Over here (Belgium) manual transmission (4 forward +1 reverse gear) was the standard for decades. It still dominates the cheaper car bracket, but the luxury seg

Over here (Belgium) manual transmission (4 forward +1 reverse gear) was the standard for decades. It still dominates the cheaper car bracket, but the luxury segment has gone almost 100% automatic. What is left there is optional manual shifting (by stick or F1 style steer paddles), but always with an automated clutch. This evolution has also gradually allowed increasing the number of gears, now not uncommonly 6, 7 or 9 gears forward. Modern automatics are in practice more fuel efficient