- Aston Martin is open to return of manual transmissions.
- However, they might be ‘fake’ ones like used by Ferrari.
- Company apparently has to weigh costs and demand.
If there was a theme at this year’s Monterey Car Week, it was that manual supercars are back. A DIY gearbox was featured in numerous new models including the GMSV S1, McLaren McL 6GT, Spyker C8 Preliator XXV, and Kode89.
Aston Martin bucked this trend with their new Valen, which is billed as the “world’s most powerful front engined production car.” It sports a twin-turbo 5.2-liter V12 producing 838 hp (625 kW / 850 PS) and 737 lb-ft (1,000 Nm) of torque. This enables the model to rocket from 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) in three seconds flat, before hitting an electronically limited top speed of 214 mph (344 km/h).
More: Aston Martin Valiant Is A Track-Focused Weapon With A Six-Speed Manual
Those are impressive numbers, but the car uses an eight-speed automatic transmission. While this is fine for a grand tourer, enthusiasts want in on the action.
Unfortunately, Aston Martin CEO Adrian Hallmark said adding a manual is easier said than done. While the company has a long history of offering manual transmissions, he told Road & Track these were based on the company’s old vehicle architecture and electronics. He went on to explain, “The problem we have is not getting a manual gearbox, it’s getting an electronic and modified system to be able to work with a manual box.”
A large part of this comes down to modern safety and driver assistance systems. They’re great, but some technology doesn’t play nice with cars equipped with manual transmissions. Hallmark specifically pointed to adaptive cruise control and collision mitigation systems, and suggested taking features out or making modifications would be more expensive than developing a new manual itself.
However, some companies offer advanced driver assistance systems in conjunction with manual transmissions. All versions of the Toyota GR86 have adaptive cruise control and so does the Honda Civic Type R. While these examples show its possible, there’s also a question of demand and whether or not offering a manual would be a good return on investment.
Hallmark also mentioned the ‘faux’ stick shift in the Ferrari 12Cilindri Manuale, which is essentially an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox with a six-speed manual shifter and a clutch pedal. He suggested Aston Martin could potentially do something similar, but was non-committal.
