Update Update

[Three Valves]

Jaye P.

NBC=Nothing But Class!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDxDYIQL6Nc" target="_blank

[Three Valves]

5th grade, I was just sitting there and the BD said "you, dumbass, yeah you. YOU will play the tuba!!"

I felt honored...

[Jeffrey Hicks]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMKtFNwgb6M


where it all went wrong on the gong show...I wasnt complaining though...

[roweenie]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMKtFNwgb6M


where it all went wrong on the gong show...I wasnt complaining though...

I remember seeing that when it originally aired - it left quite an impression on me, to say the least...

Speaking of, Chuck Barris passed away today here in NY....

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/03/22/a ... eator.html" target="_blank

[Dan Schultz]

A friend had access to a Cutlass with a 442 c.u. engine...

Uh, Joe.... the moniker '442' had nothing to do with engine displacement. It stood for '4 barrel', '4 speed', and 'dual exhaust' (or in some circles '2 door'.

Olds did not build a 442 CID engine. Most of the '442' muscle cars had 400 CID or 455 CID engines. The later ones had 307 CID or 350 CID engines.

[roweenie]

The later ones had 307 CID or 350 CID engines.

I had a 1968 Chevy Nova (Chevy II) four-door with a "small block" 307 C.I.D. V-8 in it, with a 3 speed (on-the-column shift) transmission (I didn't know that they used that engine in the Oldsmobile too). If I recall, GM made that engine for only a few years - it was pretty damned powerful for its size, and that car had plenty of giddy-up.....

I wish I had that car today - it was one of my all-time favorites (and not just because of the motor, either.... )

[windshieldbug]

... then there was the infamous Cadillac Fleetwood V-8-6-4

[arpthark]

I drove a '92 Lumina Z-34 for a while... small car, lots of zip, horrible gas mileage. I was so excited on a long highway trip to finally break 20mpg. It averaged ~12mpg city driving. Automatic transmission.

My '98 Chevy S10 did much better in that department (and was a manual transmission).

What's the fun in driving a fast car if you don't have a stick!?

Sidenote: anybody still drive stick?

[Three Valves]

My last stick was a Nissan Sentra I traded in on my 2002 VW Wagon (still own the wagon)

It does have a manual clutchless option, however.

[bort]

Depends on the car. A small, sporty car? Sure, go for the stick!

But a large German sedan -- which will go plenty fast -- would kind of be silly with a stick. Why spend all that money for such a comfortable car, only to have to do all that work yourself? Maybe I'm just lazy... but I sure don't want a stick. Even the "auto-stick" option is kind of a gimmick and just becomes a bother after a while.

[roweenie]

The only way I could ever "enjoy" driving a standard transmission is having the gear shifter on the column - I don't think this has been offered in a car for many years (along with front bench seats, which I also miss )

The last car I had with a front bench seat was a 1992 Chevrolet Lumina 4 door. That car was great in the snow.....

[Heavy_Metal]

Sidenote: anybody still drive stick?

Me.

And don't forget that a stickshift is an anti-theft device- the hemorrhoids that steal cars generally can't drive one with a stick.

[tofu]

I love driving manual transmissions. It is the hand/eye coordinated thinking man's transmission and in the hands of a skilled driver allows you to drive faster, smoother and better. I own a lot of sticks with some going back 80 plus years. If you think driving a modern stick is more thinking than you like try one where you have to double shift (non-synchronous transmission), a shift pattern different than the modern pattern along with a long throw, have to retard/advance spark, adjust fuel mixture and throttle along with no power steering, mechanical linkage drum brakes and no power steering on a 5000 pound car. And those of use like myself who spent a lot of time on the track doing SCCA sports car racing know things like heel and toe shifting are just way too much fun to give up. Out of 15 cars I have just one automatic - my pickup for pulling the show car trailer and a CVT in my 2017 Subaru Outback that I bought for winter driving/tuba hauling/bicycle hauling. If they still offered it I might have bought the Outback with a manual and while the CVT is one of the best CVT's available I find I can drive it better using the paddle shifters but they still don't involve you in the driving process like a true manual transmission does.

But a large German sedan -- which will go plenty fast -- would kind of be silly with a stick.

Gosh - you better tell that to the folks with the "ultimate driving machine" over at BMW. It hasn't been that many years where you could even get an auto in a Bimmer. But they succumbed to the status chasers with more money than brains who could never master a manual.

Why spend all that money for such a comfortable car, only to have to do all that work yourself?

Because in the hands of a talented driver driving is a pleasure and an art form. Not everybody can do it or gets it. I'm sure the coming driverless cars will be a god send for the brain dead masses who would rather have somebody or something else do everything (including thinking) for them.

[bort]

... only to have to do all that work yourself?

But that is the whole point. What you are calling "work" is the JOY of driving for many of us. You can have just as much fun going somewhere as you will have after you have arrived. More, in many cases.

Nah, I get it. I've tried driving stick before, and I totally understand the appeal. Just depends on the vehicle to me -- in a nice car (non-sports car), I want to be relaxed and enjoy the smooth ride. In a sporty car, a Jeep, or even any pickup truck, totally makes sense to me, and it does look like fun. I guess I'm just a car person, don't make me think!

PS -- tofu, is this a bad time to mention I have a BMW?

[Three Valves]

Depends on the car. A small, sporty car? Sure, go for the stick!

But a large German sedan -- which will go plenty fast -- would kind of be silly with a stick. Why spend all that money for such a comfortable car, only to have to do all that work yourself? Maybe I'm just lazy... but I sure don't want a stick. Even the "auto-stick" option is kind of a gimmick and just becomes a bother after a while.

I like to use the shift paddles to downshift into turns.

[Donn]

I sort of miss the bench seats and shift on the column, in my old Plymouth, but if I remember right the automatic would have been "push button", which would have been sweet. The lady of the house's Honda would be a much better ride with an automatic.

My motorcycle came with that option too. The original owner wanted the automatic, to replace his that had perished in a garage fire, but by that time (1986) they were scarce and he was unable to get one in the US, so he settled for the standard manual. The automatic was a torque converter design, a lot of fun to ride and pretty reliable, but also with more than a few things to go wrong and required some specialized knowledge to diagnose and fix.

There have been times I'd sure have liked to have that, usually involving long lines of traffic, either in the city or a road maintenance backup out in the open. The more I have to operate it, the less I like that manual transmission, and for me, that's all the clue I need.

[scottw]

If your knees are shot, you will do well to avoid that clutch! Maybe I should not have logged all those miles on the trucks, huh?

[Three Valves]

Many new auto transmissions are sealed and are simply replaced wholesale when they start crapping out. This is by design. So yes, no one seems to really "work" on the new autos anymore.

A tranny swap on my wife's '97 Accord cost 800.00 about ten years ago.

That seemed VERY reasonable!!

[windshieldbug]

Today is NO POSTING DAY.

Who gets a letter on Sunday?
(or even who gets a letter anymore?? )

[scottw]

Today is NO POSTING DAY.

Who gets a letter on Sunday?
(or even who gets a letter anymore?? )

Do bills count as a letter?