Is The Stick Shift Going To Die Before We Do?
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There was a time when it really mattered whether you drove an automatic or a manual, and rightfully so. Manual transmissions have been renowned for delivering better control, performance, and a superior experience behind the wheel; so much so, in fact, that they’ve now become “the only transmission real men drive”.
However, the feminist curse has recently led to the invention of the DSG (Direct-Shift Gearbox) – an electronically controlled dual-clutch manual gearbox. Without a clutch pedal and full automatic or semi-automatic control, the DSG essentially allows the car to be in two gears at the same time, greatly reducing lag and offering exceptionally quick shifts.
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What are the benefits of a DSG?
Now unless you are Keiichi Tsuchiya or Kamui Kobayashi, there is bound to be some sort of lag while shifting gears. With dual-clutch DSGs, shift times are greatly reduced and more energy is transmitted to the driveshaft, leading to lesser power loss and better lap times.
The practicality of DSGs can’t be ignored either. A twenty-five-minute commute to work with a manual transmission would take at least a couple of hundred gear shifts. While enjoyable, is it what you really want after a tough day at the office and coworkers grinding YOUR gears?
While manual transmissions were believed to be more fuel efficient than their automatic counterparts, that simply isn’t the case any longer. DSGs and CVTs (sorry enthusiasts!) now deliver better fuel economy figures and prove that the manual is on its way out. It had to be right, what with 10-speed automatics now gracing showroom floors?
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So, what remains of it?
Apart from the “I’m going to die!” factor of the manual transmission, there isn’t much that remains. I’m all for keeping a fun manual car for the weekends, and I do, but sometimes the truth hurts and old technology must bite the dust to make way for the newer and better.
Sure, there are going to be a bunch of enthusiasts who greatly disagree and want to drive a manual every single day of their lives, and that’s fine, but one must ask, how long till it’s all over? In fact, I’m not dreading the death of the manual transmission as much as I am the demise of the petrol engine.
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