THERE ARE ONLY 2 SUVS LEFT IN AMERICA WITH A MANUAL TRANSMISSION

It's not a big surprise that the manual-transmission SUV is next up on the chopping block for vehicles sending the manual the way of the dodo. The appeal of the manual gearbox largely has to do with driver engagement. The appeal of the sports utility vehicle is mostly down to convenience in the modern automotive landscape. These two qualities are, if not incompatible, at least difficult to counterbalance. Then you add cost concerns into the mix, and it's easy to see why SUV makers would rather avoid spending millions developing a new stick shift and passing the expenses on to the buyer in a segment that frequently competes on price alone.

Over the last few years, we've seen crossovers and SUVs drop the manual, and with recent departures from the segment including the Subaru Crosstrek, there are now only two SUVs that you can get with a stick shift in the US: the Ford Bronco and the Jeep Wrangler.

• 2024 Ford Bronco

  Base MSRP $39,130

  Engine 2.3L Turbo Inline-4 Gas

  Horsepower 275 hp

  Torque 315 lb-ft

  Transmission 7-Speed Manual

  Drivetrain AWD
• 2024 Jeep Wrangler

  Base MSRP $31,995

  Engine 3.6L V6 Gas

  Horsepower 285 hp

  Torque 260 lb-ft

  Transmission 6-Speed Manual

  Drivetrain AWD

2024 Ford Bronco: An Icon Reborn

7-Speed Manual - Limited To 2.3L EcoBoost

Good news if you want to drive a brand-new Ford with a manual transmission: the stick shift comes standard on the 2024 Ford Bronco. Better yet, the manual transmission and the automatic transmission get the same fuel economy in the base model, at 20/21/20 mpg, city/highway/combined. The biggest downside to driving a manual transmission Bronco is that you don't get to pack it with a V6, with sole availability - albeit across most trims - being limited to the 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder. However, not all trims with the 2.3-liter EcoBoost let you equip the manual.

For those that can, it means the seven-speed stick shift option can only be had with 300 horsepower and 325 lb-ft of torque, so you can't combine your dreams of driving a Bronco Raptor with shifting gears yourself. And yes, you read that right. The manual Bronco has seven forward gears, with a dedicated crawler gear to maximize low-speed torque and control wheel speed - perfect for off-roading.

2024 Jeep Wrangler: The OG Off-Roader

6-Speed Manual - Limited To 3.6L V6

The day they retire the manual transmission in the Jeep Wrangler, they might as well retire the Jeep Wrangler altogether. Climbing rocks with the doors off and the stick shift in hand, giving you the feeling of total control over your vehicle, is about as close as most of us will ever get to knowing what life is like for a mountain goat. Wrangler fans are sticklers for tradition, and that's one of the reasons why Jeep has maintained the availability of the stick shift in its iconic off-roader.

Just like the Bronco, the Wrangler comes standard with a manual transmission. This one is a six-speed, and its only limitation (outside of trim availability) is that it can only be paired with the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6. Opting for the 2.0-liter turbo-four, Hemi V8, or the plug-in hybrid 4xe model negates the manual option. The V6 is a 3.6-liter engine delivering 285 hp and 260 lb-ft and averaging 19 mpg combined with the manual in both two- and four-door configurations.

The Wrangler might be a poor choice for a daily commuter - it's one of the thirstiest vehicles in its segment, the rugged suspension lacks refinement on-road, and there's that pesky death wobble - but it's one of the finest fresh-out-the-box off-roaders money can buy. But if you wanted convenience and practicality, you wouldn't be shopping for an adventure vehicle with a manual transmission.

Where Have All The Manual SUVs Gone?

What's killing the manual transmission off in pretty much all segments is a perfect storm of high development costs, low consumer demand, and increasing reliance on technology. Hybrids typically use automatics of some sort and EVs forgo traditional gearboxes in most scenarios, meaning they have no need for a manual transmission. It makes sense that the only two SUVs with a manual on sale are both hardcore off-roaders, as CarBuzz's own off-road expert, Gerhard Horn, explains:

The Manual SUVs We've Lost

For mainstream crossovers, which are seen as practical appliances, automatics just make more sense. However, it wasn't that long ago when we saw several more crossovers and SUVs available with a stick shift; these are the manual SUVs and crossovers we've lost in the last five years:

• 2022 Subaru Crosstrek - A compact crossover SUV, the Subaru Crosstrek has always been right on the blurry line between a small SUV and a big hatchback. The base 2.0-liter engine had only 152 hp and wasn't the most robust, but it had the benefit of being paired with a six-speed manual, meaning you didn't have to deal with an infuriating CVT.
• 2021 Kia Soul - It's easy to forget that the 2021 Kia Soul was available with a six-speed manual gearbox. The problem was that the manual transmission was limited to the entry-level trim, the $17,590 LX. If you wanted, for instance, the generous safety features of the $20,690 S model, you had to give up the stick shift.
• 2020 Hyundai Venue - The manual-transmission 2020 Hyundai Venue was short-lived, offered only in the crossover's first model year. In other markets, manuals were readily available, but here in the US, aside from the base SE, we got stuck with an Intelligent Variable Transmission on upper models, and eventually, all of them. Hyundai dropped the stick shift due to an apparent lack of interest.
• 2020 Mini Countryman - The 2020 Mini Cooper Countryman was much more of a gearhead's car than its quaint exterior and modest 134-hp base three-cylinder engine might have suggested, as the crossover was available with an optional six-speed manual transmission in most trim levels that could also be paired with AWD; the exception to the rule was the plug-in hybrid Cooper S E ALL4, which was exclusively available with a six-speed automatic.
• 2019 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport - Yet another crossover that only gave you a manual on the base trim, the 2019 Outlander Sport paired an old-school five-speed manual with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder on the ES trim. You could have it with either FWD or AWD, though.
• 2019 Jeep Compass - Unlike some of the manual crossovers we've lost in recent years, the 2019 Compass could only pair the transmission with FWD, which wasn't a great loss as this was never a truly off-roadable Jeep to begin with.
• 2018 Fiat 500X - The base 2018 Fiat 500X was the charmingly-named Pop model, configured in front-wheel drive with a 160-hp 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine paired to a six-speed manual transmission for $19,995. Unfortunately, Fiat 500X sales were dwindling in the US around this time, so it was no surprise when the 2019 edition would launch without a manual gearbox option as Fiat consolidated its lineup.

Sources: Ford, Jeep

2024-07-28T23:36:05Z