Ya, I'm the same and there still is a market for them.

I sold a Maserati GT Coupe last year (not easy cars to sell) and every guy who came to look at it was only interested because it was manual shift.
(Mind you it was on its 3rd clutch at 35,000 kms, so I'm not saying that the enthusiasts all know how to drive them, lol.)

 

I agree with MRCW about the ASM. I bought my first Vantage in July and read all about the pros and cons. Once I learned how to drive it I understand. Drives like a manual without the hassle.

 

When they say "younger" in context of the collector/exotic car market, they're almost always talking about people who aren't yet wearing diapers. You ever been to Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale? My brother and I always joke, that you could open a booth selling Depends there and make an absolute killing.

I'm in my mid 40's and I'm one of the youngest people in the local Porsche club, though my local exotics club is pretty thick with internet/startup kiddies who've bought McLarens and Lamborghinis

 

THIS!!! I love mine. It does have some seemingly random shift points at times in Drive mode, but in general I love it.

My Porsche is a full-on manual, and the driving experience is definitely different and I love throwing the gears and working the clutch. But the ASM is so much fun to drive compared to the automatics I've had and though different, I enjoy it as much as the Porsche.