Manual or Auto. -------The big decision.

I have the 5speed MT in the 2.7 and I have no issues. Pretty smooth shifting, but did take a little getting used to compared to the MT's I've owned in the past. I actually preferred the MT over the AT on the 2012's during test drives. But, what it boils down to is preference. If I had bought the 4.0L I probably would have gotten an AT, as I'm not a fan of 6speeds. YMMV

 

I love 6 speeds, my other car has one as well. I guess when I lose interest in driving I'll switch to an auto.

 

LOL, I gotcha. BTW, if you want to check out a fun-as-hell Asian MT, check out a Mazda. I had back to back Protege 5s - that is one very fun car for such a low price tag.

I ordered my truck from Chicago via Carmax...LOL, it was the first Tacoma I had ever driven when it arrived. I still had an opportunity to back out upon test drive though (minus my transfer fee).

Anyway, I knew from the second I wound up first gear that it was different than any other MT I had owned; still, it just took some acclimation and I knew I would prefer it over AT.

 

oh btw, just so it's clear I'm referring to Aisin the supplier, but yes Aisin is Asian also.

 

Well hell. I thought it was misspelled. Disregard my post then.

 

I have an 07 manual and I love it. If I had only one complaint it would be a better cruising ratio for highway use (I don't tow though). I did have the carrier bearing squeek but the dealer took care of it with no problems at 59000 miles.

For bumper to bumper traffic, I find it's not a problem (I have a 30-mile, traffic-heavy commute). I have 285/75R16 tires on it so it makes first gear very usable. I can creep pretty slowly in first gear without needing to clutch. I was surprised when I first bought it how quickly I had to shift out of first.

 

Can't recall the toyota numbers but i believe it was 1 or 2mpg difference, not the difference between 21 mpg and 14 mpg the other poster was speaking about.

To the other guy wishing luck for shifting between 1st and 2nd, you don't need luck just the ability to smoothly shift between gears-it's not rocket appliances. Seems alot of people complain about the standard on this toyota truck when toyota was making standards on their old 4 cylinders long ago, that is what most people bought as the engines seemed underpowered and most people drove them just fine. The technology hasn't changed so drastically that in 2012 or recently they started making a bad standard transmission.

 

Been driving Toyota m/t's since 1985 and loved it. Bought my 08 w/ 6spd thinking it was more of the same....it's not. I liked the low 1st gear, it's great for towing however the 33's took it down a bit. Reverse is way to high, someone REALLY dropped the ball there and 6th should be a true overdrive. But the hardest thing to get used to is the hanging RPM's between shifts. You really have to adapt to it and it can be done with practice. If you think you're going to bang gears,forget it. In the end I do enjoy it just wish it had a little more thought in design.

 

Good question. I drove mine yes. The problem is that you usually test drive a truck pretty easily. Not so sure I'll do that next time. The tranny didn't feel good to me, but I was new to the vehicle and I figured I just wasn't used to it. After all, a company like Toyota wouldn't put a shitty transmission in anything right? I wanted a manual, and I figured I couldn't go wrong. I actually struggled with it for a good time before I realized that the tranny had very real design problems. Part of my disgust over the whole thing is having my trust in a company like Toyota betrayed. I bought this Toyota, my first, specifically to avoid bullshit problems like this. My frustration has been compounded by learning that Toyota has quietly made many revisions to the unit while publicly never admitting to anything. That CHAPS my ass.

With allot of work and expense I've optimized the thing as best I can now, and it is tolerable. I've learned to live it. I still consider that a bullshit situation. There is no excuse for anything less than an excellent transmission in any vehicle manufactured in the last 20 years. This is old technology and there are no engineering mysteries about getting this right.

 

I like my 6 speed 4.0 mostly. I'd like 1st to be a bit lower for towing. I'm sure they were correcting from the low 1st many of you (who wanted a car that looks like a truck) were complaining about in your older rigs. The reverse is so high I feel retarded backing up. If I'm not on pavement, I go to 4L to back uphill or to back up my trailer - or hook it up, for that matter. I drive dump trucks and log trucks seasonally as part of my ski bum/ hillbilly lifestyle, so yes I know how to drive a manual transmission.

Adapt, overcome, and enjoy your new truck!

 

I get 15.5 to 18 in my MT (mostly highway driving). Last fillup was 17.8mpg. I've gotten as high as 19. That's with a 3" lift, a shell and 285 mud tires on it. My truck doesn't have a jerky ride either. Nice and smooth.

The primary reason for the difference in gas mileage between the mt and the auto is the gearing. You'll probably never see the same mileage that an auto would get.

 

I've never had a problem with it. Also, if you put larger tires on it, it makes it easier as well.

 

I'm comparing it to a 2nd gen auto. Since that is what the OP asked. And I drive it as responsibly as possible. I don't rev, I don't jackrabbit, I keep the rpms low. It's definitely not the driver for my truck. It jerks like heck even when driving it "smooth" Never getting a manual again unless someone pays me to get it.

 

I do remember my 2007 Taco being kind of jerky. It seemed like it had a heavier flywheel that would jerk the truck around if I let out the clutch too fast with a substantial RPM difference.

That truck was written off and replaced with a 2008. I remember feeling that the '08 shifted smoother and didn't seem to have as much weight in the flywheel, but I was never quite sure if it was real or imagined.

I have a 2012 on order and this thread has me wondering how they've changed the transmission. I do hope that they didn't make the first gear taller. I can see why people who drive it on the street find it too short, but it's good when driving off road and/or pulling people out.

 

Finally, someone says it. I've driven 6MT BMW's for years and, yep my 6MT Taco does not shift butter smooth and effortlessly as BMW's 6MTs or as lightning quick as my wife's prior 350z. But as stated above, a truck is a truck and a sports sedan is a sports sedan. That being said, it took me a while to adjust to shifting slowly and purposefully in my Taco but after that adjustment, things are great. My wife's car is an auto and we had a crappy micro SUV from Dodge that was an auto so I feel like picking out jumping point on a bridge every time I have to drive an auto. I like to control things while driving and not be in the fuel-economy-gear when coming out of a corner. Or have a down/upshift happen in the middle of a corner. Nut up and get a manual!! Just my $.02.

 

Auto FTMFW

 

Never had a 6-speed but have had a number of manual and auto Toyota trucks. My 2008 2.7L 4X4 5 spd. isn't as good as prior manual versions...waaay too low in 1st gear (must almost dead-stop the truck before it'll slide into gear when downshifting...hate that). Not sure whether the 6-speed has that same problem. I like my truck otherwise, but had I known how crappy the manual 1st gear is for normal driving I'd have picked the auto over the manual.

 

I now have about 700 miles on my truck and I can say the ONLY issue I have with the manual tranny is how tall reverse is. That I don't understand. Other than that, I have no problem shifting it or keeping it smooth. It seems to be a good balance of carlike and trucklike. The clutch does feel a bit lightweight, but that could be because I'm used to the clutch on 3/4 ton trucks. Keep the dying breed alive!

 

you can drink and drive a lot easier with the auto than with the manual. If you roll your own a manual is a pain too.