Yeah, I was curious about this several years ago, too. In '98, I finally gave in & ordered an automatic when after ~2 months, my dealership *still* couldn't locate the exact car I wanted, in a 5-speed stickshift. The correct (desired) permutations in automatics kept popping up, but no manuals. I finally got tired of waiting, & gave in to an automatic. I had always driven manuals (since the mid-60's), & was reluctant to give it up. But guess what? When I bought my '04 car, I didn't even bother looking for a manual, just ordered an automatic. ;-)
Cathy