What was the last year that a 3 speed manual on the column was offered by the Big 3 automakers? I remember them up through '57 in GM and I had a '56 Ford that was 3 on the tree but I'm drawing a blank from there forward. Everything after that for me was automatic or floor shift.
I've driven a lot of sixty something GM pickups with three on the tree an I think that they had them up into the seventies. I think the full syncro three speed in my 48 came out of a mid 70's truck my buddy junked out.
I had a brand new 84 Chevy,half ton with a straight 6,three on the tree.Biggest piece of junk I ever drove,luckily it was a company truck.ROY.
just out of the army in 1986 and gm financing went down to 2.9 percent with money i somehow was able to save.my dad co signed and i was the proud owner of a brand new 86 gmc work truck model short bed pick up.at $135.00 a month it had no radio,vinyl seats, no floor mats,small triangle window vents, great working floor vents,a 4.3 v6 with a rochester 4 bbl and 3 in the tree.. last year...drove that truck into the ground......only i could drive it... anybody else would mix the shift linkage up
...and when they couldn't find one of those, we sold lots of floor shift conversions at the parts store I worked in during the '80s.
Mid-'80s Dodges, Fords, and GM pickups could still be had with a three-speed on the column. I remember a new '85 Dodge D100 with a 225/3-speed on the showroom floor when I bought my '85 D150 new, and my old roomy had a 1984 F100 with a 300/3-speed column in '85. So, definitely 1985, at least.
Since you didn't mention car or truck, I'll assume car. manuals on the column could have been had on American cars to about 1971. trucks generally had them to about 1980 as the manufacturers radically changed out their manual gearboxes about the same time . The use of 90 w gear oil became a thing of the past . A T F took over the job of keeping manual gears cool. scrubba
I drove a 75-77 Nova back in the 80's that was a straight six, 3 on the tree combo. Great car back then!
My $300 '80 C/10 250 6-banger had a Sag. trans. "3-on-the-tree". Now it's a Sag. trans 4-on-the-floor. My Buddy drove tailgate for me to get it and then drive it like 20 miles to his place through the country. He had to use a stick to free it under the hood once to get it loose when I had to stop, then turn. Terrible linkage once it wore out!! He, He!! Ask how many 4-on-the-tree vehicles were there back then???? pdq67
Learned how to drive in a 74 Chevy C10, straight 6 and 3 in a tree in a shelter belt we cut wood in. Got the truck stuck between a couple of trees.... had to cut one down to get the truck out.
1971 was the last year Pontiac offered a 3 speed manual on the column in the full size models. 1968 was the last year you could get a 3 speed on the FLOOR in the full size models. Hope it helps.
The guy I bought my '70 Cutlass from also had a '75 Monte Carlo with a factory 350 and 3 on the tree. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it in person. I personally had a '76 Camaro that came stock with a 250 inline 6 and 3 on the floor. Mercedes used to offer cars with 4 speed on the tree. I think quite a few European cars had that, although maybe not offered in the States.
In the 70's I had a 64 Chevelle 2 door with a 6 and a 3 on the tree. The linkage would jam sometimes when I would "speed shift" it. I put in a 3 speed Hurst Indy floor shifter, chrome reverse wheels, jacked up the back end...it was the 70's. It was a nice car.
Trucks - Definitely through the 1985 model year, and Fords through 1986. Cars - I've owned a 1979 Chevy Nova, a '78 Camaro, and a 1980 Dodge Aspen that all had six-bangers with 3-speed column shifters. Dead-ass stockers.
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