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

funny, i agree with what you describe here, but i also find this to be one of the easier shifting MT's i've driven. but regarding the actual shift points, yes, the space between gearing (1-2) and the very strange motor behavior with the VVT all makes it a weird dance to get just right. i use a Pedal Commander which helps massively, and i tend to shift about 100rpm into VVT, so around 3550-3600 is where i shift. and on this truck i definitely tend to let the clutch out nice and smooth everywhere or it's a rough ride.

 

Yep 1st will be nice for towing or offroad, but man, I wish they would have put a lower 2nd gear in so that you could skip first when unloaded. You'll never be winning the holeshot since the syncros take longer to work on the 1st to 2nd shift too!

I also find that the 6MT shifts quite smoothly (though not quickly). 4th to 5th is a bit tricky to do smoothly, but you just gotta get on the gas a little early when letting the clutch out and it smooths out then.

 

If you time it right 4-5 is insanely smooth and quick, I go no gas and deliberately do a really fast shift

 

If you are normally driving then pull out in 1st gear, if you are in deep snow and need to get going you can start in 2nd gear.

 

Very rarely do I even use 5th. Only when pulling my Argo trailer on longer hills like Jackass Mt in the Fraser canyon. When entering freeway I wind er out in 4th and shift directly to 6th. When exiting freeway, I downshift from 6th directly to 4th. Been driving for 48 years and all my vehicles have been Manuals. My tacoma manual tranny has been the nicest shifting of any truck that I have owned.

 

I do exactly the same 4th to 6th, l very rarely use 5th.

 

Congratulations and welcome to the lost art of shifting a manual. Start in first gear. Watch the vehicle on your ass when you shift into second as that slight shifting pause allows the automatic driver behind you to come up on you fast. My Tacoma six speed is a slow shifter: long clutch travel, long stick throw, lots of gears. Back off the gas all the way when shifting. The gas peddle is a sensitive drive by wire throttle. Come to as near if not a total stop when downshifting into first as it's not a synchronized gear and you will feel resistance or hear grinding noises if you don't. I wind first gear out quickly at a stop to 19 mph then shift smartly right away into second to keep those tailgaters off my ass and prevent them from climbing up on me as I shift into second. Dannyblues

 

I also skip 5th often now, but I shifted through all the gears the first 7k or 8k miles to wear the synchro's in evenly.

 

Tips: Never leave the clutch in when in first for too long such as at a stoplight. Pull it into neutral with right foot on brake. Also don't feel intimidated when stopped at a stop at the top of a hill. Either by practice you will learn how to shift fast enough into first before rolling backwards or use this trick: when stopped atop a hill to avoid rolling backward let's say you are in neutral and your right foot is on the brake. Now with foot on brake use clutch and bring vehicle into first with clutch fully depressed. While doing this at this time push button on your emergency brake and pull brake up enough to hold you on the hill. Remember your right foot is still on the brake! Now quickly put your right foot on the gas and let out the clutch as you'd do normally but at this same time as the clutch is coming up, the gas is given as normal now simultaneously release the emergency brake cable you've been holding up with your thumb on the end of it. This done quickly and correctly will never let you roll backward when stopped even at the tallest incline and when done correctly you won't stall the engine. Have confidence always as you are sure to stall, roll back or burn rubber. Practice on a hill with no traffic behind you. You will find after time you will rarely use this trick but it's great to know. Dannyblues. P. S I'm posting on an iPhone 6 and don't know how to create paragraphs- anybody help me with that?

 

Last post re: shifting manual. There are sites on Google that will teach you how to "double clutch ". Used by many tractor trailer drivers who have up to 18 speeds in three ranges, all without synchronized gears. So they either double clutch or "Float gears" ( by rev matching they don't use the clutch at all but simply pull the shifter into the next higher or lower gear except first gear of course that requires the clutch ) . Though not recommended to float gears and shift without the clutch on your personal vehicle it can be easily learned. However I understand over time it ruins the synchros in your transmission so I don't recommend it. Check it out on a you tube video along with quick shifting and power shifting if you are really into manual trannys. Its not at all necessary to double clutch your vehicle especially downshifting. My 2016 would never respond to quick shifting or power shifting and I'm not looking to break anything. If I wanted something fast I wouldn't have bought a truck. My Tacoma is designed for torque, pulling power just like a Harley vs the high revving rice rocket jap bikes are set up for high rpm speed. My Harley and Tacoma can get a fat woman up any hill. Happy shifting. Check out all the manual transmission and shifting videos on you tube. You'll learn a lot and with practice become an ace. Dannyblues

 

Anybody got tips on going from 6th to 5th without decreasing speed, like when towing and you got a big hill in front of you? Do you have to rev it up as you have the clutch in?

 

I would not use 6th for towing for that reason.

 

if you're asking if some of us rev-match, yes i do. i just brush the throttle before letting the clutch out in 5th so the motor and tranny are roughly same rpm... smoother driving and saves the clutch over time.

 

Blip the gas as you move shifter through neutral to match the rpms in the gear your downshifting to. Should be very smooth if you get it right. Takes lots of practice. Get bored with that then move to double clutch downshifts with a blip and then heel and toe while double clutch downshifting! Now your really a master!

 

Okay sounds good!

 

i use android so i don't know much about the iphones. but if you can install a 3rd party keyboard such as Google GBoard, then many of those keyboards have an option in their settings to always show an Enter key so you can make your paragraphs. it may be that the iphone stock keyboard doesn't have that.

 

Good to know.

 

Positively last post on manual shifting techniques! If you want to avoid coming to a complete stop say at a stop sign you can perform what the NY state police refer to as a "rolling stop". As you approach the stop sign with no one in front of you and no need to yield to any adjacent traffic or oncoming that will turn in front of you; that is, the intersection is clean and green you can avoid stopping fully to downshift into first by doing the following ( though it is technically illegal). So as you come to the stop in second gear slow to as slow as you can without stalling the engine. I can slow to 4 mph so it looks like I'm nearly stopped. Almost! To avoid going into first and avoid stalling you may as I often have done, need to depress the clutch then quickly let it out and proceed. It's similar to starting off in second but puts far less strain on the drivetrain because you are really still in motion, if not very slow motion. It avoids coming to a complete full stop and shifting down cleanly into first and also prevents you from grinding first gear because you didn't wait for a complete stop to do do so. I always stop completely when shifting into first. I hate the resistance and gear chatter that comes with shifting into first at low speed Last manual shifting post I promise. I just wanted to get you educated on the great driving experience that only comes when driving a manual transmission vehicle. I've driven semi's and have had nothing but manual transmission vehicles for the past 29 years. Mostly little sported up jap cars. This is my first truck. The manual transmission is so much smoother than the automatic that's continually hunting for gears and the heavy weight of the truck absorbs the pulling and pushing you feel shifting those light little sports jobs with short clutch travel and short shift throws. Best of luck with your first manual. Dannyblues

 

Wow, lots of great info, thanks everyone!

Been practicing driving around and I still get a smile on my face everytime I shift. And you can definitely hear the TRD Exhaust in the back as well!

Goodbye MPG hello Smiles Per Gallon!

 

I love it. Manual... guaranteed More Smiles Per Gallon...