Remember drivers ed in HS?

[mike newman]

8 hours ago, Diesel Doctor said:

Us farm kids laughed at the city kids for having to take Drivers Ed.

The farm kids could have taught the class.

By the time we got into high school, we could run 80 mph on a gravel road and keep the shiny side up.

Today, few kids can drive safe on gravel and the manual transmission is an anti-theft device.

 

...apart from what is perceived to be the most necessary  subjects....for this journey into adulthood.....""Farm Kids'' with very few exceptions , were the ''rock stars' of the class......

Guess  that is changing ...due to the diminishing number of farms..in all our various countries

Shame

Mike

[Farmall Doctor]

5 hours ago, Diesel Doctor said:

One of the best courses I ever took was Emergency Vehicle Operations Course (EVOC)

It taught you what Physics would allow you to do with a car and what it would not.

We went through a new set of tires a day, on each car, so we were getting a bit aggressive.

They actually paid me to take that course and I would have paid them.

Every kid should take that course as it teaches you to drive your way out of trouble rather than braking, hoping and waiting for the crash.

I caught myself driving out of trouble many times and looking at the safety of the ditch, if needed.

 

Yes! There was more than once in the 30 years of driving the '79 Chevrolet Scottsdale 20 with BIG brakes that I learned to not touch the brake pedal and just steer into the clear! If I even glanced at that pedal, the wheels would have locked up and I would have hand no control at all. 

[Farmall Doctor]

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[1480x3]

13 hours ago, Red Flyer said:

1972 Oldsmobile Delta 88.  

Had a brand new 1974 olds 88.  Teacher, me & my buddy, and 2 girls. We took it in the summer just out of 9th grade, it was offered by our school. Was not required but insurance was cheaper & could get license sooner. 125ish kids in 2 weeks of 9 to noon book studying. During that 2 weeks there was afternoon driving then after them 2 weeks AM & PM driving groups. The driving was 2 hrs a day for 2 weeks. My driving group was an afternoon group while morning book learning was going on. Seems like there was about 6 cars & instructors. My buddy & me drove very little, farm kids, we mostly sit in the back with one of the cheerleaders oops i mean girls. Driving Instructors were teachers & administrators. Book learning was done by state police. Some movies with a lot of gore from crashes.

[Rusty_Farmer]

My wife was use to driving her dad's farm pickup ,3 on the tree. Driver training was a LTD auto.,needless to say she kept looking for the clutch and reaching for the shift . I drove the 300 use less tillity to driver ed.  Had a Chev Impala auto. with the extra brake petal too. My oldest son had a farm permit so taking the pickup to drivers ed was no big deal.All the rest of my kids had  hrs logged in on tractors and pickups or suburbans as well.They still drive full size pickups .

[JaredT]

My first ride was an 84 LTD, had to resurrect it from the 2 years worth of weeds it was sitting in. I didn't need a defensive driving class after driving that thing. It had a high idle and no exhaust. I could be stopped with it on ice and one of the back wheels would slowly spin, back brakes were shot. All 4 tires were junk, had 3 flats in one day and local tire guy just laughed saying the tires weren't worth fixing.  We never stayed home on the weekends and that car was the first one out the driveway to pick everyone up, even if the snow was bumper deep. That car could cut doughnuts on the corner in the winter until someone was ready to toss their cookies, figure 8s in parking lots around the light poles was always fun too.  Turns out 4 guys and 6 or 7 girls in that car was a fun and interesting ride and if someone accidentally bumped the hose for the keg it could hold a lot of beer in the rear foot wells. 

[vtfireman85]

On 5/5/2023 at 7:08 AM, stronger800 said:

Here she is.  Some of you guys have never seen one of these. Others of you will remember when you knew at least three people that had one. Google says it was 100 hp and got 21 miles to the gallon. Real piece of technology right there.

My buddy’s family actually had them for years, one 4th of July we were busy throwing cherry bombs out the window, He was driving, threw one out the driver side window, wind caught it and somehow flipped it around landing it on the windshield wipers.- Had just about enough time to say “Oh $hit”!  

I have always been impressed with Chrysler economy cars. They lack pizzaz, but they go forever and cost very little. I particularly liked the Neon.

[stronger800]

Well…..you’re the first guy I’ve ever heard say that lol.   
the Stratus/avenger/200 style ones were more popular in this area in the economy bracket.   Haven’t seen on a neon or any of those others in years.  NY salt got them. 

[stronger800]

They made a Neon with a factory turbo too didn’t they? That, or dodge offered a kit.  I remember a guy throwing a fit at the dealership one day back when I had my ‘01 1500.  Turns out a turbo neon wasn’t very powerful either 

[barkerwc4362]

June of 1969 I took driver's ED.  The shop teacher was one of the instructors and we all knew him well.  Drove one of those Pontiac Vista Cruiser station wagons, what a boat!.  We just had to learn how to drive an automatic boat.   There was a pylon course we had to go through forward and backward.  When it came my turn the instructor had to take a leak and went inside while I proceeded to go through both ways.  My two partners were amazed.  The instructor didn't believe me or them and made me do it again.  Which I did.  Like has been said before it's a whole lot easier without a wagon or auger box attached.  I still amaze my wife with being able to back a trailer or 5th wheel using just the mirrors.

Bill

[farmall666]

WE HAD TWO CARS. I DONT REMEMBER THE OTHER ONE BUT MINE WAS A 78/79 OLDSMOBILE CUTLAS SUPREME TWO DOOR. ORANGE WITH WHITE BUCKETS. V-6 AUTO. TEACHER KNEW I WAS A FARM BOY. HE JUST TURNED ME LOOSE. I DROVE THE OLD FARM PICKUP TO SCGOOL WITHOUT DL. PARKED IN BACK ROW SAID NOTHING TO NO ONE.

[Rainman]

Drivers' Ed car was 60's Chrysler/Dodge 4 door Boat with front passenger brake. Don't remember driving it. But summer of '65 at age 14, I was driving the farms 1960 IHC 3/4 T pickup (Six'/4spd) from second farm through town's main street to get to home farm. As luck would have it, I avoided the town cop and made it back without incident. I had a sigh of relief after reaching out skirts of town.

Summer of '67, still working on same Dairy farm I had temps, so no hurry to get D. license. Finally had time off & got dad's '62 Rambler American 2 door 3 on tree for getting DL. DMV tester had me drive around Mad City & stopped me on a hill. He said pull parking brake, leave out of gear. The car started to roll back; he said Stop! I said the parking brake was not working. Then I drove on. DMV tester did pass me, but noted to Fix Parking Brake on paper work. Passed the first test so extra driving time helped ... I guess. I don't remember if the parking brake ever got fixed...

[lotsaIHCs]

Ours was a 1983 Plymouth Reliant K. 2.6 Mitsubishi carbureted "Hemi". What a gutless piece of dogschmidt! Made our 84 Cutlass Ciera with the 2.5 Iron Duke TBI feel like a racecar!

[KWRB]

On 5/6/2023 at 10:17 AM, vtfireman85 said:

I have always been impressed with Chrysler economy cars. They lack pizzaz, but they go forever and cost very little. I particularly liked the Neon.

My parents bought a K Car new, in like 1980 or something, before I was born. That thing went forever. Even after it was replaced they held onto it before selling it to a migrant worker here with his family. And my dad would not have allowed it to leave for payment if it were junk.

Then, my sister had one as her first car (Dodge 600). She wrecked it and got a K. Then second sister got the same thing when she got a car. By the time I was old enough for mine, the K's and 600's were all a little long in the tooth. So after an ill advised $300 Ford Tempo, I got a V6, ten year old Dodge Spirit that I ran for six years back and forth to, and around campus. I repaired it with spare parts from another my dad had been running until he parked it in the weeds specifically for me to be able to cannibalize for parts. I had that until I bought my first new car in 2006.

The drivetrains WAY outlasted front ends and bodies.

So yeah, my family has a special place in our hearts for the Chrysler economy cars. All together I think we've owned, maybe ten, and they've all been good to us. And they were good to Chrysler too. As I heard it, their success saved the company. Thanks Lee Iococca!

[oleman]

School  had a 58 Chevy, 4 door full size 6 cyl and power glide for drivers ed class in 1960, BUT my family could not afford the cost of the class so none of my family got any drivers education except driving on the farm, or on back roads so bad that law enforcement wouldn't dare to venture out on them in their Fords.  I got my drivers license AFTER I got a paying job driving a delivery vehicle for an office equipment store.

[vtfireman85]

1 hour ago, KWRB said:

My parents bought a K Car new, in like 1980 or something, before I was born. That thing went forever. Even after it was replaced they held onto it before selling it to a migrant worker here with his family. And my dad would not have allowed it to leave for payment if it were junk.

Then, my sister had one as her first car (Dodge 600). She wrecked it and got a K. Then second sister got the same thing when she got a car. By the time I was old enough for mine, the K's and 600's were all a little long in the tooth. So after an ill advised $300 Ford Tempo, I got a V6, ten year old Dodge Spirit that I ran for six years back and forth to, and around campus. I repaired it with spare parts from another my dad had been running until he parked it in the weeds specifically for me to be able to cannibalize for parts. I had that until I bought my first new car in 2006.

The drivetrains WAY outlasted front ends and bodies.

So yeah, my family has a special place in our hearts for the Chrysler economy cars. All together I think we've owned, maybe ten, and they've all been good to us. And they were good to Chrysler too. As I heard it, their success saved the company. Thanks Lee Iococca!

Dad bought a wrecked 84 tempo, he did body work on the side at that point, repaired it and thought he had done a stroke of business. Said it was the worst vehicle he had ever owned, after a short while the flexplate broke on it. They were so new he couldn’t get one, even from Ford. It sat idle waiting for parts and he bought a Cutlass Supreme,  then I think the Cutlass and the Tempo got sold for a Cavalier wagon, they drove that for years and eventually sold it to my cousin who continued to drive it.  

[Captian Kirk]

I went out practice driving in an 87 Lincoln Town Car. No idea why my dad bought that boat. Drove it and a 1/4 ton around, but I took my test in a small honda civic 5 speed. Test guy was impressed I did it in a standard. 

There was around 4 feet of snow here when I tested also.

[yellowrosefarm]

The only thing I remember about drivers ed in 1975 was the film (real film with real projector) they showed where 3 teenagers lost their heads in an accident by driving under a semi trailer.  Some of the girls in the class almost fainted.

[New Englander]

1 hour ago, Captian Kirk said:

did it in a standard

I sent my kids off to their tests with a standard Jeep. The RMV folks seemed impressed my daughter did it in a stick. I don't think they made a big deal out of my son. I was determined they'd learn on a manual. Son still drives a manual BMW. My daughter got in a minor crash with the Jaguar X-Type standard but it was deemed a total. Too bad, it was a nice car but she loves the BMW X1 she's got now.

I wanted to make sure, amongst other things, that if they traveled to Europe they could rent a car with out a problem as many there are still stick shifts. It seems the Europeans still like them.