Editing Manual transmission (section)

== Gear shift types ==
{{Main article|Gear stick}}
[[File:shift stick.jpg|thumb|right|Floor-mounted gear stick in a [[Mazda Protege]] passenger car]]
[[File:Manual Layout.svg|thumb|left|upright=0.75|Common shift pattern for a 5-speed transmission]]

In most vehicles with a manual transmission, the driver selects gears by manipulating a lever called a ''gear stick'' (also called a ''gearshift'', ''gear lever'' or ''shifter''). In most automobiles, the gear stick is located on the floor between the driver and front passenger, but some cars have a gear stick that is mounted to the steering column or center console.

The movement of the gear stick is transferred (via solid linkages or cables) to the selector forks within the transmission.

Motorcycles typically employ [[sequential manual transmission]]s, although the shift pattern is modified slightly for safety reasons. Gear selection is usually via the left-foot (or, on older motorcycles; right-foot) shift lever with a layout of {{nobr|1–N–2–3–4–5–6.}}

=== "Three on the tree" vs. "four on the floor" ===
During the period when U.S. vehicles usually had only three forward speeds, the most common gear-shifter location was on the steering column, a layout that was sometimes called "three on the tree". By contrast, high-performance cars, and European vehicles in general, mostly used a four-speed transmission with floor-mounted shifters. That layout was referred to as "four on the floor".

Most [[FR layout|FR (front-engined, rear-wheel drive)]] vehicles have a transmission that sits between the driver and the front passenger seat. Floor-mounted shifters are often connected directly to the transmission. [[FF layout|FF (front-engined, front-wheel drive)]] vehicles, [[RR layout|RR (rear-engined, rear-wheel drive)]] vehicles and front-engined vehicles with rear-mounted gearboxes often require a mechanical linkage to connect the shifter to the transmission.

=== {{anchor|Three on the tree|Column-mounted shifter|Column shift|Column}} Column-mounted shifter ===

[[File:SAAB96-interior.jpg|thumb|right|Column mounted gear shift lever in a [[Saab 96]]]]

Some vehicles have a gear lever mounted on the steering column. A 3-speed column shifter, which came to be popularly known as a "three on the tree", began appearing in America in the late 1930s and became common during the 1940s and 1950s. If a U.S. vehicle was equipped with [[overdrive (mechanics)|overdrive]], it was very likely to be a [[Borg-Warner]] type, operated by briefly backing off the accelerator pedal when above {{convert|28|mph|abbr=on}} to enable, and momentarily flooring the same pedal to return to normal gear. The control simply disables overdrive for such situations as parking on a hill or preventing unwanted shifting into overdrive.{{citation needed|date=April 2012}}

[[File:Manual Layout 3.svg|125px]]

Later, European and Japanese models began to have 4-speed column shifters with this shift pattern:

[[File:Column4MT.svg|125px]]

A majority of North American-spec vehicles sold in the U.S. and Canada had a 3-speed column-mounted shifter—the first generation Chevrolet/GMC vans of 1964–70 vintage had an ultra-rare 4-speed column shifter. The column-mounted manual shifter disappeared in North America by the mid-1980s, last appearing in the 1987 [[Chevrolet Scottsdale|Chevrolet pickup truck]]. Prior to 1980, the GM X platform compacts (Chevrolet Nova and its rebadged corporate clones) were the final passenger cars to have a column-mounted manual shifter. Outside North America, the column-mounted shifter remained in production. All [[Toyota Crown]] and [[Nissan Cedric]] [[taxicabs of Hong Kong|taxis in Hong Kong]] had the 4-speed column shift until 1999 when automatic transmissions were first offered. Since the late 1980s or early 1990s,{{Vague|date=May 2011}} a 5-speed column shifter has been offered in some vans sold in Asia and Europe, such as [[Toyota Hiace]], [[Mitsubishi Delica|Mitsubishi L400]] and the first-gen [[Fiat Ducato]]. Many European cars had manual column shifts and the Renault 16TX had a 5 speed.

Column shifters are mechanically similar to floor shifters, although shifting occurs in a vertical plane instead of a horizontal one. Because the shifter is further away from the transmission, and the movements at the shifter and at the transmission are in different planes, column shifters require more complicated [[linkage (mechanical)|linkage]] than floor shifters. Advantages of a column shifter are the ability to switch between the two most commonly used gears—second and third—without letting go of the steering wheel, and the lack of interference with passenger seating space in vehicles equipped with a [[bench seat]].

===Console-mounted shifter===
Some smaller cars in the 1950s and 1960s, such as [[Citroën 2CV]], [[Renault 4]] and early [[Renault 5]] feature a shifter in the dash panel. This was cheaper to manufacture than a column shifter and more practical, as the gearbox was mounted in front of the engine. The linkage for the shifter could then be positioned on top of the engine. The disadvantage is that shifting is less comfortable and usually slower to operate.

Newer small cars and [[minivan|MPV]]s, like the [[Suzuki MR Wagon]], the [[Fiat Multipla]], the [[Toyota Matrix]], the [[Pontiac Vibe]], the [[Chrysler RT platform]] cars, the [[Honda Element]], the [[Honda Civic]], the [[Daihatsu Sigra]], and the [[Honda Avancier]], may feature a manual or [[automatic transmission]] gear shifter located on the vehicle's instrument panel, similar to the mid-1950s [[PowerFlite|Chryslers]] and [[Powerglide]] [[Chevrolet Corvair|Corvair]]s. Console-mounted shifters are similar to floor-mounted gear shifters in that most of the ones used in modern vehicles operate on a horizontal plane and can be mounted to the vehicle's transmission in much the same way a floor-mounted shifter can. However, because of the location of the gear shifter in comparison to the locations of the column shifter and the floor shifter, as well as the positioning of the shifter to the rest of the controls on the panel often require that the gearshift be mounted in a space that does not feature a lot of controls integral to the vehicle's operation, or frequently used controls, such as those for the [[car stereo|stereo system]] or [[car air conditioning|HVAC system]], to help prevent accidental activation or driver confusion.

More and more small cars and vans from manufacturers such as [[Suzuki]], [[Honda]], and [[Volkswagen]] are featuring console shifters in that they free up space on the floor for other features such as storage compartments without requiring that the gear shift be mounted on the steering column. Also, the basic location of the gear shift in comparison to the column shifter makes console shifters easier to operate than column shifters.
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