[RahulNagaraj]

Over the years, supercar brands have made the switch to offering automatic transmissions as standard across their model lineup. This has allowed manual transmission-equipped supercars to become extremely rare, so much so, that they now demand a premium in the pre-owned market.



Manual transmission versions of iconic supercars are surging in value, compared to their automatic counterparts. According to reports, pre-owned supercars such as the Ferrari F430 with its 6-speed manual gearbox demand almost double the price, compared to its F1 transmission version.



Reports suggest that these manual gearbox-equipped Ferrari F430s have a higher demand than even the much rarer 430 Scuderia models, which came with an F1 transmission. The prices of the manual F430s in the used market are even higher than its special edition variant.



According to reports, the reason for the surging prices of these manual supercars comes down to supply and demand. With most supercar owners spec-ing their cars with automatic transmissions, the number of manual versions is comparatively less. However, with the demand for such manual cars on the rise, prices in the used car market have been surging as well.

Other similar examples of manual supercars with surging prices in the pre-owned market, including the iconic Lamborghini Murcielago and the more recent Porsche 911 R. Although Porsche continues to offer a manual transmission on its models, prices for the 911 R in the used car market, still seem to be on the rise.

Source: CarScoops

Link to Team-BHP news

[Researcher]

If I were to guess, the rise in demand can be due to the following:

1. Future extinction of manuals in new super cars - Recently, Aston Martin announced that it is abandoning manuals. With tightening of emission norms that require precise control over most parts of a car and the future in electrification which has no manual transmission to offer yet, this trend of abandoning manuals is probably going to be applicable to all manufacturers in coming years.

2. Timeless, unlike automatics that get outdated - A manual gearbox from 30 years back can still be at par with another modern car with similar specs sheet. The same cannot be said about automatics. A modern 6-7 speed dual clutch unit will run circles around a 2-3 decade old 3-4 speed torque converter. Today's automatics will not be able to hold a candle to the ones 20-30 years down the line.

3. More reliable and easier to maintain over the course of time - A well-built manual with robust mechanics will last long with regular maintenance, which again is simpler (have only changed fluids in my commuters as a part of scheduled maintenance). The same cannot be said about automatics with their dependency on electronics which can fail as the car ages and repairing or replacing parts is not everyone's cup of tea.

[Sran]

The tale of two countries. Americans adopted automatics because it was easy for them to drive it on straight long roads. Indians in their ever glory to ape the west adopted it citing it is easy to drive automatics on busy curvy signal filled roads.

Anyone who has driven a car in ghats (both MT and AT) in India will know that automatics have yet not arrived. Ghats and hairpin bend roads are relatively empty in europe and usa(at least till 5 years back). In African continent such roads are basically ghost towns. In India these roads are too busy. MT's are superior in every way but car makers all around have deemed Automatics to be the future and many have stopped MT's production altogether. This will only fuel the demand for MT's.

[GaryTSI]

This trend shows what is valued more over the years, as of late, car manufacturers have gone insane with the performance capabilities with cars being able to reach 100kmph in around 2 seconds and even the entry level sporty cars can compete with the supercars of the 80s and the 90s, the new Mk.8 Golf R can out accelerate the legendary F40 and the new hybrid supercars are achieving almost physics bending numbers. But on the other hand, the mechanical feel and the soul of the newer cars are fading away which the collecters do seem to value, the performance can always be improved and beaten but the sheer driving experience and pleasure is negligible, the W204 C63 was a sheer hooligan with so much of character, sure the car wasn't as capable as the E92 M3 on the road but always made the driver giggle behind the wheel and the rumours of the new inline 4 hybrid C63 will certainly be faster than the 204 with this fancy Hybrid, DCT and AWD system but it will be nowhere as fun as it's predecessors and I hope manufacturers take note that people also value the characteristics and the soul of a car and focus on those too instead of only paper performance

[ss212]

Originally Posted by Sran

The tale of two countries. Americans adopted automatics because it was easy for them to drive it on straight long roads. Indians in their ever glory to ape the west adopted it citing it is easy to drive automatics on busy curvy signal filled roads.

I don't think Indians adopted auto boxes in an attempt to ape the west. I think it is definitely more to do with our clogged cities where driving can become very tiresome. This is why we are seeing so many cars with AMTs in the lower range.

That said, there is no denying that people shopping in the premium segment opt exclusively for auto boxes.

[shree_shell]

I can attest to this trend. And this doesn't have to be only for Supercars, it's for sportcars in general.
Just lookup Bring your-trailer for the prices of S2000, E28 M3/ Non-M, E46 M3, M-coupe, old WRX, etc.

I bought my car last August for $34k in peak pandemic and now I see similar mileage cars go for about $50k.

EAG will have good examples that follow this trend.

Also, why not? We are living in the age where MTs are vanishing faster than IC cars. Well maintained performance manuals will be a rare commodity soon. At least in US - "it is all about how it makes you feel" is getting valued more and more. No wonder the ND Miata was Mazda's only star performer during last year's slump.

Less is more.

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by Sran

The tale of two countries. Americans adopted automatics because it was easy for them to drive it on straight long roads. Indians in their ever glory to ape the west adopted it citing it is easy to drive automatics on busy curvy signal filled roads.

Anyone who has driven a car in ghats (both MT and AT) in India will know that automatics have yet not arrived. Ghats and hairpin bend roads are relatively empty in europe and usa(at least till 5 years back). In African continent such roads are basically ghost towns. In India these roads are too busy. MT's are superior in every way but car makers all around have deemed Automatics to be the future and many have stopped MT's production altogether. This will only fuel the demand for MT's.

Some strange observations. The way our cities are clogged with traffic, ATs make way for sense and we should have aped the west much before.

Same for hairpin bends and ghats. Isn't it just easy not to bother about ABC pedal combination when car is slow and climbing or worse still completely stuck on an steep incline?

I'll prefer AT in most tiring situations. I'm in a small town and hate driving our small MT (Kwid) car because the traffic is so bad. Have driven it in Mumbai and I wished it was an AT. On the other hand, driving Jazz cvt and a friend's Audi A4 AT is such a breeze in the traffic despite them being much larger cars than the Kwid.

Point being, instead of beating ourselves for wanting more comfort we should understand rising prices of used MT supercars have nothing to do with usability or reliability. A blown gear box is peanuts for a person who owns supercar(s).

Every supercar owner who is paying these big bucks will be driven on rear seat in chauffeured AT car on most days. On the rare few days they are not, they will be on the track punishing the said MT supercar as a hobby. While the peasants will be getting groceries in bumper to bumper traffic sweating in 1st and 2nd gear caressing 53bhp engines.

[LTAutoMad]

You want what you can't get!

Until recently, used manual supercars used to be sold at inferior prices to their automatic counterparts, reflecting the big price premiums of $10-20K that the sophisticated supercar gearboxes commanded new.

Most people specified the auto gearboxes which were far superior in operation to the manual ones (once the first generation glitches were sorted out - e.g. the notorious Ferrari 360 F1 gearbox vs the one for F430)

There was almost an even mix between auto & manual in the 360, whereas most of the F430s were auto. Now, that they have become classics (yes!), naturally, the very rare F430 manuals command silly prices (there is a premium, but not so much for the 360 manual).

This is especially driven by people's fascination for the F430 manual as the last purely "analogue" Ferrari V8. Similar to how the last N/A V8 Ferrari, the 458 Italia, commands much higher prices in the used car market than the subsequent model - the turbo 488.

[mayank612722]

I'm pretty sure there isn't much comparison between the Indian and American car markets but a 2019 Honda Accord with 13,500 kms on odometer and a sticker price (on road price in India) of $31,640 was sold on an American car auction website for $32,750. What I observe from this is the amazing fact that a Honda gained value and primary reason for that is it's manual transmission. So it's not just the supercars that are gaining value because of the manual transmission.

[TrackDay]

I remember coming across the term 'Save the Manuals' a few years ago. Now it is a popular hashtag on Instagram and there are even FB pages and YouTube videos. However this is only for the supercar/sportscar segment and not everyday cars. Manual driving altogether will be an event of the past once cars go fully electric. Hence the nostalgia and need to retain the manual gearboxes of yesterday will make sense to those who have the dough.

[Mynameis]

For a decade old AT sedan, do not look beyond City/ Civic/ Corolla Altis. DCT won't give you peace of mind, that decade old thing will constantly be on your mind, and road trips won't be enjoyable (if you plan to do so on this car).

My brother bought a decade old Civic AT few months back (run 70k kms) at the price of base model Alto, and is happily using it, clocking 1600 kms/ month on average after purchase.

I recently took it for a 1000 kms trip in hilly regions and the car performed flawlessly. Yes, AT is a bit lazy on kickdowns, but overall does the job pretty well. Upshift is quick and seamless, except 1st to 2nd where minor jerk is felt at low to medium speeds. Used paddle shifters on downhills, worked great. Best part was, knowing its a Honda, I had that peace of mind even with a 10 year old car.