Personally, not a fan of manual transmissions as I like my old boats to be "loaded" lol, but found this '65 Caprice 4-door hardtop with a factory 3-speed manual on the column very interesting. It has to be pretty rare, though I do not know the exact production numbers on it. Appears to be extremely low optioned. The only other Caprice 4-door with a manual shift I have ever seen was a 1971 model and that had to have been extremely rare. https://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/cto/d/1965-chevy-caprice-true/6289045908.html
Wow - that's in BEAVER County....they must have put that thing away in da winter if it's all original like so.......
What's strange is that he claims limited budget as an excuse not to buy more options. If so, why didn't he do like most anyone else by purchasing the less expensive sedan with the six-banger, instead? I've never heard of a driver's side mirror as being an option. What did this person do? Did he drive the car only on the right-hand lane, during the entire vehicle's history? Did he stay home, every time he had a stiff neck or did he ride his bicycle?
This is a New Jersey statute but mimicked federal law as far as timing: TITLE 39 MOTOR VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC REGULATION 39:3-71. Mirrors Every motor vehicle shall have rear view mirrors so located and angled as to give the driver adequate rear view vision. Every passenger automobile manufactured after January 1, 1965 and registered in this State, shall be equipped with an interior mirror and an exterior mirror on the driver's side. On and after January 1, 1965, every commercial motor vehicle registered in this State, other than a trailer or semitrailer, shall be equipped with an interior mirror and an exterior mirror on the driver's side, except that every such vehicle so constructed or loaded as to obstruct or obscure a rear view from an interior mirror shall, in lieu of an interior mirror, be equipped with an exterior mirror on the side of the vehicle opposite the driver's side. The director may by regulation establish other mirror requirements for special or unusual types of vehicles. Any person operating a motor vehicle without the equipment prescribed by this section shall, on conviction, be fined as provided in Revised Statutes 39:3-79. So prior to January 1, 1965, outside rear view mirrors were not standard equipment but were optional and not required by law. Did some cars come standard with them? Sure, but they were typically upper class cars (think stuff like Buick Electra's, etc). Lower class cars, they were optional. My grandfather had a 1965 Chevy Nova (built before 1-1-65) that did not have outside mirrors when built by GM. It was a very low optioned car, 4dr with radio & heater. Nothing else. I remember him going to Montgomery Ward and buying a set of aftermarket mirrors and installing them on the fenders, Japanese style. You ask what did this person do without the outside rear view mirrors. They turned their head and looked, which seems to be a lost art in todays world.
Almost everything was option equipment until mandated on lower end cars. This 65 is oddly optioned, but that is the way the purchaser wanted it, why? who knows. A friend of mine has a 1966 GTO, 389 tri-power bucket seats car, it also has a 3-speed manual column shift car. Early production 66 GTO's the standard 3-speed trans was Column shift with the floor shift a no cost option. We think the person ordering the car missed that when ordering it. Later in the model year the floor shift was standard.
Well said! I think the car is great! From a lost era where you could order a car ANY way you wanted compared to today where everybody's whatever is just like the other guys.
This happens more often than one would think. A sales gerbil is ordering a car for his customer and the guy that usually orders cars is out for what ever reason. The gerbil misses the check box for the floor shift and, probably, the 4 speed. I personally know of a 1970 GS Stage 1 with a 3 speed manual. Ya had to check the box for a 4 speed. Is it rare? Yep, sure is. Is it highly valuable because someone screwed up? Nope. Rare and valuable are sometime mutually exclusive terms.
Very nice car! That Evening Orchid paint looks fantastic on that model car, I remember seeing a few back in the day.
You could still not get a passenger side mirror on into the '70s on many cars (my '72 Lemans had no passenger side mirror and I've seen the occasional late 1970s model base of base cars without one). Back when cars had better visibility, you turned your head. I drove my '72 for 13 years that way and actually still get a little weirded out when my car has a passenger side mirror...
I had both a '78 malibu 2-door and a '79 Malibu wagon, and both had just the most basic driver's side GM mirror. I was screwed when I was backing the sedan and caught/pulled the mirror off of a fence post because I was looking backward to my right....
I guess, Skinflints could always have gotten a cheapo hand-held from some dimestore, to save on ordering the option:
