The manual transmission is back — but only for the supercar

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – As I strolled the big car shows and visited the various brand villas during Monterey Car Week in mid-August, trends converged.

But one notable subtrend emerged among the newer, more exotic cars: the return of the manual transmission.

At the very top of the market, manual transmission has become the height of fashion, as a cluster of seven-figure sports cars debuted with three pedals at the Quail event and the Pebble Beach Concept Lawn — a field meant for showcasing modern cars. My talks with various CEOs during the week highlighted why the trend may be here to stay (though it may not trickle down for the rest of us).

Rowing your own gears is back from extinction

In the US, the stick shift now accounts for barely 1% of new cars sold. Most mass-market brands have dropped it entirely, and a generation of drivers doesn't know what a clutch pedal is. Some brands with sporty options, like Ford ( F ) with the Mustang, Mazda and its Miata, and Honda ( HMC ) with the Civic Type-R, are still offering a stick shift, but those numbers are falling too.

On the commuter car — or the "daily" — the manual is all but extinct, especially if you drive electric.

But an interesting thing happened a few weeks before the show. Ferrari ( RACE ) announced the (sort-of) return of a manual transmission.

The Italian brand announced a shift-by-wire system for its 12Cilindri that essentially ports on a manual transmission over a dual-clutch transmission that Ferrari currently uses, along with a clutch pedal. The car, called the 12Cilindri Manuale, mimics all the feel and action of a manual without really being one. And Ferrari fans are excited.

On the heels of Ferrari's move, British rival McLaren revealed the MCL 6GT concept at its brand house near Pebble Beach, fitted with what the company pointedly calls an "authentic manual," its first since the legendary F1 of 1992.

Over at the Quail event , Texas-based Hennessey unveiled the Blackbird, a naturally aspirated, screen-free "touring hypercar" with a six-speed gated manual, priced from $2.5 million and limited to 71 cars. It reportedly sold out within hours.

On the same lawn, Gordon Murray Special Vehicles pulled the covers off the S1, a 690-PS, Cosworth-V12, six-speed manual supercar limited to 64 examples.

Koenigsegg, the Swedish supercar maker that already offered a manual in some of its multimillion-dollar models, also chose Monterey to unveil the CCGT1, a 1,280-horsepower Megacar, limited to 70 cars, all presold, that can be optioned with a gated six-speed manual.