BMW M5, M6 Models to Go Shiftless

BMW AG says it will drop the six-speed manual transmission option for U.S. versions of its M5 and M6 high-performance cars when the current models are redesigned a few years from now.

North America is the only remaining market that offers manual gearboxes for the two models now. All other versions of the cars are equipped with the company's seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.

Albert Biermann, who heads engineering for M vehicles, tells Edmund's Inside Line that the U.S. take rate for M-car manuals has slid to about 15% this year. Low demand makes it uneconomical to develop a new manual gearbox for the next-generation models.

"Nobody wants [a manual transmission] in Europe or anywhere else," Biermann tells the online publication. He points out that fitting a manual into a car designed for an automatic transmission involves finding a place for the shifter and clutch pedal and strengthening the gearbox to handle the more powerful engines that distinguish the M models.

Biermann does offer solace for America's dwindling shift-it-yourself crowd. He says BMW's smaller M3 model "needs to have a stick shift" and always will.