Noises During Shifting Problems of Toyota Matrix

5-speed manual: for the last 10k miles, engine compartment has been making an unusual noise when gas is applied or when downshifting. At 120k miles, problem became much worse and when applying gas, sometimes a loud whirring noise, like a spinning sawblade, comes and goes. Mechanic drained transmission and found metal particles. $2200 for rebuilt transmission.

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Started making loud noise, then locking up. Could not shift or get into gear.

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2003 Toyota Matrix xr manual transmission - 70,000. The transmission needs to be completely replaced. Subtle engine knocking, more noticeable when lift foot off accelerator. Sudden onset while exiting freeway- rpms hovered when shifted into neutral, difficult to put in 1st on start, then horrible noise when started moving forward then completely seized in place. Whole process in less than 60 miles. Assessed at private shop and then dealership which quoted over $4,000. Corporate/regional district office offered no assistance, compensation, or acknowledgment of issue. This is a frequent problem that has been reported in numerous cases in the 5-speed Matrix and pontiac vibe.

2004 Matrix transmission failed while wife was driving on highway on a rainy night. Prior to this the transmission began to have noises which one might attribute to an auto at 110,000 miles. After this failure transmission would not shift except with great difficulty. I had the Matrix towed home and am in the process of determining solution. The rest of the car is flawless but this early failure of a manual transmission in a Toyota is discouraging. The situation was a dangerous one as failure of the transmission caused those vehicles around her to become aggressive towards the slowly moving Matrix. My wife was extremely fortunate to coax the car to safety. These unexpected repairs will cost me around $2500 to $3000 to resolve. The auto is of no value without the repair, and with the repair resale not much greater.

The transmission on my 2003 Toyota Matrix died after 100,000 miles and it's a manual. I purchased the car used and it had about 70k miles on it. I had a transmission fluid flush at about 80k. The car started making noises and then I couldn't shift it into gear and then it completely died. I had to have a new/rebuilt transmission put into the car for about $2,500. Apparently this is fairly common with the Matrix and I don't think it's specific to the 2003 car.

I own a 2003 Toyota Matrix that on July 30, 2007, had a little over 105,000 miles on it. Driving either in town or on the highway a clinkiing sound was noticed by drivers and passengers along with an intermittent increased difficulty in shifting gears. On July 30, 2007, driving on the highway the clinking noise become more pronounced. I parked my vehicle to do some errands and came back the car would start, but would not enter into any gear. The car was locked in a gear that was not neutral. I was stranded about 30 miles from my home and had to call a towing company to come and tow the vehicle to the iowa city Toyota company. From there, Toyota inspected my 2003 Toyota matix and found that the gear teeth in the manual transmission has completely eroded and broke off. Toyota had to replace the full transmission and clutch costing close to $3000.

While shifting gears a noise was heard coming from underneath the vehicle. Transmission would down shift on its own. Consumer was able to drive the vehicle home. The next day, vehicle would start up but the transmission would not engage. Consumer had vehicle towed to the dealer for inspection, and mechanic determined transmission needed to be replaced due to worn out parts.