TRANSMISSION comes in the form of a five-speed manual and, if you must, a four-speed auto. The delightful, short-throw manual shift - kept under 45mm - has been improved and now has a slicker action. Select strokes between gates first and second, third/fourth and fifth/reverse are 20mm. The manual gearbox is a two-shaft type with synchronisers on all gears. The synchroniser cone for the first gear has a large 65mm diameter, and a double-cone synchroniser is used on second gear. Both improve on shift smoothness and precision. The automatic is all-new and features a torque converter designed to improve responsiveness. Shift response is claimed to have improved by 20 per cent, and smoothness 50 per cent. The auto is a compact, lightweight design, measuring 230mm in diameter. The torque converter lockup and gear changes are controlled by an automatic transmission control unit which interacts with the engine control computer.