There was a time, not that long ago, when the automotive industry tried to convince us that the future of performance was the motorsports-inspired dual-clutch transmission. But now, BMW‘s M division has rung the first death knell for the semi-automated transmission.
“The double clutch, from BMW M’s point of view these days, it’s gone,” Dirk Hacker, the head of development for BMW M told Top Gear. “It’s now manual or automatic, and automatic electrified for the future.”
While the move was, perhaps, predictable since no BMW M cars are currently equipped with a twin-clutch transmission, this is the first time a policy has been made public by the high-performance sub-brand. The decision was actually reached back when the last M5 was being developed.
Read: It’s Been 20 Years Since VW’s Dual-Clutch DSG Made It Okay To Like “Automatics”
“Around the M5 there was a big discussion, not only for the automatic transmission, but also for other things,” said Hacker. “And the decision was not only because of cost, but also because of comfort, because we got a lot of reactions about maneuvering, parking, no rolling if you leave the pedal and so on.”
While it is certainly the case that an automatic transmission is smoother at low speeds than a twin-clutch, some remember the latter’s precision and crispness at higher speeds fondly. But Hacker claims that the new auto is actually faster at high speeds than a DCT. He claims that the transmission shifts faster in the new M4 CSL, which is why it is also being used in the M4 racecar.
The manual gearbox will be gone after the M2
That means that the transmission’s role in the BMW M lineup is only set to become more central. Although a manual transmission is expected to remain available on the M2 throughout its lifecycle, it will likely die with the G87 M2, around 2030.
“It’s not only a decision of BMW, it’s also a decision of the suppliers,” said Hacker. “If you take a look around, you will see the future for manual gearbox suppliers will decrease. So I’m not sure we will have the possibility in the future—but in the future means six, seven years in forecast.”
Unlike Toyota, BMW isn’t interested in fake manual transmissions for electric vehicles. “I think it could be done, but we will not do that,” said Hacker, meaning that if you don’t like automatic transmissions (or single speed EVs), you’ll soon have to look somewhere other than BMW M.
