Auto Vs Manual

[chubmiester]

This is a real basic question and im sure its been asked heaps around here but i couldnt find it in FAQ or anything so im gna hafta ask . Uhh, ive been on the surf market for ages now, and ive always wanted a manual no arguments, but ive seen that many surf's that are automatic and i would buy in an instant if they were manual it sickens me. Basically, what are the pro's and con's of each, in terms of four wheel driving, and just normal driving. I was always under the impression that manual was better for taking ur surf offroad, but im not sure. Which should i choose!! please help thanks

[Woodzie]

This is a real basic question and im sure its been asked heaps around here but i couldnt find it in FAQ or anything so im gna hafta ask . Uhh, ive been on the surf market for ages now, and ive always wanted a manual no arguments, but ive seen that many surf's that are automatic and i would buy in an instant if they were manual it sickens me. Basically, what are the pro's and con's of each, in terms of four wheel driving, and just normal driving. I was always under the impression that manual was better for taking ur surf offroad, but im not sure. Which should i choose!! please help thanks

From a personal point of view a auto is better for off roading , as you then do not have to worry about clutch control . Have driven manual landys but much prefer my auto for mud plugging

[javars]

Auto for 4x4s everytime, no sloppy drive shafts, no fudged gear changes from pulling Priscellas horse box = less wear ! = less dosh !!!!!!!!!!!!! Result

[Wild Thing]

Auto for offroading as you dont loose driving torque with gear changes as you do with a manual

[PDR]

I guess it depends upon how hard you want to work (or play).

I driven Japanese 4x4’s off road in Africa. They where all manual gearboxes…I didn’t have any problems with them.

I ran an old Series IIA Land-Rover (which I totally rebuilt) for 5 years here in the UK.
I took that off-road quite a lot, but it could be hard work especially on steep inclines due to the fact it had drum brakes and mediocre hand-brake. Manual gearbox with overdrive, so I had 4 levers to play with.

My current Surf is the first Japanese 4x4 that I have owned, it’s a 3litre V6 Petrol with auto gearbox…… I do like the auto and would NOT want to swap it for a manual gearbox. I have not taken it off-road yet, but I’m sure that it must be easier to drive than the manual version.

[Bogus]

People in this country need to shake off this obsession with manual graerboxes, they are fine, but so what? AUTO is better. I personally feel its some kind of " macho" issue and theres an underlying feeling that if you go AUTO youve given up control, youre not a real driver anymore and therefore less of a man. Sorry if this sounds controversial but thats my little bit of homespun amateur physchology slant on it.

So Rest assured, buy an AUTO and no body parts will drop off, you will still be able to drink beer, have sex 10 times a night and grow facial hair ( Not sure what happens if you are female but I think females have less issues with AUTO boxes anyway)

I got my first Auto about 10 years back and although I still also own a manual vehicle I can only say I prefer the autos and can no longer see the point of all this clutch business, handbrakes on hills and wobbling that stupid gearstick around. IT MAKES NO SENSE. Go spend your life looking for a manual, because holding that stick makes you feel Manly and see how many great autos you have to miss out on. Just decide you MUST HAVE a Surf and then look for the best your money can buy, regardless if its Auto or manual

Im going to press submit now, hoping against hope that chubmeister doesnt turn out to be female, or that puts a whole new and very interesting slant on this need/desire to hold and manipulate the stick.

Bogus

[BUSHWHACKER]

Amen to that!

[Sancho]

Autos cost more to buy and more to run. They accelerate more slowly, are less responsive and are less fun to drive.

BUT

We are talking about two ton lumps of metal here. They ALL drink fuel, they ALL accelerate slowly, they are ALL unresponsive and they are ALL pretty boring to drive (albeit extremely comfortable).

The only reason to have a manual is to drive fast. Try driving fast in a surf and you will either go mad or end up in a ditch.

Buy an auto.

[laser_jock@work]

Having driven both manual and autobox cars offroad- I have to say I preffer the auto as I think it gives better control especially when you need to be concentrating on things outside the car! I don't think you get quite as much engine braking with the auto- but the difference is slight and makes no difference anyway with a big, low reving diesel engine.

Coupled to the above statments the Toyota autobox is a very strong, reliable unit. We see very few with problems on this forum (6000+ members) with the transmission of these (mostly 12+ year old) cars. The problems that we have seen were not related to offroad use.

Hope this helps.

[Bikenuts]

The only reason to have a manual is to drive fast. Try driving fast in a surf and you will either go mad or end up in a ditch.

Wibble fish teapot

[PDR]

Autos cost more to buy and more to run. They accelerate more slowly, are less responsive and are less fun to drive.

BUT

We are talking about two ton lumps of metal here. They ALL drink fuel, they ALL accelerate slowly, they are ALL unresponsive and they are ALL pretty boring to drive (albeit extremely comfortable).

The only reason to have a manual is to drive fast. Try driving fast in a surf and you will either go mad or end up in a ditch.

Buy an auto.

At least you and I are using proper fuel... PETROL, not stinky oil

[Sancho]

At least you and I are using proper fuel... PETROL, not stinky oil

Oh 'eck. Here we go.

We might as well say that it's nice to have it in grey, not one of those tarty 'colours' and vile two tones that people go for.

And

It's good to be able to find your truck in a car park rather than having to try your keys in every Grand Vitara until you find your 3rd gen.

This is a battle we're destined to lose. Probably best to fire everything off in the opening exchange.

[PDR]

Yes, grey metallic is the absolute perfect colour for these trucks…. Just looks SO right

[NFC]

My ROAD car has a manual box, my off-road tool an auto.

There is no way I'd change that, unless I spent most of my time driving the road car in traffic in which case that would be an auto as well.

I'm not going back to a manual 4x4, the auto is so much more controllable.

[BigTexan]

Let me set a prefix before I add a response. I have a 2016 Tacoma (Hilux) auto and a 1994 4runner (Surf) manual. I also have a 2016 Kenworth T680 manual Semi Truck. I work in the oil and gas industry here in the U.S. I've been driving heavy trucks off road in the oilfield for 14 years. My 1994 4runner is my overland rig.

If your going to be doing allot of 4x4 overlanding you definitely should go with a manual. Reason being is you have more control over the vehicle. Ascending, descending hills, climbing over terrain or even getting yourself unstuck can be more easily done with a manual. Once you become proficient with it you will out preform an auto every time. For instance, you get stuck in some mud. You can rock the vehicle and get yourself out in most cases. Not easily done with an auto. Your starter dies, you can roll start, pull start or push start your vehicle. Its allot cheaper to rebuild a manual vs an auto.

Now if your going to mostly drive on the pavement go with the auto. It's great for driving around town with. And in most cases you will get better fuel mileage with an auto.