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

thanks yall i'm finding them all over the place, and some other cool options as well at speeddawg.com. now all i need is the truck! it's on order, these MT's take forever it seems.

 

It took me over 4 months to get mine after I ordered it. I just picked it up this past weekend. Spent my whole weekend playing with it, so I need to get some pictures still to post. Worth the wait in my opinion (but I'm so glad the wait is over)

 

For those of you looking there is a 2016 blue DC TRD OR MT Prem/tech and towing in Westminster MD. I passed for the MGM I found at another place. Didn't go visit it, but call Rob Morris there. Lets just say he is happy to deal right now. Tell him Tim sent you.

 

4 months? you have no idea how much that puts me at ease.

it's just that my current car is both illegal (unregistered due to electrical problems) and literally falling apart. it's a race to the finish line! can i make my current bag o bones last til Nov? lol

 

Installed a new shift knob. Special thanks to @pat1usmc for the insight in how to get the insert set up right.

 

Can anyone confirm that this knob will fit on a 2017 TRD Off-Road shifter?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/361440220668

@MikeyMcFly , really like the TRD engraving on yours but I'm not sure how the color would look with the black/inferno accents interior, so I'm leaning toward black. Does the knob you installed come in any other colors?

 

Works fine on my '16 OR: (Ace hardware for rubber washer)

 

Not from Toyota, but there are many replicas (as in the post below yours)

FYI, it looks like you've got a 5/8 grommet. A 3/4" grommet will sit a bit lower but will hide the shift boot lip.

 

Just got home with it

 

My ordered truck just came in (DCSB OR 6MT), and I have to ask a question of all of the MT owners of 3rd gens: How smooth is your 1st gear clutch engagement?

The truck I drove today had light shuddering, and I'm curious on if there is a meshing/bedding process with them - like a "break in" period on the transmission. They had no other MT's on the lot, and have none others on order.

I tried low RPM starts, and I also tried revving it to 1200-15000 and slipping the clutch in. Light shuddering was felt for most of the clutch engagement.

There was also something with the shifts. When I depressed the clutch all the way to the floor during a shift, I felt like it released all at once towards the bottom resulting in a "gear/driveline lash" feeling - regardless of how hard I tried to make it smooth.

Took it out with the sales manager, and also with a technician. They both recognized the sensations but without another truck on the lot they said they didn't know if it was normal break in on it.

I've been driving stick for 15 years on a number of different makes and models, but never a brand new vehicle. I consider myself a pretty competent standard driver, and the sales manager and techs both were experienced as well.

 

I have not encountered the issues you are explaining. I followed the standard break-in period instructions in the manual but it has been smooth sailing for me. Way smoother than I anticipated when I drove the truck. I test drove a different TRD Sport before I had mine ordered and it was similarly smooth. I drive a TRD Sport. Not sure if that makes any difference.

I'd look at a few different dealers to find a MT to test drive. I was only able to find 1 dealer out of 6 or so in my area that had an MT. That is why I had to order one.

 

Shouldn't need to depress the clutch anywhere near all the way to the floor. Mine only needs a few inches of depression for the clutch to fully release

 

I definitely had a bit of learning curve with 1st in this truck. That said I only had shuddering when I botched a shift between the super low 1st and a second gear that I felt should have been lower too. 1st is great for starting uphill, with a large load or trailer and always feels awkard to shift out of. Second is too high to start in unless you're already pointing downhill. That said all of my previous manuals were sport sedans or coupes so I can't expect an apples to apples feel. Learning curve aside, I'm at 3500 miles now and the roughness is gone entirely (whether it was break in or me figuring it out it's hard to know) and I love my truck more everyday.

This. My friction point feels like it's within the upper third of travel.

OA

 

Hey everybody, fairly new to Tacoma world, actually, I just created my account about 20 minutes ago. Anyway, I picked up my 2017 6 speed manual Tacoma Off Road last week and I've been loving it no doubt. Only thing is (I'm embarrassed to admit) the shifting has been getting to me. It's the first manual vehicle I've ever owned so I'm still grasping the concept of it.

My question to you more experienced drivers is: should I be giving a little acceleration as I am upshifting passed 1st gear? Or should I be just disengaging the clutch after I make my shift and not be giving the vehicle any gas? Whats the recommended RPMS to shift at for 3rd gen Tacomas? I've read numerous posts saying either or, but I figured I'd ask on this website regardless since most of the forums were dealing with sports cars (not that it makes a huge difference, a manual is a manual and I know every vehicle is different) so far I've been accelerating a TINY when I upshift, but when I reach higher gears on the freeway like 5th and 6th, I notice a tiny jump or drop when I shift. I've been shifting around 2500-3000 RPMS depending. Am I shifting too early? Any advice will help, thanks.

 

How I shift is hard to explain. But I do stay in the throttle so to speak for just a split second as I shift gears. But you have to do it before the clutch actually disengages or the rpms will jump up instead of dropping. Remember the rpms need to drop and be matched to the next higher gear to get a smooth engagement of the clutch. The opposite is true on down shifts where you actually want to rev the motor just slightly so when you hit the next lower gear the engine rpms match the speed of the lower gear. Hope that makes sense.

I find that shifting from 1 to 2 is smoothest at either 1500 rpms or 3100 rpms. In between this and it gets a bit finiky. The rest of the gears seem to be fairly smooth shifting just about anywhere except redline where you will get Rev hang.

Hope that makes sense and welcome to the club.

 

Strange had no issues

 

Lol

 

You have a 2G. I have a 3G, it's a different shift assembly.

 

You'll get the hang of it. Don't spend a lot of time overthinking it. Over time, you'll develop your own technique and it will become second nature. The first manual I drove was an MGB. I remember just pushing in the clutch, shifting and abruptly letting it out. I darn near smacked my face on the steering wheel. "well, that didn't work." I eventually figured it out. Most of my cars have been manuals ever since. I specifically sought out a '14 Tacoma in manual. My VW, a manual, is being sent down to road soon. It's being replaced by a Mustang GT350; only available in manual. I will cling to my manuals as long as I can. I have a hunch you will soon be a convert too. As another said: "I want to >drive< my vehicles, not just >ride< in them!"