It’s no secret that the manual gearbox is under siege in the age of automation, but Pagani has delivered a striking rebuttal with the Utopia. And here’s the kicker—over 70 percent of Utopias sold are equipped with a manual transmission. Yes, you read that right. While the rest of the industry embraces the ease of dual-clutch automatics, Pagani is proving that the art of shifting isn’t just alive—it’s thriving in the world of high-dollar exotics.

The Utopia, Pagani’s latest masterpiece, offers something the Huayra never did—a seven-speed gated manual transmission. And guess what? It’s the hottest option on the order sheet, far outpacing the demand for the single-clutch automated gearbox. “At the moment, over 70 percent of clients have opted for the manual gearbox," Pagani’s commercial director, Hannes Zanon, revealed during the Utopia Roadster's debut in Monterey.

This surge in demand shouldn’t come as a shock. The manual gearbox has seen a renaissance among top-tier performance cars, especially from niche manufacturers who cater to those who crave the tactile engagement that only a manual can provide. It’s a dramatic shift from a decade ago when it seemed everything north of a Mazda MX-5 was saddled with an automatic.

But don’t think Pagani’s manual gearbox was a simple bolt-on option. The engineering challenge was immense, especially when you consider the Utopia’s monstrous 1,100 Nm of torque. “Developing this gearbox was a massive undertaking because we had to design components that simply don’t exist in the market," Zanon explained. "We had to create a gearbox and a clutch that could handle this power while delivering the precise, engaging driving experience Pagani is known for.”

The result is a dogleg first gear setup—where 1st is tucked down and to the left, right below reverse—paired with a 215-mm triple-disc clutch. It’s the kind of detail that true driving enthusiasts drool over. Zanon also mentioned that the clutch is built to last, with most Utopia owners seeing 20,000 to 25,000 kilometers before a replacement is needed, even with some spirited driving.

With just 40 Utopias built so far, Pagani isn’t the only player in the manual resurgence game. The Porsche 911 GT3 has long outsold its PDK-equipped sibling, and Aston Martin’s Valour and the newcomer Nilu Hypercar are also flying the manual flag high.

But let’s not get too carried away. While the ultra-rich are revelling in their stick shifts, the same can’t be said for more attainable sports cars. Fewer than two dozen performance cars still offer a manual, and with BMW—responsible for four of those—set to phase out the manual by the end of the decade, the future of the manual gearbox in more affordable cars looks bleak.

So while the elite continue to indulge in the joy of shifting their own gears, the rest of us might just have to watch from the sidelines. But hey, if the manual revolution starts at the top, there’s always hope it might trickle down, right?