In a perverse contradiction of progress, more high performance vehicles are being offered with automatic gearboxes standard and no option for a manual. According to you, these are the ten autotragically-burdened cars that deserve to have manual transmissions.
This is Answers of the Day - where we take the best ten responses from the previous day's "Question Of The Day". It's by you and for you, the Jalopnik readers.
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Photo Credit: Charlie J
10.) Acura TSX Sportwagon
Suggested by: BrianStieh
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: If you google Acura TSX Sport Wagon, the third post you get is Wes Siler's great rant about how Acura ruined it by not offering either the V6 or the manual transmission. I'd like one with both, but would be happy with a fourbanger equipped with a stick shift. It's an attractive little wagon and great for most people, but when I see it sans shifter I fondly remember tooling around in my buddy's properly optioned first-gen TSX and wishing they'd bring over a wagon.
9.) BMW 335d
Suggested by: drtwofish
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: BMW's 335i, the twin-turbo, 300 HP sedan, comes with a six-speed manual transmission but for some reason the 335d is offered only in automatic. The 335d is only able to make a reasonable 265 HP, but what it lacks in top end speed it makes it up more torque than a Tyrannosaurus. Its delightful 425 pound-feet of torque would make a manual 335d a peppy sedan, but BMW claims it's too much power for their gerboxes. To makes things even better, a manual might bump up the fuel economy, making it more attractive to those who want to go green or save on fuel.
Photo Credit: Tomcio77
8.) Ford Taurus SHO
Suggested by: Jeb_Hoge
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: Ford has really outdone themselves with the fourth generation Taurus SHO. Unfortunately, the 365 HP Ecoboost engine is mated to a six-speed semi-automatic transmission. You can still select when to shift gears, but you have to tell a computer to do it for you. The SHO is attracting a lot of attention and gets love from many Jalopnik commenters, but if Cadillac can offer manual transmission is it that hard for Ford to do the same?
7.) Ford F250 SuperDuty
Suggested by:
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: I learned to drive in a manual pickup truck, so I would consider myself an expert on the subject of manual pickup trucks. The problem with some of the larger, more powerful trucks is that you always get an automatic gearbox no matter what. There's no fun in that. Throw a massive six-speed into a Ford F250 towing a trailer and we'll have just as much fun getting to the track as on it.
6.) 2011 Dodge Charger R/T
Suggested by: FoxCMK
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: Back in the old days you could get a Charger with a 3-speed or a 4-speed manual and a massive engine. The new 2011 Charger will be getting an eight-speed automatic transmission from Fiat. That's twice as many gears and almost none of the fun. The Charger needs a six-speed transmission to pay tribute to its predecessors with lots of smoke and screeching tires from drop clutch launches.
5.) Audi RS6 Avant
Suggested by: maximum_sarge
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: The RS6 Avant comes with a 5.2 liter, twin-turbo V10 engine that produces a staggering 571 HP in a wagon! The problem is that the RS6 comes with Audi's terribly slow tiptronic automatic gearbox. There's really no point in putting it in manual mode because you'll be waiting until next Sunday for it to shift to the next gear. Don't even try to downshift, that'll take even longer. A manual transmission would cure this problem in an instant and make the car a force to be reckoned with.
Photo Credit: Philipp Lücke
4.) 2011 Volvo S60
Suggested by: ThelynXAZ
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: The new Volvo S60 is supposed to be the naughty Volvo, and naughty it is. Your only transmission choice is a six-speed automatic, including in R-Design trim. Otherwise, the Volvo S60 with AWD and the 304 hp T6 could be an interesting BMW alternative.
3.) Nissan R35 GT-R
Suggested by: CABEZAGRANDE
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: Nissan has had nothing but trouble come out of their semi-automatic gearbox and launch control. The semi-automatic option is nice and it shifts well, but the GT-R deserves to be given the same opportunities as its Skyline predecessors and given a 6-speed manual transmission.
Photo Credit: Brian Digital
2.) Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG
Suggested by: Dominic Chan
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: Mercedes-Benz just likes to tease everyone. You can never fully disengage traction control and you can only get a manual transmission in their lowliest C-class sedan. The C63's tire-shredding 450 HP has to go through a 7 speed semi-automatic gearbox. Putting a manual in the C63 would be like a throwback to the days of the 190E with the dogleg gearbox. Mercedes definitely needs to put a dogleg seven-speed gearbox in the C63 for more tire-shredding action.
Photo Credit: Jeffrey Sitthi
1.) Ferrari 458 Italia
Suggested by: hike15
Why it deserves a manual gearbox: The semi-automatic transmission that's in the Ferrari can shift faster than you can blink. You'll feel like a Formula 1 driver when you're slowing, shifting gears down to turn into the Mirabeau in Monaco. It would be infinitely better if you could hear the clink of the gear lever against the gates. You would feel like Gilles Villeneuve while performing a heel-toe maneuver and putting the car into Mirabeau.
Photo Credit: CarSpotter