Ours was an HQ - they obviously never got around to fixing the design. And when are you often changing from 1st to 2nd? Halfway across traffic-light controlled intersections. I got pretty quick at unlocking the gears in inner city Melbourne, then got fed up and changed the gearbox & linkages on my folks driveway - darn, that gearbox was heavy. We also had a chunk of wood to supplement the handbrake and a can of fuel in the back because the fuel gauge didn't work. It was previously owned by a surfer, so chicken wire stopped driver's floor mat falling through the floor when we first bought it. It's a shame it was never stolen tbh.
