http://f10.5post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=599993

After visiting Europe several times, it's quite apparent that they snap up manual transmission cars like no other. The US, on the other hand, clearly does not come close. Before anyone gets their feathers ruffled, this is not an auto vs. manual debate. I'm just curious as to why demand is so strong from the US for a manual in the M5, but so low everywhere else in the world that we are the only country that gets it. I understand we are a huge part of their sales, but it seems so odd to me that while we prefer automatics overall, we want manuals in our high performance cars. Is it the mindset of a bygone era?

Different clientele for an M5 vs most other cars. High performance cars still have a following of people who grew up with MTs, so they wont accept anything else.

I also spend a shit load of time in Europe (In Rome as I write this), and a lot of time renting cars here. The manual transmissions seem to relate to the fact that not many people want to spend a lot on a car. I spend most of my time in Germany, and I have been car shopping there - they are not as affordable as we have it in the US. So most people want to get in as cheap as possible, not to mention that benzin ist sehr teuer.

You should also note that in the US 'base' model German cars come fully loaded by European standards. I've ridden in a W221 S class with cloth interior.

For manual - it is a purist thing and aside from the F1 transmissions the Ferraris and Maserati's get, no tiptronic transmission can give the same feedback a legit manual can.

that "0-60 in 3.7 sec" post has been tops all week. ENUF! :rolleyes: