shifter
i just bought a 70 beetle, it has a stick 3 speed. The man told me its called an autostick. No clutch on the floor. U push down on the shifter when u shift, and that is the clutch. Nobody that ive talked with has ever heard of this. Does anybody know of this?? If so is it a good thing?
6 Answers
I have the same transmission in my 72 Karmann Ghia. They work fine with a stock or mildly hopped up engine. The clutch is operated by engine vacuum & the shifter has electrical contacts that actuate the clutch vacuum servo. The only advice I can give you is to make sure you don't hang onto the shifter while driving as if you move it at all it will disengage the clutch & you can over-rev teh engine.
I think they called similar transmission design semi-automatic ,not sure about that though.I,ve driven standard(manual transmission) or automatic transmission but not the auto stick.THis VW autostick has a torque converter like automatics have in the bell housing.
Yes, it is called an automatic stickshift. It has a torque converter & a clutch. They have 3 forward gears: low for very slow speeds, 1st for speeds up to about 40 mph & 2nd which is for highway speeds. They were marketed back in the late 60's & early 70's as a woman's car since they were easier to drive than a manual transmission.
I believe the shift point was 50 mph. It had Low and High positions. Use low to 50, high past 50. And don't drive with your hand resting on the gear shift. When any pressure is put on the gearshift it partially engages the clutch wearing it out prematurely.
I had one as my first car. 3 speed stick with no clutch petal. It was crazy!
