Car will shift into gears (manual transmission) but won't move

[kustomrtr]

Car is a 2007 yaris, manual transmission.

It happened in a matter of seconds. The car was driving totally fine until a couple of minutes ago.

I came to a complete stop and when I put it in 1st gear and accelerated hard (I have to be honest), I heard a snap and the car wouldn't move forward, I released the clutch slowly until I fully released it and the car didn't stall (it was still in first gear).

I tried 1st through 5th and R gear but the car won't just move. I can shift into any gear without using the clutch.

Fortunately I was two streets from my house so I just pushed the car to my garage.

A few important keypoints:

- I can shift into any gear without using the clutch, car wont move or stall.
- When I shift into gear, the speedometer's needle goes up.
- A grinding noise can be heard when in gear (also in neutral but it's quieter) and it will stop when I engage the clutch.
- The clutch feels normal. The gears too (ignoring the fact that they engage without the clutch), I can hear them when I change gears.
- The car didn't have previous transmission symptoms like the clutch was slipping or anything.
- I drained the transmission fluid like a month ago because some work was done in the drive train. I reused the same oil and topped it with a new one.

What do you think I broke in my car?

Picture of the victim:
http://imgur.com/a/2i9i1

[CoryM]

Since the speedo is moving, I'd say you broke an axle (or it fell out) or differential. Inspect your axles, and if they seem fine, time to tear apart the transmission.
Good luck.

[SirDigby]

yeah, i'd guess axle first too.

[thebarber]

differential might have blown up

[CrankyOldMan]

The speedo gear is on the differential body, so the pinion shaft and ring gear are turning. I can almost guarantee it's a drive shaft issue. My son had the same thing on one of his cars, but because it was sheared off at the oil seal on the transmission, it looked like everything was fine.

Are you mechanically inclined to repair it yourself? If not, you need to have it towed with a dolly or flatbed. Don't try and have another vehicle tow it with a strap.

If it's sheared off inside the gearbox, you can get the stub out by removing the opposite side and using a *soft* metal bar (brass, preferably) to drive it out. If it's somewhere else, just follow the normal repair procedure.