Asking for a friend: Are there any SUVs that come with a stick?
 

Or should my friend look at pickups? Are there any pickups with a stick?

Is there anything left with a stick?

I'm guessing base models of the smaller pickups probably come with stick. Other than that, probably unlikely...

Research tells me that Subaru Forester was available until 2018 with a manual. And lots of Jeep iterations. Toyota FJ Cruiser...Right now she has an ancient Ford Explorer with a stick.

Jeep Wrangler. The Cherokee also might still. Rumor is that the forthcoming Bronco might.

This is the last year you can get a stick with the Cummins on a Dodge Ram, I think I read somewhere.

I think the Colorado base model also has a stick.

Ram or Tacoma may be her best bet. Tons of used models (especially of the Tacoma) with a stick.

And JST, you're right. Only new Ram available with a stick is the 2500 diesel. Tacoma, only the TRD models.

Not sure what year they stopped, but VW Tiguan used to offer a stick. (but only in FWD configuration, AWD was automatic)

I noticed that. She wants AWD. She has a mountain house in the Blue Ridge.

There are some X5 unicorns floating around too (3.0 liter)

Yeah, and the older base Cayennes, and the first gen Cayenne GTS.

Oh, wait, the Countryman Cooper S still has a stick. Not sure if that’s big enough.

She already has an ancient SUV. And two giant boys, so I doubt the Countryman would work. I think she also wants to be able to tow.

Countrymans are surprisingly roomy… It has more rear legroom that larger SUVs like the F-Pace or GLC...

Hmm. She is tall and her sons are on track to be close to 7 feet--with similarly large friends. But, who knows?

Maybe not quite that much room :lol:

But my wife is 6' 2" (she says she's 6' :lol:) and has the prior gen Countryman :dunno:

The new Tiguan might be the best bet -- the current gen was lengthened. I haven't sat in it, but the rear door is visibly longer. The prior gen wasn't bad in the back, but all the extra length went there...

Not seeing an option for 4WD and stick...

She may need to go auto :eeps:

just curious how tall are you ?

I'm only 5 10 and my wife is 5'4" ... we went to Madison square garden spend last weekend in the city and went to watch Sebastian Maniscalco and I felt small ...

In an SUV, there is huge loss in towing capability when you remove an automatic transmission.

Interesting. I think she just tows a light trailer...

I’m about 5’ 10”...

This is not necessarily true.

Having said that, towing with a modern automatic has a lot of advantages.

I'm obviously a fan of manual transmissions, but I don't get why people seek them out in trucks or SUV's, particularly when towing.

a) I don't see myself excited about shifting when driving in those scenarios b) a torque converter has real advantages.

I agree. She's currently driving 2002 Ford Explorer with a stick. Surely there's no joy in that.

Yeah I would worried about burning my clutch up towing.

My friend’s dad had a manual transmission Range Rover that he would tow a boat with and went through a bunch of clutches on it. Not sure if was any good at using it though.

Apparently those vintage manual Land Rovers command beaucoup $$$$.

They want the full sensory experience of rowing gears in a 1970's U-Haul, without having to buy a U-Haul? :dunno: That's the only thing I can think of.

Nah, It was a first or second gen discovery which I assume is not worth anything.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Rover_Discovery

It was also rusting out too from being backed into the ocean to drop off the boat(still not a excuse for rusting I think) He took it hunting too, was kind of cool to see it being properly used.

:lol:

Only speaking from my experience, John, but it was in the 90's

I owned a 91 exploder 5 speed, then a 93 exploder with automatic transmission. Same six cylinder engine, both 4x4, same wheelbase.

The automatic could tow almost double what the 5 speed could, at least according to Ford's numbers . . .I never tried towing with the 5 speed but used the automatic to tow my 21 foot boat

Maybe it was just that Ford clutches suxs! lol

Typically that's because the transmission can't handle the extra strain but it's not universal. In the case of the Ram 2500, they tune down the engine to make the manual transmission survive. But the towing capacity is really not affected much.

Anecdotally.. a buddy of mine has an early 2000's F250 7.3 turbodiesel with a 6-speed transmission (incidentally, the same ZF that was used in the later C4 Corvette). The last time I drove that truck, we were towing a 3,500lb (empty!) trailer with two small cars on it, so figure around 8,500lbs with gear. Plus the weight of the truck (6,000lbs?) and four passengers plus a bed full of crap... it was pretty heavy rolling down the road.

I actually really liked the manual for that tow. Automatics like to hunt gears and being able to select a gear and hold it for long grades (up or down) is really nice. But this was back before automatics had 6 or more ratios. These days, there's just no point to towing with a stick anymore.

I don't recall him going through clutches, but with over 300,000 miles on that truck the manual transmission was certainly not a weak point.

truck transmissions are a whole different ball game than SUV transmissions.

Fitment, more room for real transmissions in pickups, than SUV's

The big issue with towing with a manual vehicle is the lack of torque converter torque multiplication.

Whereas a torque converter can happily slip as needed (ever drive an E53 X5 3.0?), you're using up the clutch whenever you do that. So you tend to have a lot more available power off the line in an auto.

I had a Ford Ranger with a 5-speed manual, and I remember carrying some heavy loads with it. Using a clutch was a royal pain in the ass, because I had to let it slip more than usual.

Fast forward a number of years, and now I have 1/2-ton Silverado with an automatic. When it comes to towing my boat, especially around steep boat ramps, it's hassle-free.

IMHO, manual transmissions belong to cars that are fun to drive.

I agree with this. I think she should just get an auto 4Runner or something.