I came upon a manual transmission Previa. I've never seen one in my searching, but wonder are they that rare?
I came upon a manual transmission Previa. I've never seen one in my searching, but wonder are they that rare?
They are out there, yes, just not common in the US. They were only imported 3 model years, 91-93. (Crazy to me that the 'merican vehicle market caters to automatics), I friggin hate autos.
I have had two 5 speed Previas er, sorta, but really only one since my second now has the tranny from my first!
I do have another spare back up 5 speed I got from the pick a part.
Originally Posted by mountainhick
Interesting. I might grab it just in case, but who knows. If it is there next weekend, I might do that.
I see them come across the Seattle craigslist now and then, but not often. Maybe 1 in 50. I test drove a 5 sp Alltrac that was at a local lot once. It drove fine, but the seller wanted more than I could justify.
I like manual transmissions too, but like Previas too much to hold out for one. That being the case, I've gotten accustomed to the automatics. So long as they work as they're supposed to, they suit my driving style just fine. Biggest negative for me is that when they fail, the easiest thing is to find another and cross your fingers. A manual box is a far simpler machine, so they're less likely to fail. And if they do need service, it's relatively easy to deal with.
Mountainhick has the right idea - have a spare on hand!
That is what I was thinking. I mean, I'm not drifting or even off roading and earlier this year I spent $1200 to have all new internals and electronics and shift kit into my transmission.
Since the autos are the same as the supras, it is meant to handle a supercharged car, but I don't think that the 5spd is not as strong.
Again, I dont know what I would do with it unless I came up on another previa that I wanted to do. I just miss driving a manual.
If it is there next weekend, I might ponder doing it and even going through old threads, especially mountainhick's initial manual thread, Tim said have the van there and get everything for it.
If I was to ever use this transmission, I would put money to rebuild it as well.
But as you mentioned, if it fails, then you are out of luck trying to find another one.
One thing to keep in mind is that the manual tranny's gearing is very different than the auto. The low range is very nice for torque, but the 5th gear is much lower than OD in the auto. If you like driving highways fast it puts the engine at really high RPM.
Relative RPM at 75 mph: Auto OD: 3042 RPM, Manual 5th: 3559 RPM
You can re-gear the differentials as I had done for more optimized highway speeds, (I put in the 3.7) but it does make the acceleration and hill climbing pretty impaired. Still lower first than the auto, but sluggish to drive overall.
Thanks bro. I was just wondering. I've been on a look out for an all trac and I wanted to put a manual in that one, but who knows. I always have a vague or broad idea for everything, just when it falls in my lap, I usually grab it and sort it out later.
I've noticed that Alltrac Previas are not so common in the Bay area, whereas up here in the Seattle area they account for maybe 1/3 to 1/2 of the population.
When I started looking for a Previa I didn't want an Alltrac, since we have maybe one day in a hundred with snow on the roads and it seemed like a bunch of extra hardware to haul around. But the first bargain I came across was a 91 Alltrac. I soon learned to appreciate never slipping, not just on snow or ice, but on wet roads or slimy conditions like my driveway and back yard after a rain. And when there is snow on the road, the Alltrac Previa is amazing. Even weight distribution and equal power to front and rear axles make for sure-footed driving in snow. Furthermore, the automatic transmission means no shifting, and therefore no loss of traction between gears. You just point and go.
I'm not an off-roader. And I don't believe that Previas - in stock form - are well suited for off-road use, either. So other than for the novelty of it, I can't see any advantage in a manual transmission in an Alltrac Previa.
I imagine that Toyota marketed a manual as a lower-cost option (along with manual windows!) They then discontinued it when they realized that they were't selling very many.
It makes a HUGE difference in steep country.
As soon as I got my 94 alltrac automatic home and tried driving it up our driveway, I knew the gearing would not work. The low range torque of the lower 5 speed gearing here in the mountains is invaluable
Agree that the Alltracs are the best snow vehicle I have ever driven. This is my one regret about the 4x4 hi lo transfer transplant... losing the viscous coupling.
Ah, that makes sense. That's something else I don't encounter often.
That's bro. Yes, I believe in certain areas, different vehicles are marketed specifically due to region. I know in Lake Tahoe (snow and mountainous) there are TONS of Subarus. It would make sense that all tracs would be in a region that has different weather.
I think it is a novelty as well. While I love all motorsports and tuning, personally, having an all trac and a manual is a novelty to me and for some odd reason, I have a collectors mentality, so I like to get things that I find interesting, such as the cool box.
Here is an example. I dont know why, but I swapped them out, but decided to go back to my original because I took out some small structural stuff.
https://youtu.be/8L-sR9VYZWY?list=PL...a1E_sfirAHnz0y
Later in the same day that I made my last post to this thread I noticed that the transmission in my recently-rescued '97 DX Alltrac was slipping badly from a stop. I found myself wishing it had a five-speed manual.
After some experimentation and poking around online and through my FSM I'm about 95% certain that I've got an issue with a solenoid in the trans. A code check confirmed it (P0753).
I cleared the code and jiggled the connector at the trans that feeds the solenoids, and the problem is gone for the time being.
I'll start another thread for this issue soon with what I've learned so far and what I learn later.
Last edited by pdgizwiz; 11-09-2015 at 10:20 AM.
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