Mini will not supply a handbook transmission in its redesigned Cooper hatchback, which suggests the transmission is formally useless at a model that till now was considered one of its strongest proponents.

Talking with High Gear at this week’s 2023 Munich auto present, the place Mini confirmed off its new Cooper in electrical guise, model boss Stefanie Wurst confirmed neither the electrical model nor the yet-to-be-revealed fuel model will supply the choice of a handbook.

The brand new Cooper arrives as a 2025 mannequin however precise timing for the beginning of gross sales within the U.S. hasn’t been introduced. A redesigned Countryman has additionally been revealed for the 2025 mannequin 12 months, and a smaller crossover to be known as the Aceman can also be on monitor to reach for the 2025 mannequin 12 months to finish the next-generation Mini lineup.

The loss of life of the handbook at Mini is not an enormous shock because the model in Might rolled out a particular 1to6 Version model of its outgoing hatch as a celebration of the handbook transmission.

A senior government at Mini’s BMW mother or father firm additionally stated in June that each the handbook transmission and dual-clutch automated are on their method out, as standard torque converter-based automatics are higher suited to the EV transition.

Mini earlier this 12 months revealed the outcomes of a survey, which confirmed that just about half (49%) of all Gen Z respondents indicated they did not know drive a handbook. When requested in the event that they had been keen to study, 53% of the Gen Z respondents indicated they had been thinking about studying row their very own gears. That proportion grows when all ages as much as 34 are counted; on this case 67% stated they had been desperate to study.

To cater to people trying to discover ways to drive stick, Mini has been operating a handbook transmission driving course since final fall on the BMW West Coast driving faculty positioned on the Thermal Membership non-public racetrack in California. It is not clear whether or not the course will stick round now that the model is ditching the handbook.