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01 manual transmission lead photo

Stick To It

Tips For Wheeling With A Manual Transmission

Photography by Harry Wagner

We have heard manual transmissions referred to as “millennial theft prevention” since they are becoming so rare.  In fact, only about one percent of new vehicles sold in 2022 have manual transmissions.  The good news is, several of the best 4×4 options on the market are available with manual transmissions, including the Jeep Wrangler, Ford Bronco, and Toyota Tacoma. And there are several compelling reasons to purchase a vehicle with a manual transmission for use on the trail, from overlanding to rockcrawling.

The Luddites were an underground group of English textile workers in the 19th century who destroyed textile machinery. The group are believed to have taken their name from Ned Ludd, a weaver from near Leicester. They protested against manufacturers who used machines in what they called “a fraudulent and deceitful manner” to get around standard labor practices. Luddites feared that the time spent learning the skills of their craft would go to waste, as machines would replace their role in the industry.

Nowadays, the term “luddite” often is used to describe someone who is opposed or resistant to new technologies. If you are going deep off the grid for extended periods of time, there are distinct advantages to have simplicity and redundancy, whether it is a crank operated pop top or a manual transmission.

02 ford bronco manual transmission

Ford offers the new Bronco with a unique Getrag seven-speed manual transmission with a 6.588:1 first gear, the lowest currently offered in a new vehicle.  When combined with the optional 3.06:1 low gear in the transfer case and 4.70:1 axle gears, this produces a crawl ratio of 95:1!  The manual transmission is only offered behind the 2.3L EcoBoost four-cylinder engine though, not the larger V6.

The Advantages of Manual Transmissions

The biggest advantage of a manual transmission in a 4×4 is that they are inherently less complicated than automatic transmissions.  That doesn’t necessarily mean that they are more reliable, but if you do encounter a situation on the trail where you, for instance, crack the housing or get water in the transmission, a manual will still operate while an automatic will be completely dead.  Another useful feature is the ability to “bump start” a vehicle with a manual transmission.  Even if you don’t have enough voltage to turn the engine over with a starter, you can still start a vehicle with a manual transmission if you can get it moving fast enough for the gears in the transmission to turn the engine over when they are engaged. 

03 jeep wrangler manual tranmission

The Jeep Wrangler JL is available with four different engine options (2.0L turbo, 3.6L Pentastar V6, 3.0L Ecodiesel, and 392 V8), but only the 3.6L V6 is available with the six-speed manual transmission.  The good news is that this option is actually less expensive than the eight-speed automatic. The six-speed has two overdrives, including one that is 0.72:1, allowing you to run a low gear ratio in the differentials and still keep RPM down on the freeway.

The Advantages of Automatic Transmissions

Automatic transmissions do have their advantages.  In stop-and-go traffic on the street, they are much easier to operate.  And on the trail, the torque converter cushions the drivetrain by allowing for slippage, but that slipping generates heat that is rarely an issue with a manual transmission. Traditionally manuals delivered better fuel mileage, but that has changed with the modern eight- and ten-speed transmissions currently offered.  These are great transmissions, I am not going to tell you differently, but they are also far more complex than a manual transmission.  And more complex means more opportunities for failure.

04 toyota tacoma manual transmission

The Toyota Tacoma can be purchased with a five-speed manual transmission behind the four-cylinder engine or a six-speed manual transmission behind the V6, unlike the 4Runner and larger Tundra. Manual-equipped Tacomas come with lower axle gears (4.30 versus 3.90) but are not compatible with some computer controlled Toyota off-road features like Crawl Control. 

Manual Transmission Components

A manual transmission consists of gears with different ratios, just like an automatic.  Instead of having a torque converter and clutch packs though, a manual transmission uses a clutch (disc and pressure plate) and flywheel with a throwout bearing and pilot bearing.  The flywheel is bolted to the back of the engine, lighter flywheels allow the engine to rev up more quickly and are common on sports cars, but if technical trail work a heavier flywheel will store energy and allow the engine to lug without stalling.  A heavier flywheel can also retain more heat without concern of cracking or warping.  Clutch discs also vary, some hold a lot of horsepower but engage harshly and are a challenge when you are trying to drive smoothly on the trail.  The pressure plate applies a clamping force (pressure) which holds the driven friction disc between it and the flywheel. The throwout bearing is on a fork that disengages or releases the clutch when the driver presses down on the clutch pedal.  They will usually get noisy and/or stiff if they are nearing the point of failure.

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Manual transmissions were commonplace on low horsepower vehicles like Toyota pickups and Suzuki Samurais.  In the case of Toyotas, it is common to stack multiple transfer cases together to provide more gear reduction and torque multiplication when rockcrawling. Low gear sets for the transfer case are also available for Toyotas and Suzukis that retrofit into the factory transfer case housing.

How to Wheel with a Manual

If you do not have a very low first gear, you will need to use low range and/or regear your differentials to keep from slipping your clutch in challenging terrain. This process is not always intuitive, as we generally do not want to stall the engine.  We would argue that it is less of an issue to stall the engine than to slip the clutch.  Many vehicles (such as Toyota Tacomas) have a clutch override switch that will allow you to start the vehicle in gear, creeping forward in the process.  This can be particularly useful in steep terrain where you don’t want to let your foot off of the brake in order to engage the clutch.  It is possible to “left foot brake” with a manual transmission, where you drag the brakes to control your speed over obstacles. This is more difficult with a manual than an automatic, but it involves the same method of dragging the brakes and keeping the RPM up to prevent the vehicle from stalling.  Note that no foot is on the clutch.  If you only take one thing away from this story, remember that the clutch should be considered an on-off switch and not a rheostat that is gradually engaged and disengaged.

06 water crossing manual transmission 1

You don’t want to get water into any gearbox, but it is a distinct possibility when you are out exploring extreme environments. An automatic transmission will absolutely not work with water in it, while a manual transmission can still operate.  If you do get water in your manual transmission, we recommend draining it and adding whatever gear oil you might have available.  This will allow you to limp off the trail but you will need to add the appropriate fluid when you return home to keep the synchros and other internal components happy.

07 jeep wrangler sand manual transmission

Environments like sand and snow that provide a lot of resistance can be difficult to traverse with a manual transmission since you often lose most of your forward momentum when you push in the clutch.  The key here is to select the appropriate gear for the situation ahead of time to avoid the need to shift, or be very, very quick with your shifting.

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