I tried to keep the post as brief as possible.
To elaborate on what Elliott said, the car has an eight speed box, it would be near impossible to drive the car to its maximum potential with a manual box because of the clutch and gearchange work required. It is just about possible using the paddle shift though.
He's wrong. Its an enthusiasts car - hasnt he noticed how Porsche still make enthusiasts versions of their sports cars with manual boxes and sell out? The 911R for example. The argument about maximum potential is also wrong since most customers drive on the road and maximum potential isnt useable anyway.
I had an F type with that box and it was the worst part of the car. You ended up driving it in full auto mode because there were too many gears ( at some speeds you had a choice of 4 gears ) and you never knew which gear you were in without looking at the dash. The changes were impercepible. It was luxury car gearbox in what otherwise was quite a sports car.
