Long live the open gearshift gate!
It belongs to Ferrari almost like the prancing horse, the open gearshift gate. Not all Ferrari sports cars had them on board; the 365 GTC/4, for example, had to do without them. And most modern Ferrari products also have to do without it, as they are shifted via paddles on the steering wheel.
However, the open gearshift gate existed long before Ferrari (picture above, Ferrari 308 GTS) and for many motorists of the past it is/was a matter of course. And we're not talking about Lamborghini or De Tomaso here, who of course didn't want to do without the open gearshift gate, any more than the modern Audi R8.
In the early days of automotive engineering, people liked to show off the mechanics.
And so the Alfa Romeo 6C 1750, for example, has an open gearshift gate ...
... like the (Derby) Bentley 3 1/2 Litre from 1934, or the Goggomobil.
If you want to order a new car with an open gearshift gate now, you're probably too late. Ferrari, Lamborghini or Audi (R8) no longer have a car with a manual gearbox in their range. Obviously, this inimitable feeling when you push the gearshift along the gate into the next gear is no longer in demand. What a pity!
