Aston Martin to give up manual gearbox

KUALA LUMPUR: No, it’s not a joke. Aston Martin has decided that it’s high time now to say bye-bye to the good, old manual gearbox, the company’s CEO Tobias Moers confirmed during a media interaction.

With this Aston Martin joins the club of automaker’s that are pulling the plug on the stick and it includes makers of some of the most iconic sports cars out there. For the time being it was among the very few supporting the three-pedal setup but now it won’t last long.

Mr. Moers also stated the Aston Martin V8 Vantage AMR will not get the manual gearbox for its facelift that is scheduled for next year. The same is the case with the Vanquish, no more stick.
It seems like the automaker is taking a U-turn from its previously stated intention that it will continue with the manual gearbox in order to meet the demands of its customer base and fans.

So, are you ready for a sports car with automatic transmission? Well, the perception about the combination has changed in recent times and so has the technology. As per Moers, the purists may see why manual stick in sports cars may not be feasible now.

We suspect the move may be a result of a lack of demand. For instance, in the US market, we see a hike in the sales of electric cars over conventional ones with manual transmission. In several other countries, a surge in sales has been noticed in cars with automatic transmission, regardless of the segment.

Any comments?

Also Read: Aston Martin V12 Speedster gets a special DBR1 pack