Thoughts about manual vs automatic transmissions

I have an '09 Doublecab with automatic Trans and was wondering if someone has a 4L motor with manual trans and your impressions of the manual. I only have 20k miles on mine and am already wishing I got 4 wheel drive and perhaps the manual trans. We spent some time up in the local mountains with snow over the holidays and the 4x4 would have come in very handy. In addition, the 6th gear would give a little better gear choice over the automatic.

Your comments?
Paul

 

i have a 6spd manual and when i use it the rpms on the tach only seem to drop by a few hundred at best. almost not even worth having the 6th gear. ill check again tomorrow with some better #s.

 

I personally love having the 6 spd manual simply because I prefer to drive with a manual transmission. Unfortunately, I think the 6 spd manual transmission is geared too low. Or maybe if it just had "taller" gears, it would be better.

Your automatic actually has a higher top gear than 6th gear with the manual. That's why the automatic equipped Tacoma has better gas mileage ratings. I get my worst gas mileage moving at high speeds on the interstate. I'm running at over 2500, maybe over 2700 rpm, at average highway speeds.

 

I heard the 2nd Gen Tacos have got one of the best auto trannys out there...FWIW

 

Great thread, keep it goin!! I was actually thinking about this the other day. I know there was an older thread awhile back regarding this, but I can't seem to find it
As I had posted earlier, I was talking about trading my newer 2W Taco for a 4x4. Maybe we could get some off-roading input as well as the general auto vs manual? Which is better / easier / more control (duh) / etc, etc..

Didn't mean to threadjack, please continue



Quote:
Originally Posted by Burgman
its funny that ur "old" truck is newer than ur "new" truck

Quote:
Originally Posted by tacomaman06
....yeah, but i like my "new" old truck better than my "old" new truck!

 

Great posts guys! Thanks for the comments. I was searching Toyota.com and couldn't find the specific gear ratios for either trans. Is this 4 wheel drive system really awd or not? How good is this truck offroad compared to a Jeep Grand Cherokee for example.

Paul

 

I test drove both the auto and the 6-spd before buying the 6-spd. That had more to do with me just not being ready to drive an auto than it did with me being impressed with the 6-spd. The gears are too close together on the 6-spd - it's like they took the range of a 5-spd and divided it 6 ways instead. When I drive under normal conditions, my RPMs never move outside of 1500 - 2000... Except for on the highway, where they're up around 2500. Maybe if there were a 7th gear on top, it would be better on gas on the highway. I like the close spacing for things like towing, hauling heavy loads, and maybe off-roading in 4HI - I've got my class A CDL, and this truck with the 6-spd shifts a lot like a class 8 truck I think it's overkill for a truck with a payload capacity this small. And don't most people who plan on towing a bunch go with an automatic anyway? The gas mileage is the thing that gets me. I've never heard of an auto that gets better mileage than a standard in the same vehicle. I'm thinking of increasing my gear ratio with larger tires to hopefully increase my gas mileage...

 

i got the auto cause i drive stick for a living and when im done for the day the last thing i wanna do is shift more to get home.plus we have a jeep thats manual and fun to drive.just not in my dd.

 

I also have a 09 double with the auto. I was looking for a manual, but this truck had what i wanted but with a automatic. I do admit it did shift a little funny at first, but it seems to be fine now. have about 8000 miles on it so far. Dont think the 6-speed would make much of a difference. I do enjoy driving a stick, but dont mind having the automatic. It was good having the auto because i got the auto-start installed and i have really been enjoying that since its in the 20s right now. All my trucks have been 4x4, just because of the snow. But had a 4x4 in virginia also

 

I've seen the gear ratios listed before, can't remember where though. It was probably here.

 

I've considered the same thing. Or maybe just different rear end gearing would help? I don't really want to mess with that though.

I agree, the transmission is geared toward towing. I very rarely tow anything though. Now, I will say, the one time that I did tow something fairly substantial, it handled it like a champ and had plenty of power. But the other 99.999% of the time it just kills my gas mileage.

 

Don't the manuals have 4.10 gears and the autos have 3.73's ? That would explain te lower mpg's in the manual.

 

No, I believe they have the same final gearing. The difference is the auto's 5th gear is higher than the manual's 6th.

 

no 4.0l is 3.73

2.7l prerunner/ 4x4 4.10s (2nd gen)

i had no choice for auto/ manual i had to get the 5speed. BTW as far as offroad capabilites these things crush most grand cherokees, especially stock ones. My stock Reg cab has the same ground clearance and wheelbase as a stock rubicon.

 

I went with a 6MT cause I just like rowing thru gears and would get bored on a daily basis with an AT.