Soon, manual BMWs will be a thing of the past. Head of development for BMW’s M division, the M2 will probably be the final manual-transmission BMW model produced.
According to Hacker, BMW, and suppliers have not yet decided whether the current M2’s manual transmission will be discontinued. According to Hacker, there are fewer vendors of manual gearboxes, citing the outlook for the global automotive industry. “So I’m not sure we will have the possibility in the future—but in the future means six, seven years in the forecast,” he continued.
Other manufacturers simulate the manual experience in electric cars using synthetic engine sounds and gear shifts. This morning, Toyota revealed a performance EV with a manual transmission. When asked if this concept could be applied to BMW, Hacker responded, “It could be done, but we won’t.”
According to Frank van Meel, head of BMW’s M Division, the company will continue to offer the stick shift through the end of the decade. According to BMW North America, the M2, M3, and M4 will still offer manual transmissions as an option.
The hacker added that dual-clutch transmissions are no longer used in BMW M vehicles. In comparison to DCT gearboxes, he continued, ZF’s eight-speed torque converter automatic gearboxes deliver better performance and are more dependable.
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