ECT Button Use and MPG

I believe you two posters are saying the same thing, but seems sort of outside of what I was asking. While the S mode stuff is good info, I was really just asking if ECT in the on position will allow the truck to get to 6th. Part of why I ask, is it seems that on the freeway even on flat ground when turning on ECT while in cruise, it kicks up the RPM's. This leads me to believe that it is shifting down, perhaps to 5th. So, the question then is, when if ever would it get back the 6th in that scenario while staying in cruise.

 

Yes, we are saying the same thing.

 

Sooo, you're looking to get into 6th gear...automatically at cruising speed, I presume.

I couldn't tell you how all that works in the ECU*...but I have a suggestion...

Force the issue by going into 6th gear using S-Drive.

One member here tested that out and lo and behold, it will manually shift into S6.

Paging @Rock Lobster

Buahahahahahaha!

*ECU controls the engine; TCU/TCM/GCU controls the transmission.

 

Yes it will go into 6th even in D. However, on the stock tune its a rare day to bang it into 6th with ECT on, and if you do achieve it, its not going to last for very long. The whole point of that button is to keep the rpms in a more torque-y range whenever you are demanding power, and by the time you achieve 6th in normal mode you are already pushing a giant brick against an EF-1 tornado equivalent wind resistance... ergo, demanding a bit of power.

Its all moot anyway. My advice is to put the blindfold on to whatever the truck is doing or what gear it wants to be in. Unless you are towing, put it in D, let the truck do its weird freaky-deaky thing, and enjoy the drive. If you are towing, then push the ECT button, pop it over to S4, let the truck do its weird freaky deaky thing, and enjoy the drive. Everything else is semantics and hand-wringing.

 

LOLOLOLOL!!!!

Freaky-Deaky!!!

You're making me chuckle quite a bit there Rock!!!

Here's what google says:

Most, or perhaps all, late model automatic transmissions are computer controlled. Through sensors the computer knows what the accelerator position is, the car speed is, the engine speed is, the selector lever position is, and perhaps also other information. From that information it decides which gear to use.

 

you really do need a sense of humor if you are going to drive an AT tacoma.

 

I like ECT on the highway but it feels really weird on slower streets around 30mph. Like it’s running a very high RPM.

 

My truck desperately needs a tune. ECT helps a little for freeway merging and freeway driving, but the transmission is a confused dog.