Studebaker 1950 Commander User manual

CO N T EN T S
Instruments
and Controls
Run-in Period
Operating t he Car
Lubrication
If you must change a tire
Maintenance and Car. of Car
Service
and Adjultments
Seasonal Sorvicel .
Technical Reference
Data.
Index.

A WORD TO T HE OWNER
You ARE UNDOUBTEDLY AS PROUD of your new Stude-
baker as we who des ig ned and built it. Y ou will want it
to give you first cl ass performance at all times under all
co nd it ions of w eather and roads. And you'll wa nt to keep
.its sp
arkling, shining, new car appea rance.
To
tha t e nd we have assembled in this book informa-
ti on which we believe will guide you. We have included
th e mai n answers to the questions of W hat you have , Dow
it is operated, a nd How it is car ed f or .
We
have not atte mpted to ma ke a r epair or adjust men
m
anual of this Guid e, for such a book would be of little
value or inter e st to the aver ag e ow ner . We have included,
however, some
te chnical service inf ormation so that
\
will be ab le to give this b oo k to any mechanic for ezp.erg
service
or adj ustment if such e ver becomes nec es sary w
you
ar e awa y fro m the vi cinity of an authQ ri:z;e d Stud 'e -
bak er deale r.
Such an o cc asion rarel y ar ises, for you have thel as-
su ran ce of a friendly , na t io n-wide d ea ler service orga niza-
tion.
In ad dition, Studeba k er r egiona l offi ces and factory
parts depots are conv en ien tl y l ocab~d in l eadi ng cities
t
hrough out th e co un tr y.
Always
lo ok for the Studebake r a uth or ized service
sign.
It mea ns specialized a nd e xper ienced a tt en tion to
your c ar , and a continuing inter e st in yo ur sa tis f actory
use of it.
THE ST UDEBA KER CORPOR ATION
SOUTH BE ND 27. I NDIANA
2

ST UDEBAKER FACTORY ,WARRAN TY
WE WA RRA NT E ACH NEW M OT OR V EHI CLE sold by us to be free from
defects in m at er ial and wo rk manship u nder no rmal use a nd service,
our obligati on u nder this warranty being li mited to maki ng good at
Studeba ker f acto ri es any part or parts ther eof , including all equip-
ment or t rade ac cessories (except tires) su pp lied by St udebaker as
standard or o ptional eq u ipment, which shall, wi thin nine ty (90) days
a fter m ak i ng deliv er y of such vehicle to the or igin al pu rchase r or
before such vehicle has been driven four t! lOusand (4,0 00) m iles ,
wh ichever event shall first occur, be ret urned to us wi th, tra n sportation
ch arges prepaid and wh ich our examination s hall disclose to our
sa t is fact ion to have been t hus defective; this warranty being expr -;; ssly
in lieu of all ot he r warranties, express or i mplied, a nd of a ll oth er
obligations or li abilities on our part, and we n either ass ume nor
aut horize a ny other person to assume for us any ' oth er liabili ty in
con nection with the s al e or use of our mot or vehicl es .
This w arr an ty shall not a pp ly to an y motor veh icle which shall
have been r epai red or altered outside of Stu deba ker fact o ri es in flY
way so as, in our ju dge ment, to aff ect its stability or re liability, 1101'
which has be en sub j ect to misuse , neg ligence or accid ent , nor to an~
commercial mo tor vehicle sold by us which sh all have b een op erate
at a speed e xceeding the factory rated sp ee d, or loaded beyond thfe
fact ory rated load capacity . /
THE ST UDEBAKER 'CORPORATION
SOU TH BEN D 27, IND I ANA
We reserve th e right to make changes in de sign or to make
a d diti o n~ to or i mp r ovem ents upon our products wi t hout incu rring any
ob ligations to in stall the same on vefLicles previou sly built .
BAT TERY WA R RAN TY
THE ;J.~ LARD , STORAGE BATTERY COMPANY provides a 90 day
standa rd , ~ct ~r y " irar ranty on the ba ttery. T hey also p rovide an
ad j u st ment: policy pr orated on a sliding scale b ased on the le ngth of
service of the bat ter y. Your S tu debaker deal er will be pleased to
handle deta ils of batte r yn warranty ser vice for yo u.
RRANTY
A PHILCO R ADIO warranty ,J gistration tag is attached to each
radio whf'n it is shipped from ,. th; factory. If your cllr iH equipped
with Il !'lIdio, your dealer will' fill in the tag properly Ilnd attac h it
to the radio. Th is tag is necessary to obtain radio wnnanty service
from you!' Studebaker dealer.
J
!
4

L OCATIO N OF VEHI CLE NUMBERS
SE RIAL NUMBER
The se ri al number of y our car is st a mped on
a pla te attac hed to the left front door lock
p
illar post. Re cord it in the space prov ided.
E NeINE NUMBER
The engine numbe r is stamped on a ma-
chin ed pad at the npp er left front of the cyl-
inde r block. Record it in th e s pa ce pro vided.
T
he body nu mb er is sta mped on a p late
a ttached to the dash u nde r the hood. Re cord
it in the space pro vided: .'
~ l '
Ignition and front do~ t ~ ___ _ __ _
This number is st ampe \ ' on Ii me tal tag
furnished with the keys\ Record it in the
space pro vided.,
\, Package Compar
tme nt and Lu ggage Com-
partme nt Doo rs: ;.
,
. ~ ____ _
This number is stamped' Qn ~ the , compart-
ment key or on the lock hou sin¥. ;, Rec ord it
. .. ",\'- .. ~ ' ''': ) ~ ' ~
.m the spa ce provIded. ",.
PAINT AND TRIM: W he ~~ , ~ring paint mate rials be
su re t he body an d serial n UIll \1rii above af:" well as the paint
f~'~ _ : . .. 1. - ~'.l.:
symbol printed on t he st icker attac Jlt ed' to . th-eunder s ideof
the pac kage compart me nt aC~6mpany yo~r order . , ' ~,
When trim mat eri als are needed, it is imp orta nt t hat
the serial and bo ~ numo er s which you have recorded
above be furn i sh~d. · i
5

'L t ...
REAR VIEW MIRROR ,," -,~, .:
WiN DSHIELD WIP ER CONTROL )
£#" ..&::
. !£ " p.
DOOR WINDOW
DOOR REMOTE
HANDLE
YAP "'GHT -------- -
GEA!tSHIFI
LEVER ....-
BR IGt-IT LIG HT SIGNAL '"
5"fEDOMETER AND ODOMET ER
GAGES (HEAT-OIL-FUEL-
AMPERES)
HORN PUSH BAR -----
ASH TRAY - -------
CIGAR LIGHTER -- ----
CLiMA TIZER AIR CONT ROL
DEFROSTER CONTROL ~
FOG LIGHT SWITCH -'!
CLiMA TIZER WATER CONT ROL
HOOD LOCK RELEASE - - --
OVERDRIVE CONTROL -- -~
COWL vENnLATOR INN ER
DOOR
AC
CEL E RATOR PEDAL --- -
BRA KE PEDAL ---- -- ~
CLUTCH PED AL-- ---~
ST ARTER SW IT CH B UnoN -
HEADLIGHT
BEAM
TCH
, ~ e: INSTRUMENT AND MAP LIGHT
~ SWIT CH
HEAD AND PARKING LIGHT
SWITCH

INSTRUMENTS AND 'CONTROLS
Th e driver of a ne w ca r should become fa mi liar with
the functions of the ins truments a nd c ontr ols illus trated
on the opposite. page before ope ra t ing the ca r, Th eir func-
tio
ns ar e described below. Standard equi pment varies on
different models. The illustration includes
standard and
extra equipment.
IG NITION SWITCH Th e i gni tion switch is operated by
m eans of a key which, whe n turned to the right, sup plies
cu
rre nt to t he ig nition system and accessories. Turned to
the l eft, the key completes the ele ctrical circuit to th e ga so-
line gage,
radi o, and other accesso ries but not to t he i gni -
tion. The ig nition key should always be removed whe:l'bYou
leave the car.
STARTER SWITCH The start er is controlleu1 by a button
~ on the toeboard loc ated dire ct ly beneath the clutch pe dal.
By completely
depres sing the clutch peda l, the electrica l
circuit th r ough t he sta rte r swi tch is comple ted. 'Do rlot
operate starter whe n the engi ne is ru nning. .
AMMETER W hen th e e ngine is not running an d any
of t he ele ct ri cal circuits are in use, the amme t er will,
register a di scharge ( -). Wi th t he engine run ning at a
reas onable speed, even th ough all e lectrical circ uits a re in
use, th e amm eter will register a charge (+) u ntil t he bat -
t
ery is completely cha rge d, after wh ich the ne edle should
swing bac k an d r em ain ar ound the z ero mark. Any abn or-
ma l fl uc tuati on of th e ammeter needle in eit h er directi on
is a sig nal to the d river to have the electrica l sys tem
checked an d service d by his authorized Studebaker dea le r.
HEAT INDICATOR The temperat ure of the coolant in
the engi ne c oo l ing system is shown by the electric hea~Jll
dicat or which, u nd er normal conditions, should regt~
approxi m ately 1700 F. (76,70 C. ). In Hummer, and on hot,
l
ong dr ives this may n orma lly be a littiP hig-her.
If the gage regis ter s an :IiJl'upt or continuous rise to
7
.. »,

2120 F . (100" C.), stop t he car immedia tely an d in v
gate. Check the water level, fan belt, hose co nne ctions, al
look for wate r leaks. Co ntinue d use at 2120 F . (1000 C.)
will
cause s er ious d amage and u nnecessary ex pen se.
Th e gage re gis te rs only when the ig ni tion key is
t
urne d ei th er to the rig ht or left.
C he ck th e water level fr equently.
GASOLINE GAGE The gasoline gage r eg i st e rs wh en
the ign itiun key is turn ed either to the ri ght or le ft. If you
wish to
kn ow the qu an tity of fuel in the ta nk when the
engine is not ru nn ing, t urn the i gnitio n ke y to the lef t.
It ta kes ab o ut 30 se co nds for the g age to register aft ~
the ignitio n key is t urne d.
OIL PR ESSURE GAGE The oil press u re gage ind ica tes
t he work ing p re s sur e of t he oil as it cir culates w ithin t he '
engi ne . Norm ally, th e gage will r eg ister bet ween 20 and'
40 po
und s (1,4 an d 2,8 kgs.) at 40 miles (6 4 km .) p er
hour. Th48 gage doe s not in dicate th e am ount of oil in
th e cTankcase.
If t his gage should fluct uat e rap idly or dr op to zero,
STOP th e car immedi ately and check th e ca use. Continu ed
operatio n of t he car un d er these conditi ons will proba bly
cause serious' da mage.
tOCK S AND KEYS ' Two sets of ke ys are furn ished
wi
th the car. O ne key opera tes th e fr o nt door e xte rnal
locks an d the ign i tion switch. The ot h er key ope r ate s loc ks
on the pac kage compart me nt door and the luggage com-
p
artm e nt lid.
To p
reve nt ul1authorized pers o ns from pu rc h asing a
du ~ licate ignition key, th e -py num ber does not appear on
the lcey or on the fac e. o f" the l o~ k , b ut is s ta m ped on a
small
me tal tag s uppl!~d with the keys. The compartment
key number is st am12 ed on the key or on the lock hous ing .
B
ot h k<,y numbers s houl d be recorded on page 5 of this
8

. anual and elsewhe re amo ng t he own er's perm an en t pos-
sessions,
afte r wh ich the me tal tag shou ld be de st roy ed.
Dupli
cat e keys may be orde red by key p umb er from
the nearest au thorized Stu debake r dealer. If the k ey num-
bers are not kno wn, the or der must be accom panie d by
the c ar seria l number.
Fr ont door lock co n trols are des igne d so th at either
f ront door, locked from t he in side, may be opened f rom
t he outside wi th th e key. This is an ad van tage in parking
lo ts whe n close pa rkin g blocks one door. .
If an in side front door ha ndle is se t to "lock" po sitio n
with the do or op en an d the door is then closed, t he lock
relea
ses; Studeba k er front doo rs must be key-locked in
such ci rcums tances. The key will al ways unlock either of
the fr ont d oor s f rom the ou tside no matt er whether it has
\ been locked fr om th e i nside with t he door lock con tr ol or
~ocked f ro m the outsi de with t he key.
The next th ree pa r agraphs explain t he op~rati o n of
the do or locks. . .
l. Front door inside handles, when p ushed up fr om
t
he n orm al posit ion to lock the do or f rom the ins ide,
will
sp ri ng back to the n ormal posi tio n alt hough
the lock will re ma in set.
2. The fr on t door s are locked from t he out side by
m aking one-qu arter t urn with the key. T urn the
key clockwise on left f ront dooFs a nd cou ntercl ock-
wi se on rig ht fr ont doors. Retu rn th e key to the
v erti cal posit ion to remov e it from the lock. To
unlock
th e f ront doors follow the same procedu re
e xcept turn the key one-quarter ru~n in the opposite
dire ct ion to that used to loek tbe door.
3. To lo
ck e ith er rear dbor of sedans, · sim p ly mo ve
the ins ide door hand le upward, wheth er t he door
is op
en or closed. The door' will remain locked
un til the insi de rear door haiidle is moved down-
ward to t he full open position.
9
. ~

HOOD LOCK Th e hood lock safeguards your batte~
car bur etor, and other un{}er -the-hood equipment against
theft and tampering as long as the car doors ar e locked.
The hOod control (marked "H") is the mi ddle one of t he
three controls located on the d riv e r's side of t he car ju st
below the lower end of . the instrum e nt pa nel. To unlock
the hood, pull the control until t he au t oma tic hood lo~k is
released. To
raise the hood, release the sa f ety la tc h as
illus
trated. As a sa fety measure, after raising the hood,
rem ove the end of the hood prop from i ts .br ack et and . pla ce .
it in t
he hole provided on the underside of th e hood at
the f ront.
C are should always be taken in raIsm g or lowering
the hood. Never try to force the hood lock or safety lat ch..
This might affect adjustment s which would r esu lt in an
improperly operating part.
,.
/
Lower the hood firmly so that the automatic hood latch
and the safety latch are fastened securely,

.LIGHT CONTROL SWITCH A pull type switch control
1S located on t he dr iver's side of the lower instrumen t board
to oper ate t he tail lights, parking lights, and headlights.
PAR K ING A ND TAil LIGHTS Pull light switch control
to the first posit ion for parking and ta il li ghts.
HEAD LIG H TS AND TAIL LIGHTS Pull the light switch
control as far out as possible (second position) to operate
th e hea dligh ts and tail lights.
HEADLIGHT BEAM CONTROL SWITCH The foot -op er- .
ated switch
to t he left of the clutch pedal operates the
. he ad lig ht beam. Pressi ng down on the switch will change
the hea dli ghts fr om country to traffic beam, and vice versa
as traffic cond iti o ns require. Wh en t he country beam is in
uSe the red te ll- tale li gh t in the speedometer face will be
lighte d. Use the traffic beam when ap proaching oncoming
, '\ tr a ffic and in city d ri ving.
\ I
NSTR UMENT AND MAP LIGHTS The instruments are
lig hte d wit h non-gl are bl ack light. The lights are .c ont rolled
by a pull typ e sw i tch located next to the headlight switc h.
,
Pull the control to the firs~ position for ins trument lig h ts .
Pull the
control to the second position for the ~ap lig ht
when front doors are closed. The map lig ht is on whenever
eit her fro nt d oor is open.
DOME LIGHT The dome light goes on in 2-door mode ls
when eit h er door is opened. In 4-door moaels the do me li ght
goes on when either of the rear doors is opened. Wh en the
doors
ar e closed, th e dome light may be o'Rerated by t he
sw i tc h just to the rear of the righ t front d09r.'
Th e re is no dome lig ht on convertible models.
LICE NS E PLA TE LIGHT The ligh t for the " rear license
plate is loca ted in the center of the luggage comparttiten t
handle . The ligh t operat",s whenever the headlights a re
t urned on.
STOP LIGHTS They light whenever the brake p eda l
11

is depressed, ma k ing a distinct red lig ht shine to wa"
follow
ing vehicles.
LUGGAGE COMPARTMENT LIGHT Th is light goes on
when tail lights ar e lighted an d th e luggage compa r tmen t
lid
is opened. The luggage compaT tme nt light is available
at slight e
xtra cos t on Cha mp ion Deluxe m@ dels.
PACKAGE COMPARTMENT To open the pa ckage com-
pa rt me nt do or after un l oc king, tu rn the r otary knob to th e
righ t and open door. A light (ext ra co st on Cham pion
models) g
oe s on w he n the door is opened.
ASH RECEIVER To remove the tr ay for clean ing, pus h
down on
the retain er while pu lli ng outward on the tr ay.
FRONT SEAT ADJUSTMENT T h~ front se at is eas ily
adjusted forward or b ackward by rai sing the control lever
at the driver's side of t he seat (as shown in the ill u s t ra~
tion) which unlocks the m echanis m and permit s the seat
to be ~hifted to the desi red position.
In ad~ition to t his quickly adjus ted sh i ft , t her e a re
thr ee basic p Of;>itions in which the sea t can be bolted by
, .'
your authorized S tu debaker dealer to acco mmo da te t he leg
len
gth of t he o wner. Fro m a ny of these basic posi ti ons,
th'e
"' front "~~a t a dju stmen t mec han i sm will give you the
full adjustment range.

CLUTCH PEDAL The cl utch pe dal diseng a ges the clutch
.vh en dep res sed, eng ag es it w hen rele as ed. The clut ch pe da l,
de
pr essed to t he floorbo ard, al so oper ates the sta r te r but ton
loca ted dire ctly unde r the ped al.
S TE ERING POST GEARSHIFT Th e ste e ring p ost g ear-
shif t is oper at ed in the conventional ma n ner, an d p rovide s
th ree speeds f orwa rd and one speed reve rse.
LUGGAGE COMPART MENT LID AND LOCK The luggage
compa rt me nt lid is controlled by a lock an d hand le w hic h
form the right "wing" of the r ea r eInblem in corporatin g
the lice nse plate light and re ar lice ns e pla te brac ket. The
luggag e com partm e nt lock is op erat ed w ith the sam e key
whic h op erates the pac ka ge compa rt me nt lock.
To open
th e lu gga ge compartment, unlock t he handle
wit h t he key, press down s lightly w ith the lef t han d on .
t
he left "wing" of t he emblem and at th e sa me t ime raise
\ ~he r ig ht "w i ng " app roxim ately 450 , as show n in the·illus- .
tr
at ion. The lid ca n nO 'N be r ai sed. Counterbalanced hi nge
sprin gs ke ep t he lid in the o pen position for you r con-
venie
nc e in r em ovi ng lu ggage, spar~ wh eel, etc >
To close th e luggage compartment, place (he h ar. ~ d le
in its straight hO Tizo'Yl,ta l position. Th is is impo r tant to
s ecure t he latch when the lid is lowered . !Jo ck the handle ·
a
nd re move th e key. Lower lid firmly to be sure - <it has
latc hed. T he tig ht rubber weat herseals have a $pring a:e,ttpn
whic h will te nd to hold lid in a slig htly rais ed p osit }prf
unless it is firmly closed.

BR AKE CONTROLS Braking pressure is applied to I>.,
fo ur wheels in proportioll to the amount of foot pressurto.
ap plied to the brake pedal.
The parking brake lever operates independentl y of
the hydraulic brake system , apply ing brake pressu re to
the r ear wheels only. To set the parking brake, depress
brake pedal and pull back on pat-king brake handle. To re-
lease the
parking hrake, depress brake pedal, pull 'back
slig
htl y on the handle, press the release button with th e
thumb,
and let the h andl e move fo rward.
WINDSHIELD WIPER AND WASHER CONTROL The win d-
sh ield wiper cont ro l knob, located at the top center of th e
instrument board, m ust be turn ed clockwise to operate the
wi per blades. Speed of the wiper action can be governed
by thi s control.
The windshield washer (on car s so equipped) is oper- .
ated by turn ing the windshield wiper cont rol counte r. ...
cl ockwise and then t urnin g the co nt ro l clock wis e to
ob tain w at er flow and wiper operation. Washer automat -
ically
shuts itself off when the cycle has been completed.
Windshield Washer is availab le at extra cost.
SEAT CUSHION AUXILIARY SPRINGS To vary the front
seat cushion resiliency
for the driver or fron t se at pa s-
senger, Select-O-S
eat cushion spri n gs a re avail a bl e as an
accessory. These springs may be in st alled in s ets of four
and are supplied in two degrees of resiliency, firm or extra-
.;. firm. One set may be installed in the dr i ver's side or one
set in t he passenger's side of the front seat or in both sides
of the seat cushion. Your Studebaker dea ler will be happy
to discuss Select ~ O-Seat springs with you a nd i nstall t hem
as you wish.
Sele('t-O-Seat Springs are available at extra cost.
14 •

. RUN-IN PERIOD
The First
1000 Miles (1609 km.)
All new mo tors require a run- in period to in sure long
life with m
aximum performance and economy. Follow the
procedure outlined in the ne xt paragraphs .
CARBURETOR SPEED CONTROL Your car is equipped
w
ith a c ar bur et or speed control wh ich limits it s ma x imu m
spe ed du ring the run-in p er iod. This speed c ontr ol should
r
ema in on the car unt il y our Studebaker de aler removes
it at 500 miles (805 km.),
500 TO 1000 MILES (805 TO 1609 KM.) When the car
is ope rated at st eady sp eeds above 40 miles (64,4 km .)
.
per hour, re lease the accele ra tor occasionally for a
few seconds. This will aid
in pr o perly breaki ng in a new
, engine.
\ .Y
qur car speed during this period sh ould not exceed
'pO miles (80,5 km .) per ho ur.
Engine Oil During Run-In
The use of special run-in oils is not necessary. Use
only engine oils
pr oduced by reputable oil companies.
Change oil
at first 500
miles (805 km.)
and first I ~ }
1500 m iles (24 14 km.) . C ~ " ~ . ADD OIL . .
After 1500miles (241 4k m.)
the oil should be change d OIL LEVEL GAGE "
regularly, the frequency depending on the condition of the
oil as affected by o perating and atmospheric conditions.
It is a good practic e to have the oil level checked
whene
ver gasoline is purchased. If the oil line on the oil
level gage is down to
the Add Oil mark, oil shouid ~b e added
to bring it up to the Full mark. Do not overfill.
The viscosity, or weight, of the oil to be used depends
entirely upon prevailing temperatures. See page 29.
15

l
OPERATING THE CAR \
Starting the Engine
B ef ore s tar ti ng the engine be sure the gea rs hi ft lev er
is in neutr al position. · Depr ess th e acceler at or to the toe-
bo
ard on ce only an d then i mm e dia tely re lease it. This
per mit s the aut om at ic choke to come in to full operat ion.
This operation is essen
tia l to ea sy start ing. Tu rn t he i gn i-
tion key
to the ri ght. Then depress th e clutch pedal to
the toeboard to operate the st ar te r.
If engine should not st ar t after a few revolutions,
co mpietely depress accel era t or and, holding it in this posi-
tion, opera
te star ter .
STARTING A H OT ENGINE It is easier to start a ho t
engine if the acce ler a tor is held a pproximat ely halfwa y to
the floo rb oard un til th e eng ine s ta rts , Release the accelera-
t or as soon
as ·the eng ine st arts.
,
WARMING UP THE EN GI NE A .gaso line e ngi ne per-
for ms be st when it re aches an op er a tin g tem perat u re o ~
approxi ma tely 1700 F. (76,70 C.). In cold we ath er the
engine
temperature should be r ais ed by allowing the e ng ine
to idle slowly bef ore d riv ing the car,
Do not driv e the car un til oil pr essure reg ist ers on
the gag e. If it reg is ters above 40 lbs. (2,8 k gs .) , drive
slowly un
til pressu re ret urns to no rm a l, or appro ximat ely
40 lbs. (Z,8
kgs.).
-.
After start ing, the high idle s ys tem may cause the
engine
to "race" . If so, de pr ess and imme diately release
the accelerator.
I "',
CAUTION
CARBON MONO XIDE is a lethal gas, odorless,
tasteless, and colorless, fou
nd in th e e xha ust f ume s
pf all engines. Neve r st art the engine in a cl osed
garage.
Always open garage doors wid e before
start'ing and k
ee p the m open as long as the e ngin e
is opeTati'flG.
16

lush or Tow Starting
Should the battery fail to supply enough cur rent to
st art the engine wit h the starter, place the transmission
. in conventional high gear and eith er push or tow th e car
until the engine sta rts. OD hand le (on cars so equipped)
must be in Out position . Be sure ig nition is On and parking
brake released.
Shifting the Gears
To shift the ge ars in either the co nventional or over-
drive ra tios wit h the s teering post gearsh if t lever, follow
this procedu re:
TO SET CAR INTO MOTION
1. Start en gin e
and with clutch
pedal still de-
p
re ssed, place
g
earshi ft l ever
in low (first)
ge ar position
(
see illustra-
tion.)
2. Release park -
ing br ake.
3. Relea se the
R 2
I - I
I~
--N--
I
IL->J Ii
I •
1 ;: 3
..
clutch pedal gradually and at the same time slowly
accelerate. '
TO SHIFT FROM LOW TO SECOND GEAR
1. At approximate ly 10 miles (16 km.) per hour .
release accele
rator and depress clutch pedal.
2. Pl ace gearshift lever in second (intermediate) gea~
position (se e illustratio n.)
3. Release
th e clutch pedal gradually and at the same
time slowly accel erate .
17
. ";~Jp .•

TO SHIFT INTO HIGH (THIRD) GEAR
1. At approximately 18 miles (29 km.) per hour,
rclea~;e accelerator and depress clutch pedal.
2. Shift lever into high (third) gear position (see
illustrat ion on page 17).
3. Rel ease t he elutch pe dal gradually and at the same
t im e slowly ac cele ra te. Without overdr ive, this is
the highest or cruising g ear ra tio .
TO SHIFT INTO REVERSE GEAR
1. Bring the car to a complete stop.
2. Depress clutch pedal.
3.
Place lever in reverse gear position (se e illus-
tration on page 17).
4. Release
the clutch pedal gr adually and at the same
time slowly acceler ate.
SHIFTING TIPS To avoid excessive wear on the clutch,
transmission, and drive mechanisms, never try to jump
gears (that is, do n ot shift f rom low to hi gh, or start out
in second and avoid us ing low) and n ever sh ift from any
gear -evep. the neutra l position - i nto rev ers e until the
car's motion is stopped. Also, never make a gear shift until
the clutch pedal is depr essed, di sengaging the clutch . Make
it a habit to pause fo r an in st a nt in neutral as the gea rs hift
l~er passes fro m one ge ar r atio to an ot her.
ransmission Overdrive
ThE; automatic overdrive operates only w hen the con-
trol handle, marked OD, iH in its fu ll forward position.
It engages autom atically when the accelerat or is released
momentarily at or abov e the overdrive cut - in speed of 30
to 35 miles (50 to 55 km.) per hour .
18