More Manual Transmission Cars Are Coming Your Way In 2027
The manual transmission has been declared dead more times than a villain from a cringy horror flick, yet that stubborn third pedal keeps crawling back out of the grave. Sure, automatics are quicker, dual-clutch gearboxes swap ratios before your left foot receives the memo, and electric cars do not need traditional transmissions at all, but none of that can replace the satisfaction of nailing a downshift, balancing a clutch, and grabbing the next gear yourself.
A stick shift makes the driver part of the machinery. It can turn a simple back road into an event and make any car feel more entertaining. Better still, several automakers have remembered that enthusiasts enjoy doing more than aiming the steering wheel and stomping the loud pedal. From exotic V16 monsters to affordable Japanese performance cars, more manuals are coming.
Some Seriously Exotic Manual Cars Are Coming
Let us begin at the financially terrifying end of the parking lot. Bugatti CEO Mate Rimac recently told Road & Track that the company is “100 percent” interested in building another manual car. He even floated the glorious idea of pairing a real manual transmission with Bugatti’s naturally aspirated V16. Nothing has been confirmed for production, but a manual Tourbillon-based special would be one outrageously expensive way to exercise your left leg.
McLaren has gone considerably further. Its new McL 6GT previews a low-volume production supercar expected in 2028 with a mid-mounted V8, rear-wheel drive, hydraulic steering, and a six-speed manual. It will be McLaren’s first three-pedal road car since the legendary F1 arrived in 1992. Around 500 are expected to be built, with reports suggesting a price near $1.5 million. Better start checking underneath the couch cushions.
Porsche is also feeding the manual faithful. The new North America-exclusive 911 Carrera S with MT Package brings a six-speed stick to the 473-horsepower, twin-turbocharged flat-six sports car. The coupe starts at $169,100, while the Cabriolet costs $183,350.
“You can be assured that we will try to offer manual transmissions as long as we are legally allowed to, and as long as there’s customer demand,” Porsche North America CEO Timo Resch told Road & Track during Monterey Car Week. Porsche expects that demand to continue well into the next decade. Keep buying them, people. Our clutch pedals depend on it.
Subaru, Toyota, And Mazda Are Keeping Manuals Affordable
Thankfully, this manual comeback is not reserved exclusively for people with private aircraft and climate-controlled garages. Subaru has confirmed that three new manual-transmission cars will enter production by 2027. The announcement came during the third round of Japan’s Super Taikyu endurance series at Fuji Speedway, where Subaru shared one wonderfully vague photograph showing three covered cars.
Their shapes appear to reveal a new WRX sedan, a BRZ-based sports car, and a five-door performance hatchback. That last one could become the affordable rally-flavored troublemaker enthusiasts have begged Subaru to build. However, this was a Japan-market announcement, and Subaru has not confirmed which of the three will reach America. We suggest asking loudly and repeatedly.
Mazda has indicated that the next-generation MX-5 Miata will remain small, lightweight, naturally aspirated, and available with a manual. In other words, Mazda understands the assignment. The current Miata produces a modest 181 hp, but its standard short-throw six-speed, rear-wheel drive, and 2,366-pound curb weight prove that fun does not require enough power to rearrange your internal organs.
The next Toyota Supra is also expected to preserve the manual, although Toyota has not officially confirmed its transmission lineup. The outgoing 382-hp GR Supra finally gained a six-speed stick after enthusiasts spent several years yelling at Toyota. Deleting it from the next generation would be a spectacular way to restart the shouting.
Not Every Manual Transmission Will Survive
While some automakers are rescuing the stick shift, others are quietly loading it into the trunk and driving toward the desert. Volkswagen removed the manual from the Golf GTI and Golf R, and the 2027 Jetta GLI will lose it as well. Once that happens, Volkswagen will not sell a single manual model in America. For a company famous for affordable enthusiast cars, that one hurts.
The Supra is also reaching the end of production, temporarily taking their six-speed options with them, and the BMW Z4 is already gone. Cadillac’s mighty CT5-V Blackwing faces an uncertain future as the current sedan winds down. Losing a 668-hp supercharged V8 sedan with a manual would be like closing a steakhouse because smoothies are more efficient.
Manuals will probably never regain their old market share, and modern automatics will keep beating them in acceleration tests. That misses the point. A manual is not about making every drive faster. It is about making the driver matter. As long as enthusiasts keep choosing three pedals, the stick shift may continue annoying traffic, confusing thieves, and making ordinary roads considerably more fun.
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