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The last decade in Japan especially you'd have a hard time finding a new manual shift performance car - that includes all BMWs, Mercs, Audis, Alfas, Lambos, Ferraris, you get the picture. Go browse a used car site. Porsches, the last breed still have stick shift as an option, are now overwhelmingly automatic. Dear god stop the double clutch madness a.k.a chasing the numbers!
goo net search results
The above link is of goo-net.com, maybe the largest used car site in Japan. I did a search for Porsche 911. It returned 723 finds, of which only about 70 cars made within 10 years have manual box.
A car that can flatter its driver gets to survive, simple as that. Let's be honest the vast majority of high-end car buyers have more money than driving skills, and are probably over the hill. What they would buy as opposed to what an engineer truly wants to build, besides solely on making a profit, is worlds apart. The current state of performance automotive speaks volume about the demography of the wealthy.
2
Every latest derivative of a performance car has to go faster, have more horsepower, and be ever more aggressive. The problem is all of those are achieved with the wrong means - adding more driver's aids and weight. My opinion: not every sports car purchase is for track use. For the 90% of people who never use the upper half of the power spectrum, what's the point? Who needs 500hp? When everyone is doing it and merely having a number pissing contest even once serious manufacturers have to follow suit. Thank god for smaller establishments.
To me the car people who get it right are those who ask "where can I reduce weight?" instead of "how should I add more power?" Less is more. Get your collectively electronic hands off the steering wheel. Save the driving assistant features for the casual majority.
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