all - she wound up driving around in a loaner for over a month