Editing Manual transmission (section)

{{Short description|Motor vehicle manual gearbox; stick shift}}
{{Redirect|Stick Shift|the video game|Stick Shift (video game)}}
[[File:M5OD transmission.jpg|thumb|right|[[Mazda M5OD transmission|Mazda M5OD]] manual transmission for a four-wheel-drive vehicle ([[Ford Ranger]]) viewed from the engine side]]
[[File:Getrag282internals.jpg|thumb|right|Internals of a [[Getrag]] 282 manual transmission for a front-wheel-drive vehicle ([[Oldsmobile Cutlass]])]]

A '''manual transmission''' ('''MT'''), also known as '''manual gearbox''', '''standard transmission''' (in [[Canadian English|Canada]], [[British English|the United Kingdom]] and [[American English|the United States]]), or '''stick shift''' (in the United States), is a multi-speed [[motor vehicle]] [[Transmission (mechanical device)|transmission system]] where gear changes require the driver to manually select the gears by operating a [[gear stick]] and [[clutch]] (which is usually a foot pedal for cars or a hand lever for motorcycles).

Early automobiles used ''sliding-mesh'' manual transmissions with up to three forward gear ratios. Since the 1950s, ''constant-mesh'' manual transmissions have become increasingly commonplace, and the number of forward ratios has increased to 5-speed and 6-speed manual transmissions for current vehicles.

The alternative to a manual transmission is an [[automatic transmission]]. Common types of automatic transmissions are the [[Automatic transmission#Hydraulic automatic transmissions|hydraulic automatic transmission]] (AT) and the [[continuously variable transmission]] (CVT). The [[automated manual transmission]] (AMT) and [[dual-clutch transmission]] (DCT) are internally similar to a conventional manual transmission, but are shifted automatically.

Alternatively, there are [[semi-automatic transmission|semi-automatic transmissions]]. These systems are based on the design of, and are technically similar to, a conventional manual transmission. They have a gear shifter which requires the driver's input to manually change gears, but the driver is not required to engage a clutch pedal before changing gear. Instead, the mechanical linkage for the clutch pedal is replaced by an [[actuator]], [[servomechanism|servo]], or [[Solenoid valve|solenoid]] and [[sensor]]s, which operate the clutch system automatically when the driver touches or moves the [[gearshift]]. This removes the need for a physical clutch pedal.