Its been a while since I've been "on board".
I decided to part with my G37 convertible as I had a love/hate relationship with it. I loved to drive it, especially top down, but hated it as a daily driver. It was a PITA to get in and out of and not a comfortable ride for any longer trips. My son is off to college this fall and left the 2007 M at home. Lucky me. It has almost 127K miles but still drives great and is SO much more comfortable and fits me much better ergonomically. He wants something with a stick so I'll get him something next spring and I get to drive the M until it drops. Nice break on insurance and taxes selling the convertible to boot.

Manual gear boxes are becoming harder to find on any new models. Fewer companies offer them. Even BMW no longer offers a manual gear box on anything less than the 4-series. You should be able to find a good used honda or toyota with a manual, but the resale is higher because the engines and gear boxes are so well made and reliable.

Yeah - we have a 1993 Miata with a 5 sp manual that he's learned to drive. Thinking of another one in the 2001 to 2006 range for him. Seems there are good ones in the 5K to 7K range with decent mileage that would be a good college car for him. Benefit of a two seater is that he can't pile all his buds in it to go to the bar!