Here’s the thing: the age-old torque-converter automatic, once dismissed as slow and outdated, has found its second wind. Over the last few years, traditional automatics have not just returned; they’ve elbowed their way back to center stage. And BMW, once one of the most vocal champions of the Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT), is now leading the retreat.
BMW’s M division used DCTs extensively in cars like the M3, M4, M5, M6, and even niche favorites like the E92 335iS and 135i. But in 2023, BMW M’s Head of Development, Dirk Hacker, confirmed what many industry watchers had suspected: the brand is phasing out both DCTs and manual gearboxes in future M cars. Comfort, cost, and customer feedback were the driving factors.
Why BMW is ditching DCTs
What this really means is that real-world usability beats out raw performance. DCTs are lightning fast, sure, but they’ve always struggled with low-speed finesse, the creeping, parking, inch-forward-in-traffic moments that make up a big chunk of actual ownership.
Hacker pointed out that customers routinely complained about jerky behavior in tight, slow situations. Add to that the rising production costs of DCT units and their limited adaptability, many were engineered primarily for rear-wheel-drive setups and the math stopped working.
BMW now leans heavily on ZF’s brilliant 8HP torque-converter automatic. The company claims it matches the old DCT for shift speed, improves fuel efficiency, and works seamlessly with both RWD and AWD platforms. BMW is confident enough that it’s even putting the 8HP into its race cars.
A trend bigger than BMW
BMW isn’t moving alone. The industry has been quietly backing away from DCTs for years.
Ford’s infamous PowerShift DCT debacle set the tone early. Harsh shifts, shuddering, transmission control unit failures — it was a storm of problems that triggered lawsuits across multiple countries. The company eventually abandoned dual-clutch gearboxes in favor of conventional automatics.
Hyundai is making a similar move. The next-gen 2026 Santa Fe is expected to lose its DCT in favor of a traditional automatic simply because it performs better in day-to-day driving.
And while DCTs excel at high-performance, high-speed shifting, torque-converter units have quietly evolved. Modern converters shift faster, smoother, and smarter than they ever have effectively erasing the one big advantage DCTs used to hold.
Does the DCT have a future?
DCT technology isn’t disappearing entirely; it’s just shrinking back to its natural habitat. Brands like Porsche and McLaren, whose cars are engineered around razor-sharp responses, are still deeply invested. Porsche’s PDK remains one of the best gearboxes in the world, and supercars like the McLaren 720S aren’t giving up the format anytime soon.
But for mainstream brands, usability and reliability win the day. And as torque-converter automatics continue to evolve, the conclusion becomes clearer: the DCT didn’t lose because it was slow, it lost. After all, everything else got better.
