Is the Lack of Manual Hurting MINI Sales?

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In Q2?2025, MINI USA posted an impressive 29.1% year-over-year sales increase, thanks largely to stronger momentum from the new Cooper and Countryman models. YTD sales have climbed 19% compared with the same period in 2024.

But zoom in a little closer, and the 2-door Cooper—the model most associated with the enthusiast?friendly manual gearbox—is the only one reporting slumping sales among the core lineup.

That’s telling. The Cooper used to be MINI’s bread?and?butter in models with a stick shift, and enthusiasts drove U.S. take?rates on manuals for performance trims above 40–50%—especially in JCW models. Yet as MINI phases out manuals, Cooper sales are softening even as the brand overall recovers.

The Manual Factor: A Disappearing USP

Manufacturers globally are abandoning manual transmissions—an unfortunate but understandable consequence of tightening emissions regulations and shrinking consumer demand. Add to that the enormous financial burden of investing in electrification, and it becomes clear why automakers are streamlining options and even entire model lines. With manual take rates dwindling worldwide, it’s no surprise that this once-common feature is rapidly disappearing.

Still, there remains a passionate enthusiast base that deeply values the manual driving experience—and MINI has heard that feedback. As recently as last November, former MINI USA Product Head Pat McKenna confirmed that MINI USA was actively petitioning the global team to bring manuals back in select models. Yet as time passes and updates remain elusive, that prospect is beginning to look more like a long shot.

The result? MINI’s core enthusiast offering is now an automatic-only proposition—undermining one of the brand’s key differentiators in the U.S. market. A strong manual carve-out among small hatchbacks, once a proud hallmark of the MINI lineup, is now gone.

The last F56 MINI Cooper JCW press car we drove – with a manual

Our Take

Yes—the absence of a manual transmission is likely denting Cooper sales in the U.S. While MINI overall is back on the upswing with new models and stronger growth, the Cooper’s decline suggests that eliminating the stick shift has stripped away one of its most meaningful differentiators. Yet we’re not sure that an 8% dip is enough to bring it back.

But to us the return of the manual wouldn’t be about sales alone. It would be a halo product intended as much of a brand play as a sales tactic. If MINI wants to preserve the Cooper’s appeal among its core followers, restoring at least one manual?equipped variant might be a smart move. Otherwise, the brand risks turning its iconic hatch into something a little less unique and a lot less fun.

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