Aston Martin all set to ditch manual gearbox for good

In news that may be a bitter pill for automotive purists who still back the sense of full control that comes with shifting gears manually, Aston Martin has reportedly decided the time is now right and ripe to confine the manual gearbox to the bin. This was confirmed by Aston Martin CEO Tobias Moers during an interaction with journalists.

The world over, almost ever major car maker has opted to pull the plug on the stick and this includes makers of iconic sports cars as well. Aston Martin was one of very few companies that had still held out a lifeline for the three-pedal setup but it may now pull back. This after Moers stated that the V8 Vantage AMR won't get the gear stick in its facelift next year. The Vanquish too won't get a manual gear stick. This is a clear departure from the previous stated intention from Aston Martin that it will continue with the set up in order to meet the demands of its discerning fans and customer base.

Perception about automatic transmission in sports cars have changed significantly in recent times. And so has the technology. Moers says even purists may have to now see just why manual gearboxes even in sports cars may not be feasible any longer.

The move could also be due to lower demand.

The US has been selling more electric vehicles than conventional cars with manual gearboxes. In several other western countries as well, cars with automatic transmission are far more common and many of the models - regardless of segment '- don't come with a three pedal set up at all.