Three speed manual transmission with shifter on the steering column.
Compare to “four on the floor”.
As opposed to “four on the floor and a fifth under the seat”.
Anybody hearing the Beach Boys (top down, hair flying)?
Good times. 
Wife’s first car was an '86 Mecrury Linx. No AC and had the manual crank windows. Purchased in CA and we drove it to NH when she moved back east with me. (girlfriend at the time, engaged within 6 months). Her first NH winter she was driving home from work in a snowstorm and got pulled over by a NH state trooper (guess her tail light was busted or something like that). She cranked the window down and the handle broker off (I swear this is true). Had to drive home about an hour with her window fully open, freezing and getting pelted in the face with snow. Talk about a fish out of water.
Just celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary. We laugh about it now. 
I knew it was time to get a new car when the family station wagon rained down rust on all occupants when you shut the door. It would also have doors fly open when you made a turn. The kicker was when it would randomly stall in the middle of the night. 
Never again drove a car as exciting as the old station wagon and never hope to—didn’t let my kids drive anything like it either!
Anyone remember these?
- Car radio with mechanical preset buttons that would stay pressed in after pressing them to get to the preset station.
- Car with stock tires with 70, 80, or 90 aspect ratio (sidewall height to tread width in percent).
- Car without rear window defogger.
- Two door non-convertible car with rear windows that rolled down.
- Car with manual transmission and foot operated parking brake.
Snow tires which my dad religiously put on every season. Until I was old enough and then that was my chore. What a pain that was but I can change a tire in minutes
So I mentioned I am at a medical conference but in the same building is https://www.mecum.com/collector-cars/
Everything that has been mentioned I have seen today… Lol. ??
Amazing and some extremely affordable cars to my surprise… I am reliving my boyhood.
dimmer switch on the floor brought back childhood memories of my father’s floor mats shifting and covering the tiny metal button- forgot all about this until I read it
Our car had a rear window defrost–us kids, told to crawl into the station wagon trunk with any old rag we could find and wipe off the window.
^ exactly. Those were really fun times.
My wife tells me stories about her family VW van. FIL took out the back seats (circa 1970) and replaced with two saw horses so the kids could put a sheet across the top and pretend they were camping (seemed normal at the time I guess). They drove all over the west coast that way. Imagine saw horses turned into projectiles (or kids not strapped in for that matter). But she had a great / fun childhood for sure (and lived to tell about it)!
If I recall, something about the engine or radiator or something was accessed through a console in the cabin. Got really hot when driving. They used to warm up their McDonald’s frys on it. Wonder how many of those vans internally combusted?
Old Volkswagen bug with heat or defrost? Hahahahahaha.
I carried a joint compound spatula in my bug…and used it to scrape the ice off the inside of my windows.
Let’s just say…those cars had heat in the summer when you didn’t want it…and no heat in the winter when you needed it.
My parents had a '65 VW Bug. I was an only child. They took out the rear seat and installed plywood so I could use the entire area to play. We drove all over the country in that car.
H and I got a big kick out of this thread. We remember most all of them…sigh. The first several cars for both of us had manual brakes and steering. AM radio. H1’s first Nissan truck had neither radio or rear bumper.
These stories are so funny and funnier since their true. ?