pro's or con's.

Any problems I should be aware of?

Found me a NICE '94 Rodeo XS with only 91K miles, 3.2L V6.

I know all about the auto's, have had 2 without issue, but I'm clueless on the manual's.

You might get a little better gas mileage.

You may at some point have to change the clutch.

some think Manuals are better for offroading.

Like Ryan says, manual trans really shine when it comes to offroading, and they tend to make the initial purchase price of the truck cheaper. In my opinion, thats about the only pluses' for them in these trucks. They tend to be hard on clutches, even when driven conservatively due to the 4x4 drivetrain drag. To me, truck manual's are tiresome to drive after awhile (I've owned quite a few), and they are no cheaper to fix than an AT should you need major repair. Manuals are great in little econo-box FWD cars, and sporty cars, but I'd stay away from the 5spd in a daily driver rodeo.
G/luck
Joel

Kind of wondering that - the tiresome idea.

I too have had manuals, they are fun - in cars. This truck appeared to need be shift "often" - by that I mean the U/S light would come on seemingly within two seconds of just upshifting, i.e. I'd shift to 2nd, and no sooner the light would come on to shift to 3rd.

I'll have to ponder on this one for sure, as this truck is in immaculant shape for it's age.

I have 150K on my 5-speed still on the original clutch, have never had a single issue with the tranny.

The easy fix for the U/S light is to remove the bulb.

Having said that, I don't think I will ever own another vehicle with a manual transmission simply because of the PITA factor.

:2cents:

I recomend ignoring the upshift light. I took the bulb out of the only car I had with an upshift light. Annoying little suckers.

I have a 5spd. If you have a commute w/ a ton of stop and go driving, I wouldnt' recommend driving it. Unlike most cars, the throw on these shifters is long and can get tiresome.

... Unlike most cars, the throw on these shifters is long and can get tiresome.

That's exactly it. After a while it's like driving a dump truck :banghead: .
G/luck
Joel

Or an old '79 Chevy 3/4 ton is what this rodeo reminded me of, in regards to the shifting.

I forgot to mention, if you put some weights on your shifter, you can cut out part of your gym routine :)

mabey i'm a control freak but is till love my manual tranny, i hate when the automatics shift when i don't want them to.