This is a good nostalgia thread even if it wandered off-topic! Thanks for reminding me of some good times.
My 1st car was a 20-yr-old 1950 Chevy coupe my grandfather gave me when his sister could no longer drive.
The column shifter didn't last 2 months. It was quickly replaced by a cheap floor shifter (Spark-O-Matic?) so I could "race" my friend in his Mustang.
We were 16, had a blast "racing". His was a 200-cube 65 mustang convertible, mine a 216-inch 6 with maybe 50 hp? We would put on canvas aviator helmets (like Oddball in Kelly's Heroes) to get attention and race from light to light.
Both cars were so slow that nobody could tell we were racing but we had a blast.
My 2nd car was also 3-on-the-tree. Was a base 68 Chevelle with a 250 6 cyl. The engine was soon replaced by a 327. I remember loaning the car to my aunt. When I picked it up, she told me she had put her foot in it and scared the crap out of her. She was not expecting the power and noise of the tire squealing with secondaries kicking in... the column shifter did not predict how quick that car was with the low-ratio 6-cylinder rear end.
We need a gif like this with a column shifter!
