Pick Up Manual Or Auto

MrNoo

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Cirencester
I worked out what my Isuzu did towing, 14ft Ifor + Ferguson T20 + Plough and 90kg of ballast from Pembrokeshire back to here 186 miles and managed 28mpg, mostly motorway work but was doing 65+ as the Mrs had been kicked by a horse so had to get back sharpish, so prob add anoter 5mph on.
Manual here but do find that 1st is too high towing when starting off on a hill, you can drop to low range and then change up but I gather the auto is better at pulling away on a slope loaded but not driven one myself.
Manually are generally better for MPG, hence why some auto's have a higher tax band, certainly the case with my old audi A3 manual, auto was more to tax a year.
 

Cowabunga

Member
Location
Ceredigion,Wales
On a Nissan, certainly the auto. You will lose some economy but its auto box is so much nicer than the manual and, while not quite class-leading, is up there with the best.

Personally I would not consider less than six gear ratios in a modern automatic, which rules out many brands of pickup. Ford is on the cusp of offering a ten speed automatic pickup in the UK. Half the ratios is not equal to half as good but only five speeds doesn't cut it when heavy towing. It really doesn't.

There are pickups with efficient and pleasant six, seven, eight and now ten speed automatics. Five is OK solo and will tow but there will be significant jumps between ratios.

Whether I would buy a current Nissan Navara is another question entirely. No I wouldn't, although there are pleny of happy owners around. I just don't like the cheap build with chassis that are still built specifically to fail sooner than they should. Holes stamped in the dirtiest of places almost certainly specifically to let salty and mucky shite inside the box sections to accelerate the rusting process. They haven't done much to stop the chassis breaking in future compared to ones built 10 years or so ago either. Just a channel section welded just in front of the rear wheels under the box sections either side as far as I can see.

No, and its my personal opinion and not definitive, that they are built down to the lowest possible price and quality and longevity just don't figure in Nissan's priority list when it comes to Navara. If you lease it or intend changing regularly, this is not a consideration for you, but if you are in it for the long term, I think there are better vehicles.
 

Cowabunga

Member
Location
Ceredigion,Wales
I worked out what my Isuzu did towing, 14ft Ifor + Ferguson T20 + Plough and 90kg of ballast from Pembrokeshire back to here 186 miles and managed 28mpg, mostly motorway work but was doing 65+ as the Mrs had been kicked by a horse so had to get back sharpish, so prob add anoter 5mph on.
Manual here but do find that 1st is too high towing when starting off on a hill, you can drop to low range and then change up but I gather the auto is better at pulling away on a slope loaded but not driven one myself.
Manually are generally better for MPG, hence why some auto's have a higher tax band, certainly the case with my old audi A3 manual, auto was more to tax a year.

Commercials are all in one tax band.
 
On a Nissan, certainly the auto. You will lose some economy but its auto box is so much nicer than the manual and, while not quite class-leading, is up there with the best.

Personally I would not consider less than six gear ratios in a modern automatic, which rules out many brands of pickup. Ford is on the cusp of offering a ten speed automatic pickup in the UK. Half the ratios is not equal to half as good but only five speeds doesn't cut it when heavy towing. It really doesn't.

There are pickups with efficient and pleasant six, seven, eight and now ten speed automatics. Five is OK solo and will tow but there will be significant jumps between ratios.

Whether I would buy a current Nissan Navara is another question entirely. No I wouldn't, although there are pleny of happy owners around. I just don't like the cheap build with chassis that are still built specifically to fail sooner than they should. Holes stamped in the dirtiest of places almost certainly specifically to let salty and mucky shite inside the box sections to accelerate the rusting process. They haven't done much to stop the chassis breaking in future compared to ones built 10 years or so ago either. Just a channel section welded just in front of the rear wheels under the box sections either side as far as I can see.

No, and its my personal opinion and not definitive, that they are built down to the lowest possible price and quality and longevity just don't figure in Nissan's priority list when it comes to Navara. If you lease it or intend changing regularly, this is not a consideration for you, but if you are in it for the long term, I think there are better vehicles.

Can't argue with any of that. The Nissan is a good truck for the money but is not comparable to the offering from Toyota, and I would say the same about their passenger cars, too. Not a patch on Toyota or Honda manufacturing.
 

H200GT

Member
Location
NORTH WALES
Auto Nissan is very good, I have one and like it a lot.

Personally I rate the Navara's, this is my second (NP300) and the previous (D40) was also fault less. Its a lot of truck for the money, comfortable and pretty good on juice as well. IMO its the best sub £30K pickup on the market, and you should be able to get a brand new top of the range Tekna spec one for circa £23k if you shop around a bit. The VW and Merc offerings are probably a little ahead of them with full time 4wd and v6 engines, but they are also substantially more expensive.
 

Adam@Rumen

Member
Location
Nantwich/Rishton
Echo above, slightly better mpg with the manual but auto is better.

I have a manual Amarok purely down to the price it was offered at. Auto Navara would have been the next on the list - well was originally first on the list.
 

H200GT

Member
Location
NORTH WALES
One thing to add is if test driving the auto Navara, take it for a 5 mile drive. When cold the auto box does seem to hold onto 3 gear for far too long, once its warmed up the changes are far sooner into 4th. Not sure why, it only seems to affect 3rd gear when cold, but there is probably a reason and software setting behind it.
 

rusty

Member
I have a 66 plate Navara Tekna with auto box. Really nice pickup but I feel it try's to change up to soon when towing a heavy load. Had a Touareg previously for towing and that was great for towing if in sport mode. Tend to use the box in manual mode if towing a big load.
I have just had updated rear springs for the Navara and it's improved towing ride no end. I believe newer Navara's than mine had it standard from the factory.
 
I have a 66 plate Navara Tekna with auto box. Really nice pickup but I feel it try's to change up to soon when towing a heavy load. Had a Touareg previously for towing and that was great for towing if in sport mode. Tend to use the box in manual mode if towing a big load.
I have just had updated rear springs for the Navara and it's improved towing ride no end. I believe newer Navara's than mine had it standard from the factory.

I see your problem there. One vehicle is a VAG made SUV with a monster diesel engine. The other is a Japanese pickup with a Renault engine out of a posties van.
 

Drillman

Member
Mixed Farmer
My Isuzu auto is the piddly 1.9 engine but averages 21mpg, constantly has a trailer on, performs just as well as my old 2.2 manual ranger that also did 21mpg average. Go for auto, manuals are crap
My 3.2 auto ranger rarely seems to not be pulling a trailer and manages 22mpg. Just shows bigger engine and more power doesn’t always mean worse fuel consumption.

@ARW the last ranger I had did around 20mpg doing same job as this one. Only difference is current one is adblue which by the time I’ve fed it some every now and again is probably wiping out the saving in less fuel used:banghead:
 
On a Nissan, certainly the auto. You will lose some economy but its auto box is so much nicer than the manual and, while not quite class-leading, is up there with the best.

Personally I would not consider less than six gear ratios in a modern automatic, which rules out many brands of pickup. Ford is on the cusp of offering a ten speed automatic pickup in the UK. Half the ratios is not equal to half as good but only five speeds doesn't cut it when heavy towing. It really doesn't.

There are pickups with efficient and pleasant six, seven, eight and now ten speed automatics. Five is OK solo and will tow but there will be significant jumps between ratios.

Whether I would buy a current Nissan Navara is another question entirely. No I wouldn't, although there are pleny of happy owners around. I just don't like the cheap build with chassis that are still built specifically to fail sooner than they should. Holes stamped in the dirtiest of places almost certainly specifically to let salty and mucky shite inside the box sections to accelerate the rusting process. They haven't done much to stop the chassis breaking in future compared to ones built 10 years or so ago either. Just a channel section welded just in front of the rear wheels under the box sections either side as far as I can see.

No, and its my personal opinion and not definitive, that they are built down to the lowest possible price and quality and longevity just don't figure in Nissan's priority list when it comes to Navara. If you lease it or intend changing regularly, this is not a consideration for you, but if you are in it for the long term, I think there are better vehicles.

Long term choice for you would be?
 
Mrs TSS has recently temporarily “acquired” a rather lovely MB C Class. For both of us, this is our first real experience of a modern auto box.

Awesome.

I have been following threads like this on TFF for a while and had long decided that my next pickup should be an auto. I was also of the opinion that I would always prefer the driving feel/fun/experience of a manual car.

Now I’m beginning to think auto all the way.

TSS
 

Timbo

Member
Location
Gods County
On a Nissan, certainly the auto. You will lose some economy but its auto box is so much nicer than the manual and, while not quite class-leading, is up there with the best.

Personally I would not consider less than six gear ratios in a modern automatic, which rules out many brands of pickup. Ford is on the cusp of offering a ten speed automatic pickup in the UK. Half the ratios is not equal to half as good but only five speeds doesn't cut it when heavy towing. It really doesn't.

There are pickups with efficient and pleasant six, seven, eight and now ten speed automatics. Five is OK solo and will tow but there will be significant jumps between ratios.

Whether I would buy a current Nissan Navara is another question entirely. No I wouldn't, although there are pleny of happy owners around. I just don't like the cheap build with chassis that are still built specifically to fail sooner than they should. Holes stamped in the dirtiest of places almost certainly specifically to let salty and mucky shite inside the box sections to accelerate the rusting process. They haven't done much to stop the chassis breaking in future compared to ones built 10 years or so ago either. Just a channel section welded just in front of the rear wheels under the box sections either side as far as I can see.

No, and its my personal opinion and not definitive, that they are built down to the lowest possible price and quality and longevity just don't figure in Nissan's priority list when it comes to Navara. If you lease it or intend changing regularly, this is not a consideration for you, but if you are in it for the long term, I think there are better vehicles.

The chassis might now make it closer to 10yrs, but by the way they're going, the engine wont
 

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