Infographic: Car Buyers Still Pick Stick
Infographic: Car Buyers Still Pick Stick
The number of customers who opt for manual transmissions when purchasing a new or used passenger vehicle may be small, but they’re a passionate, enthusiastic bunch.
About 1.7 percent of 2023 U.S. new car purchases were made by those who opted for manual transmissions. And when it comes to used car sales, CarMax reported that 2.9 percent of U.S. sales in 2022 were stick shifts. This number is down 89.5 percent since 1995, the car reseller reported.
The automatic transmission began to be installed in new vehicles in 1924 and the auto industry never looked back. Automatic transmission response times are better making them safer and more reliable. Among carmakers that offer stick shifts and gear boxes in new 2024 models are notably BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Ford, Honda, and Toyota.
There remains a consistent demand from those who prefer to drive a car that is not an automatic. “There’s a subset of people, I count myself among them, that just prefer [to drive a manual]. Because there’s no real logical argument for [picking a manual transmission] at this point,” explained Chris Perkins, senior editor at Motor1.
The automatic transmission began to be installed in new vehicles in 1924 and the auto industry never looked back. Automatic transmission response times are better making them safer and more reliable. Among carmakers that offer stick shifts and gear boxes in new 2024 models are notably BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Ford, Honda, and Toyota.
There remains a consistent demand from those who prefer to drive a car that is not an automatic. “There’s a subset of people, I count myself among them, that just prefer [to drive a manual]. Because there’s no real logical argument for [picking a manual transmission] at this point,” explained Chris Perkins, senior editor at Motor1.
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