I did not know that about the certification. I was just mentioning the common transmission since there is a lot of that already happening ie Tremec 10 speed for GM and Ford
One of the biggest reasons manufacturers are killing the manual is because of emissions. Itâs become increasingly difficult and challenging from an engineering perspective to offer manual transmissions (specifically in sports car) that can match the performance of dual clutch/ZF torque converter transmissions without altering the gearing and ultimately leading to a drivetrain that burns more fuel and has more emissions.
Automatics have simply grown mature over the past two decades and have surpassed manuals in almost all data metrics. Manuals will be reserved for the enthusiast/life style crowd. I donât think theyâll ever truly die out, at least not any time soon.
A good example of this is the 911 GT3. Enough people bought manual GT3âs that Porsche is able to continue making and offering them. The take rate is about 50% in the states for a manual GT3 which is insane considering you canât find one for less than $250k anymore.
Rich people are keeping the manuals alive. There simply isnât a mass market/volume business case for them anymore.
And maybe rich Americans, specifically. With one of the previous-gen M5, BMW told an auto mag that it was offering a manual only b/c American buyers wanted one. And I think I remember Porsche stating that it didnât have a ton of interest in offering a manual on its own b/c dual clutches or whatever were objectively faster. But, of course, theyâre not going to alienate their fan base.
Manuals will probably survive among GTI, Civic Si, WRX, GT86, Miata, etc. buyers
Not quite mass market, but a larger and more affordable niche than GT3s.
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Indeed. Many teens are looking for stick shift cars⌠another reason why 90s Japanese models are popular.
Like @StingerTT said you can use 1st gear crawlâŚ1 paddle with just clutchâŚwith just occasional break applicationâŚ
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The Porsche motorsports division that developed the GT cars only had so much budget to work with in the first place. They chose to initially go with the PDK for the 991.1 generation because the PDK would have been the superior transmission for race-track performance. The demand from the US for casual road-driving buyers who wanted a manual was strong enough to prompt Porsche to develop the manual option as well for the 991.2. Sales were very high and continue to be high for the manual. Honestly, it was the 911 R in manual that generated the whole thing.
Porsche found out there was a greater market of buyers in the US who just wanted a manual to drive around back roads as opposed to track-day enthusiasts who were chasing track times.
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This is a super interesting topic. It has particular relevance for me as I have both an EV (LEAF) and a manual coupe (RSX Type S). Also have a gas SUV in HH (wifeâs Tiguan). Have had manuals since 19, with very few exceptions. Iâve very rarely owned automatic cars, except as had me downs or just using a family membersâ car. The LEAF was only the second non-manual car Iâve actually owned (ok leased but you get the idea). The other was a ~$2k TSX I got on the cheap.
I have commuted, done road trips, driven cross country, driven through NYC, LA traffic, etc, etc with manual and as others have said. Itâs traffic that sucks, not manual in traffic.
That said the point that OPD in an EV is the ultimate traffic tool is so on point. Driving the LEAF to the office on ePedal is a game changer.
Back to the tech here, at this point, most of the future product development across most manufacturers is concentrated on EV tech and platforms. Most of the larger car markets (especially EU/UK and China) are rapidly moving to EV only. At some point only manufacturers with a heavy presence in developing markets (SE Asia, S America, Middle East, Africa) will continue with ICE. I just donât see much of a future for expensive tech like this given that. Some existing manuals will persist into the next decade but thatâs for enthusiast models in select markets only, after that it gets real cloudy.
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Guilty 
10char
due to limited time/bandwidth of life, I dont see my self getting another manual. As a daily driver, I prefer electric 1 pedal drivingâŚ
I love canyon/back roads but as much as I enjoy manuals, I just cant imagine going back to a slower car with a manual vs a faster car with dual clutch. Even more so if I had to pay for it.
Apparently, there might also be a decent number of younger middle-aged folks looking to learn how to drive a stick b/c they now have the discretionary income to⌠get some of those 1990s Japanese cars b/f the prices skyrocket.
Hahahah
