To those who have bought a 2019...

Good for you. I wish I could say the same for my '17 or the '16 I had before that...

 

the display doesn't show the current gear, only the current limit. i get that you can feel it when it gets there, but if it's getting to 6th in sport and not regular, then you have an issue that can likely be fixed by resetting the learning that is on the regular mode.

 

My 19 shifts like a charm.

 

To be clear I agree with you, I have an auto and I think people just need to learn how to drive it or compensate with progressive throttle application.

I was just pointing out that saying "the problem with manuals is that they shift at too high of an RPM" makes no sense, like you pointed out it barely makes sense even in an auto!

 

I have a 2019 DCSB OR 4x4 with 500 miles on it. Drove it on it's first two hour trip one way last night.

Love it. No problems to report with the AT or anything else.

 

My 2017 Shifts smooth as butter and has great shift points! Oh wait I have a MT

OP - get the MT - extremely smooth, fun to drive, 4.30 vs 3.80 ratio. Get the MT

 

Got that right!

 

I never had serious issue with my 2018 stock from the factory, but had the dealership flash it when it was in for service. I did feel a bit of improvement and more zip in the lower gears, but not night and day. My new 2019 so far seems about the same as the flashed 2018. But I have very few miles on it and have not put it through highway driving paces for long distances yet.

 

I'm not entirely sure what the transmission issue feels/looks like. Can someone confirm?

Based on reading about it I thought it was like a hiccup, sticking point or hesitation. Which would be evident from watching the speedometer needle stick somewhere and then suddenly jump or kick in. Or something like that.

So was one of the things I was looking out for when test driving the Tacoma and didn't notice that type of issue or any rough shifting.

I'm not sure if it's a transmission issue, just the way it shifts or if it's underpowered but I think I need to press on the pedal harder and rev the engine higher than I'm used to with my previous truck.

Also I currently haven't tried ECT mode because want to try to learn how to drive the Tacoma like it was designed and let it learn my own driving habits.

But the first day commuting in it was kind of a rude surprise where there are spots where I have to turn from a complete stop into traffic going 45 to 50 mph (if they're going the speed limit) with no traffic lights to control the intersection. So it was kind of a scary experience to turn into the traffic and see the cars coming up behind me so quickly as I was trying to come up to speed. The spot going from 30 to 40 mph is particularly slow which I noticed in the test drive too. But during the test drive wasn't sure if it was just a false perception due to the Tacoma riding a lot more quiet and smoother than I'm used to. Then also had issues keeping up with cars when going after a stop light. Outside the 30 to 40 mph range, the Tacoma seemed to accelerate fine. Such as going from 60 to 75 with no issues.

The next day was kind of better where I kind of figured out to accelerate harder than I'm used to, and resulted in more noticeable shifts but did get me up to speed as I needed to. I still ran into issues starting from a stop like at a stop light. Where cars were cutting me off or still trying to while I was trying to get up to speed. It might be just a matter of needing to find that spot with the accelerator pedal which will let me get moving at the speed I want it to but it is a lot harder and further down then my previous truck.

The concerns I have about having to drive this way is that with my previous truck, the tires would spin if you apply too much gas from a stop, in particular on wet roads. So am not sure if the Tacoma will have this type of issue if you have to rev it that high to get it moving. So far the roads have been dry so haven't gotten to test this yet. Also I was hoping to kind of be gentle and baby the truck for the first thousand miles or so before revving it up/hard. And I don't like going too hard on the gas before the truck is fully warmed up. But it looks like it might be necessary as I'm starting off in my commute and need to quickly get up to speed with traffic.

I'm not sure if using the ECT button will resolve the issue, where I think part of it is that the truck was shifting earlier then I would've liked on that first day. But am going to play around with it more without using ECT first.

Currently I'm leaning towards it's just due to the smaller/weaker engine that needs to be revved higher then I'm used to.

The switch feels kind of like how if you jump off from a 750/1000 cc sport bike onto a 600 cc bike shortly afterwards. Or maybe how it'd feel like jumping into a Honda Civic after driving a car that is a bit faster. (had a similar issue trying to merge into traffic doing that before too once)

I guess this might be the trade off to get more mpg. With my current commute, which is also easier/more fuel friendly then in the past, I was getting around 17 mpg with my previous truck. And wouldn't be surprised to see 14 mpg on winter blend gas. The truck had an EPA estimate of 14/19 mpg. Currently the Tacoma is saying I'm getting roughly 19 mpg, going up and down from that once in a while. But I'm still using the gas filled up from the dealer and it started off saying 7 or 8 mpg and has been adjusting as I've been driving it more. Will calculate it on my own after the next fill up. Can't say if mpg savings will be worth really worth it. Where I was also partly considering a used full size truck with EPA estimate of 12/17 mpg. And when I calculated it at the low end of 12 mpg compared to the 17 mph I was been getting, around $3 gallon and driving 20k miles a year I think the difference was about $120 month? The issue for me was that I preferred new and saw some posts of people getting single digit mpg in the truck I was interested in.

Anyways long story short. I don't think my 2019 has the transmission issue, unless what I described above is exactly the transmission issue. I do wish it had a bit more power/torque though. Too bad Toyota couldn't shrink or lighten up the Tacoma when they came out with this 3.5 engine. The first gen Tacoma is still one of my favorite trucks(along with the Nissan Hardbodies and first gen Tundras). Here is the video from TFL trucks drag racing the three generations of Tacomas:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbmOYTMirrw

I've only been driving it as a daily driver for a couple of days. Will post an update later on if I find anything different.

 

You have an aftermarket remote start?

 

If you value your life, I’d recommend the ECT button.

 

Happy to chime in with my real world experience as I just went through a similar situation.

Had a 2016 DCLB TRD OR automatic that was totaled a couple months ago. Even with the few minor quirks it had I loved the truck (all vehicles have their quirks btw)! I had one of the early 2016's, and I thought it shifted just fine. You had to give it a tad more gas off the line if you wanted it to get up and go but not a problem I learned how to do that. My Nissan Xterra was the same way...unfortunately the Xterra never got going no matter how much throttle you gave it. But the Tacoma once you got it in the power band as others here have said power was never an issue....the thing would really take off. I loved the truck and the power train. So when it was totaled I immediately went to replace it with another Tacoma....never considered getting anything else.

I got a 2019 DCLB TRD OR automatic. First thing I noticed when I went on my test drive the 2019 was how improved the shift points seemed to be when taking off from a stop. I mean driving a 2016 for all that time then hopping in the 2019 it was very noticeable to me. I was already going to buy another Tacoma because I love them, but this just double sold me on it. My prior dealership would never flash the transmission update on my 2016 because of some unknown reasons I can't even remember at this point...bottom line they weren't willing to do the TSB for me.

In any event, the 2019 to me was and still is a big improvement over my 2016. I have about 1000 miles on mine and they have all been a pleasure so far. I assume all the prior TSBs have been done to the 2019 because the few quirks I had on the 2016 are not present at all on my 2019 (knock on wood).

Take a test drive and judge for yourself...always the best policy. Good luck in what ever you choose to do.

 

Great write up Slamson. Thank you! This will be my 4th Toyota truck...92, 05, 10 and now a 19...never really considered anything else either.

 

I know it sounds like the OP has made their decision. But in case anyone else looks at this thread in the future, just wanted to update my previous post that I think I'm satisfied with the transmission of the 2019 Tacoma. Once in a while it shifts unexpectedly. But for the most part seems okay. Needs to be revved a little higher than I'm used to as well as being more buzzy. At last fill up, I'm getting about 20.6 mpg.
It will be nicer once I get past the 1000 mile mark and feel more free to use the gas pedal more...

 

I have a 2019 6MT and I love it! No complaints.

 

I had a 2016 Sport purchased in late 2015. The only issue was with the cruise control on, it would down shift on a slight grade and then not shift back up. Fisrt TSB that came out fixed it. No problems after that.
My 2019, only has 500 miles, in learning stage, but seems great. No issues, plenty of power. I thought it was the stock cat back exhaust, that made it feel more responsive to throttle input, it gets up a goes with no hesitation. Happy so far. I added the performance intake, but have not driven it enough to say if it is more than just under the hood bling.