Three on the tree......Am I gettin old??

I learned to drive on a '50 Chevy pick-up with 3 on the tree and have owned a few. But the neatest one I ever drove was a (i think) '48 Chevy four door sedan with vacuum assist. You just apply the slightest pressure from under the shifter and it would shift itself from first to second making the H cross along the way as if an invisible hand were shifting it. Barely push down and the same from second to third. Don't remember about reverse as this was in the early '60's. It's the only one I've ever seen, but my dad told me at the time it was an option at the time.

 

hahahaha thats awesome! well, im 20 and i had to do that about 439875793487 times today in my 64 gmc! i love 3 on the tree but this is getting rediculous! haha i really want to figure out how to fix it..if its even possible without a new column

 

I learned at drivers ed on a 3onthetree cause the family car was auto and I wanted to learn stick
My daughter drove my p/u once in a parking lot. Years later she has me get her a jeep to go off to college in . Comes to pic it up and I asked 'Want a quick lesson?" "Naw she says . Bucked it out onto a busy street and off she went. She's a natural.
Years later , first day on job the 'GUYS" set her and a also new co-worker up. Take the van . Its buried in a snow bank. The "GUYS" don't use it 'cause its a stick. They are all watching out the window like. She got a big kick outa banging the gears outa the snow bank and down the road.
Love that girl. Her husband can't drive anything with 3 pedals. . Crazy.

 

All my o/t cars have a 5-speed manual... I wish my truck had a 3 on the tree..

 

I'm probably a definite exception, but at 23 i own a 59 f-100 and love that column shift....I would have to admit many my age dont know what real drivin is but the only reason i do is because I am privileged enough to know some old timers that truy love passin down some knowledge. I always get people hoppin in my truck thinkin its auto...cant help but laugh, I also tell em the power steerin is out but im workin on it..ha Also I cant believe how many people dont know what my steering knob is for. I sure hope all this knowledge is not lost to just a few enthusiast they can have their paddle shift..ill stick with my mileage maker for the time bein.

 

I had a '76 Ford Econoline with a 3 speed on the column. I bought it from a friend who just showed me the pattern and it was gravy from there. I loved that thing except for driving in NYC traffic...... I would love to have another someday.

 

@ fouledplugs i get that alot too, everyone thinks my truck is automatic..then get confused by the three pedals i love it

 

I have to think about it when I get behind the wheel of one. I have bigs gaps in time between driving one but its like riding a bicycle. My biggest mindless activity is sometimes driving a stick and not using the engine speed instead of the clutch to shift. I learned it many years ago but sometimes forget its a stick until I stop. Old time showed me how to match the engine speed to the shifts. It never helped me driving old 49-50 Mack fire trucks. Then again driving a stick while driving on the wrong side (right) is a hoot. How many times do you think I've had the wipers going instead of turn signals.

 

Recently, on Craiglist, I saw a '77 Cutlass with the V6 and 3 speed column shift. I have also seen a few '77 Olds 442's with the 260 V8 and 5-speed.

I think by '80 the Big 3 were done putting them in cars.

 

Forgot about my '91 Econoline with the floor-mounted dimmer. Of course, that was the last year before the Econo was redone.

Once I saw a late-80's E-150 with the 300 six and the Mazda M500 5-speed.

 

Reminds me of the Mopar A-bodies, with the foot pump windshield washer. In '07, I scrapped a clapped-out Duster, but made sure to keep the washer system and, of course, the ballast resister!

 

Yeah, well, try a "T" model Ford... Had 3 pedals, clutch, brake and a reverse pedal.... the emergency hand brake half way back also put you into netural! "instant stops upon appliction of clutch brake and reverse pedals".... you used the reverse pedal for the brake sometimes to equalize wear on the bands in transmission... Jay in Texas

 

Ford put 'em in F-150 pick-ups til '86, I have a '74 pick-up with one, I like 'em, my son when he was 15 was telling a friend of his about the 3-on-the-tree; that kid said; "..they never made one like that, man!!!!", Ha, Ha, yup all this electronic gee-whiz crap, flush it down the toilet!!!

 

My '57 Belair had a 3 speed Overdrive on the collumn when I bought it. I learned how to drive it, and didn't mind it so much when it was working right (shift linkage was worn out, and Bubba had cut and welded on it for some reason). I got tired of messing with that, so I put in a 4 speed and stuck the trans in my parents' basement. Its still there, 25 years later...anyone want it?

I graduated high school in 1988, and was one of three who had a 3 speed on the collumn...one was a '57 210 with a six, and the other was a '66 Chevy truck. I doubt anyone else could drive one, even then.

 

My bird had 3 on the tree when i first bought it...it used to freak people out when they rode with me and saw me shift gears, they thought it was an automatic!

the linkage quickly wore out and i shelled out my unsynchronized first gear.

So, I said so long to the 3 speed and put t-5 in her. it was better in the long run ( the car's my daily driver) but i still miss the looks i used to get shifting that thing

 

I'm 24 and have never owned, nor will ever own an automatic. The first 'three on the tree' that i drove was my dad's '67 chevy van that's been converted into a camper. lots of time behind the wheel of that thing before I could legally drive.... the old man wanted to take a nap after a day of racing moto.

 

My 63 galaxie has a 3 on the tree and whenever I have friends with me they are blown away that i half to shift on the column!

 

Learned to drive on a farm tractor, then a pick up, then a car with a three on the tree. My mother had a rambler with a pushbutton, Uncle had a 55 Plymouth with a stubby little lever sticking out of the dash board that corvair copied 9 or 10 years later. I remember another relative who had a Packard with push buttons mounted in a pod attached to a stalk sticking out like a colume mount. Had a friend with an Edsel that had push buttons mounted in the center of the steering wheel. Drove a Model T with the pedal to engage reverse.

A friend had some sort of British or maybe french car with a push pull kinda deal sticking out of the center tunnel. (kinda like the honda Si of a year or so ago) And now the dodge vans (and some others) have a lever on the dash board again.

And a go cart with a ratchet sequential lever. And an Austin Healy 100 - 4 with a reverse pattern 3 speed on the floor that was actually a 4 speed with the 1st gear blocked.

Shall we discuss free wheeling???

 

Had it on my '49 GMC pickup, my '40 Ford, and I'll be putting it in my 29 Roadster pickup when I get to that point.

I would say that they are actually kinda making a come back in hot rods, as those 3 spd ODs are real nice to have on the freeway. Lots of rods had them back in the day, so they are even "correct"

 

You want to bring upconfusion about 3 pedals? How about pulling up to a stop sign or light with one of the old Mopar fluid drive set ups? My fifty Chrysler has the "fluid-drive in it,and the looks I get from passengers when I dont throw in the clutch at a light are priceless. I only need it to go into reverse. Yup,3 pedals and a "semi-automatic" trans are way confuseing to the un-educated masses.
I finally sold my 3-on-the-tree 66 f100 and bought a 72 f100 with a 300 straight 6 and a c4 auto. I still "slap clutch" when I get in it! But I dont miss haveing to work that clutch after a long day at work. And the power steering is kind of nice to park....,so are the power brakes... Geeeeze, I'm getting wussiefied any more!

 

before i retired, the old bread truck i drove had a three on the tree....

 

well i hope im not getting old, im only 19 i learned to drive on a 3 spd on the tree w/overdrive in a 1948 studebaker champion, black, red interior, six cyl flathead, man. brakes and sterring, and the hill holder that didnt hold jack crap, and my daily driver is a 66 pont. catalina 2 door (beat up, but my baby all the same), 3 on the tree sadly converted to auto, i drove a 66 f100 4 speed on the floor for a few months too, any time i get into a new car ( which i hate) i have to hunt for light switches dimmers, window wipers, and fumble awkwardly looking for my chrome window crank, only to remember it has a little plastic button, idk i think everyone needs to experience old cars at somepoint and im from germany and you pretty much learn on a manual, or youre lame or weird, aso if you learn on manual and take dl test on manual, you can drive an auto or manual, but take it on a auto and be doomed to always drive an auto, when i took the test officer out to get in my car, he was shocked to see a 48 studebaker lol, just thought id comment

 

sold a guy a dart with 3 on the tree for 800. even reminded him it was column shift. walked inside and heard gears grinding and waited for the doorbell smiling.

Guy came to the door screaming at me about a lemon. I asked him if he remembered to push in the clutch. "WHAT CLUTCH IT'S A $%^&ING COLUMN SHIFT LIKE YOU SAID". Yea like I said it's a column shift, A MANUAL COLUMN SHIFT! Walked out and pointed to the clutch. He said "You have to use a clutch to put it in drive? what and old piece of shit". "No its a MANUAL TRANSMISSION. You have to shift gears on the column".

He didn't drive manuals at all he admitted finally, and wanted his money back. I walked out and found he had indeed ground the ever-loving snot out of it until I couldn't even move it. told him I'll buy it back for $300. "why I just bought it for 800". "yea and i don't HAVE to buy it back. And if I wanted it back I'd want it how I left it not with a transmission in pieces because you didn't read the manual transmission part of the add"

Gave him 300 back and sold it later that day for 800 again.

 

In high school, ('71), knew a kid named Roger, we hung around some, he was pretty crazy, really a comedian, he would get his mother's '67 Firebird; it had that OHC six banger; this one was a one barrel, those engines wound up pretty tight, even the one barrel versions, the car was a three speed, even though this one was a floor shift, it still is worth telling; we'd go out cruising; there was a spot on the Big Arkansas River you could go out on a sand bar, a little cow path, Roger would go up there; "hummm we need to wind this up", he would cramp the wheels all the way to the stop, start out and sometimes end up in third gear, the gas floored and throwing a mini sand storm, couldn't see anything, I think we were doing 35, hell maybe faster, in a friggin' circle!! We'd be banging around in that car, his mother was a very picky lady, she would have castrated him if she knew!!! LOL!!! Then he'd stop, "O.K. girls now we need to unwind", and going the other way we'd unwind! The crap you do as a child!!! LOL!!! Heck the crap I do all grown-up is much better!!!

 

Hell, its a wonder we didn't hit something and roll that car; KIDS DON'T TRY THAT AT HOME!!!!!!!!!!! LOL!!!!!!!!!!

 

I love it...used to drive a 65 Pete with a 5+4...two sticks and 2 trans...do the math,thats 20 forward gears,non stop shifting!

 

my 49 dodge has 3 on the tree, learned on my dads 65 chevy p/u when i was 18, im 30 now and all of my friends but 1 have no clue what it is...and think it must be the hardest thing to drive. cracks me up everytime!

 

First learned to drive on that. B model Mack.
Only 4 people in school can drive any manual. Newrider3 and I are two. The other 2 are bullriders. Twin sticks will be in my 64 if I am lucky.

 

I learned to drive with a three on the tree (old chevy truck) and I've driven a couple since. Never driven one that worked right though. I always ended up with ones that were worn out and had to baby them through the gears or they'd lock up. Then it's grab the screw driver, jump out, pop the hood, traffic backing up behind me, horns blowing... nah, can't say I miss them much.

Not knowing how manual locks and windows work has me boggled though. There are still tons of cars on the road without power locks and windows. I think I've only had two cars in my life that did have them (and disliked both), so that just seems really weird to me.

But to be fair, if someone has never encountered something, I can't really blame them for not knowing how it works right off. I've been ignorant too.

When I first got my 64 Chevelle (with a Hurst 4 on the floor), I damn near drove it into the garage door trying to figure out how to back it up. I'd never heard of a shift handle you had to pull up on to get it to go into reverse. Had to call the guy I bought it from and ask, "what the heck?" Figuring out the right arcane combination of pulling and pushing knobs that would get the heater to work had me scratching my head for awhile too.

Funniest shifter I ever had was my old ford truck with the granny 4-speed. The connection on the lever (floor shift) was buggered up, so if you forgot to hold it down while shifting, the lever would pop right out of the floor. You want to see someone's eyes get wide...

 

Learnrd to drive on 3-on the tree, got stationed in Germany for 6 months in the early 70s and bought an old english Ford for $300 and it was a 4-speed on the column,neat little car ,Nothing looks worse than to open the door on a car and see the old column shift handle sawed off and a stick in the floor.