Wichita Business Daily

Why did General Motors get rid of the manual transmissions, and also turbo engines for supercharged engines?

Both of these things cause me not to want to buy a General Motors automobile. It made me upset when there was no clutch anymore and they didn't have a manual shift know that I could actually constantly shift with. The Turbo engines I always loved them more than Supercharged engines. Why did they change everything? If it ain't broke don't try to fix it, they wanted to change everything and now they're not selling anything.

Public Comments

1. The transmission change was probably just a matter of demand. Most people prefer automatics especially considering how many people talk on the phone while driving. They can't hold the phone if they have to shift gears. The turbo was probably a matter of reliability and cost.
2. For starters they do have manual transmissions, secondly they still make cars with turbo chargers! Look at the new Camaro, it comes with manual transmissions and the automatic is an option! The chevy Covalt is a little 4 cyl. vehicle that comes with a turbo charger in the ss version. Some pick up trucks you can get with a manual transmission you just need to ask for them! Good luck!
3. Because having hundreds of options to please a couple people who have a small preference for each item is what made them lose a ton of money to begin with. The advantages of a manual transmission are almost obsolete by now, except for the "feeling of control". Automatics don't have as significant of a fuel usage impact as they used to. In the early 2000's it because a fad to have a lot of "quirky" cars (Pontiac Aztek, Scion xB, Honda Element) that would appeal to a niche group. However, they lost a ton of money (well, not Scion) because that niche group wasn't big enough to cover the millions spent developing and producing those cars. Sure, you'd like a manual transmission turbocharged Malibu, but you're the only one.
4. 1: The new automatics out perform manual transmissions in all ways. They shift faster, and are more durable than a stick. 2: Superchargers are generally easier to install and offer more low end than a turbo. The new gm motors rev waaaaay high, but don't make a lot of low end power so the supercharger works better with the motor. 3: GM does still make manual trannys, just not on everything.