[WilliCO]

The reality is that the manual transmission these days is kind of a lifestyle choice. People want it because of the experience it adds to driving the car. I get that, and I have enjoyed driving the MT cars I have owned.

Having said that, the current batch of automatics simply perform better. You give up no speed advantage with them, shifts are made much faster than any mortal can make with an MT, and the torque converters interfere imperceptibly with the transfer of power from crank to wheel. Or not at all, with the dual clutch manual-automatics. And, well, you don't have to shift yourself.

Here's what I might say - if I were to buy a BMW or a Porsche with the intent of pushing it down the road for 150,000 miles, I might still prefer a clutch simply to avoid the expense of maintaining such an advanced automatic transmission once it begins to age. But, on the other hand, in a lease I can't imagine the business case for a manual to be strong enough to compel me.

But that is just me.