Pros and Cons

• The three-speed is simpler and cheaper to produce than a four-speed, and it offers a little more versatility than a two-speed. Simplicity is the key concept here, since fewer parts involved means fewer things to break. If the three-speed has any real drawbacks, it's only that it lacks a fourth gear; the extra gear makes keeping the engine in its ideal rpm range a less taxing affair.
  
  

Three on the Tree

• You might have heard this term bandied about amongst grandpa and his friends, and they probably got a good chuckle when they saw you had no clue what they were talking about. A "three-OT" is a three-speed manual controlled with a column shifter instead of a floor shifter. Generally, you'll pull the shift lever back-and-up for first gear, back-and-down for second, push forward-and-up for third and forward-and-down for reverse.