Voices from the past
Thursday, June 4, 2009 at 08:48PM Ride the clutch: to keep partially engaged by slightly depressing a pedal with the foot.
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I am borrowing my brother's 1997 Toyota Tacoma pickup for a few weeks. On a late night drive home from the airport last month, my Ford* Ranger pickup overheated without my noticing it. I guess idiot lights are not enough for some idiots. Even after fixing, flushing, and refilling the cooling system, it looks like the truck is a goner without some extensive repairs to expensive sounding parts like head gaskets and pistons. Dealers won't take the truck as a trade-in since it has a salvage title (why I got a deal on it in the first place). Donating it to a charity does not seem very charitable.
So I have been keenly following the proposed "Cash for Clunkers" legislation. In various iterations, the plan would create an economic incentive (up to $4500) for drivers of vehicles getting poor mileage to scrap their junkers and purchase new vehicles that get many more miles per gallon. Helps the environment, helps slumping auto sales, and provides people like me with a slick way to get rid of a worthless piece of rusting sheet metal. This would be my little piece of economic stimulus. I only hope I can spend it as wisely as the auto and banking executives have spent theirs.
Body double for the real truck.
So while I wait to see what transpires congressionally, my little brother is letting me use his truck. At 100,000 miles plus, it's in good shape and drives well, although it does shimmy a little between 90 and 95 mph. So it's handy to have the truck bed into which one can just toss the parts that fall off. (Just teasing, Jeff.)
It's the first time in quite a while I've driven a vehicle with a manual transmission - and it's fun. I had once sworn I'd never drive a vehicle with power windows or an automatic transmission, but somehow I turned into an old fart and now sort of appreciate those conveniences - along with remote door locks, AC and cruise.
What I find interesting is that every time I go to change gears, I hear my dad's voice growling, "Don't ride the damn clutch!" I heard this a lot when I was learning to drive in Dad's old farm pickup (three-speed on the column). It takes awhile for beginning drivers to get the "feel" of releasing the clutch and applying the gas in a ratio that provides smooth acceleration. So learners often keep their left foot on the clutch pedal itself between shifts where it can be easily found when it's needed. According to Dad, this slight pressure results in the nearly immediate destruction of the clutch mechanism, leading to expensive repairs for which I would be responsible.
I learned to drive over 40 years ago, and I still hear, "Don't ride the damn clutch!" each time I shift.
What voices from the past do you hear that still advise you? What advice have you given to your children or students that you hope they will hear 40 years later?
*FORD - Fix Or Repair Daily
