With each passing year the number of vehicles available with a manual transmission shrinks, leaving driving enthusiasts who insist on rowing it themselves with nothing but heartache and more expensive purchase prices in their future.
A few automakers have offered a sort of safe haven from that practice, Porsche being one of them, but now Inside Line is reporting that a talk with the man in charge of the 911, August Achleitner, suggested at least one Porsche model may drop the manual transmission starting in 2013: the 911 GT3.
The conclusion that the next 911 GT3 may come only with a PDK automated gearbox stems from the fact that both the PDK and manual transmission are being tested for the 2013 GT3, but as of now the PDK seems to be the favorite. Considering Porsche only intends to offer one transmission, it seems only logical that the “favorite” would be that one.
Further cementing that harsh reality in place was a quote from Achleitner, coupled with a harsh statistic, “When we [Porsche] launched the 911 Turbo S, we did not offer a manual, but we have not had a single complaint.” The 911 boss also offered up that just 30 percent of 911s come with a manual transmission, which is very high compared to other makes, but low from a cost analysis perspective given the low volume of the German automaker.
Only time will tell if tradition or technology wins out for the next GT3, set to arrive some time in 2013.
