Just an innocent question about the Tacoma's tranny, so let's not fight.....

A

ARNIE R

Member
So, anywho, After owning my little T for a little over 6 weeks, I really had the first opportunity to drive it today for some real highway miles. (retired, so do not beat me to death)

With the tranny in the normal "D" position, and hitting the cruise control at about 60 even, I observed that the RPM's stayed at about 1500.

Whenever I started to go up a very mild incline, the RPM's jumped up to 2000. OK. Then, they dropped to about 1750, then back to 1500 on a flat.

So, did it downshift two gears or what?

Same scenario, only towing my empty bike trailer later in the day.

It appeared to downshift about 4 times to roughly to 3500 RPM's going up a steep incline. I seriously doubt that it was in 2nd gear at 70 MPH

So, when shifting into the "ECT" mode, things seemed different.

So , with the 6-speed tranny, what exactly might I be experiencing? Is there 6 speeds plus an overdrive or a torque converter lockup also?

Second question (Sorry, I lied)

If one is merely cruising around town or in an area with 35-45 speed zones, should one utilize the "S" position in the "D" position to minimize the tranny
 
The downshift going up an incline I believe is due to the low gearing for 6th gear.....it's not a 1:1 ratio.........more like a .58:1 and the engine isn't pulling enough RPMs to keep up so the downshift occurs. 5th Gear is a little better. Mine does the same thing but is better after the TSB update done but still does it. 6th gear is the overdrive......when driving around town I keep mine in "D"......I've used Sport Mode a couple times. ECT button doesn't really give you more power.....just changes the shift points. Here's a link to just one of the threads here on this.....http://www.tacomaforum.com/threads/transmission-update-for-2017.8544/

Here's a pic of the gear ratios for the 2016-2019 Tacos that shows 6th gear is really low which would cause the downshift on inclines.
1.jpg
 
The 6 speed is basically a 4 speed + a double overdrive. The high gearing of 6th gear is strictly for gas mileage while cruising flat and level, pretty much any load will kick it out if 6th gear so as to get some pulling power. If we had a big v8 under the hood with lots of hp and torque it would be less likely to be down shifting all the time. The little van I drive at work has a 4 banger with a 9 speed and it is constantly changeing gears.
 
ARNIE R said:
So, anywho, After owning my little T for a little over 6 weeks, I really had the first opportunity to drive it today for some real highway miles. (retired, so do not beat me to death)

With the tranny in the normal "D" position, and hitting the cruise control at about 60 even, I observed that the RPM's stayed at about 1500.

Whenever I started to go up a very mild incline, the RPM's jumped up to 2000. OK. Then, they dropped to about 1750, then back to 1500 on a flat.

So, did it downshift two gears or what?

Same scenario, only towing my empty bike trailer later in the day.

It appeared to downshift about 4 times to roughly to 3500 RPM's going up a steep incline. I seriously doubt that it was in 2nd gear at 70 MPH

So, when shifting into the "ECT" mode, things seemed different.

So , with the 6-speed tranny, what exactly might I be experiencing? Is there 6 speeds plus an overdrive or a torque converter lockup also?

Second question (Sorry, I lied)

If one is merely cruising around town or in an area with 35-45 speed zones, should one utilize the "S" position in the "D" position to minimize the tranny
Click to expand...

Lol I love the thread topic. Let’s not fight. Thanks for the laughs buddy
 
ARNIE R said:
So, did it downshift two gears or what?
Click to expand...

I have Shift Sense Pro, which always shows the gear the tranny is in. I notice with "shifting" a mild downshift sensation when there is no change in the gear showing on the instrument cluster. Most noticeable going up hill. Again, SSP alway shows the gear the truck is in.

We talked about this before. But the 3rd gen Tacoma has an Atkinson set up that affects the pistons/compression vs older versions. Please excuse me. I'm not an engineer so my terminology is clunky (kinda like the shifting).

Anyway, my point is that the engine will not only downshift, it also goes back and forth between Atkinson and Otto piston/compression. Since I see when there is a gear shift, there are many times when I clearly feel a mild downshift but no change in the gear that is showing on the dash.

I think the truck not only has 6 gears but also another 3 power options between 3, 4, 5th gear. These are the gears where I experience this effect
 
jdr3366 said:
I have Shift Sense Pro, which always shows the gear the tranny is in. I notice with "shifting" a mild downshift sensation when there is no change in the gear showing on the instrument cluster. Most noticeable going up hill. Again, SSP alway shows the gear the truck is in.

We talked about this before. But the 3rd gen Tacoma has an Atkinson set up that affects the pistons/compression vs older versions. Please excuse me. I'm not an engineer so my terminology is clunky (kinda like the shifting).

Anyway, my point is that the engine will not only downshift, it also goes back and forth between Atkinson and Otto piston/compression. Since I see when there is a gear shift, there are many times when I clearly feel a mild downshift but no change in the gear that is showing on the dash.

I think the truck not only has 6 gears but also another 3 power options between 3, 4, 5th gear. These are the gears where I experience this effect
Click to expand...
Probably feeling torque converter unlocking and locking back up
 
B-Man said:
The downshift going up an incline I believe is due to the low gearing for 6th gear.....it's not a 1:1 ratio.........more like a .58:1 and the engine isn't pulling enough RPMs to keep up so the downshift occurs. 5th Gear is a little better. Mine does the same thing but is better after the TSB update done but still does it. 6th gear is the overdrive......when driving around town I keep mine in "D"......I've used Sport Mode a couple times. ECT button doesn't really give you more power.....just changes the shift points. Here's a link to just one of the threads here on this.....http://www.tacomaforum.com/threads/transmission-update-for-2017.8544/

Here's a pic of the gear ratios for the 2016-2019 Tacos that shows 6th gear is really low which would cause the downshift on inclines.
View attachment 26536
Click to expand...
+1 for 3 pedals!!! Lol
Tacomania said:
Regear to 4.88 [emoji4] and you will be satisfied, thats what happens when toyota puts a van engine in a truck[emoji44]
Click to expand...
This... the little 3.5's don't have enough gumption to pull the truck with any load in 6th gear... especially with the factory tune and automatic transmission...
My tuned manual will climb some impressive hills with cruise on in 6th and only loose a couple mph's... but my 6th is a smidge lower than the autos 5th and I have a .4 lower axle ratio... haha
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top