Automatic transmissions now account for the majority of new car sales in the United States, Europe, and much of East Asia, yet several major vehicle markets around the world still sell more stick-shift manuals than anything else. The reasons are not purely economic. Cost matters, but so do driving culture, road conditions, and the pace at which automakers introduce affordable automatic options in price-sensitive segments. Here is a closer look at five countries where the manual gearbox continues to hold its ground, even as global momentum shifts in the other direction.
India: Manuals Still Command Over 70% of Sales
India is the clearest example of a large vehicle market where the three-pedal setup remains the default choice for most buyers. According to estimates from CRISIL, the credit rating and research agency, manual transmissions accounted for roughly 71-73% of new passenger vehicle sales in the fiscal year ending March 2023. That figure has come down from about 90% just five years earlier, when automatics held only 8-10% of the market in FY2018. The shift is real, but it has not yet changed the fundamental character of Indian roads, where manual hatchbacks and compact sedans remain the volume sellers and dominate the country’s congested city traffic.
Several forces keep manuals dominant. Entry-level cars like the Maruti Suzuki Alto and Hyundai i10 Nios are priced for buyers who treat every lakh of rupees as a serious decision, and even a modest premium for an automatic can push a vehicle out of reach. Automated manual transmissions and torque converters add cost that many first-time owners are unwilling to absorb, especially when fuel prices and insurance already strain household budgets. CRISIL expects the automatic share to climb to 40-45% by fiscal 2028, which would still leave manuals with a majority or near-majority position. The cultural dimension matters, too: Indian driving schools overwhelmingly teach on manual cars, and the country’s licensing system has historically tested clutch control. Until that institutional framework shifts and automatics become standard in training fleets, the stick shift will likely remain the entry point for tens of millions of new drivers each year.
Brazil: Budget Segments Keep the Clutch Alive
Brazil is one of the largest auto markets in the Western Hemisphere, and its sales mix still tilts heavily toward manual transmissions in the most popular vehicle categories. ANFAVEA, the national automakers association, publishes monthly and annual sales data that break volumes into passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, trucks, and buses. The 2023 sales snapshot for Brazil confirms that passenger cars and light commercials dominate total volume, and these are precisely the segments where manual gearboxes remain most common. In crowded urban centers such as São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, compact hatchbacks and subcompact sedans with five-speed manuals still form the backbone of everyday commuting.
The economic logic is straightforward. Brazil’s consumer financing environment features relatively high interest rates, which compresses the price ceiling for mainstream vehicles and magnifies even small differences in sticker price over the life of a loan. Models like the Fiat Mobi, Chevrolet Onix, and Volkswagen Gol sell in huge numbers with manual transmissions as standard, and upgrading to an automatic often requires moving to a higher trim with additional features that buyers may not prioritize. Flex-fuel engines, which run on ethanol or gasoline, add another layer of complexity that manufacturers have historically optimized around simpler drivetrain configurations. The result is a market where stick shifts persist not because buyers reject modern technology, but because the economics of car ownership steer them toward the most affordable option, particularly for first-time buyers and fleet operators.
South Africa Nears a Tipping Point
South Africa offers a fascinating contrast to India and Brazil because it is actively crossing the line from manual-majority to automatic-majority. Using Lightstone Auto figures, industry analysts found that manuals dipped below half of new light-vehicle sales for the first time during the 2023 year-to-date period through the end of September. That represents a dramatic decline from 2013, when manuals held 77% of the market and automatics were largely confined to premium sedans, bakkies with high-spec trims, and imported SUVs. The new data suggests that South African buyers are increasingly willing to pay extra for convenience, especially in congested metropolitan areas like Johannesburg and Cape Town.
What makes South Africa instructive is the speed of the transition. A decade ago, three out of every four new vehicles sold in the country had a clutch pedal; now, automatics are edging ahead as standard equipment in many crossovers and family cars. The shift has been driven by a combination of rising household incomes in certain segments, broader availability of dual-clutch and CVT options in mid-range vehicles, and the growing influence of SUVs and crossovers that buyers increasingly expect to come with automatic gearboxes. Still, the budget end of the market tells a different story. Affordable models from Toyota, Suzuki, and Renault continue to sell strongly with manual transmissions, particularly in rural areas where simpler drivetrains are easier and cheaper to maintain and where fuel quality can vary. South Africa may have crossed the 50% threshold, but manuals are far from disappearing in the segments where price sensitivity and repairability remain paramount.
Mexico and Indonesia: Terrain and Cost Reinforce Manual Habits
Mexico and Indonesia round out this list as two large markets where manual transmissions retain significant share, though neither country publishes transmission-specific sales breakdowns with the same granularity as India or South Africa. In Mexico, the best-selling vehicles include the Nissan Versa, Chevrolet Aveo, and Volkswagen Vento, all of which offer manual variants as their base configuration and are heavily marketed on value. The country’s proximity to the United States creates an interesting dynamic: Mexican consumers are well aware of the automatic-dominated market next door, and cross-border used-car imports expose buyers to a wide range of automatic vehicles. Yet domestic pricing structures and wage levels keep the manual option attractive for a large share of buyers who prioritize low monthly payments over convenience.
Indonesia presents a slightly different picture shaped by geography and usage patterns. The archipelago’s varied terrain, from dense urban centers like Jakarta to mountainous rural roads in Sumatra and Sulawesi, creates conditions where many drivers prefer the direct control a manual gearbox provides, especially when climbing steep grades or navigating heavy traffic with frequent stops. Small trucks and multipurpose vehicles, which serve as both family transport and commercial workhorses, are frequently sold with manual transmissions to keep purchase prices low and maintenance straightforward. Automakers like Toyota, Daihatsu, and Mitsubishi have long calibrated their Indonesian lineups to reflect this preference, offering automatics primarily on higher-spec trims aimed at urban middle-class buyers. While automatic take-rates are climbing in both countries, particularly in major cities, the installed base of manual vehicles and the cost of servicing automatic transmissions in less developed regions act as a brake on the speed of transition.
Why the Manual Gearbox Is Not Going Away Soon
Across these markets, a common pattern emerges: manuals remain strong where affordability, durability, and driver training all lean in their favor. In India and Brazil, entry-level buyers face tight budget constraints and often purchase their first car with the intention of keeping it for many years, making the lower upfront cost and perceived mechanical simplicity of a manual especially attractive. In South Africa, Mexico, and Indonesia, rural and semi-urban regions still reward the perceived robustness and controllability of a clutch-and-stick setup, particularly for vehicles that double as work tools. Even as automatics improve in reliability and fuel efficiency, they carry a cost premium that is harder to justify in countries where per-capita incomes lag those of North America and Western Europe.
There is also a structural lag built into the system. Driving schools, licensing tests, and used-car markets are all anchored in the era when manuals were overwhelmingly dominant. A student who learns on a manual, earns a license that covers both transmission types, and then buys a used manual car reinforces the cycle for another decade. Fleet operators and small businesses, meanwhile, continue to buy manual-equipped vehicles because they are cheaper to purchase in bulk and easier to repair at independent workshops. As automatics filter down into more affordable segments, their share will continue to rise, but the examples of India, Brazil, South Africa, Mexico, and Indonesia suggest that the manual gearbox will not vanish overnight. Instead, it is likely to persist as a strong presence in budget-conscious and mixed-use segments, even as wealthier urban buyers shift decisively toward two-pedal driving.
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*This article was researched with the help of AI, with human editors creating the final content.
