35 years of manual Tacomas, now there's only AT and I'm ... shocked?

Is that beaver emerging from the donkey like a chest burster!?

 

Yup. OP wants a manual, so no brainer to get the TRD at this point. And the TRD Off-Road comes with a rear diff locker if OP wants more capability off-roading.

MSRP may have changed though:

SR5 V6 DCSB AT 4x4 - $37,205
TRD Off-Road V6 DCSB MT 4x4 - $37,075

 

FIFY

 

LOL, just wait until the electric Tacomas come out. Probably be a CVT transmission.

 

GET SOMETHING IN MANUAL

even these "smart" auto trannys with a tune are incomparable to a manual. All automatics are annoying as fuck and always in the wrong gear. (To those of us who mostly drive manuals)

You will definitely regret getting any automatic.

Find a used 2nd gen if you have to

 

In for the manual all the way! Had a 16 manual loved it but sold it. Had a 21 auto, hated it for all the reasons that everyone lists. Now I have a 20 manual, in love again...

Just buck up and get the TRD manual.

 

no one should be shocked by the reduced availability of an MT. they have been dying off for decades. thank goodness they are still readily available in the tacoma. it's the main reason i purchased one.

as others posted, forget the TRD or SR5 designation and get after it. the MT may soon go away entirely....

 

Well, that was a lot.

questions first

* Do all TRD's have manual? I started with the Build Your Tacoma thingie at Toyota.com, and they don't even show MT for the TRD's (that I can find)

* What is tuning anyway?

* And what does OP mean?

answers to some of your questions

* I'm not a spy <giggle>

* I shied from TRD to start with because I never had need for a big engine. My 2002 is a 2.4L and did all I need. And I dont do off roading unless you call driving into my firewood field off roading.

* what to speak of the sticker - the SR5 I looked at is $29,040 msrp and the lowest TRD at Build Your Own is $5500 more. I'm retired and trying to live on savings (and Soc Sec, praise the Lord). So that's a big bullet to bite

* And I guess I'm not the aficionado that most of y'all are, so I was fond of my oldie - simple, cheap, nothing I didn't need. I live in NH and I didnt even have 4WD. In 35 years of 2WD (manual) Tacomas I got stuck 3 times. So why pay extra, and get less mileage. Just the way I think.

But anyway, fellas, there's a lot in there. My thanks

 

If you want a simple - non techy 2WD 4Cyl MT I don’t think a new Tacoma is your target. I love my V6 4WD AT SR5. Just need to mash the peddle and put it in ECT and it’s fine.

 

Of course not.

Where an aftermarket software package adjust the parameters of the vehicle ECU so it performs better across the board.

Original Poster

That is a 5 lug truck. 2015 was the last year of the 5 lug production. I have a '13 and love it. For the use case you defined I'd recommend shopping for a '13, '14 or '15 5 lug. It will come with a 2.7l engine and 2wd. IF you can't find that in a manual, (which may be pretty hard) the auto in these trucks is rock solid. AND it comes with the advantage of still having a dipstick to be able to check and fill trans fluid by, something v6 line up lost in 2005.

The other advantage of looking for a 5 lug as I describe is they are less desirable to the masses, meaning the pricing should be well below the crazy stuff you see in the used marked for the 6 lug models. By the way, 6 lug does not mean 4wd. Yes, if it has 4wd it will be 6 lug, but there are 6 lug 2wd models too, which used to be called PreRunners.

I'm with you on managing your $. No reason to buy more than you need.

 

I found the taco i wanted - with some luck. I would have bought the pink taco with the last MT before I would buy an automatic - but now I get your situation.

It seems you may be better off with a tacoma from '13, '14 or '15 - the last years with a run of 2.7 MTs - as pointed out above.

It sounds like it may be worth your while so you can enjoy your truck!

Good luck in your search!

Gear Hunting: What new Auto transmissions do in their effort to maximize mileage. (They constantly shift up before they should).

Transmissions "learn": With time and the users repeated use, the transmission shifting-parameters adjust slightly to match user's repeated driving patterns. The Key word is 'Slightly". Very slightly.
-- Then when you want it to do something different it will hesitate...

Regearing: Changing the gears on your differential to other gear ratios to compensate for overloaded trucks (Campers, trailers, etc.). It is expensive. (A few thousand $$). It sounds like not something you'd want to pursue - or need.

 

I always had MT in all of my Tacomas over the years 93,98,2003,2008 and now I have the 2021 Sport AT and love it so easy to drive and the shifting is great and love that S Mode. Must be the old age kicking in as it was getting a little bit hard MT on the knees and legs from clutching and especially in traffic on a incline. just saying

 

OP you have several options:

1. Buy a manual pro new
2. Used pro
3. Don’t buy anything
4. look for a diff truck brand with the options you want :shrug:

you’ll be making payments regardless, it’s best to get what YOU want.

 

Just wait 'till you buy a direct-drive electric automobile.

 

it's a fast moving world, in 35 years, many many things have changed.
Most embrace it,,,, some are scared of it.

 

A few have mentioned looking for a 2nd gen 2.7L MT, but if I'm not mistaken they did still make the 5MT with the 2.7L for 2016 and 2017 if you want a slightly newer model.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/automatic-tune-vs-trade-for-manual.764977/

 

Best of both worlds. Buy a manual and a ‘gear-shift robot’ for when you feel like having a nap.

https://www.abdynamics.com/en/products/track-testing/driving-robots/gearshift-robots



these geniuses mighta cured cancer, but instead they did this . The solution nobody is asking for.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=61&v=cos6Tt_zF-Y&embeds_euri=https://www.abdynamics.com/&embeds_origin=https://www.abdynamics.com&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&feature=emb_title

 

The “auto learning” transmission isn’t what you think it is. If it were , people wouldn’t continue to complain about the odd shifts they experience even after driving the first 10k miles.