These Are the Last Ferrari Models With a Manual Transmission

This iconic H-pattern shifter was always appreciated in Ferraris because it felt really precise and many drivers agreed that it made the cars even more engaging and enjoyable to drive. However, as automated transmissions got faster and better, buyers began to prefer those over the traditional manual, so much so that Ferrari stopped making manual cars early this decade.

The automaker kept building cars with a manual gearbox right up until 2012, although by that time, most of the vehicles it was selling had quick-shifting automated transmissions (which, by this point, had become really good and they made cars even faster). These last manual Ferraris are ridiculously rare and sought after and this rarity makes them fetch a higher price than the more common cars with paddle shifters.

One of the last Ferraris ever with a manual six-speed transmission was the 612 Scaglietti, the firm’s 2+2 coupe grand tourer built between 2004 and 2011. It’s powered by a naturally aspirated 5.7-liter V12 engine with 533 horsepower at 7,250 rpm and a peak torque rating of 588 Nm (434 pound-feet) at 5,250 rpm.

Most 612s were equipped with the F1-styled automated manual transmission (an improved version of the transmission used in the mid-engined 360). Ferrari made a total of 3,025 612s of which only 199 came with the manual, and of those 199, only 60 reached U.S. shores.

The Ferrari F430, made between 2005 and 2009 is another of the last Prancing Horses with a manual box. It’s the last V8-powered Ferrari that could be had with a stick shift in any kind of significant numbers - of the few thousand F430s made, only a few dozen each year were specced with the manual.

Swapping cogs yourself is a real treat in an F430, especially since its 4.3-liter V8 with 483 horsepower at 8,500 rpm and 465 Nm (343 pound-feet) of torque, really makes a great noise. It’s also worth noting that manual-equipped F430s are probably the most common and attainable of the last stick shift Ferraris - their price has not skyrocketed like that of other modern manual Ferrari models.

Ferrari also fitted a handful of examples of its 2006 - 2012 front-engined 599 GTB Fiorano model with a six-speed stick shift. It is the fastest and most powerful road-going stick shift Ferrari ever, yet at the same time it was also the model that spelled the end of the manual transmission for the brand.

Its 6-liter V12 makes 612 horsepower at 7,600 rpm and 608 Nm (448 pound-feet) at 5,600 rpm - this means it’s power output is more than 100 horsepower per liter, an impressive accomplishment for a non-turbo engine. This colossal power output made it properly fast and harder to drive fast than the car it replaced, which is probably why most were specced with the automated transmission - only 30 were ever manufactured with a manual and nowadays they’re ridiculously rare and expensive.

While it is widely acknowledged that the 599 GTB was the last Ferrari with a stick and H-gate, this isn’t actually true. The very last factory Ferrari manual is actually the 2008 - 2014 Ferrari California, the company’s first front-engined V8 made even more interesting by the fact that it had a folding hardtop.

Its power plant was pretty much the same as the in the F430, a non-turbo 4.3-liter detuned to make 453 horsepower at 7,750 rpm and 485 Nm (358 pound-feet) at 5,000 rpm. Most examples were sold with Ferrari’s new seven-speed twin-clutch transmission, except for two cars (yes, two). This is perhaps why when one came up for sale, it ended up selling for nearly three times the price of a good used example with the dual-clutch.