Driving with manual transmission questions

So, I've driven a couple of cars that have dashboard shift indicators. Hate that, but I assumed they were set to maximize efficiency. They always indicated shifting pretty soon/low rpm. One was my dad's Chevy Cruze, other was a RHD diesel BMW rental in England.

 

Does 4k seem high though? OTOH I definitely felt the power kick in.

 

i don’t know about a 3rd and where the power band is but I usually shift my 2nd gen a little lower than that. The more displacement the more torque is usually made down at a lower rpm but that’s not a hard and fast rule. Diesels are a totally different animal my truck redlines at 3.4K LOL. I would never go by a shift indicator light I guess I’m too old school I go by feel. If you upshift and truck is hesitant to accelerate even with the throttle significantly depressed you’ve likely shifted too early. That was always my rule of thumb. The rate at what you accelerate the rpm to will also obviously have an effect on gas mileage.

 

Agree

 

Sorry, posted that and then had to go on night shifts the past few nights. Anyway, basically the power band thing. I live in what could be considered the boonies (I personally consider it typical for the west) and it's slightly mountainous (hilly compared to where I grew up) and my commute is mostly highway.

SOOOO that's all to say that I was almost definitely lugging it through some of those lower gears. Delaying the upshift for the torque was worth it, both in mpg and entertainment in the drive.

 

Tip:
Completely remove your foot from the clutch petal between shifts. In other words, only have your foot on the clutch petal when you are actively engaged in shifting.

Keeping your foot resting on the clutch petal will, over time, lead to the early death of your clutch.

 

The taco is VERY forgiving as far as MT goes. With hill assist, a forgiving clutch, etc-it really isnt hard to learn to drive a stick on this. And, like everything else-with time, you get better. The problem for the OP will be, when he goes from this, to a car-short throw, unforgiving clutch, etc. My opinion, the taco will spoil him.
My very first stick was a 90s Honda Accord. That thing was not bad to learn on, and I could feel the clutch. Then, I went on to Jeeps-and experienced what a "truck throw" was, lol. Had a GF with a Jetta, didnt care for that clutch/tranny at all. Had my first MT in 2017, when I went from a wrangler to a compass. When I was shopping for my new taco, they had ONE MT in transit, and I jumped on it.
Back OT with this:
The clutch on the new tacos are forgiving for new MT drivers. Going from 1-2 I rev high. After that, I rev relatively normal (although, the taco does like the higher RPMs, which I am still getting used to). I dont know about the reliability of the toyota clutch, but my last jeep, and 06, I never once changed the clutch on it, and it still wasnt slipping with almost 200k on it. Granted, I didnt abuse the jeep, and I rarely engine brake (downshift through the gears) unless off road. Its far easier and cheaper to replace brakes, than a clutch.
One thing I did notice, had read before, but didnt understand-the MT on the taco has some long gears. Essentially, it takes some time to get the revs up to where it feels it wants to shift. Coming from the jeep, this is still something I am learning about. I have short shifted a few times, and she does NOT like that. She seems to like the revs 3000+ for the first few gears. Hell, when I hit highway speed (55-60), I am usually still only in 5th gear. She doesnt really seem to want to get to that next one until over 65 mph.
Enjoy it. Have fun. This is one of the easier vehicles to learn to drive an MT on, in my opinion.

 

Her*

 

Thanks for the contribution! This is the first and only manual i've driven so yeah probably spoiled will keep in mind to take it easy if I ever drive another.

Haha thanks, kinda getting used to being misgendered! lol

 

I was once misgendered over the phone at work like 4 years ago. Fellas in the shop still won't let me hear the end of the it

 

So, my FIRST experience driving an MT was in the army, on the dune buggys. We used to do this, and called it "combat shifting". Of course, when you dont pay for repairs, it doesnt matter if you beat on it or not.
But, I dont suggest learning this new. Its a cool skill to learn, but not overly useful. Not for 99% of drivers, anyway.

 

My bad. Usernames are gender neutral mostly, lol.

 

Gotta give you flak. It is the internet, after all

 

Where were the cool girls who wanted a truck with a manual transmission when I was young??

 

At all of the Rush concerts

 

You can’t go wrong with shifting at 3000 rpms until you get a feel for it.

 

Yep, where the men are men, the women are men, and the kids are FBI agents

 

Speaking of being spoiled by the taco, I pretty much taught myself to drive a manual with a horrific three speed column shift with a manual clutch. None of that fancy hydraulics or extra gears for me.

 

I’m curious to know where are some of y’all catching points on the MT.. mines catch pretty high with 700 miles on it

 

does toyota fill it with GL-4 or GL-5?