Gear Hunting Survey

Well, some of us BOUGHT the MT because of the issues with gear hunting on the AT...

So I would say these opinions are valid, flippancy notwithstanding.

 

Wow when I opened this tread I was expecting to be answering that I use a .270 or 30-06 when I hunt. Just going by the title.

 

That's the entire thing though, that's what it was designed to do. If the truck is fighting a head wind, or is pulling a trailer, it has to be in a lower gear (higher rpms) to match HP and torque requirements. I think people dont get that and just get mad when the rpms get above 3k and the engine gets a bit more noisy.

 

Agreed. I personally couldn't stand it, as I've had a Dodge Dakota with a 3.7 do the same thing. But to the vast majority of people it's no issue and I don't think there's anything you can put your thumb on to "solve" it, other than preference.

 

Like clockwork, the counterculture butthurt rears it's ugly head lol.

 

It is annoying but there's two solutions. More low end (not happening) or not such steep overdrive gears (or shorter axle ratio). 6th gear is way too steep IMO. It's .58 vs Ford 6R80 that was .69. That means that a 3.15 rear gear F150 is about the same final ratio as our trucks with 3.90 gears.

3.15 are considered "highway" gears in the 150 and most people get either 3.55 or 3.73. That's in trucks with much better low end power than ours. You can have your opinion but mine is that Toyota overgeared this truck and it lacks low end. The result is downshifting and not holding high gear.

 

So get a set of 4.30's from the god damned arrogant manual transmission bros and you are all set!

 

Look, I own a 3rd gen so I'm just bitching to bitch. Not enough to actually do something about it.

 

The 6th gear in the MT 0.71. Coupled with the lower rear end its almost perfect, and I only need to downshift to be able to pull a steep grade, like 7%. Even in wind, I never struggle for power.

 

When she gets in your truck and goes: "ooooh is this a stick?"
and you can feel your toxically-masculine display of power tangibly shift the balance of power firmly into your hands.

-Just Manual Transmission things'

 

If you wanted higher final gear ratio couldn't you just drop in wheel size to make up for it?

 

In theory yeah but now the truck sits too low and the speedometer doesn't read correctly.

 

Mine is pretty much stock and shifts like a dream.

 

If I came home from the dealership with a manual, I would've gotten that same response ... except it would've been followed up with "oh good, I guess you ARE moving out today afterall"
Lol

 

3rd Gen Toyota transmissions are tuned to maximize fuel economy and not performance so but I'd be interested to know if this gear hunting is an issue WITH or WITHOUT the ECT button engaged since it is supposed to increase performance as the expense of fuel economy.
https://www.downeasttoyota.com/blog/what-does-the-toyota-tacoma-ect-button-do/

 

Lol subjective? Neg. but I am going with the last “Fix” buying a different truck.

 

I find all this funny! When Overdrive transmissions found there way into vehicles the gear shifter had a position for OD and a position for Drive. The owners manual stated that OD was for highway use. As electronics made their way into transmissions this was replaced with a button. Now manufacturers for fuel economy made these default to on and the driver had to turn it off. Now the button is eliminated and there is, in the case of the Tacoma, an S mode selection. This limits the highest gear the transmission will shift into. If you find there is gear hunting then maybe use S mode and hold it in the lower gear to prevent the hunting. When I drive in the city I drive in 4th. I don't put into 6th! So why are drivers of auto transmission vehicles allowing this when they have some control over it! This makes now sense to me.

Edit: Spelling and punctuation

 

Yep...Toyota isn't going to change the shifting "problem"....just use ECT and S4 or S5.

 

This is why I bought the stick. If I have to select the gear anyway, the MT is $3000 cheaper. Give me a third pedal.