If you want a new car with a manual gearbox, your slate of options is about to get smaller. A few short years after discontinuing the stick-shift option in the Golf GTI and Golf R, Volkswagen has officially announced that, come the 2027 model year, the Jetta GLI will be going dual-clutch automatic-only. Naturally, the marque’s put out an official statement, and here it is:
As drivers and car enthusiasts, we appreciate manuals too! That’s why our region worked very hard to keep them around—we know it matters to a small but passionate group of drivers who love being fully engaged and rowing their own gears. Even so, global demand continued to narrow to a point where the market can no longer sustain it. As much as it hurts, that reality meant making some tough choices.
Am I mad at Volkswagen? No. As Motor 1 reported, the take rate for the manual gearbox in the Jetta GLI last year stood at 44.9 percent, but with just 54,291 Jettas sold in America last year and a small fraction of those being GLI models, keeping an entire low-volume powertrain configuration alive for essentially just the North American market isn’t something you can do forever – especially now that the Jetta’s getting old and likely due for a replacement. Truthfully, I know enthusiasts within Volkswagen’s North American rank and file have indeed made the case for the manual gearbox as long as they could. At some point, it couldn’t go on any longer.
Just like how I can’t place the entire blame on Volkswagen, I also can’t place the entire blame on enthusiasts. Not only do the numbers above show that a remarkable ratio of people were voting with their wallets and rowing their own gears, but it’s also not like the Jetta GLI was the obvious default answer in the sub-$40,000 sporty car segment. It promises reasonable pace with refinement and bandwidth, but that’s not what everyone’s looking for. Some people wanted a sport compact car locked in a permanent kegstand, and they bought Hyundai Elantra Ns. Some people wanted an outstanding shifter, and they bought Honda Civic Si sedans. Some people wanted rear-wheel-drive balance, so they bought Toyota GR86s and Subaru BRZs. Some people wanted to let the sun in, so they bought Mazda MX-5s.
Instead, I suspect the prime suspect in the death of the six-speed manual Jetta GLI is simply the world we live in. Automatics may be faster on a closed course, more efficient, and have some big advantages in drive-by noise testing, but they’re also incredibly convenient. Especially in the real world. Think morning soup rush hour, or bumper-to-bumper gridlock after a long day at the office. Think the slow arrival of noise cameras that generally dissuade a cheeky heel-toe downshift. Think impatient drivers hustling from light to light, relegating you to the right lane until your gearbox oil warms up enough for your mechanical sympathy. Unless you’re a ride or die, why not go for the automatic? In a daily driver, there’s little reason not to, and that’s bad news for everyone.
The truth is, it’s just tricky to have fun in a performance car in many locales at many times of the day now. It’s not because laws have changed or even really because speed limits are lower; it’s because simply going anywhere at a reasonable pace is more difficult than ever. In most cities, rush hour is no longer an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening. The congestion is simply relentless, and perhaps the slow dwindling of manual gearbox demand is a bellwether of sorts. Even getting out to the countryside or the mountains can take actual ages. Fun is now a bit of a luxury, so it’s not surprising that many people don’t have money or time for it in a daily driver.
Anyway, the timing of this is all rather intriguing because I’ll actually have a six-speed Volkswagen Jetta GLI on test in a few weeks. Is it still a good way of spending $35,000 on a car? We’ll find out soon enough. For now, there are two lessons: This is your last chance to buy a stick-shift Volkswagen in Canada and the United States, and the manual gearbox as a whole won’t be around in affordable performance cars forever.
Top graphic image: Volkswagen
This is a major enthusiast tragedy, though it’s not unexpected. I traded my ’19 Mk7 GLI of 6 years on a ’25 Mk7 GLI just because I wanted one last chance to buy a new manual GLI. And also the facelift looks so much better. But still, I’m sad. I still own an ’03 manual GLI (VR6!) that I’ve owned since 2006, and I owned a ’14 manual GLI for 5 years. I also once owned an ’01 manual 2.slow. I have a long history of owning manual Jettas, and I’m quite sad that the end of the road is here despite spotting blood in the water in 2024. In my personal bubble, this just means a shift if how I upgrade cars. This ’25 GLI will be around for the long haul, like my ’03. Rather than trading it in in 5-6 years, I’ll keep it and continue to save. One day, it’ll be joined by a DSG GLI, but it’ll never be replaced.
But I have to remind myself… I learned to love VWs NOT in a manual, but in an automatic. In high school, my first car was an ’89 Wolfsburg Jetta automatic that my dad bought from his friend. When an Accent rear-ended me 6 months later, it was replaced by a ’91 Jetta GL automatic. And that car taught me about good handling, good steering feedback, good braking feedback, and a good seating position. The brand built me into an enthusiast with an automatic Jetta, and I’m sure the same will continue with future drivers. I’d give anything for the manual to stay, and maybe it’ll come back one day, but for now, all is not lost. These are still fun cars… just look at the comments of new Jetta automatic owners in social media groups.
At least the GLI, GTI, and R live on. At least the Golf and Jetta live on… The Focus, Cobalt/Cruze, Neon, Lancer, Eclipse, Grand Am, etc… so many of their contemporaries are gone. That VW spokespeople have publicly committed to keeping them around is a win in and of itself. I’ll take it, even if I have to shed a tear for the manual at the same time.
I still can’t believe the Golf isn’t stick, that should be illegal…and so should this. I think this is the last VW w/ stick; at least in the U.S. VW is totally dead to me anyway, plus it’s a new car (never)
I loved my 84 Jetta, it was such a blast to drive w/ stick! I bought the car to learn manual. Also had a Rabbit GTI back then. Actually, the only new VW I would want is a GAS VW Bus (Buzz) I want to rip out all the EV junk and sell it, then totally redo the drivetrain to gas (that thing got a HEMI?) Ha ha, hell yeah! Anything but EV…probably some kind of tribute to the iconic hippie bus…maybe an awesome Porsche (parsh!) engine…and rebadge to Bus, not Buzz…ha ha
Like a pizza-cutter.
This is sad, but not surprising.
Before the days of hybrids, plug-in hybrids and BEVs, a small manual transmission car if you wanted fun and efficiency.
Manuals still offer fun, but for an efficient daily commute, you’re better off with the hybrid/PHEV/BEV.
And I say this as part of the problem behind manuals dying off.
With my last vehicle purchase (A C-Max Energi), it was my first “automatic” car… which also uses 40-50% less fuel for my daily commute compared to the manual Honda Fit it replaced.
I’d love to have a manual again. But with the high fuel prices and with my daughter learning to drive, having a significantly more efficient vehicle that is ALSO easier to drive is more of a priority.
And it’s likely I’ll be in the market for a 2nd vehicle in a year or two. And though I’ve toyed with the idea of getting a Miata, BRZ or a manual Kei car, most likely I’ll get another PHEV or a BEV.
I like the efficiency more. I also like the idea of keeping my carbon footprint down. And I also like giving the middle finger to the Republican-supporting oil industry.
Very Very sad, unless I am mistaken this is (was?) the last affordable European car with a stick (available in the states). This compared to a time when European cars were synonymous with manual transmissions. I’m glad I got my GLI with 6S in ’25 when VW was offering discounts.
The death of manuals is a self fulfilling prophecy sort of the flip side of the rise of the SUV.
the anti-cuv.
The truth is, it’s just tricky to have fun in a performance car in many locales at many times of the day now. It’s not because laws have changed or even really because speed limits are lower; it’s because simply going anywhere at a reasonable pace is more difficult than ever. In most cities, rush hour is no longer an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening. The congestion is simply relentless, and perhaps the slow dwindling of manual gearbox demand is a bellwether of sorts. Even getting out to the countryside or the mountains can take actual ages. Fun is now a bit of a luxury, so it’s not surprising that many people don’t have money or time for it in a daily driver.
Such an astute observation and comment on the state of our culture now, Thomas.
Not specifically about manual transmissions, or economics, or politics, or anything else, but all of that combined and distilled to basically say that most everywhere people live and work is miserably congested most of the time now, and the worst statement of all is that “fun is a luxury now”.
How true and how fucking sad! What in the actual fuck are we doing here people?
Just in my lifetime, I’ve heard that high-technology, trickle-down economics, the end of the Cold War, the countless wars and skirmishes we’ve had since then, and from the endless stream of politicians, business leaders, innovators, influencers, and talking heads that “all of our lives will be better in the future” if we only fill in the blank with any of the above.
Has any of that truly “set us free” yet? Are we really any better off than we were 30, 40, 50 years ago? Sure, some things are, but overall? And what does the future, if we keep on going on the way we have look like?
Rant over, I’m going to yell at some clouds now…
So does this make my ’24 MT GLI a collector piece?
Guess I’ll be holding on to this for a while, unless i decide to replace it with the new Infiniti/Skyline thing in a few years.
Related: my custom Sportshifters knob arrives today after a 3+ month production timeline. Cant wait to get that installed.
A shame. I drive a 2017 GLI with 6 speed and I love it. It’s getting a bit long in the tooth and it seems like my next car with be my last manual since I’ll likely go BEV after that.
I get why it stinks but VW 6 speeds have been ass for a long time. They feel cheap and the gearing is way too long.
Love a manual. Until I’m in traffic, bumping along a 0 to 15 mph. The result is too much effort for literally no reward. Having said that I’m actively looking for a manual Fiat Abarth because I don’t actually have to commute.
Its like VW doesn’t grasp the concept that they sell double the cars when they offer manuals
VW doesn’t grasp anything these days, they seem think that their brand identity is based on the “premium” interiors in their “reliable” crossovers rather than entirely hanging off the tip of the GTI’s rapidly-shriveling… shifter.
I haven’t known anyone in the First World who has so much as looked at any kind of Volkswagen post-Dieselgate without rationalizing that it’s “like a GTI” in some way. I’ve never met anyone who WANTED a Tiguan, Taos or Atlas. As a big fan of VWs, I just can’t find a VW made during this decade that I can recommend to anyone at all.
It’s not double the cars. It’s 44.9% of a single trim level, which is likely a small fraction of total sales (54,291). If you figure GLI trim is a full 25% of sales (it likely isn’t anywhere close), that’s 54291 x 0.25 x 0.449 = 6,094 cars.
Running current dealer stock mix to estimate GLI sales numbers using AI, suggests the mix is closer to 12.9%. That would equate to a paltry 3145 cars/year with a manual. That’s 5.8% of all Jetta sales. Most automakers kill a transmission option when it drops below 15% take rate overall. They also tend to convert over half of previous manual buyers to an auto in the process.
Perhaps a little unexpected for us, but I mourn this loss more than the GTI’s. The GTI is the performance model, so it’s not crazy that in the name of its goal it would go auto only; but a Jetta has always supposed to have been primarily about an accessible European driving experience for us Americans. A manual is very much in keeping with that, and it’s sad that that experience is being diminished now.
The manual is quickly dying in Europe as well. Down to less than 30% of vehicles sold.
The GTI still seems like more of a blow for losing the manual, but thought it might hold on on the GLI of only just for the sake of having a manual still in the lineup.
There’s a lot to love about the GLI, I just have a hard time wrapping my head around $35,000+ for a Jetta
Oof. Obviously this one isn’t as sad as the loss of the GTI, but obviously the choices are getting pretty limited.
I haven’t had a manual car for some time now but it’s going to be sad when I inevitably want to get my hands on one and they’re all gone. Which is you know, probably my fault and the fault of many others like me.
As for the GLI itself, I don’t get the hate. Yeah it’s not as exciting as some of the other dwindling options, but I actually think it strikes a nice balance, a warm sedan if you will. And if you care about the backseat more than seats down cargo capacity, it makes sense. It’s also significantly cheaper.
Yeah, the impending doom spiral of the manual. Not a lot of options left, so hard to find good cheap examples for kids to learn to drive manual. And if they don’t learn, then they don’t buy manuals.
Will teach my kid to drive manual in our miata, which is arguably way cooler than the Ford Topaz sedan I learned to drive manual in.
Hey! Gonna get you too
Another one bites the dust…..
I feel obligated to point out that Steve would be very wary of this development.
Dear VW:
You’re blowing it.
VW = Fun + Simple. That’s the foundation of your brand in the Americas. Grab all that’s left before nobody remembers.
Sincerely,
A guy who used to love Volkswagens.
VW can get bent.
The Jetta could never carry the flag for a manual as it’s not a true global car like the Golf. It’s also never going to compete against the Civic and Corolla as yet another “me too” car.
The unforgivable crime here was getting rid of the 6MT Golf R & GTI.
The Jetta was and is absolutely a global car Mk1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 were all sold in Europe. The ONLY reason the Mk7 Jetta wasn’t sold globally (in Europe) was because Europe has turned its back on sedans, period (notice the Passat sedan was also killed in Europe around the same time). So you can get bent ???? also, the Jetta is still huge globally if you think outside of tiny Europe. The Mk8 Jetta has been on sale in China and the Middle East, where it’s such a massive success that VW spun off the Jetta name as an entire brand by itself. It would be like Honda starting a whole brand called Civic. So again, just because Europe doesn’t like sedans anymore, that doesn’t mean the Jetta is somehow lesser.
To be fair, for the first 20 or so years of US sales, Volkswagen sold nothing but manual transmission cars.
That was the last, and for a couple years only, reason to choose a Jetta GLI over a Golf GTI.
Yet another loss where I would be unable to teach my children how to count via gear changes. Here we go kids!
Schwon
Too
Two an haif
Scheven
Schfourteen-teen
Schwenty-one
Schwenty-seven heif
Twenty seven
Thirty seven
Shiggity schwawth?
Schifty-five
Ah, a fellow man of early 200’s internet culture!
Imagine how primitive the internet was in the early 200s. Back then it was probably literally a series of tubes.
Smoke signals.
Hey that’s my girlfriend’s age and my IQ!
lol oh VW. How bad you want to be something so not cool.
I think it’s time to get a 6-speed pattern tattoo.
P.S. had you ever noticed the hand model holding the sign for Autopian Asks had one?
Hardcore types would get a 5 speed. Just saying.
Pour out a quart of transmission fluid for my old, first car Protege. And pour out a clutch if ya got one handy, if you would.
Both of my now-old daily Fords have ’em. Sigh.
My ’01 Jetta TDI had a 5M. I might still have it if it had had a 6M. It really needed one more cog in Texas.
I’ve thought about this for years, but could never decide whether to get the 5-speed (which I learned on as a teen) or the 6-speed (which my beloved GTI had).
Once again, VW is determined to kill off anything even remotely interesting in the US. Apparently the manual accounted for nearly 50% of GTI sales in the US before they killed it. And yes I know, there were emissions reasons in Europe. But VW seems perfectly happy to sell us loads of generic looking, North America only SUVs that all look the same. Why not throw a little bone to your enthusiasts over here? The competition still offers manuals, so I have a hard time believing VW couldn’t find a way to make it work.
And it’s that absolute indifference towards people who once liked their products for being unique that pisses me off the most. I can’t think of a single reason why anyone should buy a VW over another brand, other than price/deals from a local dealership. VW is a brand without identity over here.
50% of GTI sales is a few thousand vehicles – which means making and certifying another powertrain is very expensive.
VW is on life support in the US as it is, so who cares. A Civic Si or Elantra N will fulfill the same purpose while being more reliable and cheaper to maintain.
I could never understand VW’s plan to have the Jetta without the Golf. The Civic and Elantra do everything the Jetta does but better. The Golf didn’t have a direct peer.
I think it’s because the GLI was made in Mexico and potentially not offered outside of N.A., while the GTI and R were global models built in Europe.
NA market Golf, GTI and SportWagen (MK7 at least) were made in Puebla, and were discontinued to free up line space for the Taos.
Volkswagen’s descent into irrelevance continues apace.
this is the way