Manual Or Auto

[sonofagun]

Hello,

Having recently purchased a 5 speed manual Previa 93 GL (my first) I am curious to find out if the 5 speed manual is more rare/popular than the auto, were the majority of UK previas sold with a automatic gearbox? was the 5 speed manual a special order?

also how does the fuel economy differ between the two

TIA

[jamesholden]

Not sure about which sold more, but I have seen more auto's around than others.

As regards fuel economy, when you compare official figures on Manual v Auto, you tend to find that the manual gets an extra couple of mpg over the auto. However, in the real world, you tend to find that there is no difference, or actually an increase, the trend tends to follow with performance aswell.

The thing with official manual figures are, that they are in a controlled enviroment when the tests are done, and usually a computer controlled clutch so you get optimum gearchanges. Now the average driver will usually not quite change perfectly, and perhaps at the wrong revs for the situation etc. In an auto, you will get the specified 0-60 figures every time in the same situation as the car will be working out when the ideal time to be in what gear, and Toyota auto's are that efficient that they dont tend to slow down or '*****' when changing, even the earlier ones.

So I would say, always choose the auto over manual where possible as there will be very little to compare them in terms of fuel and performance, but it means that you save on buying clutches, wearing out your right leg and that the experience is far more relaxing, afterall, the UK is about the only country that doesnt have many auto's so the rest of the world can't be wrong.

I doubt if the manual was a special order, but Toyota manuals do tend to be quite slick, especially the older ones, the newer ones seem a bit rubbery.