What Options Are Worth: Manual Gearboxes, Paint to Sample, Ceramics and More
DriveIndex measures what options are worth from real sales of the same model: how much more cars with a manual gearbox, a Paint to Sample colour, carbon-ceramic brakes or a given package sell for than cars without. A premium is reported only when enough sales exist on both sides to measure it.
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Built from 120,000+ verified completed sales across 7,300+ collector and enthusiast cars, from 18 sources. Methodology
Manual versus automatic
A manual car is valued as a manual. Collector shows separate market values for each transmission, so a manual is not averaged in with automatics that sell for less, or the other way round.
How a premium is measured
- Every sale of the model is normalised to a typical mileage, so a premium is not a mileage difference in disguise.
- Each sale's options are read from its listing: gearbox, special colours, and named equipment and packages.
- The median price of cars with the option is compared with the median of cars without it, and the premium is kept only when both groups have enough sales.
Pricing a car by its spec
With Collector you can re-price a car by its options: pick what it has, and the value moves by what those options are measured to be worth for that model.
Frequently asked questions
How much more is a manual transmission worth?
It depends on the model, and for some cars the answer is nothing. DriveIndex measures it per model from real sales and shows separate manual and automatic values with Collector.
Is Paint to Sample worth the money?
DriveIndex measures what Paint to Sample and other special colours add for each model from with-versus-without sales comparisons, where enough sales exist on both sides.