2003 TOYOTA MATRIX tow

’03 MATRIX_U (L/O 0201)
172003 MY COROLLA MATRIX_U (OM12767U)
CAUTION
To avoid serious personal injury, you
must do the following.
Always make sure the heads, hands
and other parts of the bodies of all
occupants are kept completely in-
side the vehicle before you close
the power windows. If someone’s
neck, head or hands get caught in
a closing window, it could result in
a serious injury. When anyone
closes the power windows, make
sure that he/she operates the win-
dows safely.
When small children are in the ve-
hicle, never let them use the power
window switches without supervi-
sion. Use the window lock switch to
prevent them from making unex-
pected use of the switches.
Never leave small children alone in
the vehicle, especially with the igni-
tion key still inserted. They could
use the power window switches and
get trapped in a window. Unat-
tended children can be involved in
serious accidents.
LOCKING AND UNLOCKING WITH KEY
Insert the key into the keyhole and turn
it.
To lock: Turn the key clockwise.
If you turn the key fully clockwise, the
glass hatch will open. (See “Glass hatch”
on page 18 in this section.)
To unlock: Turn the key counterclockwise.
To open the back door, pull the lock re-
lease lever.
Operating the power door lock switch or
wireless remote control transmitter simul-
taneously locks or unlocks the back door.
(See “Side doors” on page 8 in this sec-
tion.)When closing the back door, use the
inside handle for easier reach to the
back door.
To close the back door, lower it and press
down on it. After closing the back door,
try pulling it up to make sure it is secure-
ly closed.
See “Luggage stowage precautions” on
page 178 in Section 2 for precautions to
observe in loading luggage.
Back door

’03 MATRIX_U (L/O 0201)
192003 MY COROLLA MATRIX_U (OM12767U)
If you do either of the followings, the
glass hatch cannot be opened with the
glass hatch opener switch.
Lock all the side doors and back door
with the key or wireless remote control
transmitter when the front doors are
closed.
Open the driver ’s door or front passen-
ger’s door and move the inside lock
knobs of both front doors to the lock
position, then close the front doors.
The glass hatch opener switch can be
reset in the following ways.
Turn the ignition key to “ON”.
Unlock all the doors with the key or
wireless remote control transmitter.
Unlock the driver’s door or front pas-
senger ’s door with the inside lock
knob, and then unlock all the doors
with the power door lock switch. CLOSING THE GLASS HATCH
Lower the glass hatch and push the
lower center of it until it is locked.
When you open the back door with the
glass hatch opened, the glass hatch will
be closed. After closing the back door,
you should check the glass hatch fully
closed.
See “Luggage stowage precautions” on
page 178 in Section 2 for precautions to
observe in loading luggage.
CAUTION
Keep the back door and glass hatch
closed while driving. This not only
keeps the luggage from being thrown
out but also prevents exhaust gases
from entering the vehicle.
NOTICE
To prevent damage to the back door
and glass hatch dampers, do not ap-
ply any force, paint or let any other
foreign matter on them.
TVIP is a theft deterrent system. If
someone attempts to damage or break
into your vehicle, the system sounds
the alarm while flashing the lights.
Toyota vehicle intrusion
protection system (TVIP)

’03 MATRIX_U (L/O 0201)
222003 MY COROLLA MATRIX_U (OM12767U)
3. Hold the hood open by inserting thesupport rod into the slot.
To insert the support rod into the slot,
move it straight up. If it is moved to the
side or toward the inside of the vehicle,
it may become detached.
Before closing the hood, check to see that
you have not forgotten any tools, rags,
etc. and return the support rod to its
clip—this prevents rattles. Then lower the
hood and make sure it locks into place.
If necessary, press down gently on the
front edge to lock it.
CAUTION
After inserting the support rod into
the slot, make sure the rod supports
the hood securely from falling down
on to your head or body.
NOTICE
Be sure to return the support rod to
its clip before closing the hood. Clos-
ing the hood with the support rod up
could cause the hood to bend.
This indicates that the fuel filler door
is on the left side of your vehicle.
Fuel tank cap

’03 MATRIX_U (L/O 0201)
312003 MY COROLLA MATRIX_U (OM12767U)
You can use the front passenger ’s seat-
back as a temporary table only when the
vehicle is stopped.
CAUTION
To avoid serious injury:
Do not set up the seatback table
while the vehicle is moving.
Do not sit on the seatback table.
NOTICE
To prevent the seat from damaging,
avoid putting heavy loads on the tem-
porary table.
CAUTION
When returning the seatback to the
upright position, make sure the seat-
back is securely locked by pushing
forward and rearward on the top of
the seatback. Failure to do so will
prevent seat belt from operating prop-
erly.
Lower the head restraints to the lowest
position. Pull up the lock release button
and fold the seatback down.
Each seatback can be folded separately.
This will enlarge the luggage compartment
as far as the seatbacks. See “Luggage
stowage precautions” on page 178 in Sec-
tion 2 for precautions in loading luggage.
Folddown rear seat

’03 MATRIX_U (L/O 0201)
812003 MY COROLLA MATRIX_U (OM12767U)
To turn on the windshield wipers, move
the lever to the desired setting.
The key must be in the “ON” position.Lever position
Speed setting
Position 1Intermittent
Position 2Slow
Position 3Fast
For a single sweep of the windshield,
push the lever up and release it. With interval adjuster: The “INT TIME”
band lets you adjust the wiping time inter-
val when the wiper lever is in the intermit-
tent position (position 1). Twist the band
upward to increase the time between
sweeps, and downward to decrease it.
To squirt washer fluid, pull the lever
toward you.
If the windshield wipers are off, they will
operate a couple of times after the washer
squirts.
For instructions on adding washer fluid,
see “Adding washer fluid” on page 257 in
Section 73.
In freezing weather, warm the windshield
with the defroster before using the washer.
This will help prevent the washer fluid
from freezing on your windshield, which
can block your vision.
NOTICE
Do not operate the wipers if the wind-
shield is dry. It may scratch the
glass.
To turn on the rear window wiper, twist
the lever knob upward.
The key must be in the “ON” position.
Lever position
Speed setting
Position 1Intermittent
Position 2Normal
To squirt washer fluid on the rear window,
twist the knob upward or downward as far
as it will go (position 3 or 4). The knob
automatically returns from these positions
after you release it.
For instructions on adding washer fluid,
see “Adding washer fluid” on page 257 in
Section 73.
Windshield wipers and washer Rear window wiper and
washer

’03 MATRIX_U (L/O 0201)
852003 MY COROLLA MATRIX_U (OM12767U)
Your vehicle may overheat during severe
operating conditions, such as:
Driving up a long hill on a hot day.
Reducing speed or stopping after high
speed driving.
Idling for a long period with the air
conditioning on in stopandgo traffic.
Towing a trailer.
NOTICE
Do not remove the thermostat in
the engine cooling system as this
may cause the engine to overheat.
The thermostat is designed to con-
trol the flow of coolant to keep the
temperature of the engine within
the specified operating range.
 Do not continue driving with an
overheated engine. See “If your ve-
hicle overheats” on page 201 in
Section 4.
The tachometer indicates engine speed
in thousands of rpm
( revolutions per
minute). Use it while driving to select
correct shift points and to prevent en-
gine lugging and overrevving.
Driving with the engine running too fast
causes excessive engine wear and poor
fuel economy. Remember, in most cases
the slower the engine speed, the greater
the fuel economy.
NOTICE
Do not let the indicator needle get
into the red zone. This may cause
severe engine damage.
This meter displays the odometer and
two trip meters.
1. Odometer—Shows the total distance the vehicle has been driven.
2. Two trip meters—Show two different distances independently driven since
the last time each trip meter was set
to zero.
You can use one trip meter to calculate
the fuel economy and the other to
measure the distance on each trip. All
trip meter data is cancelled if the elec-
trical power source is disconnected.
Tachometer Odometer and two trip meters

’03 MATRIX_U (L/O 0201)
962003 MY COROLLA MATRIX_U (OM12767U)
(b) Overdrive switch
You can select either third gear (with
overdrive off) or fourth gear (with over-
drive on) by pushing this switch.
To turn the overdrive off, push the switch.
The “O/D OFF” indicator light should come
on. To turn the overdrive on again, push
the switch again. The “O/D OFF” indicator
light should go off.
Always drive your vehicle with the over-
drive on for better fuel economy and
quieter driving.
If the engine is turned off when the over-
drive is off and restarted, the overdrive
will automatically be on.Vehicles with cruise control—When the
cruise control is being used, even if you
downshift the transmission by pushing and
releasing the overdrive switch, engine
braking will not be enabled because the
cruise control is not cancelled.
For ways to decrease the vehicle speed,
see “Cruise control” on page 101 in this
section.
(c) Normal driving
1. Start the engine as instructed in “How to start the engine” on page 184 in
Section 3. The transmission must be in
“P” or “N”.
2. With your foot holding down the brake pedal, shift the selector lever to “D”.
When the lever is in the “D” position, the
automatic transmission system will select
the most suitable gear for running condi-
tions such as normal cruising, hill climb-
ing, hard towing, etc.
Always turn the overdrive on for better
fuel economy and quieter driving. If the
engine coolant temperature is low, the
transmission will not shift into the over-
drive gear even with the overdrive on.
CAUTION
Never put your foot on the accelera-
tor pedal while shifting.
3. Release the parking brake and brake pedal. Depress the accelerator pedal
slowly for smooth starting.
(d) Using engine braking
To use engine braking, you can downshift
the transmission as follows:
Push the overdrive switch. The “O/D
OFF” indicator light will come on and
the transmission will downshift to third
gear.
Shift into the “2” position. The trans-
mission will downshift to second gear
when the vehicle speed drops down to
or lower than the following speed, and
stronger engine braking will be en-
abled. Twowheel drive models105 km/h (65 mph)
Fourwheel drive models 96 km/h (59 mph)

’03 MATRIX_U (L/O 0201)
972003 MY COROLLA MATRIX_U (OM12767U)
Shift into the “L” position. The trans-
mission will downshift to first gear
when the vehicle speed drops down to
or lower than the following speed, and
maximum engine braking will be en-
abled.Twowheel drive models49 km/h (30 mph)
Fourwheel drive models 48 km/h (29 mph)
Vehicles with cruise control—When the
cruise control is being used, even if you
downshift the transmission by pushing and
releasing the overdrive switch, engine
braking will not be enabled because the
cruise control is not cancelled.
For ways to decrease the vehicle speed,
see “Cruise control” on page 101 in this
section.
CAUTION
Be careful when downshifting on a
slippery surface. Abrupt shifting
could cause the vehicle to spin or
skid.
(e) Using “2” and “L” positions
The “2” and “L” positions are used for
strong engine braking as described pre-
viously.
With the selector lever in “2” or “L”, you
can start the vehicle in motion as with the
lever in “D”.
With the selector lever in “2”, the vehicle
will start in first gear and automatically
shift to second gear.
With the selector lever in “L”, the trans-
mission is engaged in first gear.
NOTICE
 Be careful not to overrev the en-
gine. Watch the tachometer to keep
engine rpm from going into the red
zone. The approximate maximum al-
lowable speed for each position is
given below for your reference:
1ZZFE engine“2” 110 km/h (68 mph) . . . . . . . . .
“L” 60 km/h (37 mph) . . . . . . . . . .
2ZZGE engine “2” 120 km/h (74 mph) . . . . . . . . .
“L” 67 km/h (41 mph) . . . . . . . . . .
Do not continue hill climbing or
hard towing for a long time in the
“2” or “L” position. This may cause
severe automatic transmission dam-
age from overheating. To prevent
such damage, “D” position should
be used in hill climbing or hard
towing.
(f) Backing up
1. Bring the vehicle to a complete stop.
2. With the brake pedal held down with your foot, shift the selector lever to the
“R” position.
NOTICE
Never shift into reverse while the ve-
hicle is moving.