Although Porsche recently said it won't kill the stick shift until it is declared illegal, that doesn't mean it will offer a Panamera with a manual gearbox as standard. But through Porsche's Sonderwunsch (special requests) division, customers could pay a premium for a custom manual Panamera. While few may pursue the option, the fact that Porsche is willing to entertain custom powertrain configurations signals that the brand is serious about keeping driving enthusiasts happy.Alexander Fabig, the vice president of Individualization and Classic at Porsche, told The Drive about what customers could expect from the customization program at Monterey Car Week. When he was asked if engine swaps or transmission swaps were something Porsche was looking at, he said:"Yes. Especially when talking about celebrating the manual side of life. These are projects that are in the making at the moment, where we look at these things. Again, the majority of customers are not so much into [pure] horsepower."black porsche panamera near stone archwayAsked whether Porsche could customize a Panamera by fitting a manual transmission if a customer asked for it, Fabig affirmed, saying:AdvertisementAdvertisement"Yes, yes, yes. That's very good; I will use this as an example from now on [when people ask about the program]."Porsche has likely realized that manual transmissions are making a comeback and that customers willing to spend big on its cars also want a more bespoke experience tailored to their preferences.Porsche Is Keeping the Manual AliveSpeaking of manuals, the German brand recently reintroduced the stick shift 911 Carrera S after realizing there was customer demand for it. Earlier, the three-pedal option only existed in two 911 models- the Carrera T and GT3 variants, Motorbiscuit reported.The manual Carrera S was unveiled at Monterey Car Week, where the Porsche North America CEO Timo Resch said it wasn't the company's original strategy to reintroduce the variant in question. He said:AdvertisementAdvertisement"Because obviously our customers have a close relationship with their Porsche centers. And if they tell them, 'I would like to have a manual which kind of sits in between a GT3 and a T', we try to collect all of that feedback. And based on the history of, there was a Carrera S in the previous generation that had a manual transmission, we were like, 'Let's build a case.'"The Porsche boss said that the decision to bring back the manual was all about offering more choice. He said:"Ultimately, it's the choice of the customer. And that's what we are about. It's about providing choice to our customers."Resch emphasized that Porsche expects demand for the stick shift to remain strong well into the next decade, and that the company will continue offering manual options as long as they remain legal. He said:AdvertisementAdvertisement"You can be assured that we will try to offer manual transmissions as long as we are legally allowed to, and as long as there's customer demand. And we see customer demand for the option, manual transmission also lasting well into the next decade."Image Credit: Porsche