# Did you ever learn to drive a column-shifted manual transmission (3-on-the-tree)? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 12, 2013, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011 "2013-08-12T06:26:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![NotDeadYet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/22d042/32.png) [@NotDeadYet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NotDeadYet)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/41 "2013-08-12T15:24:27Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > I learned how to drive a column shift. My dad had a Chevy 1/4 ton pickup with a three speed column shifter and he let me borrow it. I already knew how to drive a standard car, so it was easy to get used to. Yep. Except it was a 1964 Ford F-100 and it belonged to the summer camp where I was a CIT (Counselor-in-training, actually free labor.) The first car I bought with my own money was a 1967 Mustang that had a 3-speed “H” pattern floor shift. ---
**Author:** ![somepumpkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/42 "2013-08-12T15:46:21Z")
Indeed. My first vehicle was a `66 Ford pickup (F100, I believe). It had 3 on the tree. Back then (I’m old), many cars had manual trannys, so mastering a clutch was just par for the course. And agree that my first VW threw me a curve w/ that clandestine position for selecting reverse. Also wanted to mention that I have a '62 Bel-Air and a '63 Futura and both of them are automatics… but only 2 speeds. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/43 "2013-08-12T15:54:06Z")
We had a sturdy '58 F100 with three-on-the-tree that the previous owners had pulled the bolt-on-OD out of before we got it. I always wondered if the OD would have matched to second, to make it a nominal 5-speed. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/44 "2013-08-12T16:05:33Z")
> [@Beelzebubba](#): > > For years, the VW Beetle showd the a 1-2-3-4 arranged in the typical H-pattern. But they didn’t bother to share the location of Reverse and the ‘trick’ to engage Reverse even if you knew where it was! I’m not sure about earlier models, but the '73 VW my dad had, you had to put it in Neutral, press downward on the entire gearshift and then move it upward and to the Left (while maintaining downward pressure)…it was a pain even if you knew how to do it! It was actually to the left and down. I found it easier to think of it as down-left-back. And there was a (somewhat confusing) diagram on the original shift knob, which was hard to see if the paint had worn off–and if it wasn’t new it probably had. > **[TheSamba.com :: VW Classifieds - Vintage Speed Rally or Classic Heel and Toe...](https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=890300)** > > Classified ads, photos, shows, links, forums, and technical information for the Volkswagen automobile ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/45 "2013-08-12T17:16:47Z")
My current restoration project is a '48 Chevy with 3 on the tree. So definitely. No turn signals or seat belts though. And 4 wheel drum brakes. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/46 "2013-08-12T17:27:22Z")
> [@Beelzebubba](#): > > Who can drive a manual on the column? Also, was there ever more than 3-speeds on a column shifter? My first car was a Plymouth Valiant, which I bought as junk for $1 and repaired myself to running condition. It was a column manual shift. I still remember: pull in and down for 1st. Pull in and up for Reverse. Second gear was up without pulling in; third gear was down without pulling in. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/47 "2013-08-12T17:32:20Z")
Yes. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/48 "2013-08-12T17:42:42Z")
Sure, it may have been the first vehicle I ever drove. We had an old yellow late 50’s van of the style popular for small schools (Apache?) that we used to transport a dozen kids or so at summer camp. We used to take it out to the fields and back up into cedar stumps to knock them over for firewood. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/49 "2013-08-12T17:50:22Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > I had a '67 Dodge Dart with a three on the tree. That’s the car I took my driver’s license test in (1974). My dad insisted that we all learn and take the driving test on a manual transmission. That Dart went through a LOT of abuse at the hands (and feet) of us kids. We got VERY good at locating used clutches and pressure plates at the local salvage yards. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/50 "2013-08-12T18:32:19Z")
I started out shifting with a pickup truck with three on the column, and my first car had a column shift, too. That was pretty routine in the early 70s. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/51 "2013-08-12T18:49:05Z")
> [@Beelzebubba](#): > > But I doubt that the manual transmission will ever make a comeback here. I agree – it’s unlikely. I’ve never driven a manual with the shifter on the tree – all of the ones I’ve driven had a floor-mounted shifter, even the pickup trucks. 30 years ago, it was pretty common for inexpensive cars in the U.S. to come with a manual transmission as standard equipment (for cost savings as well as better mileage). When my wife (who was, at that point, my girlfriend) bought a new Hyundai Sonata in 1990 (at the time when Hyundais were still low-priced, and of questionable quality), it came with a manual transmission. Today, you can still find a manual on some low-price cars (see **Lsura** ’s comment about the brand-new Yaris), though I would not be surprised if that’s primarily found on imports, and less so on American badges. As long as we have a performance-car market in the U.S., the stick won’t completely vanish (when I bought my Mustang in 2011, I insisted on a stick), but relatively few people I know (especially my friends who are younger than me) could even figure out how to drive my car. ---
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/52 "2013-08-12T18:56:13Z")
I didn’t get a stick this time but one of the benefits of having one is that very people I know could ask to borrow my truck. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/53 "2013-08-12T19:04:20Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > As long as we have a performance-car market in the U.S., the stick won’t completely vanish (when I bought my Mustang in 2011, I insisted on a stick), but relatively few people I know (especially my friends who are younger than me) could even figure out how to drive my car. A WAG: Any car in North America with a manual transmission probably is less susceptible to theft, especially with a sign propped up behind the windshield saying Stick Shift in at least four languages. ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/54 "2013-08-12T19:33:38Z")
Learned to steer left handed while Dad shot from the driver seat while moving. Drove my first time in traffic ( Friday at 5 PM on a busy 2 lane street with parking on the sides. ) in a 1952 Buick danyaflush ( 2 speed ) … He yelled at other drivers a lot that day. Then the open road work was in an 1956 Pontiac with 3 on the tree. ( I later bought this car as my first in 1959. ( worked & saved for years to have enough to get a ‘good’ car. ) Then I bought a horse which I would ride to school in good weather in my senior year in Tulsa. Bawahahaha ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/55 "2013-08-12T20:21:24Z")
I learned to drive stick in a AMC Jaguar with a column shifter - don’t know the year (somewhere between 69-72, I’d guess). Part of driving it was knowing where to reach in the engine compartment to unjam the shifter. Part of being a passenger in it was the ablility to climb through a window, as the passenger door was broken. My mom thought it was hoot to climb in and out through the window when she had one of her kids drive her somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/56 "2013-08-12T20:42:40Z")
Jaguar is a British marque, do you mean Javelin? ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/57 "2013-08-12T21:05:40Z")
I remember driving a friend’s car back in the 70’s. It was a Chevy, can’t remember which model. Had a three-speed on the steering column (or was it a four? I can’t remember). My own car back then was a '68 VW beetle, so I was no stranger to the manual transmission. My current car is a VW passat, with a five-speed manual. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/58 "2013-08-12T21:11:16Z")
> [@Beelzebubba](#): > > For years, the VW Beetle showd the a 1-2-3-4 arranged in the typical H-pattern. But they didn’t bother to share the location of Reverse and the ‘trick’ to engage Reverse even if you knew where it was! I’m not sure about earlier models, but the '73 VW my dad had, you had to put it in Neutral, press downward on the entire gearshift and then move it upward and to the Left (while maintaining downward pressure)…it was a pain even if you knew how to do it! I had one of those! A 1968 VW Beetle. That was a great little car. Seriously underpowered, though – even a moderate hill required downshifting to third. A steep grade would sometimes require second, especially if you had a couple of passengers. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2013, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/59 "2013-08-13T00:52:30Z")
The first car my family owned was a '41 DeSoto semi-automatic. That had a three-speed column shift, but you didn’t have to use it. You could just leave it in third and stop and start up. You did have to clutch to shift into reverse. When I took my driving test in 1954, you could take the test in an automatic, but then you got a restricted license (at least in Pennsylvania). I didn’t want that, so I just used the clutch and the cop never noticed the semi-automatic. If you stalled the car, you automatically failed the test, but the semi-automatic was impossible to stall from misuse of the clutch. At one point, there was a slalom course you had to take in third, and I entered it in second. The cop told me I had to be in third, so I shifted to third without speeding up. So I passed. I drove stick shifts until 2007. By then I was 70 and nearly every intersection in this 'burb is a 4-way stop. It is just too annoying with a stick and the car I bought then was an automatic. I still like a stick, but the stop signs just make it too much work. My kids all learned–at my insistence–to drive sticks (but I haven’t seen a column shifter in a long time). Officially the province recommends starting with an automatic. I wonder when Pennsylvania officially dropped the restricted license. ---
**Author:** ![seal\_cleaner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@seal\_cleaner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seal_cleaner)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2013, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011/60 "2013-08-13T01:15:10Z")
Had a '68 Chevy pickup with 3 on the tree. Bought it used, after a month or 2 I lost first gear. Lived up in the hills at the time, it was always a driving adventure. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-ever-learn-to-drive-a-column-shifted-manual-transmission-3-on-the-tree/666011.md?page=4)