Buying a 2020 manual Tacoma was a bad idea - Rob Motive

I round down... barely 20... 25+ would be a good 20... I like to think I’m still a young lad

 

I've had only MT cars forever... I had one of the very few Manual AWD Honda Elements (Great utility vehicle for the snow and carrying bikes and Sails / Sailboat gear - Definitely NOT an Offroad-er!). Flew from SF to Seattle to buy it. When selling, (in Boston at the time) I way overpriced it (relative to the AT equivalent)... and STILL had inquiries from all over the country from people seeking the MT AWD. Finally sold it to a guy ion the West coast who paid the asking price and paid $2K on top to ship back west... This was a 12 year old car!

I believe that Tacomas will see that same effect as the MTs disappear...

I'll be looking for a Tacoma upon returning to the US - an MT Tacoma only. If I cannot find an MT Tacoma, I will not buy a AT Tacoma.
Our Other car will be Electric. So this car (Tacoma or whatever MT I get) will be may last MT... (Since EVs do not need transmissions...)

 

We all would like to think so...

 

Same here. Planning on this being the one and done MT since EVs are on the horizon.

 

The guy in the video lacks pedal skills, or maybe he drinks too many soy lattes.

 

I think its both.

The 3rd gen taco is quite easy to drive.

 

Yeah once I got used to it—as with any manual car—it’s been fine.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TI8O0DcwZ8Y

 

3rd gen MT is the smoothest MT i have driven. I owned 90 b2200, 87 camaro, 91 civic, 2007 ranger and drove quite a lot of MT cars. Actually drove 99 e46 5spd on the weekend and it was very fun but my taco drives 10 times better. The e46 did have like 140k miles though.

 

Thats the one, haha!

 

Honestly, the MT is the reason I even began looking at the Tacoma. However, I went away from the MT for 2 main reasons. 1, there was no option for crawl control (for obvious reasons). 2, the gearing was different and thus it was rated for worse MPG which wasn't good for my commute. Not to mention the countless people who've told me they'd like to not have a manual in a pickup or that there are other things they'd like to do than just shift all the time. Plus, with my lack of experience on a MT (apart from a motorcycle), I'm sure my clutch won't be lasting me a super long time.

That all being said, I'm glad they still offer it.

 

Honestly, your clutch would probably last just fine if you took the first 5,000 miles to learn how to drive a manual properly and learn correct habits like putting it in neutral and letting the clutch out when you’re stopped, not resting your foot on the clutch and not getting on the accelerator when shifting until after the clutch is all the way out. Really, if you’re used to driving a manual, you don’t even think about shifting, you just do it. You’ll go to reach for the lever in 2nd gear rolling up to a stop sign and realize it was actually in 3rd and think, “Huh, I don’t remember shifting into 3rd. Weird.”

 

^True.
It becomes the 'Automatic' manual...

Driving in traffic? -I Don't even notice it...

 

I find the tacoma manual exactly how a truck manual transmission should feel like. Sure it is a bit more challenging to be smooth but what you get in return is a lot more feedback, good or bad. When you shift too fast or too slow, you definitely feel it in the gear lever or if your clutch/gas timing is off you'll hear a clunk. I find these as desirable attributes because it's communicative. When you do get the shift right, you'll know... you feel that positive engagement feeling ripple up your arm.

 

I can agree with this. Like I said, I can do it on a motorcycle, but just haven't done it in a car. I know the principles, but putting it into practice is another thing.

 

"No R&D is being put into manual transmissions."

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