Volkswagen bids farewell to manual transmissions in Golf upgrades due to environmental concerns

Automatic transmissions may hold an edge in many respects over their manual counterparts, but they also tend to be pricier, both in terms of purchase and maintenance. Nonetheless, they are slowly, but surely, phasing out traditional manual transmissions, even in the crowd favourites. The Volkswagen Golf is a prime example of this, as following an upgrade, it will only be available with an automatic transmission.

Volkswagen's Head of Development, Kai Grünitz, officially confirmed this surprising news. In an interview conducted by Automotive News Europe, he explained that environmental concerns and the fact that models with an automatic transmission are significantly higher in demand prompted this decision.

Despite the sporty allure of the GTI version, only a minimal 5% of customers opted for a manual transmission. Unfortunately, this is not enough to justify its continuation.

Regrettably, this decision will impact the cost factor as well. It is predicted that the updated Golf will not only be more expensive due to the facelift, but also because the cheaper option of a manual transmission will no longer be available. With the trend of escalating car prices, this move is likely to generate little concern, save for customers.