Test Drive Woes

"gmctavish needs more space" (gmctavish)
08/29/2020 at 21:46 • Filed to: car shopping

I’m trying to test drive several vehicles, since I’m heavily considering buying a new or near new vehicle, but I’m having a hell of a time finding manual ones to drive. The options I want to test are:

Tacoma TRD Off-Road, manual & auto

JL Wrangler Sport S V6 , manual & auto

Frontier Pro-4X, manual & auto. I’d go for the extended cab, but I can’t find pics of any current ones...

And the least likely option due to price, a 4Runner TRD Off-Road. If I went the 4Runner route it would probably be a pre-facelift Trail

The issue is I can’t find any manuals to test drive. I’ve got a couple dealers trying to hunt one down, or see when they might be getting one. There are manual 4 door Wranglers to test, but that doesn’t do me much good since I don’t want a 4 door Wrangler. The manual Taco or Frontier is going to be the hardest to find. Finding any Frontier Pro-4X seems like it’ll be hard actually. I could test the auto Taco and Wrangler this week, but I’d much rather test the autos and manuals back to back.

All this is pretty early anyways since I need to test drive a Bronco in the spring once they come out.

DISCUSSION (23)

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > gmctavish needs more space
08/29/2020 at 22:08

I think someone here test drove a manual Taco and said the gears weren’t spaced well and it wasn’t very good to drive.

I really can’t help you other than recommending a manual Bronco. Don't forget about the Gladiator too.

onlytwowheels > gmctavish needs more space
08/29/2020 at 22:10

Have you tried using autotrader for your search? Set your zip code and search radius, then choose make, model, trim level, transmission and cylinders. You may have to increase search radius to find a manual transmission.

gmctavish needs more space > onlytwowheels
08/29/2020 at 22:12

I have been yeah , but I totally forgot about the search radius actually, I should double check that...

gmctavish needs more space > Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available
08/29/2020 at 22:16

Ah that’s a bummer. Yeah a manual Bronco is what I think I really want.

The Gladiator is too expensive, and has too long a wheelbase. And the rear doors kicking in despite the wheel being further back than the 4 door wrangler drives me insane...if there was a 2 door Gladiator I’d be all over that

Who is the Leader - 404 / Blog No Longer Available > gmctavish needs more space
08/29/2020 at 22:22

I think the Glady is the only current truck that would look best in two door.

The way most modern trucks taper thei r windshields I think the extended cab looks better proportioned. Preferably with clamshell doors. With conventional doors they look weird as extended cabs.

Just Jeepin' > gmctavish needs more space
08/29/2020 at 22:25

I would test drive the 4 door Wrangler anyway. That should still give you a feel for the clutch and general driving experience; the clutch is apparently a bit polarizing.

Besides, speaking as a 2-door owner: easy access to the back is severely underrated. Cargo space is so limited, and at least with the zipper soft tops getting in through the back window in cold weather is problematic. (I imagine that’s mostly solved with the new zipperless soft tops, but I’ve not experienced one yet.)

The Snowman > gmctavish needs more space
08/29/2020 at 22:33

I drove a manual/auto taco back to back when my brother in law was buying one a couple years ago. Just like I did with my Crosstrek. The manual taco was too much sacrifice it was just less capable than the auto. On the Crosstrek it was just so slow it was painful.

CB > gmctavish needs more space
08/29/2020 at 22:36

I didn’t fit in the Tacoma, but your mileage may vary. Just be warned it’s pretty tight.

gmctavish needs more space > Just Jeepin'
08/29/2020 at 22:39

True I could at least get an idea for clutch feel. I’d still want to try a 2 door because of the weight difference.

Oh I’d definitely be getting a hardtop, and it would probably never come off. It rains a lot here. The backseats would probably be taken out too. That said, while I’m at a dealer I might as well try a 4 door.

gmctavish needs more space > CB
08/29/2020 at 22:40

I’m luckily not much bigger than whatever average Japanese man that Toyotas are designed for, but I don’t like how high the floor is in Tacos. Feels like sitting in a car

gmctavish needs more space > The Snowman
08/29/2020 at 22:41

Less capable? How so?

The Snowman > gmctavish needs more space
08/29/2020 at 23:08

It losses crawl control and hill descent stuff. Also the reverse shift is strange so trying to rock back and forth on the dirt test road was awkward. I think it pretty much settled at this point that modern autos are more capable than manuals off road.

gmctavish needs more space > The Snowman
08/29/2020 at 23:14

Ah that’s a bit annoying. Yeah for off-road I should probably get an auto, but I think I might be too bored on a daily basis with the auto. We’ll see

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > gmctavish needs more space
08/29/2020 at 23:23

At least with the JL, you can test drive a 2 door manual and that's the same as a 4 door

gmctavish needs more space > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
08/29/2020 at 23:44

Same drivetrain, but I feel like the weight difference will be noticeable which might affect how I like it

TheRealBicycleBuck > gmctavish needs more space
08/30/2020 at 00:23

The only Frontier we could find with a manual was a base model. We ended up buying an auto.

gmctavish needs more space > TheRealBicycleBuck
08/30/2020 at 00:46

Oh wow. How is the auto? Still being a 5 speed seems like a bummer, but the 4Runner has one too so I guess I should consider the Frontiers auto too

TheRealBicycleBuck > gmctavish needs more space
08/30/2020 at 08:15

I haven’t driven it much, so I can’t really speak to how it responds in a lot of different situations. From what little t esting I’ve done, it seems fine. Overall, it’s a truck. It rides like a truck. It handles like a truck. It rows through its own gears like a truck. Don’t go in expecting it to behave like a brand new F-150. Expect it to drive like it was designed in the ‘80s and built in the ‘90s. The only complaint I’d have about it so far is the turning radius. It’s like piloting a boat. Ours is 4wd and we didn’t drive a 2wd for comparison. So, I’m not certain that’s a factor. As my son said, he’s going to get good at making multi-point turns.

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > gmctavish needs more space
08/30/2020 at 10:13

So you want something that’s a manual, capable off-road, not hateful on- road, with enough cargo space to carry enough for presumably you and maybe another person to camp/hike/whatever. But you also don’t want to get bored with it on your daily drives. Well have I got a solution for you! And it’s a LOT cheaper than your other considerations!

Kinja'd!!!

gmctavish needs more space > AMGtech - now with more recalls!
08/30/2020 at 14:14

While I would definitely like to learn how to ride a bike, I’m not willing to take on the risk of dailying a bike here in the winter, and it’s also definitely not enough cargo capacity for camping. But I do want a bike

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > gmctavish needs more space
08/30/2020 at 16:51

Totally understand, I was mostly jo king anyways! I don’t ride when it’s snowy or icy either. But I do camp on mine. They can actually carry quite a lot more than you would think.

gmctavish needs more space > AMGtech - now with more recalls!
08/30/2020 at 16:59

Fair point, those big hard cases look really handy

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > gmctavish needs more space
08/30/2020 at 19:20

I can fit all of my camping stuff in there top, gear in one side, and easily a week's worth of clothes in the other side. Plus a tank bag with a 2L water bladder. And if I need more space than that I have bungee nets.