What ever you do do not touch these levers

MrTube said:
My wife can drive a manual though she doesn't seem to think so. A few years back she started going ATV riding with me. The ATV she rides is a 6 speed manual.

If only she would realize a car is the same thing with slightly different controls.
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When I got married in 1970 my wife took a job 10 miles away in Miami and needed a reliable car. I asked her if she could handle my 428 cu in Mach I 4-speed and without hesitation said "sure". Pitched her the keys, said a prayer, and off she went. At 18 yrs old she had lots of double takes on her way to work and handled the car like a pro. Found out she learned how to drive in a Corvair 4-speed.
Still have the car and the 18 year old wife (plus 42).
 
I learned to drive in my dads 52 pick-up (won't put that bad word in) with 3 on the tree. also learned in high school drivers training in a 59 3 speed (bad word) Impala 6 cyl. Also learned to drive a Friends PU with 4 on floor with a fifth in the glove compartment. That took a little longer.:) Richard/Ca
 
i have problems shifting column shifters because they are rare now, and each one is different. i also have problems with cars where the gearbox was changed or have odd shift patterns with no map on the gear knob to warn me. One time there was a car that had a home made stick shifter because they adapted a column shift 'box from a different car, that was a challange to learn.
 
The owner of a restaurant that sponsored a cruise night asked me if if I wanted him to drive my car up to the "winner's circle" for a presentation one night, and I bet him a dollar that he couldn't drive it. He bet me a dinner that he could. Cheapest eats I've ever had!

Jack
 
I think car makers aren't building many straight drives anymore because the drivers don't have time to change gears. Heck they are to busy putting on make-up, painting toe nails, eating Big Mac's, texting, playing video games on their lap top......all at the same time while driving down the interstate at 20 mph over the legal limit. Sure don't want them trying to shift gears to. Might be unsafe.
 
Actually I think making a manual car will solve a lot of distracted traffic we have today. To drive one must engage the car with all limbs focusing to keep it running to get to their destination, not texting.
 
Richard Wilson said:
I think car makers aren't building many straight drives anymore because the drivers don't have time to change gears. Heck they are to busy putting on make-up, painting toe nails, eating Big Mac's, texting, playing video games on their lap top......all at the same time while driving down the interstate at 20 mph over the legal limit. Sure don't want them trying to shift gears to. Might be unsafe.
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Bingo! DEAD on!:mad:
 
The other danger of a lot of these kids is the automatic headlights they are used to. My 17 yearold never has to turn on or OFF her headlights....
 
When I was a young teenager I used to sit for hours with my grandpa when he was old and not well and he would tell me story after story about the old cars. Its amazing how well I remember those stories. He died in 1987, I bought my T in 2003. I knew how to put on a timer, adjust it, clean and adjust the buzz coils, replace the trans bands (he always said the old WWI army belts were the best) and drive it from his stories. Including how to run the spark lever. The first trip out the driveway and down the road was a bit hair raising because I had forgotten his warning about the steering "going over center". If any of you have driven a worn-out model T you'll know what I mean. The first corner was on two wheels...yes actually. When he and my grandma were on their way to the county seat to be married, they drove his 1924? Dodge. He had just replaced the bearings but had forgotten to "prime the oil pump" so they got about 6 miles and it seized up. He walked to the nearest farm place and the man just happened to have a set of bearings there, exactly what he needed. He paid the guy $2.25 for them, straddled the ditch, replaced the bearings, primed the oil pump, and went on to Long Prairie and got married. He always carried plenty of tools and "overalls to put over your good clothes in case you have to work on the car" He loved to tell those stories. His favorite cars were the 29 Chrysler and the Model A. Thats where I developed my love for the A and resolved I would someday have one. Last summer I sold the T and got my A. It really is a dream come true. He always said "The Model T is an interesting car but if you want a car to DRIVE, get a Model A" That is so true, and although I too found the T interesting, I didn't love it as I do my A. The day that I bought my A, I also looked at a 1930 Dodge. It was about the same condition and same price. It was a really hard choice but I made the right one. I often wonder, if grandpa would have been with me, which one I would have taken home? Probably the A...???
 
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It's better to have a note and do it correctly, then do it by memory incorrectly.
My 55 Olds throws off most service people because it doesn't have a Park position on the gear indicator.
 
I volunteer at the local auto museum in the restoration shop. One day i I lifted the hood on their Model A roadster and saw what looked like tiny silver BB's all over the exhaust manifold. I scraped some off and inspected them to find out they were beads of lead! Someone had driven it in a parade the previous weekend and didn't know about advancing the spark! The manifold got so hot it cooked out all the lead from old gas that was embedded in the pores of the manifold. Yes, I made up a card for the dash on how to drive a Model A.
 
Jeff/Illinois said:
Richard, you have THAT right.:eek:

Next up is cars that drive themselves I guess by electric wires in the road. California has been on the news with this development coming in the future. Where's the fun in that?? I say bring back Interurbans and street railways first. At least they are neat.

The shifter on the colunm----I know that Ford pickups were still using them in the mid-Seventies because we always kept three or four shift column assemblies in stock at the Ford garage because they used to go bad pretty often. We would buy cheapies from a supplier they were as good as the OEM which broke all the time anyway:eek:
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They have cars that park themselves, no joke!

GW
 
Our world is changing quicker than we have noticed??? When was the last time they manufactured a "three on the tree" 1972?.... said:
Ford made a F150 in the 80's that still had three on the tree. Learn to how drive on one of these. People aren't use to using three pedals ( think about it, only have two feet . lol ) and being coordinated enough to multitask.You have to do some thinking while driving a manual transmission. It just easier for most to drive something with an automatic, IMO.
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WAS IT ON LONG ISLAND ?
I went to a guy I know who owns antique cars and at least two Model A's who said the same thing and "that was how it was".
I took my friend PUT PUTTING for a block or so, then I dropped the spark lever and amazed him with how the car took off with the spark advanced to a better place.
The owner had complained about overheating and my comments fell on deaf ears.
 
eagle said:
When I was a young teenager I used to sit for hours with my grandpa when he was old and not well and he would tell me story after story about the old cars. Its amazing how well I remember those stories. He died in 1987, I bought my T in 2003. I knew how to put on a timer, adjust it, clean and adjust the buzz coils, replace the trans bands (he always said the old WWI army belts were the best) and drive it from his stories. Including how to run the spark lever. The first trip out the driveway and down the road was a bit hair raising because I had forgotten his warning about the steering "going over center". If any of you have driven a worn-out model T you'll know what I mean. The first corner was on two wheels...yes actually. When he and my grandma were on their way to the county seat to be married, they drove his 1924? Dodge. He had just replaced the bearings but had forgotten to "prime the oil pump" so they got about 6 miles and it seized up. He walked to the nearest farm place and the man just happened to have a set of bearings there, exactly what he needed. He paid the guy $2.25 for them, straddled the ditch, replaced the bearings, primed the oil pump, and went on to Long Prairie and got married. He always carried plenty of tools and "overalls to put over your good clothes in case you have to work on the car" He loved to tell those stories. His favorite cars were the 29 Chrysler and the Model A. Thats where I developed my love for the A and resolved I would someday have one. Last summer I sold the T and got my A. It really is a dream come true. He always said "The Model T is an interesting car but if you want a car to DRIVE, get a Model A" That is so true, and although I too found the T interesting, I didn't love it as I do my A. The day that I bought my A, I also looked at a 1930 Dodge. It was about the same condition and same price. It was a really hard choice but I made the right one. I often wonder, if grandpa would have been with me, which one I would have taken home? Probably the A...???
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I have found it is better to just own both. I have a 1918 T touring and a 31 68C cabbie.
 
Super88 said:
It's better to have a note and do it correctly, then do it by memory incorrectly.
My 55 Olds throws off most service people because it doesn't have a Park position on the gear indicator.
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I had a buddie in high school that had a 55 olds. Indicator had "N" neutral "D" drive "S" super "L" low. No park, we used the parking brake.
 
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