Well, I had to run over the mountains last night after work for a class marking the first real out of town trip with the Tacoma. The route is 75mi one way and from my town at 4000+ feet travels over one pass just under 5000ft and the second at just over 5200ft with 6%+ grades on both. The destination is at an elevation of around 1800ft so there is a descent hill to pull on the way home. On the way over I let the transmission work with the cruise on and set to 65mph. The truck seemed to be searching for the right gear but pulled the grades just fine. On the way home set the cruise at 65mph(where I could due to the curves) and dropped the tranny into 4th gear. The truck was much happier and pulled the hills better without searching for a gear. This is a learning process but I am liking the trucks quirks more and more. All of this and I got just over 20mpg...I am one happy camper.
