Manual vs Automatic

Yeah they do!
Love mine

 

I own a '17 Sport M/T that I've had for about 4 months now.

I bought the manual because the automatic was not an option for me. I just love driving stick. However, I did drive an automatic for the hell of it because I was curious about why so many people complain about it. I only took a short test drive, but honestly I didn't think it was that bad. Yes, it shift a lot, and it's not real fast off the line, but I figure it'll be just fine with the TSB's done. It wasn't great, but certainly not as bad as people make it out to be.

The M/T however, is much better. I love driving it. It has 4.30 rear end and allows me to keep the rev's up. The truck itself is not a super powerful truck and the M/T isn't going to blow your socks off, but it is decidedly better than the auto. I think the biggest reason for this is that it give you complete control. The engine runs best when you rev it out. With a stick, I can do that. I rev to 3500k-4k RPM between shifts and the trucks gets up and goes just fine.

My recommendation is definitely the M/T. It's just a fun and enjoyable truck to drive.

 

I previously owned a 2000 MT that was bought back due to the rusted frame recall. I mainly used it for hauling my motorcycles to and from the track and commuting. Road racing was fine but motocross was exhausting. To drive back from the track totally wiped out and running into traffic trying to cross the GW was not fun. Now I'm back in the market and was dead set on the auto. Then I test drove one and just wasn't feeling the powertrain. I'm familiar with the motor given it's the same as the one in my Lexus IS 350. It already feels slow in that car so, yeah, it feels slow in the Tacoma. Stepping on the gas, with the gears changing often, turned me off so I went for the manual. Hopefully no regrets. Will post pics in a few days. The feedback on this forum is great. Cheers

 

So get this... signed papers on Friday and the dealer said he'd call the other dealer up in Kansas City to transfer the vehicle. Salesman said "if I don't hear back from them tonight, I'll call you first thing in the morning."

Saturday morning came and went. No phone call.

So I called the salesman back. He said, "oh well they have someone else looking at it. I'll call em back Monday. If it's still there we can have it."

A little irritated, I called Kansas City to hear their side of it. KC said "we don't know what he's talking about but I'll tell you right now we can beat his price."

And they did...

By $1750.

So, while I now have to go get the truck, I'm even more money ahead!

 

call back your dealer and let them know you saved 2 grand.

 

Which dealer in KC? I got mine through Olathe Toyota and they took pretty good care of me, 500 below invoice.

 

Hendrick in Mariam. They're discounting it $1500 because it's sitting on the lot. Also they're giving me another $250 for my trade.

 

Is it the white one? Olathe has a red one that they've had since at least September, when I bought mine...I test drove it and it's still showing on their lot. The access cab MT's aren't selling around here.

I bet you could get even better if that vehicle was compatible with your needs. I can even get you in touch with my salesman if interested.

http://www.olathetoyota.com/auto/ne..._bed_v6_4x4_mt-near_olathe-66061-ks/12411176/

 

The old me would have. I didn't want to burn a bridge so I just told them thanks but no thanks.

 

Sweet looking truck, but I'm getting the magnetic gray, just like my old one.

 

The moment they stop making the Tacoma in MT, I'll get a Tundra. I could use the extra space for the family, but keep buying Tacos because I can't stand driving an automatic. I had two late 90's Integra GSRs before switching to my '02 Taco and though it's a truck, winding out the new 3.5L on a country road reminds me why I love driving. Anytime I have to drive my wife's CVT slushbox I'm immediately reminded how much I can't stand automatics.

 

I have the M/T, and drove an A/T loaner yesterday while I had some service done. After spending a day with the A/T I can say I MUCH prefer the M/T. Seems the way the overdrive is set up on the auto has it constantly shifting, and it can't hold overdrive/6th at highway/freeway speeds on even the slightest of uphills or headwinds. The gear ratio on the manual makes the engine (IMO) feel quite a bit more usable. To each his own, but I'm happy with my decision even if it costs me a bit more in fuel.

 

When I test drove the automatic, you could definitely tell the motor wanted to run at a higher RPM. Even though it was hunting for a gear, it wasn't terribly noticeable.

I've had an 86 Jeep Cherokee in auto, a 65 Chevy C-10 in auto and manual, a 95 S-10 in manual, a 99 Dodge car in auto, an 06 Dakota in auto. With the exception of the car, every automatic I've driven has eventually gone to hell. Perhaps it's the way I drive, but I've never considered myself heavy footed. When I bought my 2011 Tacoma I was looking at getting a stick but found them to have lots of negative views. I love my 2011 but even as good as it is, I still can't make it do quite what I want.

So I'm really looking forward to getting my new MT tomorrow

 

ECT mode fixes that. I recently had a new 4runner as a loaner and played with it's 4.0 for a while. Much more bottom end torque but a lot less top end.

With ECT off, the new 3.5 feels like a total dog except for top end. With ECT on, it feels like it has 80% of the bottom end torque but 150% of top end of the 4runner's motor.

No bucking or surging with my 2017.

 

My Automatic transmission works perfectly, I have 30K on it after 12 months, you learn thats its OK to have power over 4,000 RPM

 

Manual operators tend to know how to use the gas pedal to gain speed to shift. The auto will gain speed very well also if you push the accelerator like most manual operators do. Its true the auto will downshift to 5th gear on small hills and 4th gear on big hills. Yes the manual guys can keep their trucks in 6th gear on large hills because they can control the shift but if the truth was know the truck probably wish it was in 4th climbing those hills even with the manual. I am not knocking manual trans. because I like them also but I have an auto because I might have to trade vehicles with my wife on occasion and she cant drive a stick. I also like my auto it gets the job done for me.

 

I test drove A/T and M/T back to back before buying, and I just could not stand the A/T kept constantly hunting gears in city traffics. I may be slower and less efficient driving M/T than A/T but I'm having so much fun shifting gears myself and makes me feel so good that I'm in control. This reminds me of the vintage Toyota TV commercial - 1984.

Oh, What A Feeling! Toyota!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HubZ2cABBfU

Interestingly, the truck used in this ad is somewhat like mine - AccessCab Manual Trans 4x4!

 

I love driving the M/T too. I chose the manual because I was coming from a full size truck with a ton of power and I knew the Tacoma would be lacking in that department. Having a manual makes up for it because it's so much more fun to drive! The Taco is not as fast off the line or passing on the highway, but it's plenty in day to day use. No regrets!

 

agree 100%

but plenty of MT hate for us

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...r-model-selection.475457/page-2#post-14407209

 

Not hate just facts. Today's ATs are superior for a lot of things. 1.) mud - ever hit a big mud hole in the wrong gear and have to shift, 2.) snow & mud - ever tried to rock a MT, 3.) towing - today's autos normally have higher towing capacity 4.) city driving, 5.) driving with a cast or boot on one leg. First 2 trucks I owned were MTs and really enjoyed driving them. I am glad that I did not own one when I broke my foot a few years back. I would have been renting vehicle for almost 3 months. Also, glad when I dislocated an ankle.