I am always a fan of odd ball cars so I vote for the unloved Matador cruisers! [QUOTE="One would think that people weren't so reckless, back then) You have to remember that Drinking and Driving was very common back then. I remember my Father being pulled over stumbling drunk on many occasions (yes with me in the car) and the officers would just drive him home, with the second officer driving my fathers car home. That happened at least 3 times before I was 14 years old. After that I would insist on Driving if you couldn't walk straight. I actually got into a couple of short boxing match's with him over it.
I decided to bring this post to the fore, which I had originally missed. A column shifter in good condition, back then, was just as effective in shifting, when the driver knew exactly how to work the shifter, and in racing, made sure the shifter unit was properly greased and maintained. When I learned to drive a manual, it was a '75 Granada 3-on-the-tree. My instructor for that day, Mr. Ballard, showed us just how to place our hand on the shifter knob in order for it to be 'placed' into each gear, without binding the synchronizer, or placing it into the wrong gear. I wish I could post up pics, but for the noobs, essentially, upshifting involved placing your palm on the knob, palm facing the windshield, and starting from first, pushing the lever up or down and away from you. Downshifting third to second, or fourth to third (some cars had 4-on-the-tree), you keep your palm facing forward. This prevents you from accidentally shifting into first or reverse.when you come to a stop, you halt, then you move the shifter into neutral. Once it's time to move again, you shift into first by holding the knob like you hold an auto shifter. Or for reverse, same thing. The point I'm making is that like doing anything that requires you to learn muscle memory, the 3-on-the-tree shifter, in good working order, will power-shift as well as a floor shifter, when correctly used.
Smaller Renaults and Citroens used shift mechanisms that were essentially bent tubes with knobs stuck into the dash, riding on a set of bushings spaced apart. The end of this tube was connected to a joint which fastened this joint to the gearbox's shift lever. They used to function better than one could imagine they would Here, the shift pattern on a later Renault 4, pictured next to a Citroen's transaxle Here, a close-up view of Renault's mechanism Given that the Renault's transaxle is mounted backwards, its shift mechanism is better to be seen. Notice that the tube's second bushing is placed on that bracket just above that belt pulley
