The manual gearbox is dying. Although its market share is slightly larger today than in previous years, it is only a matter of time before manual gearboxes are gone for good. The latest proof of this comes from Japan, where BMW is bidding farewell to its manual gearbox with a special edition of the M3.
To mark the 35th anniversary of BMW's first DTM victory, the M3 MT Final Edition will be limited to just 150 units and will only be sold to customers in Japan. MT, of course, stands for "Manual Transmission" and each example is equipped with three pedals as standard. As with the other M3s, it is coupled with a 3.0-litre twin-turbo S58 in-line six-cylinder engine.
BMW M3 MT Final Edition
BMW will build 50 examples each in the colours Alpine White, Black Sapphire and M Brooklyn Gray. All 150 cars will feature gold wheel rims and red seat accents, inspired by the original E30 generation M3 DTM racing car driven by Roberto Ravaglia.
BMW M3 MT Final Edition
BMW is expecting high demand for the M3 MT Final Edition. In the event that orders exceed the number of cars to be built, the company has set up a lottery system to select buyers in May. With a starting price of ¥14,200,000 (around 88,000 euros), the M3 MT won't come cheap either.
BMW's plan to stop selling manual transmissions is well known. Although six cars with manual transmissions are still sold in Germany - the 1 Series, the 2 Series Gran Coupé, the M2, the M3, the M4 and the Z4 - Frank Weber, a member of the company's board of management , said in an interview earlier this year, "If you want an M with a manual transmission, you have to buy it now," suggesting that the days of M and affordable entry-level models with manual transmissions are numbered.
Source: BMW Japan
