Manual transmission Fan Club and BS thread (All Generations Welcome)

Ahhhh

 

Just checking in! 2013 6MT here.

 

I appreciate the info and help! Thank you!

 

I can confirm now that the Super White TRD OR DCSB Tacoma that came in with the shuddering in first and clunking/bumping during shifts is not exhibiting normal behavior.

I managed to locate a Grey TRD OR DCSB and test drove it, and then immediately went back to the other dealer to test drive the white one.

Grey truck was very smooth. Stick found gears like butter, power delivery was excellent, the clutch hooked up strong and there was no drivetrain lash. The transmission really did an excellent job smoothing even rough upshifts and downshifts, with the synchros practically allowing you to dump the clutch during mild downshifts and upshifts. Effortless truck to row through the gears with and had me smiling the whole time.

Back to the White OR...it shuddered into first gear from the first stop I was at. I tried revving and letting the clutch in, I tried idling starts, low power starts etc. Everything that was smooth on the grey truck exhibited shudders in the white one. Not only that, but shifts into second, third and fourth were followed by a bump, as if the clutch was not building friction as it grabbed, but snagging at the last second. I couldn't find a consistent sweet spot where I knew the clutch would grab. Lastly, upshifts into 5th and 6th to bring RPM's down for highway cruising also exhibited a drivetrain lash feeling with an associated clunk. The clutch shudder into first worsened the hotter the vehicle got and the more I rode it during testing. Interesting.

I put 30 miles on this white truck test driving it the first time, 20 on the grey truck, and 20 on the white one again today. Night and day difference between the two. I've mentioned before that I've driven a solid number of standards over the last 10-15 years, and so I was stumped after finding this white truck difficult to drive. The Grey truck was an absolute dream and the future owner is going to love it.

The dealership I'm working on this with is incredible and its been great working with them. They pulled the white truck and have corporate and techs working on identifying whats going on. A new truck is allocated and on its way for me, and they had multiple people drive the truck to confirm that it's a real problem.

Trans. was built in Thailand according to window sticker. Truck was Assembled in San Antonio.

 

that's very interesting and i'm watching for updates, hoping you report back.

of course i've got an order in for a MT Pro. been told if i'm in for first available, i'll be getting either a white one, or.... a grey one.

 

And this is why it's important to test drive. I wouldn't touch that white one with a 10 foot pole. Good news is that is the first problem like that posted about a manual.

 

i noticed that, i believe it's the first i've seen as well, which is huge for the confidence as a new buyer [and new TW member].

 

I wouldn't worry about getting an MT. I was really let down driving the white one, but the grey truck was a dream and has me really looking forward to the next one in allocation to come in.

A bit bummed on quality control, but the reality is that it could have been missed during a PDI. I was the first person to drive it a long distance, and the shudder in first when cold could have been written off as an uneven surface at a stop sign. That being said, when its all warmed up its hard to ignore.

I'd recommend this to anyone: ask for a solo test drive before taking receipt of the vehicle, and let them know you're going to be gone for awhile. Put at least 30 miles on and run it through your whole typical daily routine - parking lots, gravel roads, bank drive through, etc. Turn off the stereo and HVAC and listen and feel the truck.

I would have bought the white truck if a salesman had joined me on the test drive, talked the whole time, and picked the route I drove. I'm very thankful to this dealership for being so relaxed and not pushing the deal.

The next truck that comes in I'll be putting a lot of miles on during my test drive. Highway, hills, declines, gravel, 4lo, I'm going to test everything and then some. The more I like the truck, the farther I'll go, because at the end of the day if I buy the truck I don't care how many miles it has on it from my test drive.

Good news also was that the u joints on both trucks were greased, and no weird noises or hood fluttering was seen.

 

Someone proberably smoked the clutch in the white truck some where between build and dealer delivery.

 

It's a good suggestion to where it started. The truck had 12 miles on it when I test drove it, and 12 miles logged on the PDI work. If it was smoked, it would have had to be from the technician.

 

2017 TRD DBCB MT..waited 4 months to get the manual and have zero regrets. As I have mentioned in other threads I came from a 2006 Civic Si and the Tacoma shifts VERY smooth loving it! Just cant drive it like the Si

 

Most likely happened loading it on the transport truck. Have worked for Toyota as well as GM have seen this happen several times with both companies. God forbid it be raining the day a car gets loaded or unloaded that can really mess some stuff up.

 

Great point. I thought they would be winched, but this makes sense.

 

Hoping to get some feedback here for my girlfriend's brother. I have never researched manual mods since I have an automatic so don't know too much about it.

He has a 2016 V6 manual, and was possibly looking to get the URD short shifter kit, which I found on their website for ~$150.

Obviously as I would expect their product detail to say, they say "no known downside" to the short shifter, but I was hoping to get some real world feedback or advice about the kit from guys with 3rd Gens or even just 2nd Gen guys. He says he likes the "truck" shifting feel some of the time but does want something a little smoother. Would this kit fill that hole with no other downsides?

Matt

 

@CanisLupus I had a bad experience with a short-throw-shifter when I was younger that left me in a bind (Unable to get out of the gear I was in). So at this point in my life I would never purchase a short-throw shifter assembly again. Perhaps that's a bit reactionary on my part, as aftermarket solutions have come along quite a bit. However I have found that most 'factory' transmission fluids are crap and upgrading to a 'performance' fluid (I'm partial to the RedLine and Amsoil brands) offers a huge improvement on the shifting 'feel'.

 

The short shifter units that I have used were good, but depending on the design require some maintenance with grease. Typically you are swapping out the bushings to put in poly ones which in many cases provide a more "positive" tactile feeling during shifts.

I only felt ill effects in very cold weather, when the bushings were too rigid and made shifting a bit difficult. A bit of silicone grease seemed to help.

 

Well that's unfortunate, that is almost word for word how mine feels (the white one). I just thought it was normal.

I have to be pretty slow/slip the clutch quite a bit when the truck warms up to avoid the shuddering in 1st gear. Also have to release a little slow to avoid the clunking in 5th/6th. In addition, the shifter "notches" into gear, I wouldn't say smooth as butter. Sometimes getting into 3rd is really notchy.

Now, when I go from first to second there is a very loud clunk/clank, especially if the RPM'S are below 3000. Did you notice this in one vs the other??

Unfortunately for me, it is impossible to find another one locally to drive. Dealer couldn't even get access to one when they had to diagnose my differential issue.

 

I did notice differences in performance between the trucks in all of the mentioned areas. Grey truck was smooth for both first and second gear starts - no shuddering. Syncros were flawless in downshifts and upshifts even if I was a bit rough on the clutch release. Grey truck's shifter engagement was positive and felt consistent and strong. A bit "notchy" but thats how truck trans feel in my experience. I didn't miss a shift or have any issues with the grey truck and the whole driving experience felt very natural and fluid. No clunks, and only minor driveline lash when I hammered on and released the gas in first or second.

The weirdest part for me was driving the truck in 5th and 6th and hearing the lash/clunk/bump/whatever you want to call it sensation. The grey truck did not have any of that.

Really the only way you can sort this out is to keep a close eye on other dealership's inventory, and drive to one that has another MT to test out. I drove 45-50 min to a dealer that had one and I am very glad that I did.

 

Yeah it hasn't been a major inconvenience for me, it just never compared to the "smooth as butter" shifting I've heard about. The clunking and clanking when shifting from 1st to 2nd I can eliminate by pushing the clutch in really, really slowly, but at that speed when the truck is warm I get ridiculous rev hang for some reason (at least 2-3 seconds before RPM'S will even start to noticeably drop). Couple that with how far they need to come down on a 1-2 shift and it's not feasible to do that safely in traffic.

I do have a complimentary 7 year/125k platinum warranty from toyota so I'm assuming if anything is causing real damage it will be before that warranty expires.

I'm still thankful every day I drive it that I went with the manual. I never drove a manual truck before, only cars so I didn't have any other truck transmissions to compare it to

 

The transmission isn't terribly smooth, probably similar to the one in my old Xtracab with the 22RE compared to any of the cars I've owned but I definitely haven't had rev hang to the extent you've had.

My 3rd gear is a bit notchy but it will go into 1st without issue. These trucks aren't fond of quick shifting (or accelerating hard) with the non-linear delivery.

I wish there was an easy way to remap the throttle response.