"Very Slow" Dodge for sale

[Hudsy Wudsy]

Here's a link to a Craigslist ad for a '52 Dodge that's for sale. The seller points out that it "lacks climate control", has a "2-speed column shift" and is very slow. I'm thinking someone should tell him where first gear is:

1952 dodge

[Phil 32DL6]

It probably has a "Gyromatic" in it. That's a setup that has a clutch pedal, but also has a fluid coupling. I learned to drive on a 1951 DeSoto station wagon with a similar "Tip-Toe Hydraulic Shift".

This is from Wikipedia:

"Fluid Drive could also be mated to the semi-automatic transmission, which was not automatic in any way and should not be confused with Fluid Drive. With the semi-automatic transmissions, the driver shifted manually, selecting reverse or a low range and a high range. Each 'range' had two speeds. To shift between them, the driver accelerated then released pressure on the accelerator. In high range, this shift point was about 23 mph (37 kmh). The transmission shifted into high speed range, the driver then depressed the accelerator pedal, and continued accelerating. The solenoids on the transmission connected to the carburetor and ignition system and momentarily interrupted engine operation to allow trouble-free shifting.

The driver could down-shift for passing by fully depressing the accelerator. The clutch was needed to change between low and high range. The fluid drive system allowed the driver to stop at a light or in traffic and remain in gear without depressing the clutch. The driver could, if not concerned with fast acceleration, drive the car all day long in high range, stopping and starting, without ever having to touch the clutch pedal or gearshift lever unless faster acceleration or reversing was required. For this reason, DeSotos and Dodges were favored by city cab companies from the mid Forties to early Fifties.

The semi-automatic came under a variety of names - Vacamatic, Prestomatic, Fluidmatic (Chrysler), Simplimatic, Tip-Toe Hydraulic Shift (DeSoto) and Gyromatic (Dodge)."

Edited May 9, 2013 by Phil 32DL6 (see edit history)