This video:
These are the last two manuals I’ve owned:
Sadly likely the last - next car will certainly be EV.
Nice vid and I can relate to it in my old 4x4.
As I choose to drive a sub 100hp old Hilux 4Runner the manual gearbox is crucial to the connection I have with the old car.
25% of the braking I do is by engine compression not by wheel brake and it's fun to come to almost a complete stop in heavy traffic without touching the brake until the last few meters in first gear. Some people probably think I have no brake lights until the last moment I actually use my brakes
The manual gearbox makes you acutely aware of how your car performs according to your actions. I think this is the key to enjoying a manual, 'according to your actions'. Stuff it up and the car will let you know, get it right and you'll enjoy that you got it right.
Shifting a MTB is a similar joy, or heartbreak, or in some cases a chain break.