Mercedes-Benz Kills The Manual Transmission For Good

Much to the chagrin of keen drivers, the manual transmission is on the verge of extinction. In recent weeks, there have been some glimmers of hope. Toyota recently announced the Supra will finally receive a manual gearbox and Nissan is also giving buyers of its new Z the option to row their own gears.

But, overall, the manual gearbox isn’t long for this world. The fast-approaching electric era spells doom for the enthusiast’s choice and, coupled with increasing demand for self-shifting vehicles, more and more manufacturers are opting to move away from the three-pedal layout entirely.

The latest is Mercedes-Benz, reports Automobilwoche. The German automaker told the German publication that there’s no space for a manual transmission in the brand’s future.

This is expected to happen in 2023, said a company spokesperson, who noted that the switch to auto-only is driven by strong demand for electrified products. “With increasing electrification, we see customer demand is shifting towards electric mobility components, batteries, and electric drive systems.”

MBUSA chose to kill the manual transmission as far back as 2015; buyers of the now-defunct SLK 250 could elect to have a stick shift in place of the preferred auto ‘box. But poor sales led to the discontinuation of the three-pedal performer. It’s a different story elsewhere. In Germany, for example, the base-model CLA-Class is still available with a manual gearbox.

We’ve known for quite some time that this would happen. In 2020, the luxury automaker said it would “eliminate manual transmissions” entirely.

While lamentable, Mercedes-Benz never quite mastered the art of manual gearboxes. It certainly wasn’t the worst but, stretching as far back as the W123 and W124, owners often described them as notchy and recalcitrant. What’s more, the laid-back persona of many Mercedes-Benz models sat at odds with the idea of changing your own gears.

What it does signal, however, is the rapidly changing automotive landscape. The car, as we know it, is changing. Gearheads won’t appreciate the direction in which it’s heading and vehicles such as the aforementioned Japanese coupes really do represent the end of an era. Hopefully, enthusiasts will be catered to in the future – patents suggest Toyota is working on a manual gearbox for electric vehicles and, with any luck, the company will succeed.