Aston Martin hasn’t ruled out bringing back a manual gearbox, but making one work with modern safety technology is proving to be a major challenge.
Speaking during Monterey Car Week, Aston Martin CEO Adrian Hallmark explained that the issue isn’t sourcing a manual transmission itself. The bigger problem is integrating it with the electronics and advanced driver-assistance systems used in modern production cars.
“The problem we have is not getting a manual gearbox; it’s getting an electronic and modified system to be able to work with a manual box. Why? Because when you’ve got ADAS—because this car’s got all the safety systems of a production car, if we put a manual in, you couldn’t have the adaptive speed control and the anti-crash intervention. To take that out … and to modify it is more cost[ly] than developing a new manual gearbox.”
Aston Martin could follow Ferrari’s approach. The brand’s latest simulated manual system in the 12Cilindri Manuale works with modern safety electronics and would likely be less expensive than developing a genuine three-pedal setup. However, Hallmark admitted the company is still weighing whether to pursue a “fake manual” or simply avoid the technology altogether.
“And then, when you look at how many cars you need to sell at what incremental price to offset the cost of the box and the electronics, it’s a marginal case, which I guess is why Ferrari have done what they’ve done,” Hallmark says. “So our dilemma: Do we do a fake manual? Or, don’t go manual? So that’s the problem.”
Source: Road and Track
