diff --git a/pkgs/os-specific/linux/kernel/manual-config.nix b/pkgs/os-specific/linux/kernel/manual-config.nix
index 131ff74bcf1..83740b6285e 100644
--- a/pkgs/os-specific/linux/kernel/manual-config.nix
+++ b/pkgs/os-specific/linux/kernel/manual-config.nix
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation ({
   INSTALL_MOD_STRIP = "1";
 
   postInstall = ''
-    make modules_install $makeFlags "$\{makeFlagsArray[@]}" \
-      $installFlags "$\{installFlagsArray[@]}"
+    make modules_install $makeFlags "''${makeFlagsArray[@]}" \
+      $installFlags "''${installFlagsArray[@]}"
   '';
 })