If anyone hasn't already noticed, all new 09 A4s, regardless of S-line or engine size, will be TIPTRONIC only! No Manual gearbox is offered!

Anyone know what's up?

Looks like BMW is the only company anymore to still offer manuals in the "lower-end" market of Euro-cars.

 

yeah that is accurate. also the RS-6 probably won't make it over here in sedan form either. The DSG or S-Tronic 3rd gen should be availble 2010.

Supposedly VAG is trying to phase out manual cars all together by 2012-2015 with the Porsche division being the biggest proponent.

 

Are the Audis being dogged performance-wise the same as Porsches are? (Given that 0-60 stats are in a perfect increasing slope from low-end Cayman all the way to GT).

 

they're not even bringing the manual transmission in the 4 door VW Rabbit in 09

 

What? I had my heart set on an 09' S4...stick of course.

 

I'm sure the S and RS models will have the manual option available

 

With the continuing trend here, it looks like Manual trans are on the chopping block for every manufacture. Esp. with the onset of dual clutch transmissions taking the high road.

 

I saw this and couldnt believe it. So now I will be forced to buy a more expensive transmission that I simply do not want. Forget all the reports of millisecond shift points and yadda yadda...I want a manual because I enjoy the car much more that way.

But you're probably right enpunker, the s and rs will probably get manuals (for a few more years at least), but the fact that its no longer offered on some cars eliminates them comepletly from my list.

 

I was pretty dissappointed as well. Was thinking a B8 Avant would make a better ski car and go back to porsche for fun. But no manual kinda ruins it for me. I've never owned a auto and don't plan to.

 

Same here.

Who cares if its a little slower than a DSG, its more fun!

 

i dislike this move just as much as the next guy, but i can understand why they do it... as much as we love the sticks, if the manuals aren't selling, they're not making money on moving units that don't move. a handful of us enthusiast and purist types won't change the mind of the accountants.

that said, i don't understand why they wouldn't keep the economical volume-leaders (like the Rabbit) available in manual... that's just odd.

 

Well VW is doing a few other things, such as limiting the color choices for most of the cars.

I guess they're just trying to sell a bunch of cars and have as few as possible sitting. i.e. a sage green rabbit might not move as quickly as a black one. but common, taking out a manual. i can see it in an A4 but not in a rabbit

 

You will be able to get a manual 2.0t on the B8 A4 starting in the spring.

 

Wells thats just lame. But it makes sense to me for them to only offer manual in higher model cars. The general public in the US tends not to like stick and the ones that do try to get S4's and such.

 

i can somewhat understand the logic in that (as faulty as it may be), but most of the cars we enjoy here are almost always most commonly sold as manuals over in europe. it's not like they'd be going out of their way in production to make the manual versions.