Manual Transmissions Were Just 1.4% of 2023 US Sales

it probably varies by market area. My local honda dealer used to love getting manuals in cause they would sell fast - that was 10 years ago. Now they tend to sit (unless its a type R civic of course)

 

Dealers argue that position (among other things) to sucker folks into accepting less for their trade... Manuals command a premium. -BECAUSE it is a niche market now.
Guess who pockets the benefit in that dealer transaction?

My past manuals have sold across the country (and I've even shipped abroad!) to buyers unwilling to settle for an Automatic. (I've also bought manual vehicles across the country - and from abroad )

It does depend on the vehicle - of course. I believe manual Tacos will do quite nicely in the future... Not that it matters. I bought it to drive it and do not plan on selling for quite a while.

 

Sales person to owner trading in manual tx vehicle.'' Not much of a market for manual tx vehicles, may sit on the lot for a few months. '' Next day to prospective buyer. ''Not many manual tx vehicles around, better grab it, don't expect it to be here long''.

 

I doubt the delta between my truck and a 24 Off Road would pay for a supercharger, install, supporting mods and tune. Regardless, that wouldn't be the only reason I'd consider the trade.

 

Toyota's manual 'discouragement' is now at play...

I'll say again that I do not think that the manual will survive the full 4th gen product lifetime. It will be killed off in the handful of years. (This is just my impression - I know nothing...)

I think the 3rd gen Manual is where it's at. - Why?

Well, the 4th gen does offer a manual. But only in the lower trims and not on the Hybrids which is where the impressive output sits**. (Ding 1)

The 4th gen MT is only available on the ICE only I4 turbo and it is de-rated a bit for some reason on the manual gearbox models (I forget why...). So more complexity (Ding 2). This package offers a very similar output as the 3rd Gen 3.5 non-turbo V6 so no improvement. (Ding 3). This I4 turbo's output is now paired with a heavier 4th Gen. platform. (Ding 4)
The result is not very enticing for me.

I'll stick with the Normally aspirated V6 and therefore I'll be quite happy with my Taco until I replace with a future EV off-road-capable option.

This is the 4th gen story as I recall from the 4th gen launch... I'm sure I'll be corrected if I missed something.

**- Not that I'd want or would ever buy a hybrid vehicle. Yes, they are an improvement over pure ICE and do work very well; but I prefer the simplicity and power offered by a fully Electric option. - I do not want the increased complexity of carrying around 2 drive-trains AND still have to carry out ICE maintenance. This is silly at this point.

 

Same HP, but a lot more torque and it comes in at much lower rpm (310@2800 vs 265@4600 rpm). The turbo motor should be significantly nicer to drive.

I like my third gen overall as a vehicle but I find it very unexciting to drive. And the 4th gen isn’t that much heavier….the torque increase at much lower rpm will easily overcome that.

 

I agree with most of your points and honestly, its such bs that they didn't pair the manual with the iForce Max/keep it out of the higher trims.There are manual hybrids out there and there are manuals that have more HP and TQ so those two reasons are weak. I have a TRD OR MT and the only reason I'd trade it or sell it would be to upgrade to a PRO (or maybe a TH). Seeing what VW did with the MK 8.5 Golf R and GTI, I sadly think that you are right about the manual being cut at some point in the 4th gen. I had a 2019 manual GTI and a 2019 manual Golf R (both MK 7.5 Gens) and the take rate on manuals in the US for those two cars was really high. So much so that VW continued to sell manual Golf Rs in the MK 8 generation in the US, even though it was all Golf Rs in Europe were automatic only(DSG, VW auto transmission fans lose their shit when you call it an auto). But in spite of that, with the midcycle refresh they cut it altogether, citing stricter EURO standards (that ended up loosened up and not affecting the manual anyways)

 

This stat is surprising as the dealer I bought my 22 OR new always had 6MT available at the time, but I had to wait 3 months for mine in AT. I considered pulling the trigger on a 6MT but really wanted the crawl control feature. Fast forward to current day, I regret not buying a manual…

 

I suspect many of the people who claimed Toyota would drop the manual transmission option from the 4th generation are the same people claiming it will be eliminated in the 5th.

 

MT Tacoma resale value won't be much better than an auto. I'd guess 90%+ of buyers want an automatic. That's only 10% of buyers that want a MT. It might sell for slightly more, but it will take longer to sell than an auto. The folks that bought a MT thinking it will gather a higher resale value are silly. I just made all this up, but makes sense in my head.

 

How is an AC more capable in the woods than a Pro would have been?

 

I have one!! So that's TWO that we know of....

 

As incorrect as your opinion may be, you are still welcome to believe it. That said, reality is a great teacher; my most recent used car purchase, a 2006 Acura TL 6MT, purchased in 2017 is a good example. I shopped for five months for the right car; I shopped exclusively in the "Lower 48" states as I was basically willing to do a road trip from anywhere. The car I finally found and purchased was on a medium sized lot three states away which specialized in "interesting" cars (i.e. not run of the mill stuff); that lot had 2 pristine examples of third generation Acura TLs, a 2006 6MT with 114,000 miles, and a 2007 Type-S automatic with 55,000 miles. The prices? The older 2006 with more miles was on his lot for only $1,000 less than the Type-S; he told me the Type-S had been on the lot for two weeks and had only had a few inquiries on it, the 2006 6MT had only been on the lot for 16 hours (when I bought it) and had already had several dozen calls on it. The owner of the lot went on to say, "If the Type-S had a manual transmission I could easily have sold it for $5,000 more than what I have it on the lot for now."

This is just one anecdotal story of many, but for the Tacoma there is little doubt models with three pedals under the dash will command a premium on the resale market.

 

You drove a couple states away for an 06 Acura TL with over 100k miles on it? That's crazy man. I could see that for like an NSX or something, but a TL??

 

And you should have bought the Type S. Much faster, sportier and is still worth much more til this day. Missed opportunity.

Just because you overpaid for a base model TL manual, doesn't mean everyone should.

 

LOL, I take it you need a HUGE excuse for a Road Trip. For me, it's like, "Geez, I need a very special kind of organic butter for these chocolate chip cookies I'm making, Road Trip!" In the end here in New England three states away amounts to only about 100 miles each way.

 

Sorry, false. The 2004-2006 6MT models were widely tested by car magazines back in the day against the automatic versions of the Type-S and were always found to be faster.

 

People increasingly love to believe what they 'think'...
(Despite them suspecting otherwise! )
- I see this in the US news...

So you say 10% of buyers will be chasing somewhere between 1.4% and 5% of shrinking production... and an increasingly shrinking supply. hmmm.
Hint: might that be a clue?

Every MT I've sold (say 4-5 of them) has sold at a significant premium to the auto version Of the same vehicle.
Who whines? The people that drive the automatic version...

"Youll never sell that!" they say....

I just read that BMW now has a higher MSRP on new vehicles with manuals - despite the lower cost of the transmission...

BTW - the BMW Z4 / Supra reviewer stated something like " Yes - the manual is slower by .03 seconds 0-60. - Do I care? No the manual is the most engaging on the track, or a mountain road"

Often, it is pointless to explain, when certain things are not understood...

 

I'll agree manual is more fun to drive. That's all I'll agree to.

 

Its crazy how much times have changed. I have a first gen 5 spd, and I feel like in the first gen there's more manuals than autos from the few people I know with first gens. (obviously statistically this is probably not true, but it just feels like everyone had a first gen 5 spd)