I can only imagine what the linkage from the steering column to the trans looks like...

http://autoweek.com/article/classic-...n=awdailydrive

 

 

I'm currently working on a 4 on a tree Borgward rt hand drive. 1st I've ever seen one of these, very odd shifting mechanism. I can only imagine a 5 on a tree let alone a future 6. I do remember the American 3 speed OD trans with a separate switch or actuator.

 

That linkage setup would be interesting to see... From a little bit of searching, it almost seems that a cable system would likely be used... But didn't find anything definitive to the Renault 16 5-Speed Column shift vs floor shift... Maybe someone else will have better luck...

 

Its probably a combination of both cable and mechanical linkage.

 

Google images is your friend.



Apparently this is a rail-style shifter, like a T5. There are only two rods. The left hand shaft in this photo rotates in that bracket bolted to the trans case, which slides the shifter cross shaft side-to-side in the trans case. The other rod (which would normally run up to the steering column from the trans but is swung down here) simply moves that lever up and down, which in turn slides the shifter fork forward and back on the rails inside the trans. Pretty simple, actually.

 

When I read the title of your post Joe, I immediately thought of the Renault 16 TX before reading it
. Renault did their own thing with engineering layouts, In the 1960's they went from rear engined to front wheel drive without troubling with a "Conventional" layout. Come to think about it, so did Volkswagen.
Many Renault models from the 1960's thru 1980's had the transmission mounted ahead of the engine, Some had a shift lever sprouting out of the dash, some a floor mounted lever, but all 16 models had a column shift, the TX the only one with a 5 speed btw. Mostly they had a reasonable enough action, never as slick as contemporary European Fords but not as clumsy and inclined to baulk as BMC fwd cars.
The 16 introduced in 1965 heralded a golden era for Renault, marketing a range of comfortable and reliable (by the standards of the day) cars, their idiosyncratic layouts were not troublesome, and not difficult to work on either.
A far cry from the mundane cars with indifferent build quality Renault offer today. Perhaps the French mourn the passing of cars with "character" as much as anyone else. I wonder what the Lion King might have to say?.

Roger.

 

I have driven a four-on-the-tree in an old Mercedes. It was kinda cool to be the only one in my auto shop class to be able to say that. Never heard of a five-on-the-tree though. That could get a bit confusing if you aren't used to it.