Hi Bud,
Yep, I agree with the motivation factor....It's really about her
desire to learn, plus having some hand/eye coordination....When I first got
the car over 30 years ago, mom insisted on driving it. She had no problem
driving the TR. WWII generation folks could drive anything!
Pat
________________________________
From: Francis Precht <FPrecht@frostburg.edu>
To: triumphs@autox.team.net
Sent: Sun, March 28, 2010 1:55:15 PM
Subject: Re:
[TR] Learning to drive a TR
IMHO, it all depends on: the teacher, the
student, and the car. I have 2
daughters, aged 18 and 21. Both learned to
drive in an automatic. I
originally justified buying the '65 TR4A so the
older daughter could drive it
her last 2 years of high school (I thought how
cool would that be!!!). Well,
the driver ed teacher asked what kind of car all
the students would likely be
driving, then made an offhand comment about
wanting something with more
protection around him. So, I got her a '94 Geo
Tracker (pink!!). She loved
it because it looked like a Barbie car. That
lasted 3 months until unwilling
to down-shift she slid on some ice turning too
fast thru a green light, hit
the curb, and bent 2 rims and sliced up 2 tires.
She hasn't even tried to
drive a manual since.
Now the other daughter (now
18) has always wanted to drive 'Speedy' the TR
since she was 12. Nothing's
going to stop her!! In fact, I wish she would
SLOW DOWN. 2 chargeable
accidents and a speeding ticket. And, I think she's
broken the rear end
differential mounting bolts as there is now a clunk back
there. She still has
a little problem with hill starts-a real issue since we
live in the mountains.
I learned to drive on an automatic. HAD to learn a manual shift when as a
laborer on a summer job the electrician said go get coffee and tossed me the
keys. I said I couldn't drive a stick.....he said go get coffee or don't come
back. He watched as I stalled it trying to get it rolling, and laughed. When
I got back with the coffee he asked where the creamer was. That was my
father!!
So, if the person WANTS to learn to drive a stick, they will. I
think the
motivation (or lack of) is the deciding factor. Find a large empty
parking
lot and let her have a go at it. The car you can always fix. The
memory of
having her uncle teach her will last a lifetime.
bud precht
'65
TR4A
'52 MGTD (sorry, but yes it's an MG. and I love it just as much as the
TR....but for different reasons. Sort of like my 2 daughters!)
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