Hear hear.


I think in some cases it's "well THEY have an 8 speed, I want one too!"

With a CVT you could have preprogrammed selectable number of "gears" that you could pick on the infotainment system.
For example:

2 Speed "Chevy Slush Box"
3 Speed "Old School Small Block"
4 Speed "Ford Fairmont"
5 Speed "Normal"
6 Speed "Millennial Douche Bag BMW"
9 Speed "My Mom's Minivan"
11 Speed "Eleven"
18 Forward Speeds and 6 Reverse Speeds "Over the Road Big Rig"
27 Speed "Obsessive Compulsive Disorder"




How much fun would that be?

.

It really is better. It's not just more for the sake of more. There's a point of diminishing returns, but having a few close ratio gears for varying highway speed conditions makes a big difference. So does a 50% lower first gear ratio.

Once you add hybrid drive it kind of all goes out the window though. Honda is doing hybrids with a single direct drive gear and all other driving conditions are EV. Toyota is doing everything from 8 and 10 speeds with hybrid drive to 2 speed CVTs and hybrids. And pretty much everything in between. But only in a few models and in limited quantities. Nothing for people who want performance or utility vehicles. Ford's hybrid F150 has 10 gears and the hybrid drive in a combined transmission assembly. And it can make a pretty great generator too - 7.2KW for 35 hours on a tank of gas. At 3.5kw it'll run 85 hours on a tank of gas. It's a campsite power dream. Not to mention 570 ftlbs and 24 combined mpg. Damn I wish Toyota would get its shit together and build something comparable for us.

Putting aside the obvious fact that we are using a six speed automatic transmission as a five speed because reasons, having a dedicated low range first gear and an extra highway gear or two wouldn’t kill anybody.

The five speed is fine on flat surfaces at low elevation.

I am a very leisurely driver. I wish it had a tad more low end torque and the shift points were a little better, it falls flat when it early shifts into second and third for me, with a light touch on the gas pedal.

Can’t complain too much though, just routine maintenance so far to 130,000 miles.

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To answer my own question....
“Fun” it would be no fun because belt drives (aka CVTs) blow goats.

Also depends on the power band of the engine, tire size, etc....

That 68 looks to be in awesome shape.
I am in the process of settling up my Dad's estate, including a 92 minivan with only 53K miles, garage kept for 28 years. Drives well, but yeah, crank windows and no ABS.

OK -- this is new info to me. What's the story on this?

People are complaining all the time

Something like the Ford/GM 10 speed would be great. The engine wouldn't struggle nearly as much, and would be a huge upgrade for driving at this altitude and through the mountains. I need to re-gear and add the supercharger if I want to match how my diesel ZR2 drove.

Tranny aside, it's not fair to compare thr 4runner engine to a turbo diesel. Of course the turbo diesel torque is going to walk all over it up hills. And the turbo works better at elevation (thanks to forced induction).

Which is exactly why having more gears would make up for the deficiency in the power department. Keep the engine closer to peak power over a greater number of gears.

The 4runner community, in particular, seems to have a very hard time with the idea of progress. While we talk like ABS is the devil, side airbags are just added weight, roll up windows or nothing, etc... the reality is all those things are proven advancements that consumers want because they have tangible benefits. You know who cars are designed for? Normal consumers. You know what this forum isn't? Normal consumers - we are enthusiasts, and that's not a group many automakers care about. With regard to progress, you can get on the train or you can be left behind and buy used cars for the rest of your life.

If you want to stick to old school, so be it.

However, the arguments about "more gears = more problems," and "an 8 or 10 speed won't be reliable" are simply invalid. Toyota has now been building an 8 speed transmission for 14 model years - it is lighter and less complex than the 6AT it replaced. It can drop several gears at a time when needed, and can cruise at 80mph at ~1,200rpm returning 30MPG. It shifts quickly and responsively with short ratios. There are no massive reported failures. Lexus also now has a 10AT with... wait for it... outstanding highway mileage, quick shifts and no widely reported failures or issues.

Go drive one such vehicle and tell me you absolutely love our 5AT. Really, any modern vehicle will due. Our transmission has two things against it: incredibly slow shifts and only 5, tall, widely spaced gears. Both will be solved with a future transmission upgrade in the 6th gen... can't wait for all the crying and complaining about unnecessary complexity... until you take a road trip and are able to net 26MPG on the highway in a 5,000lb SUV.

Is our 5AT fine? Yes. But the future is 8 and 10 gears, and Toyota builds the most reliable units in the market - far more so than Ford, GM or Dodge. Stop *****ing.

Sometimes, the 4Runner echo chamber here is quite humorous.