Many of us “old-timers” learned to drive in cars with standard shift transmissions, not cars with automatic transmissions. Back in the 1950s, most cars on the roads did not have automatic transmissions because most makes were not sold with them, and those cost more than the standard. Also, automatic transmissions in those days were not very well designed and had more problems.
Eva’s Dad had a used car business, and he also had a used car parts business (junkyard of old or wrecked cars). He rebuilt some of the wrecked cars and they became cars on his used car lot. Eva bought her first car from him, and he sold her a car with an automatic that lasted her for a short period, but she needed something she could depend on to get her to the bus stop when she started working downtown. She bought a 1955 Plymouth from her dad and it had an automatic. It drove better than it looked, but not one you would take on a trip.
When we started dating, I owned a 1959 Ford Galaxie with a big motor and standard transmission that I had converted to floor-shift. I had bought it used when I began working at Gulf, but I had spent enough on repairs and upgrades that I may have had more in it than the cost of a new car, especially if I had paid for the labor.
Anyway, this story is about Eva learning to drive my car and other cars with standard transmissions. Her problem was the same problem that others had when they learned to drive first in an automatic. The left foot must work in conjunction with the right hand during the shift. Remember that when you stop and are using both feet changing gears can cause a rise in stress in a relationship. I got asked more than once why mine was shifted on the floor and I got a stare from hearing my answer.
A couple of months after we got married, I traded that Ford for a new 1964 Valiant with a four-speed manual transmission. That was also floor-shifted but in a different shift pattern from three-speed. It was right after I started working at NASA and I needed something dependable and more economical to drive one hundred miles every day. Eva was okay with the choice, and she thought she could learn to drive it when she needed to. After months of putting a lot of miles on the Valiant, I bought an older Rambler to drive to NASA and Eva got the Valiant to drive to the bus stop. So, it became her daily driver. By that time, she had gotten very good at driving it.
While still working at NASA, I got the idea of buying the little red Austin Healey sports car so that I could get even better gas mileage. That is a whole story of its own, but for multiple reasons, it was not ready for the long trip to NASA. That had a four-speed floor-shifted transmission but with a hydraulic clutch and bucket seats that were extremely low on the floor.
I am still amazed that we were still married when we ordered a new car that had everything Eva wanted including the color she picked out when the 1968 cars were announced. She got her automatic transmission, a/c, whistles, and bells. Every car and truck we bought from that point on has been automatic; I have had thoughts many times about buying an old car from the 1950s or 60s for the memories they bring back.
