Manual Transmission Question - How smooth/easy are the shifts?

Forgot to mention that another friend had a 1995 Toyota Pickup, regular cab, 4x4, manual transmission. Much more satisfying to shift than the 2020 version!

 

Driven many manuals years ago, did some armature racing in my youth, etc but had all automatic trucks the last decade. I got my 21 in a manual because I figured it would be my last chance to buy a new manual truck ever.

The trans and clutch are diffidently setup to be in a truck, not a sports car. Shifts are looong. But they are precise and easy to find. Clutch engagement has a wide window and is easy to operate. When you talk about a manual car that is easy to learn on, the Tacoma is exactly that. Very hard to stall, very easy to be smooth. Ebrake is in a good location incase you get someone up your ass on a hill. My only gripe is that reverse is geared way to tall. You are at 10+mph before you are off the clutch so creeping out of a parking spot is all done riding the clutch. First grear is noticeably short for daily driving, but it is a truck and you need it to be short when you have a trailer. I wish 2nd was a tad shorter to allow a 2nd gear start in some situations easier. But overall, these are small gripes.

 

Completely agree on the problems with reverse and the balance between first and second.

 

Totally agree actually. Reverse sucks completely forgot to mention that. The Scion had a short second and I wasn't a huge fan, except in traffic.

 

Same reason for me, I know there will be no manual in the 4th gen Taco. Shifting keeps me engaged and aware of the road, I actually think it makes me a safer driver.

 

My first Toyota truck, we had a Tercel a few vehicles before that.

 

I got my 2017 Off Road with 6 speed manual brand new in April 2017. As of today, I have just about 67K miles on it. The only 'hitch in the getalong' I have ever noticed while shifting is that sometimes going from 2nd up to 3rd it seems to "stick" or "hang" just enough to be noticeable, but does move into 3rd gear successfully.

I still passionately hate the fact that they designed it with R right next to 1st. I still make that damn mistake every few weeks.

I also bought mine without a test drive. I used a car buying service, I suppose similar to Carvana or Vroom. Its a small company located in southern California that started up in late 1990's. I have bought my Tacoma, and my 2001 Dodge Cummins both through them. I usually know exactly what vehicle, and exactly what configuration I want, I call these good folks and they go do the searching and price haggling for their clients, and can even arrange financing if requested. All for a total of $150 fee. I got my Off Road for $36K out the door.

 

I’m surprised to see so many folks mention reverse being hard to find/get in gear. I guess it’s second nature for me coming from many BMWs over the years. I’ve always found it strange when reverse is past 5th or 6th instead…

 

Unpopular opinion but I think driving the manual in this truck isn't as smooth, fun, or as easy as some trucks I've driven. I grew up on a farm, so I've driven manuals all my life.

I did the accumulator delete mod and that helped quite a bit. I honestly blame the trouble I have with the tuning. I hate the lag from when you press the accelerator to when it responds. And I hate how when you let off there is a lag before the RPM's go down. That makes shifting 1-2 really tough. To me it seems like it takes a long time for the engine RPM's to come down where 2nd gear wants it, resulting in either a jump or the car behind you almost rear-ending you because you are coasting and not accelerating while you wait for the RPM's to match up before you let out your clutch. Also the tuning makes it real dead at the bottom of the RPMs then really take off which sometimes results in a repetitive jumpy feeling and this is very noticeable again from 1-2. I usually shift between 2000 and 2500 so I don't really wind it up like most say you should.

Yes I understand there are aftermarket tunes. Maybe will get one some day but its just not something I want to spend that much money on or want to do myself.

 

How long to install this mod, in beers?

I finally trained my wife to always back the truck into the driveway. She rides the clutch all the way in to keep the speed down!

 

I’ve driven Tacoma’s, different VWs, and Subarus all manual transmission, and my 3rd gen taco is the only one I’ve had with first and reverse. And the deterrent isn’t as good as it could have been.

 

The reason most say to wind it up to higher rpm and then shift (and continue to keep the revs up) is to best utilize the power band and get the most fun and performance out of the wimpy at low rpm engine. The best way to get the most fuel economy is to shift and drive at low rpm (and least fun especially when you need some acceleration and it is not there) It's your choice, but imo the M/T gives you more choice and more fun than a A/T.

 

Took me 2 tall boys, really not hard. Just have to take apart some dash pieces and remove the passenger lower airbag. All done with a plastic pry bar and of course a 10mm socket.

 

I got mine tuned (KDMax), it made a huge difference. Solved those problems.

 

This manual is one of the easiest/smoothest trannies I have ever driven. Stock or tuned. I really don’t understand what some of these folks are talking about. I am tuned by the way and loving it. (premium SFOB)

 

I didn't read through this entire thread so maybe this was already mentioned but... there are two things that us old skool manual shift guys don't like... the clutch engagement and the "spongy" shifting. Both of these things were designed around making the experience better for newer or less experienced manual drivers. So, for a less experienced manual driver, the truck shifts just fine and is intentionally made to be easier than past generations (1st gen and older). Things like the clutch accumulator and the spongy/longer shift throws make this possible. Us old skool manual drivers are deleting the clutch accumulator and installing short throw shifters to make it more lively albeit trickier to drive for a less experienced manual driver.

 

It isn’t difficult to drive but didn’t shift like my 85. After the tune it had more even acceleration and drives more like you would expect. You can be quicker on the clutch and the throttle isn’t soft slow then sudden power. I could have lived with it but I’m happy with the improvement.

 

One of the nicest driving experiences I had was in our old 2012 Tacoma 6 speed with a URD short throw shifter we installed. Good stuff. My buddy still destroys it daily up in Alaska, still shifts great!

 

This is going to be an unpopular opinion, but don’t do it.

I owned a manual 3rd gen for a year and drove about 14,000 miles in it. It just never had that connected-to-the-truck feeling I’ve always loved about manuals over the years. Mostly a fault of newer electronic throttle technology, emissions tuning, and the lack of low end torque you’d expect from a truck. The 3.5L paired with the manual transmission was definitely not my favorite combination. Example: It didn’t feel very consistent when operating the clutch in first gear, even after the accumulator delete there was something left to be desired. For the record, I learned to drive on stick shifts and have owned many of them over 20 years of driving. I now own an automatic Tacoma, which has its own faults…but if I had to choose one again I would still choose the auto.