Why no more manual transmissions?
#21
Originally Posted by roger
You'll always be able to get manual trannies. Many truck buyers still prefer a manual. People have been predicting the death of manual transmissions for more than 50 years and it still hasn't happened.
Prove me wrong: bring home a new ever-so-popular 4Runner with a manual.
Last edited by 4RUNR; 10-29-2004 at 01:28 PM.
#22
Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Mountains outside of Boulder
Posts: 613
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by roger
You'll always be able to get manual trannies. Many truck buyers still prefer a manual. People have been predicting the death of manual transmissions for more than 50 years and it still hasn't happened.
plus as someone mentioned above, autos are much cheaper to build, so the car companies are gonna keep pushing them. the guts of an auto tranny are just some (low tolerance) machined channels to pump the hydraulic fluid simple clutch packs and stuff. a manual has syncros and all kinds of stuff that needs to me machined to high tolerances. to make autos work better all you need is cheap electronics. programmers are cheap and the marginal costs are very close to $0. unfortunately i see the end of manuals, which makes me very sad. but if that's the case, i may never own a new car again, i'll just keep buying used manuals.
#23
Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Carmel Valley, Ca.
Posts: 444
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I think it has to do with the downhill assist. A computer controlled engine braking vehicle will not let you take over the stick and shift into a wrong gear or drop the clutch in a sketchy situation. In other words, cars are smart, people are stupid. The automatic transmission assisted by computer will get the average driver to the bottom of the hill better than a stick. Try switching the auto tranny into neutral and bomb down a steep muddy hill. Once you hit the brakes your sliding out of control.
#27
Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Southern Nevada
Posts: 139
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by kyle_22r
i will never own an automatic in a truck, ever, period.
#28
Originally Posted by WatsonMD
The obvious answer is Soccer Moms!!!!
It is much too difficult to shift gears as the soccer mom is barreling down the road, weaving, over the speed limit by 10-15mph as little jonnie is late to his practice. Meanwhile, she is putting on makeup, doing her hair, talking with soccer mom #2 (katie, lindsey....something with a y or e on the end) about how her latest appointment at the nail/hair salon got screwed up. Nevermind, the starbucks coffee she keeps nipping on as she searches through the console to find some kiddie DVD to keep the kids entertained for the 10min ride to the field.
There just isn't anything like the feel of a clutch/stick when driving.
Just my thoughts.
Andrew
It is much too difficult to shift gears as the soccer mom is barreling down the road, weaving, over the speed limit by 10-15mph as little jonnie is late to his practice. Meanwhile, she is putting on makeup, doing her hair, talking with soccer mom #2 (katie, lindsey....something with a y or e on the end) about how her latest appointment at the nail/hair salon got screwed up. Nevermind, the starbucks coffee she keeps nipping on as she searches through the console to find some kiddie DVD to keep the kids entertained for the 10min ride to the field.
There just isn't anything like the feel of a clutch/stick when driving.
Just my thoughts.
Andrew
#29
Contributing Member
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: St. Louis, MO
Posts: 537
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by 4RUNR
For a hobby and a manual buy a Porsche. The point of most vehicles for most people is to get from point A to point B, with as less hassle as possible.
Cranking the engine by hand was a hassle, and so is (soon was) shifting.
Cranking the engine by hand was a hassle, and so is (soon was) shifting.
#30
Originally Posted by bobzemuda
Only in America. Most people in Europe drive manuals from what I saw when I was over there.
#31
Contributing Member
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Way down in the hole...
Posts: 767
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
You can't push start an auto tranny after you've left the lights on. Not, of course a problem in newer vehicles, since the lights are one more thing that you can't control for yourself. I hope no-one ever even thinks of putting an auto on a motorcycle (they probably already have).
#32
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 483
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by 4RUNR
I'm saying they are already dead.
Prove me wrong: bring home a new ever-so-popular 4Runner with a manual.
Prove me wrong: bring home a new ever-so-popular 4Runner with a manual.
#33
Registered User
you can get one, just not in this country.
we're screwed up, we can't even get a barebones setup any more. any other place besides the US or canada and i could have a diesel with a 5 speed
we're screwed up, we can't even get a barebones setup any more. any other place besides the US or canada and i could have a diesel with a 5 speed
#34
Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Mountains outside of Boulder
Posts: 613
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by kyle_22r
you can get one, just not in this country.
we're screwed up, we can't even get a barebones setup any more. any other place besides the US or canada and i could have a diesel with a 5 speed
we're screwed up, we can't even get a barebones setup any more. any other place besides the US or canada and i could have a diesel with a 5 speed
even better, i bet you could get a brand new copy of your '79 in central america. i'd love to get a brand new 1st gen 4runner, i'm sure they still make them somewhere. wonder what the customs would be like to bring it back here.
#35
Registered User
don't think my model of truck has been produced anywhere since the early 80s...unless china bought some of the dies like they did with 3rd gen trucks/2nd gen 4runners(there was a big thread on that a while back, the chinese company wanted to sell in the US).
i do know that a variant of the land cruiser FJ40 was produced in brazil until the late 90s though...
i do know that a variant of the land cruiser FJ40 was produced in brazil until the late 90s though...
#36
Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: So. Cal
Posts: 176
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by mike_d
the guts of an auto tranny are just some (low tolerance) machined channels to pump the hydraulic fluid simple clutch packs and stuff. a manual has syncros and all kinds of stuff that needs to me machined to high tolerances. to make autos work better all you need is cheap electronics. programmers are cheap and the marginal costs are very close to $0. unfortunately i see the end of manuals, which makes me very sad. but if that's the case, i may never own a new car again, i'll just keep buying used manuals.
Manual transmissions are alot more forgiving in that aspect. The original 4sp manual in my truck never had the oil changed in it ever. It lasted for over 350K miles before 1st and 3rd gear started slipping. Then, 1st and 3rd went completely out.lol! Try getting that out of an automatic. In fact, I wonder if the average automatic would even last over 350K miles?
Unfortunately, the fact remains that most 4Runner buyers today order an automatic and not the manual tranny. The 4Runner is definitely not what it used to be. The newer ones are practically the epitome of what an SUV is nowadays. Soccer moms, yuppies and businessmen all order these things by the droves. Most of that market demographic want an automatic. The original 4Runner was much different in concept and appeal. The 1st gen was basically just a hilux PU with a removable top on it.
I totally agree about manual trannies though. I couldn't imagine driving my PU with an automatic. Yuck! It would feel so boring and somewhat "disconnected" from the road when driving it.
#37
Banned
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Colorado Springs
Posts: 2,617
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by 4RUNR
I'm saying they are already dead.
Prove me wrong: bring home a new ever-so-popular 4Runner with a manual.
Prove me wrong: bring home a new ever-so-popular 4Runner with a manual.
I'll never buy an automatic because I enjoy driving and I believe that my eyesight is better than my truck's. I can see the terrain ahead and can select the gear to use accordingly. My truck will never try to outsmart me or guess what I want it to do.
Most people only drive because they have to so they buy autos. Those of us that drive as a hobby prefer manuals. Its a question of being in command of a vehicle or the vehicle being in command of you. Manual owners drive. Auto owners just steer.
Toyota is totally going down every wrong path they can find lately and its pissing me off.
#38
Bring home an ever so popular Subaru STi with an automatic if you can. Clearly their still is a very strong market for vehicles that can really be driven, not just steered.
But if I did want a 4Runner in a manual, no matter how strong that urge was, I would not be able to buy it with a manual. The availability of a Ford250 with a stick shift, or a 4Runner with a manual but sold to a New Zealand market would not help much.
As far as 4Runner buyers are concerned, the manual is dead.
It is a far fetched logic to concede that manuals are dead only after the last model of an economy trim Ford Escort in an Australian market is discontinued. If you can’t get the car you want in a manual, the manual is dead.
#39
Contributing Member
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Littleton,CO
Posts: 10,549
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
www.subaru.com Pull down models choose Impreza then click WRX STi sedan.
An STi is one bad Subaru Impreza,300hp,AWD with fr/rr bias control and a 6 speed. Ran head to head with a '03 Mustang Cobra in the 1/4 and wiped it's ass with it on a road course in a comparo test done by Hot Rod magazine.
The Mitsubishi EVO is it's direct competition and the combo of AWD+turbo becomes one fun platform to drive in inclement weather.
*sigh* Man,now you made me miss my '93 Eclipse.
Originally Posted by 4RUNR
The only problem is I don't want, or even exactly know what an STi is.
The Mitsubishi EVO is it's direct competition and the combo of AWD+turbo becomes one fun platform to drive in inclement weather.
*sigh* Man,now you made me miss my '93 Eclipse.
Last edited by X-AWDriver; 11-01-2004 at 09:26 AM.
#40
Registered User
Join Date: May 2004
Location: 100 miles offshore as much as possible, & Springfield Oregon USA
Posts: 3,291
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The electronic controls have their limits. And to do any serious off roading with them they need to be the most-sophisicated kind. Here's examples: STEEP downhill, muddy or snow covered. With an auto (select 4LO if you even have it and manually select 1st gear) you still pick up speed - no compression braking. So you have to put your foot on the brake. Now, because the torque converter uncouples the drivetrain from the engine, you can stop the wheels from turning easily (with a manual you would have to brake hard enough to kill the engine to stop the wheels from turning) - and away you go sliding down the hill. Ah, I have ABS you say. Well, now that presents a different problem. Now you go merrily down the hill picking up speed as you go with the pedal clunking away, ABS not letting you have enough control and you still can't stop. Now, imagine this very steep downhill trail on the side of a mountain. How fast can you toboggan around down the hill around curves and keep it on the road? I've been there - it's terrifying. If you're system has hill decent, you get much much improved results, assuming every thing is perfect - no dirt, mud or water on your brakes, speed within the parameters of the system etc. And there are precious few vehicles available with that level of sohpistication.
The answer is obvious - those of us who want off road vehicles with 5 speeds should buy off road vehicles with 5speeds - leave the techno whiz jobs to the soccor moms and the people who have to get every option and will never even know what real offroad trails look like. Problem is, our choices are getting more and more limited every year as the car companies eliminate manuals in anything but the most stripped down models. No 5pseed 4Runners, no 5speed DoubleCabs. You can still get v6 speed Xtracabs and standard cabs at least, but I want a real back seat. Guess I need to look at... what? No 5 speed Explorers, no 5sp Durangos, or Monteros or Grand Cherokees or Isuzu Rodeos, you want a sport utility you're stuck with a Liberty, Wrangler, or Suzuki or any of those wannabe SUVs that are based on cars like the Escape, the Rav4, CRV, Hyundais and Kias, etc... Just Great.
I have nothing against autos, I just prefer 5 speeds. It really irks me that in order to have one I have to limit my choice of vehicles to rigs I don't really want. End of rant.
The answer is obvious - those of us who want off road vehicles with 5 speeds should buy off road vehicles with 5speeds - leave the techno whiz jobs to the soccor moms and the people who have to get every option and will never even know what real offroad trails look like. Problem is, our choices are getting more and more limited every year as the car companies eliminate manuals in anything but the most stripped down models. No 5pseed 4Runners, no 5speed DoubleCabs. You can still get v6 speed Xtracabs and standard cabs at least, but I want a real back seat. Guess I need to look at... what? No 5 speed Explorers, no 5sp Durangos, or Monteros or Grand Cherokees or Isuzu Rodeos, you want a sport utility you're stuck with a Liberty, Wrangler, or Suzuki or any of those wannabe SUVs that are based on cars like the Escape, the Rav4, CRV, Hyundais and Kias, etc... Just Great.
I have nothing against autos, I just prefer 5 speeds. It really irks me that in order to have one I have to limit my choice of vehicles to rigs I don't really want. End of rant.