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Sales Of H-Pattern Manuals Almost Double In US, Still Popular In Australia

Sales of vehicles equipped with H-pattern manual transmissions represent seven percent of the US market this year, according to a new report. Auto news site Edmunds.com reported the numbers this week, marking a rise from the 2011 figure of 3.9 perc


Sales of vehicles equipped with H-pattern manual transmissions represent seven percent of the US market this year, according to a new report.

Auto news site Edmunds.com reported the numbers this week, marking a rise from the 2011 figure of 3.9 percent - contradicting thoughts that the traditional manual's popularity is on a steady decline.

Greatly improved efficiency and refinement of automatic and dual-clutch transmissions has pushed a shift in buyer preferences, leading to an expectation that the H-pattern will eventually disappear altogether.

However, the report suggests that there are other factors at play in this minor reversal of preferences.

"A combination of factors - from the growing age of vehicle trade-ins bringing more manual drivers back to market, to a greater proportion of smaller cars on the road - is creating a small spike for stick shifts," Edmunds industry analyst Ivan Drury said.

He added that while manual cars are on the rise now, "they're on track to be virtually extinct in the next 15 to 20 years."

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