Higher resale for manual sportscars

If part of what makes up strong resale value is exclusivity, then the manual transmission should become only more sought after in the coming years and decades. Some believe that buying a third pedal would make for an unwanted loner come sell-time, but read on…

In 2016, the BMW M2 launched in $90K Pure manual or $100k seven-speed dual-clutch auto form, but in the two years since that $10K surcharge has dissipated. The cheapest manual currently advertised is $68K with 33,000km, while the cheapest auto is $72K with 25,000km.

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These aren’t outliers, either. The top 5 most attainable M2 manuals are all sub-$80K. The equivalent-kilometres M2 autos, some 10 of them, all fall under $78K in the classifieds.

It’s a similar story for the BMW M4, with a 2014 manual coupe presented with 53,000km for $85K – while a duo of 58,000km-to-65,000km autos all lob for under $79K. Go back to the previous-generation BMW M3 sedan from 2008, and good luck finding a manual for less than $50K, despite a plethora of autos cropping up from under $40K. Exclusivity is key…

Porsche is another lingering bastion of the DIY-shifter, and those who purchased a 981-generation Boxster manual in 2013 could now reap the rewards. A duo of the five-year old roadsters with between 25,000km and 42,500km are advertised from $82K to $105K.

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Two equivalent ‘PDK’ dual-clutch autos each with 46,000km are selling from $74K, while a duo with 8800km and 37,700km are each online for $80K, with the former being least optioned.

But you don’t have to spend big bucks for manual resale to hold up at least evenly. In the case of the ND-generation Mazda MX-5, three-year-old 1.5-litre manuals are selling with between 25,000km and 50,000km showing, for between $22K and $25K.

Pick that same baby engine mated in the rear-wheel drive roadster with an automatic, however, and from 33,000km to 66,000km showing the equivalent asking prices range from $20K to $22K.

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Indeed, according to resale value guide Redbook, and in each case comparing equivalent manual versus auto retained values, a Boxster’s $5000 surcharge for the auto transmission when new now retains $3000.

Meanwhile, an M2’s circa-$10K impost now holds half that, a decade-old M3’s $7300 premium for the then-fancy dual-clutch is reduced to $1000 in the used market now, and the $2000 charge for an MX-5 auto has halved on the classifieds.

In the case of a 2015 Holden Commodore SS V Redline, the $53,990 manual now retains up to $33,800 on the trade-in market, whereas the $56,190 auto is now Redbook-rated at $33,500 – or $2500 in the pocket of someone who has used three pedals for as many years.

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That sounds like good-value manual labour to us.