The old Amazon lurched into the intersection, lunging forward then slowing, then lunging again, finally accelerating forward through the intersection on its way toward that next goal of reaching second gear. No, there's no need to tune or re-jet the Skinners, no need for a clutch adjustment, at least not yet. Just a need to relax and be patient while your newly driving-permitted daughter explores the wonderful new world of driving, and driving a stick, at that.

I'm not sure if the 1966 122S is the perfect first car for a 16-year-old high school Junior. I do know my daughter has already formed a "My First Car" bond with "Stewart." Stewart was Stewart when he arrived at our house by way of a local pastor in the neighborhood. We thought he certainly looked like a Stewart so the name stuck. New DMV laws in California require 50 hours behind the wheel driving practice as a prerequisite to your actual license. After the first two hours, I was sure we would need twice that many if we were gonna include a stick shift in the learning process.

Twenty hours later and Stewart rounds the corner through the intersection as my daughter downshifts from third, very carefully finding neutral, then into second gear and on up the hill winding toward third. Hey, this isn't so bad. She may be getting the hang of this after all.

I really have to give my daughter credit for taking on such a formidable task. Stewart has his peculiarities. The steering box has been adjusted to the max and still has more play than I or my daughter likes. A good steering box has been obtained and will soon be installed. The clutch and brake pedals make for close sitting for a short girl and I'm still thinking about what to do with those. So, while sitting on pillows and hugging the steering wheel, she manages to maneuver Stewart through traffic like she's been driving forever -- or at least thirty, forty hours.