Like it or not, 2013 was the year in which the manual gearbox all but rolled over and died.
The list of so-called enthusiast’s cars that were replaced this year without the option of a manual gearbox is long and, in some instances, quite shocking. Take a bow the new Porsche 911 GT3 and 911 Turbo, Renault’s new Clio RS 200 Turbo, Aston Martin’s latest V12 Vantage S and all of Lamborghini’s new supercars, to name but a few.
What this proves, beyond all reasonable argument, is that the manual gearbox, or the stick shift, as they refer to it across the pond, will soon be a thing of the past, certainly among new cars at any rate. Or will it?
In the UK, and despite the hype surrounding the supposed death of the manual transmission and the inexorable rise of the flappy-paddle gearbox, some 75 per cent of the 1.8 million new cars that were bought before 20 October this year had, yes, a manual ’box. In other words, only a quarter of new cars sold in the UK this year were automatics, and by no means all of those have flappy paddles and even fewer are full-blown dual-clutch autos.
Looking at the overall sales figues since 2004, the popularity of the manual gearbox has dropped slightly, true, but nowhere near at the rate that you might think. In 2004, 17.6 per cent of the 2.55 million new cars sold had an automatic gearbox, which means a rise in popularity of just 7.6 per cent during the past decade. Which is hardly what you’d call a fatality for the manual gearbox, even if a mere seven per cent of new cars sold in the US this year had a stick shift.
Even so, manufacturers such as Ferrari and Jaguar realised long ago that developing high-end sporting cars with manual gearboxes is pointless, because their customers are no longer interested in buying them. But it’s the increasing popularity of flappy-paddle gearboxes among more humble cars, such as next year’s new Vauxhall Corsa – to be offered with the option of a dual-clutch auto – that is arguably more indicative of the direction in which the overall market is heading. Which poses one or two intriguing new questions.
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Will86
I'm currently driving (for
artill
supercars are largely bought
The Clio is a mistake. Its bettered by both the 208 and the Fiesta as a car and particularly for involvement.
Most people dont like driving. If they have a fancy car its for its image. If its easier to drive because its an auto, all the better. So the sales of automatics will increase.
Add in the way the EU test favours automatics, so again the manufactures have an incentive (not to mention they cost more, and certainly in the case of DSGs will cause the death of more cars sooner when they go wrong and are not economically repairable)
So the sales of Autos will continue to rise, but does that mean everyone wants one?
No!
Sporky McGuffin
I think we've seen these
2004 - 17.6% of cars sold in the UK are automatics
2013 - 25.2% of cars sold in the UK are automatics
Painting that as an increase of 7.6% is daft - it's an increase in sales of automatic cars of 43%.
It'd have been more useful to have posted the actual sales figures, but clearly the numbers are being manipulated to support the writer's preconception.
Fox Terrier
The enduring popularity of
catnip
Fox Terrier wrote:The
I think some people still have serious concerns about the reliability of some of these new dual clutch gearboxes too, particularly in view of the VW groups big problems with them.
I wonder how much of the poor sales performance of the current Fabia vRS (and Skodas announcement that its to be discontinued) has to do with the lack of a manual option. Similarly, I see very few Polo GTi around.
Kbird
Truth?
Tragic.
I'm off for a drive in my V12V, in the wet, on Corsa's, proper!
fadyady
All money and no skill
Every day I push past an armada of Porsches, Audis and Mercedes coupes. The way these excellent cars are driven is embarrassing. The car makers are dropping the manual box for these drivers.
winniethewoo
Interesting artcle. I didnt
davidgad
very interesting article.
very interesting article.الملايين-الجاتا-صبواي سيرفرس-الزوما
pioneerseo
I would prescribe my profile
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