This Is The Only Manual Pickup Truck You Can Buy New In 2026

There's no denying that a large number of automotive enthusiasts in the U.S. still swear by manual transmissions. Most of them, however, have come to terms with the modern reality that automatic transmissions are the way forward. Automatic gearboxes — which were once reserved for top trims and luxury sedans — have now become standard fare on most cars sold in the U.S. In fact, as many as 5 manual transmission cars were discontinued in 2025 alone. Things are looking a bit grim in the pickup trucks space as well. As it turns out, as of 2026, the only pickup truck that you can purchase with a factory-fitted manual transmission in the U.S. is the Toyota Tacoma.

If you thought the manual transmission option was on all Toyota Tacoma trims, well, you'd be mistaken. Only three specific trims of the Tacoma are offered with the option of a manual transmission as of early 2026: the SR, TRD Sport, and TRD Off-Road.  The most affordable of these is the entry-level Toyota Tacoma SR trim, and only the double-cab variant of this trim (with a 5-foot cargo bed) is offered with the manual transmission. It is also important to note that the switch to a manual transmission will require an upgrade to a 4-wheel drive system.

The other two trims — TRD Sport and TRD Off-Road — are offered with a double cab option, albeit with two different cargo bed sizes: 5 feet and 6 feet. Only the 5-foot bed variants of these trims have the option to switch to the 6-speed manual. The TRD Off-Road trim differs slightly in packaging, as the six-speed manual and four-wheel drive are standard when the correct configuration is selected.

The Tacoma becoming the last manual transmission-toting pickup truck in the U.S. is a fairly recent phenomenon. As recently as 2024, the Toyota Tacoma had company in the form of the 2024 model year Jeep Gladiator. Back then, the Jeep offered this pickup truck with a 6-speed manual gearbox that was paired with its 3.6L V6 engine. In fact, some of these cars were even sold well into 2025, before they were completely replaced by the 2025 model year Jeep Gladiator, which unceremoniously dropped the manual transmission option.

The six-speed manual on the 2026 Toyota Tacoma is available with Toyota's 2.4-liter turbocharged inline-four engine. With the manual transmission, this engine makes 270 hp and generates 310 lb-ft of torque, making it powerful enough for most tasks you can throw at it.

What is interesting is how Toyota has chosen three specific trims for the manual gearbox, which also happen to be the ones lapped up by enthusiast drivers. Buyers of the more luxury-oriented and pricier variants of the 2026 Toyota Tacoma typically aren't as interested in a manual transmission, and for that reason, get to use the 8-speed automatic transmission, which is paired with a more powerful 2.4L iForce Max hybrid powertrain that makes 323 hp and 465 lb-ft of torque.