I'm probably the oldest member to post in this thread.
I learned in a 51 Desoto flat head 6 with the semi auto gear box. The 1-2 shift was manual, but the 2-3 shifted just by lifting off the gas pedal and it would clunk into high.
My first car was a 54 Ford 4-door with the 239 V8 and 3-speed stick. I put a floor shifter in it. The levers wouldn't clear the floor so the pattern was upside down. When cruising, I made sure people saw me push the shifter forward for first gear so it looked like I had a 4-speed.
