70 Series HZJ Manual Vrs Automatic Trans (1 Viewer)

[calokie]

Hello,
I searched but couldn't find the answer.... 70 Series HZJ Manual Vr Auto Trans (non Turbo)
So im looking to get into a 70 series (2 door 2 row). If I lived in an area that wasn't subject to frequent traffic jams I would go for the manual version hands down. I have owned many manual trans vehicles throughout the years. I do enjoy my FzJ80 auto and would never want a manual version, but I have yet to drive it through any highway mountain passes.

So my location is CA Bay area and we do have Highway passes through the mountains and copious amounts traffic , Major cities nearby like San Fran. On the weekends the highway traffic is horrible (Beach Traffic) This 70 will be my daily driver. I'm looking to get the 2 door HZJ 2 row. Question on highway speeds is the manual or Auto better, what's an average cruising speed for both variants?
I'm usually one to go the speed limit or greater on highways of 65 and 75 speed limits.

I commute 2 miles and do occasional highway driving on the weekends. With all this being said.. Bay Area Drivers are the worst random mix of drivers, you cant just drive comfortably at cruising speeds, someone is always doing 110 or going 45 in the fast lane so your constantly having to change speeds to deal with hyper-aggressive and hyper-passive drivers.

Also... what's the average MPG I should expect on a 70 HZJ, 15MPG? My FZJ80 is 10MPG 15+mpg would be amazing

Thank you

PS. Yes I'm a Huge Brock Purdy fan boy!!! #13

 

[sleepydad69]

Hello,
I searched but couldn't find the answer.... 70 Series HZJ Manual Vr Auto Trans (non Turbo)
So im looking to get into a 70 series (2 door 2 row). If I lived in an area that wasn't subject to frequent traffic jams I would go for the manual version hands down. I have owned many manual trans vehicles throughout the years. I do enjoy my FzJ80 auto and would never want a manual version, but I have yet to drive it through any highway mountain passes.

So my location is CA Bay area and we do have Highway passes through the mountains and copious amounts traffic , Major cities nearby like San Fran. On the weekends the highway traffic is horrible (Beach Traffic) This 70 will be my daily driver. I'm looking to get the 2 door HZJ 2 row. Question on highway speeds is the manual or Auto better, what's an average cruising speed for both variants?
I'm usually one to go the speed limit or greater on highways of 65 and 75 speed limits.

I commute 2 miles and do occasional highway driving on the weekends. With all this being said.. Bay Area Drivers are the worst random mix of drivers, you cant just drive comfortably at cruising speeds, someone is always doing 110 or going 45 in the fast lane so your constantly having to change speeds to deal with hyper-aggressive and hyper-passive drivers.

Also... what's the average MPG I should expect on a 70 HZJ, 15MPG? My FZJ80 is 10MPG 15+mpg would be amazing

Thank you

PS. Yes I'm a Huge Brock Purdy fan boy!!! #13

I have a 1997 HZJ77HV-PEU
and it's a 4 door 1HZ with auto no turbo
I have only put a couple of tanks thru it but my calc was about 11 KPL so I think that is about 25 MPG
given the price of Diesel... it's not exactly cheaper.

 

[Gun Runner 5]

You buy a 1HZ powered 70 Series for a variety of reasons (regardless of transmission)……..
1) They’re cool.
2) You enjoy hearing “cool Jeep” several times a day.
3) You’ve reached that age where “going slow and enjoying life” is your thing.
4) You don’t have an issue with cupholders that number between one and zero.
…….You don’t buy one for eye watering acceleration or fuel economy.

 

[FJ73Texas]

If you are usually the one to go 65/75 mph or greater, you will hate the older 25+ year old 1HZ 70 series quickly, at least on the highways. They can't pass well and don't really like to stay at those speeds for long periods of time.

 

[calokie]

I have a 1997 HZJ77HV-PEU
and it's a 4 door 1HZ with auto no turbo
I have only put a couple of tanks thru it but my calc was about 11 KPL so I think that is about 25 MPG
given the price of Diesel... it's not exactly cheaper.

Looking for range more than cost savings. 25mpg would be great.

 

[calokie]

You buy a 1HZ powered 70 Series for a variety of reasons (regardless of transmission)……..
1) They’re cool.
2) You enjoy hearing “cool Jeep” several times a day.
3) You’ve reached that age where “going slow and enjoying life” is your thing.
4) You don’t have an issue with cupholders that number between one and zero.
…….You don’t buy one for eye watering acceleration or fuel economy.

I swore I would never put a cup holder in my fzj80

 

[likethewheel]

New Idria huh ... I didn't know anyone from there knew about -- let alone knew how to use -- the internet ;o) Jokes aside, I'm guessing you don't actually live in New Idria, and rather are a fan of Clear Creek.

If you haven't driven one of these rigs, I would disregard what you know about driving a manual with a gasoline engine. The 1HZ are very torquey and I find my HZJ75 manual MUCH easier to city drive than my 4Runner with a manual and 5VZFE petrol engine. I also find low-speed wheeling much easier with the 1HZ vs. the 5VZ, again due to the torque.

As far as MPG, I get around 16-18 city and 20-22 highway. Mine's a troop carrier though so it's heavier/larger and it has a roof basket, which likely decreases MPG somewhat. I could see low 20s in a stock config 2-door. Certainly well north of 15 mpg. Bear in mind manuals almost always yield better MPG than autos.

summary: I would definitely go manual ... but I pretty much hate slush boxes so take my opinion for what it's worth.

 

[FJ73Texas]

I forgot to address the manual vs auto debate in my earlier post. The last two 70 series I owned are manual in addition to my current HZJ77 being manual also. Never had an automatic cruiser.

The first one I had and my current one are H55F but I have to admit that I really....really liked the R151F the most that was in the PZJ70 as far as shifting and gear ratio. I don't think I would like an automatic but not opposed to it 100% either.

 

[calokie]

If you are usually the one to go 65/75 mph or greater, you will hate the older 25+ year old 1HZ 70 series quickly, at least on the highways. They can't pass well and don't really like to stay at those speeds for long periods of time.

I avid the local highways about 95% of the time and take the long backroads however, my reason to get the 70 is so I can drive to souther CA and explore Death Valley and other such places.

 

[calokie]

New Idria huh ... I didn't know anyone from there knew about -- let alone knew how to use -- the internet ;o) Jokes aside, I'm guessing you don't actually live in New Idria, and rather are a fan of Clear Creek.

If you haven't driven one of these rigs, I would disregard what you know about driving a manual with a gasoline engine. The 1HZ are very torquey and I find my HZJ75 manual MUCH easier to city drive than my 4Runner with a manual and 5VZFE petrol engine. I also find low-speed wheeling much easier with the 1HZ vs. the 5VZ, again due to the torque.

As far as MPG, I get around 16-18 city and 20-22 highway. Mine's a troop carrier though so it's heavier/larger and it has a roof basket, which likely decreases MPG somewhat. I could see low 20s in a stock config 2-door. Certainly well north of 15 mpg. Bear in mind manuals almost always yield better MPG than autos.

summary: I would definitely go manual ... but I pretty much hate slush boxes so take my opinion for what it's worth.

I’ve been waiting for somone to notice that New Idrea lol
I’m from Morgan Hill but love the New Idrea area, there are infact a few people living there, possibly subterranean albinos.

Thanks for that info! The manual does seem more fitting in a 70 series than an 80

 

[Gun Runner 5]

 

[calokie]

View attachment 3220925

agree 100%!!
At least until you hop on 101 North Bound To San Francisco Airport at 11:30 am thinking their wont be any traffic.

 

[Gun Runner 5]

View attachment 3220925

In all seriousness, I’ve driven 3 different 70 Series with automatic transmissions and ALL were prone to shift into overdrive WAY to early. (Yes, to some degree this can be overcome by shifting the transmission manually). In my opinion, the first option should be an aux transmission cooler if you’re going to work it hard. The factory temp light is worthless so I ran an aftermarket gauge.

 

[ATL Cruiser]

I've got a 92 HZJ77 Automatic A440F. GTurbo + Intercooler + 3" exhaust. It's horribly slow on cold mornings. I'm 90% certain this is due to the transmission, but I'm trying to isolate it. Once it's warmed up, it has a ton of juice.

Like you, I did look hard into swapping from A/T to a M/T. I read about every MUD post on the topic. I did read one post that compared the final gearing in both. It stated the the A/T has better final gearing for highway driving, which is what I do a lot of. I cruise at 80mph all day long at low RPM's.

I swore I would never put a cup holder in my fzj80

you need one of these baddies if you end up with a 70. @Gun Runner 5 can hook you up.

STORE

www.oddironoffroad.com

 

[calokie]

I've got a 92 HZJ77 Automatic A440F. GTurbo + Intercooler + 3" exhaust. It's horribly slow on cold mornings. I'm 90% certain this is due to the transmission, but I'm trying to isolate it. Once it's warmed up, it has a ton of juice.

Like you, I did look hard into swapping from A/T to a M/T. I read about every MUD post on the topic. I did read one post that compared the final gearing in both. It stated the the A/T has better final gearing for highway driving, which is what I do a lot of. I cruise at 80mph all day long at low RPM's.


you need one of these baddies if you end up with a 70. @Gun Runner 5 can hook you up.

STORE

www.oddironoffroad.com

Nice 80 MPH is very suitable highway speed, but negatory on that there cup holder. I can drink a beer, roll a J-Bar wile driving a manual.... well back in my early years

 

[Gun Runner 5]

From my experience, a 1HZ (even turbocharged) has a “happy spot“ around 65mph. Will it go faster, certainly, will it be happy, perhaps not?

 

[likethewheel]

I've got a 92 HZJ77 Automatic A440F. GTurbo + Intercooler + 3" exhaust. It's horribly slow on cold mornings. I'm 90% certain this is due to the transmission, but I'm trying to isolate it. Once it's warmed up, it has a ton of juice.

Like you, I did look hard into swapping from A/T to a M/T. I read about every MUD post on the topic. I did read one post that compared the final gearing in both. It stated the the A/T has better final gearing for highway driving, which is what I do a lot of. I cruise at 80mph all day long at low RPM's.


you need one of these baddies if you end up with a 70. @Gun Runner 5 can hook you up.

STORE

www.oddironoffroad.com

I have one of those I'm not using because it doesn't work well in my troopy. If he gets a 70 and wants it, I'm located a short drive from Morgan Hill and would part with it for a song.

 

[likethewheel]

I’ve been waiting for somone to notice that New Idrea lol
I’m from Morgan Hill but love the New Idrea area, there are infact a few people living there, possibly subterranean albinos.

Thanks for that info! The manual does seem more fitting in a 70 series than an 80

ah Mo Hill. I grew up there. Have you lived there a long time?

 

[calokie]

ah Mo Hill. I grew up there. Have you lived there a long time?

Since 2000

How about yourself where did you move too?

 

[likethewheel]

Since 2000

How about yourself where did you move too?

that's funny ... I moved away in 2000. Live in the SC mtns nowadays. Been a wild few weeks so far in 2023! ready for some dry weather.