Auto shifting manual?

[rusty ol ranger]

Quite a number of years ago, i was contemplating the opposite. Putting a clutch in place of a torque convertor. Never did look into it seriously tho, just no time or money. And it was before the web made research easy.

Dodge had something like that in the 40s on their pickups. Used a clutch to take off and stop but it shifted automatically

 

[Blmpkn]

Quite a number of years ago, i was contemplating the opposite. Putting a clutch in place of a torque convertor. Never did look into it seriously tho, just no time or money. And it was before the web made research easy.

There were kits to do just that aimed at the drag strippers back in the 60s-70s, Clutch-flite or clutch-turbo. There was hardly such thing as a performance converter back then so adding a clutch was the easiest way to mess with your "stall speed"

With no converter to soak up the shock load of shifting gear with your foot flat to your floor a lot of those transmissions would explode in grand fashion.

 

[Lefty]

I drove a 5 speed stick pickup with a carbureted engine for many years. It was kind of stubborn in cold weather. You had to heel-and-toe in order to brake and clutch while putting your foot on the gas. The head mechanic at the local shop was the only one who could drive it. Nobody else knew how.

I miss manuals: both for great mileage and performance. And part of it all was human factor: the eye sight and physical energy which assisted the mechanical process. If you saw a traffic light change up ahead, you could stab the clutch and let the truck coast, or if you needed power on demand, You could drop down a gear and rev up with no throttle delay. I towed a boat and trailer with just 4 cylinders for many years.

Driving stick also helps with driver education, giving us all a greater understanding of the road and what exactly is going on.