Ronnie981

I read today that in the near future, only PDK will be available for ALL 911's. Not good.

Suzy991

Of course it will be all PDK... manual is ancient technology. Wake up... It's 2013, not 1963...
But let's not make this another manual vs. PDK thread. There are more than enough of those boring threads.

Everything is a matter of personal preference, but it's no news that manual gearboxes will eventually disapperar.

Suzy (via iOS app)

chuckbdc

Where did you read that?

chuck911

Setting aside the obvious performance advantages of PDK, there are also good economic reasons for eliminating the outdated manual. Currently PDK is an expensive option. Because its more complex it will probably always cost more than a manual. But going all-PDK will close that gap a lot. Porsche has always been about providing practical performance. This is just another step on down that road.

socalsteve

This is really sad news...one of the best features of my 911 is the great manual gearbox.

Hmmm, wonder if it will be worth more if they stop producing MT 911's.

duxsi

Yes, it is no secret that the manual transmission will soon become an "option" and eventually phased out completely. Of course it makes sense from a production and business standpoint.

The question is when?

Will the last generation of manuals be more sought after? I suspect they will, as this has always been the case in the automotive industry's evolution.

Noah Fect

Do you want to drive the gearbox, or do you want to drive the car?

kosmo

Do you drive the gearbox or does the gearbox drive you?

Suzy991

Depends if you leave it in Auto or put it in Manual mode
In the end it's the driver that operates the throttle and steering wheel. With PDK, you have the choice to combine that with shifting or leave the shifting to the PDK

Suzy (via iOS app)

golftime

This is very sad news. Yes, PDK is faster and more convenient than human shifting. But PDK will never, ever replicate the complete driving experience when shifting a manual transmission in a P-car. Why don't we just paint a magnetic stripe down the center of the driving lane and just let the car drive itself? That would be very convenient also. Where are we headed?

Bacura

Ferrari no longer makes MT cars. Also, I heard they were no longer making carborators and drum brakes. Sad really, I heard that fuel injection is very complicated. I wonder what the trade-in value of MT cars will be in a few years. I'm guessing lowwwwwww. One day I hope to own a MT car with no ABS/disc brakes /fuel injection and power steering. That car would be just so involving. OK OK....sarcasm turned off. But really. The truth is My first and second 911's were MT. My third and forth PDK. Live with a PDK car for a year or 2 and tell me you want your MT back....not just a 30 min test drive.

rglbegl

I was bummed when I sold my old Chevy that had a manual choke on it.
I prefer to roll down my windows by hand crank.

There are some things I like automated, like a starter motor instead of a crank. But cars have become WAY too detached lately. Drive by wire, throttle by wire. There is not a single connection between you and your car, everything is an electric impulse that makes an electric motor do the work for you.

Think about it, there are many cars now that DO NOT have a direct connection between the steering wheel and the tires. Sure hope that system doesn't fail at the wrong time.

Suzy991

I respectfully disagree.

I do have a manual 981 Boxster S at the moment and I really enjoy it most of the time, when driving on twisty mountainroads. I don't like it in daily traffic and when driving "relaxed".
I agree that a dual clutch will never repliciate the experience of manual shifting, but it provides a different kind of experience. it's differrent but it can be just as much fun as driving a manual.
Technology changes and I think that is most of the time a good thing. Companies like Porsche have to move on to survive. If Porsche would stick to old pricipals, it would have been bankrupt a long time ago.
The best example is Wiessmann. They made beautiful cars, based on BMW (M3) technology, but they didn't move on and a couple of months ago, they went bankrupt. Sad, but true...
Keeping up with new technologies Is part of evolution of a brand and Porsche doesn't change if the car doesn't get better.


Suzy (via iOS app)

rglbegl

^^
Moving on and forgetting your roots are 2 different things.

And comparing one of the largest car companies in the world to a small custom shop (Weissmann) is not exactly apples to apples

BradB

We had the same disbelief when they added radiators. Embrace the new technology. I did. Of course my 991 will be parked next to my 993. I'm not totally crazy! Lol!