THE Optima comes standard with a five-speed manual or optional four-speed automatic gearbox with Tiptronic change. The manual gearbox includes a double syncromesh for claimed smoother shifting, while there has also been attention paid to reducing gear whine in the top three gears. The auto is an adaptive "fuzzy logic" box that rewrites its programs to match changing driving and road conditions. For safety, the manual Optima can only be started with the clutch pedal fully depressed, while the auto cannot be put into drive or reverse without the brake being depressed.