it was a long time ago...
the first car I ever "drove" was my mother's 1962 Ford Anglia, the one with the reverse slope rear window. I was about 11 or 12 and was allowed to inch it up and down the driveway to learn to use the clutch.
we didn't have Drivers Ed at school (most Aussie schools still don't AFAIK) so my driver education was going out with my mother in her car, by then a 1974 Renault 12 which I loved and which eventually became mine. It was manual trans with a long gear lever and beautiful comfy seats. It was a great car to learn in, it gave nice feedback as if it were talking to you.If fuelled my love of French cars that continues today.
I also got a bit of practise in my sister's 1978 Ford Escort, again manual trans, the 1.6 Kent engine. It was a very lively car, lots of fun to drive. My sister was still on a probationary license so it was illegal for her to be my qualified driver in the passenger seat, but we did it many times. Don't tell anyone... the Escort was bright orange with a black vinyl interior, we nicknamed it "the Jaffa." Australians and new Zealanders will know why, others click the link...
I had 2 professional lessons, they were in a little Mazda 1500 or 1800. They were a pretty little car but as dull as a cold bath to drive. It was a floor shift so I think that makes it an 1800.
At the time if you did your driving test in an automatic, you got an auto-only licence, not sure if that is still the case or not.
In Australia we have a probationary licence for the first three years, in some states for the first year you can't drive faster than 80 km/h and can't carry more than one passenger in the car.
Back in my day the probationary period was severe, max speed 80km/h (50mph); ANY driving infringement and you would automatically lose your licence and have to start a learners permit again. You could go to court to plead that losing a licence would be too detrimental, in my case I got caught thrashing my Morris 1100 at 100 in a 60 zone, and had to face court as losing a license meant I would not be able to get to university or to the volunteer work I was doing on weekends. I had to get a barrister which cost a lot more than I could afford, and got character references to say I was a good kid, and I was let off with a good behaviour bond and a fine...phew!!
My first car of my own was an Austin 1800 which I bought from a neighbour for $50. I loved it! Slow as a wet week to get up to speed, but once you wound it up you didn't have to slow down for corners as it great handling with the hydrolastic suspension.
https://www.allenslollies.com.au/jaffas-120g.html
the first car I ever "drove" was my mother's 1962 Ford Anglia, the one with the reverse slope rear window. I was about 11 or 12 and was allowed to inch it up and down the driveway to learn to use the clutch.
we didn't have Drivers Ed at school (most Aussie schools still don't AFAIK) so my driver education was going out with my mother in her car, by then a 1974 Renault 12 which I loved and which eventually became mine. It was manual trans with a long gear lever and beautiful comfy seats. It was a great car to learn in, it gave nice feedback as if it were talking to you.If fuelled my love of French cars that continues today.
I also got a bit of practise in my sister's 1978 Ford Escort, again manual trans, the 1.6 Kent engine. It was a very lively car, lots of fun to drive. My sister was still on a probationary license so it was illegal for her to be my qualified driver in the passenger seat, but we did it many times. Don't tell anyone... the Escort was bright orange with a black vinyl interior, we nicknamed it "the Jaffa." Australians and new Zealanders will know why, others click the link...
I had 2 professional lessons, they were in a little Mazda 1500 or 1800. They were a pretty little car but as dull as a cold bath to drive. It was a floor shift so I think that makes it an 1800.
At the time if you did your driving test in an automatic, you got an auto-only licence, not sure if that is still the case or not.
In Australia we have a probationary licence for the first three years, in some states for the first year you can't drive faster than 80 km/h and can't carry more than one passenger in the car.
Back in my day the probationary period was severe, max speed 80km/h (50mph); ANY driving infringement and you would automatically lose your licence and have to start a learners permit again. You could go to court to plead that losing a licence would be too detrimental, in my case I got caught thrashing my Morris 1100 at 100 in a 60 zone, and had to face court as losing a license meant I would not be able to get to university or to the volunteer work I was doing on weekends. I had to get a barrister which cost a lot more than I could afford, and got character references to say I was a good kid, and I was let off with a good behaviour bond and a fine...phew!!
My first car of my own was an Austin 1800 which I bought from a neighbour for $50. I loved it! Slow as a wet week to get up to speed, but once you wound it up you didn't have to slow down for corners as it great handling with the hydrolastic suspension.
https://www.allenslollies.com.au/jaffas-120g.html