Just like internal combustion engines, manual transmissions provide drivers with mechanical feedback that electric and automatic-equipped vehicles sometimes struggle to do, but despite this, they're both on the way out.
It should come as no surprise to hear that Porsche is strongly flying the manual transmission flag, with a fair few of its models still offered with three pedals, and if this US sales data is anything to go off, it's making dollars and sense.
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According to Bloomberg, 70 per cent of buyers of the last generation 911 GT3 opted for a manual transmission over Porsche's famous PDK. Which is a figure that very few would've been able to predict.
“We lost several bottles of wine by betting on the take rate when we reintroduced the manual option,” 911 model line vice president Frank-Steffen Walliser said. “We were surprised by how high it was.”
Porsche spokesperson Luke Vandezande told Bloomberg that just 30 per cent of international buyers opted for the manual transmission, a figure that is still higher than the rest of the 911 line-up at 22-25 per cent.
Surprisingly, America is well ahead of the rest of the world in these rankings with an undisputed 70 per cent.
Andreas Preuninger (head of Porsche GT) weighed in on the topic by predicting that 40 per cent of global buyers of the new 911 GT3 will be after the manual transmission, adding that it could be even more.
The six-speed manual transmission hasn't always been an option in the GT range, as it was taken away for a few years before being brought back into production after an outcry from Porsche fans.
In standard form, the new 2022 GT3 will be getting a seven-speed PDK double-clutch automatic, but you can bet your bottom dollar that a three-pedal option will also be availible.