Life with Cars.(Brief Article)

The M3's straight six screamed at 8000 rpm and I pulled the lever. Bam! Second-third-fourth-fifth-sixth. Bam! Bam! Bam! Look out, here it comes... ka-bam! The ultimate shift. Into a new paradigm.

In the new order, there will be no manual gearboxes. You see, the paradigm shifting I was experiencing in the sizzling Bimmer was courtesy of its new SMG gearbox. SMG is a six-speed sequential clutchless manual gearbox that operates as either a hands-off automatic or a shift-it-yourself unit. Based on a manual gearbox, it uses steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters-just like a Formula One car!-connected to a computer. It has no clutch pedal (the computer operates that too). It is similar to the systems you've heard about on some Ferraris and on the upcoming Aston Martin Vanquish.

So wave a nostalgic farewell to that engaging lever (literally and figuratively) with the numbers on top that has separated us from the unwashed masses of so-called average drivers whose automotive interest stops at ``Are we there yet?'' And while you're at it, say so long to the third pedal, the one left of the brake. When a manufacturer as dedicated to the driving experience as BMW decides that going clutchless is a viable alternative-their maximum U.S. leader Tom Purves even wondered aloud whether BMW should drop the manual gearbox from the M3 altogether-then you know our world is in flux.

What this says is that it's now okay for enthusiasts to embrace cars ...