94-95 SC. Thinking of purchase. Auto or manual transmissio

Hi all.... First post here.
I'm considering purchase of a SC in spring.  93-95.... And wondering about transmission.  I like manual transmission in general for a number of reasons, not the least of which is being able to pop the clutch when battery fails.  However, I've been driving a RAV4 for years now with auto and it's fine.

So I'm interested in opinions.  There are way more auto trans on the market than manual, so that's one issue.  I'm not going to have nearly the selection if I stick to manual. Pun intended.

5 sp should be lower purchase price in general?
Repairs easier?
One owner of a 94 1KZ TE told me the auto on his has to hunt for a bit before shifting and he found it annoying.
Does either one offer an advantage in mitigating overheating in summer?

I'm in northern New England USA.  Any other suggestions or advice would be appreciated as well.  I'm generally a handy guy with carpentry, light welding and basic mechanics... But I am far from a mechanic myself... So obtaining the service of a mechanic who is comfortable with these vehicles is a concern.

Thanks for any help.

Hi,

Welcome to the club! Are you planning on importing or buying in the US?

Re the transmission, purely anecdotal, but it seems like manuals tended to be used more in the earlier models and converted GL campers. In the Super Customs, it nearly always an auto - especially the younger ones. If having a manual is important, then you may have to compromise on other aspects.

About the cooling - the auto transmission cooling is often fed through the same radiator, so the manual may be a safer bet. But if overheating is an issue, I would think the van's history is most important - services, maintenance history etc. The vans are getting old, so you need one that's been looked after - or cheap enough to run the risk.

Two other things to consider is fuel and whether it's 4WD or 2WD.

For the drive, if you don't need 4WD, then the 2WDs are cheaper (as the 4WDs are popular imports) and also have less to go wrong.

Fuel: I went for a petrol (gas) engine as (for the UK) I though it would be environmentally better and cheaper (for the fuel and as they tend to go hand-in-hand with the 2WD models). However, in the UK, we've moved to E10 specification petrol (high Ethanol content) and it's unclear as to whether the engine and fuel line are compatible. So I tend to stick to more expensive and harder to find E5. I'm not sure how things stand with that in the US, Also the petrol engine was only ever used in the Hiace in Japan, so parts can be difficult to obtain unless imported. For the diesel, the engine was used in other vehicles, so parts are easier to find domestically.

Hope this helps.

We have SC with 1kzte auto 5 years now no problems have towed a trailer with race car on many times, a must is change the ATF and check regularly keep it cherry red . They are lovely to drive especially in traffic ,fit a cruise control even better .

g00se wrote:

Hi,

Welcome to the club! Are you planning on importing or buying in the US?

Re the transmission, purely anecdotal, but it seems like manuals tended to be used more in the earlier models and converted GL campers. In the Super Customs, it nearly always an auto - especially the younger ones. If having a manual is important, then you may have to compromise on other aspects.

About the cooling - the auto transmission cooling is often fed through the same radiator, so the manual may be a safer bet. But if overheating is an issue, I would think the van's history is most important - services, maintenance history etc. The vans are getting old, so you need one that's been looked after - or cheap enough to run the risk.

Two other things to consider is fuel and whether it's 4WD or 2WD.

For the drive, if you don't need 4WD, then the 2WDs are cheaper (as the 4WDs are popular imports) and also have  less to go wrong.  

Fuel: I went for a petrol (gas) engine as (for the UK) I though it would be environmentally better and cheaper (for the fuel and as they tend to go hand-in-hand with the 2WD models). However, in the UK, we've moved to E10 specification petrol (high Ethanol content) and it's unclear as to whether the engine and fuel line are compatible. So I tend to stick to more expensive and harder to find E5. I'm not sure how things stand with that in the US, Also the petrol engine was only ever used in the Hiace in Japan, so parts can be difficult to obtain unless imported. For the diesel, the engine was used in other vehicles, so parts are easier to find domestically.

Hope this helps.

Hey. Thanks for the response. I'm m planning on buying it from a dealer fully reconditioned and plated. Want the 1KZ FE diesel.

Anyone care to tell me what the difference between standard SC and the Limited is?

More toys. I think the main thing is the first set of seats in the back are two captains chairs, whereas the others have three regular seats.

But it should have things like digital dash, kettle, cooler, better sound system etc

But just to add, a lot of these were options on other models, so it's not so cut and dried. Also, with all the toys, there's a lot more that can go wrong over 20-30 years, auto-closing doors, electric curtains, etc,

Thanks. I actually DON'T want the digital instrument cluster. I like the analog gauges, like my old 1987 Toyota pickup. I DO want that cute ice maker and hot pot!

Anyone know why some models have the bull bars and some don't?

BlackDogAce wrote:

Anyone know why some models have the bull bars and some don't?

Aftermarket, mainly the Americas and Australia I would guess.

Hello BlackDogAce and welcome from me.

Any and all of these vans are getting on so have the typical issues associated with however they have been looked after. We all want a time capsule but sadly these are few and far between.

On the auto / manual thing I think there are many more autos out there. Japan was early to adopt autos and between the late 1980s and mid 2010s (for the H100) there arde fewer manuals I think with time. Some model runs are auto only.

I have a manual and this is what I wanted. The autos are a bit more complicated, I think and use a bit more fuel but none of them sip the stuff. Manuals might be a bit cheaper, I don’t know. There are too many other aspects for like-for-like comparisons and variability and scarceness are likely to be more relevant. Repairing either transmission can be costly.

The Toyota Electronic Parts Catalogue lists all the various models and their features, such as engine type, gearbox etc and the Hiacesoutheast site has a useful timeline for the H100 range.

HTH!!