Downshifting

[BlackMachOne]

Hey Guys,

I'm new to driving standard, I dont' have a problem stalling or hills at all, but I'm trying to better my driving..and I'm just wondering about a couple of things..First of all you're at stop sign or a red light..What are you guys doing to get the car rolling, are you just feathering in the clutch and maintaining the engine Rpm around a 1000 Rpm or are you blipping the throttle a bit higher and then just easing the clutch in as the revs drop..It sounds dumb but I'm just curious as to what you think..
Also downshifting, when do you guys downshift from 4 to 3rd and so on like what kind of speed or engine rpm are you looking at..And when you downshift do you blip the throttle a bit in between, or do you not touch the gas at all and just ease your way off the clutch for a smooth transition..I'm finding the car doesn't like downshifting into 1st any quicker than about 20km/h..but if I dont' do it quick enough the it doesn't grab and slow the car down because i"m going slow enough as it is..Any advice on either of these would be a great help..Thanks..I'm smooth going through the gears just want to get smoother..
Cheers..:THUMBSUP:

[04Retro]

It sounds like your downshifting while slowing the car-DONT. You have brakes for that purpose. Using the engine compression to slow the vehile is fun and 'sounds' neat (and we all do it) but it is not what the transmission was designed for. Alot of extra strain on the tranny for no reason. You need to down shift once you reach a slower speed to properly match gears to rpm...to accelerate.

end of lecture-sorry............:blah: :blah: :blah:

[RNstanger]

Well let's see. This is my first stick too but I always used to drive a friends nissan that was a stick. As far as taking off I just go by feel. Lightly hit the gas and keep the RPM's around 1-2k and slowly release the clutch. It's usually smooth unless I'm on the phone.:SMASH: As far as down shifting from 4 to 3 I usually will do that when rpm's drop to around 1-1 1/2k. Any higher and it barks the tires and is kinda jerky. Downshift to 1st? I never do that unless I'm already going real slow like 10mph. I'm no expert by any means on driving a stick. But it seems my style is working just fine. :)

[IMachU]

The only time I downshift is when traffic is stop and go on the So Cal freeways. Brakes are cheaper than clutches. If I am trying to conserve fuel I feather the clutch kinda quickly (very hard for me to describe in print), and up shift around 2k to 2.3k. Otherwise it is threshold acceleration and braking. How fun is that?!?!?! WOO HOO!!

[tach9]

Originally posted by 03RCode
It sounds like your downshifting while slowing the car-DONT. You have brakes for that purpose. Using the engine compression to slow the vehile is fun and 'sounds' neat (and we all do it) but it is not what the transmission was designed for. Alot of extra strain on the tranny for no reason. You need to down shift once you reach a slower speed to properly match gears to rpm...to accelerate.

end of lecture-sorry............:blah: :blah: :blah:

Not a lecture...this is good stuff!!!! I always ask my track school students what the only reason to down shift is? The proper answer is to put the car in the meat of the power band for maximum acceleration out of the turn. Yes we've all downshifted and as an old racer, it's just a habbit..but I always match the revs...blip the throttle a bit ...then down shift..matching the revs saves a lot of wear and tear on the clutch. Actually no downshifting at all saves the clutch the best, but hey...clutching and shifting is all part of the fun :ANGEL:

[CA Lightfoot]

I hear a lot of guys blipping the gas during a downshift. But does anyone shift into neutral & blip at the same time? It used to be called a double-clutch downshift. I have a sense this is a lost art. And that's a shame, because there's nothing sweeter than a properly executed double-clutch downshift. Yes, I know about synchronizers. But if you've never double-clutch downshifted, try this:

1. Accelerate leisurely to about 2000 rpm in 4th gear. (Of course, make sure the road is safe for quick acceleration.) Then...

2. Do the following smoothly & quickly:
-- simultaneously clutch-in & release gas, then
-- simultaneously clutch-out & shift to neutral, then without pausing blip the throttle good (over 4000 rpm), then
-- clutch-in & quickly shift to 2nd (!) gear & release clutch & give it the gas.

Done properly, your hand never stops as you deliberately move from 4th thru neutral to 2nd -- while your feet quickly coordinate clutch & gas. It sounds like a lot. Yes, it requires some skill and lots of practice. But the payoff is big-time acceleration that feels so right you'll wonder why no one told you about this before.

At 70 mph, a 5th-to-3rd double-clutch downshift with full throttle acceleration is awesome in the Mach -- and almost instantly illegal in all 50 states.

Maybe I'm telling you guys stuff that's old hat. But if you've never experienced this, have someone show you how to do it. Then do it yourself. An old guy showed me when I was 16, and ever since I routinely double-clutch on my downshifts. I've never had clutch or transmission problems. And I think it makes driving a stick a whole lot more fun.

But until you do it right, you'll never know what you're missing.

[hotrodnut]

I think downshifting for purposes of "engine braking" is a great way to use the manual transmission. If done properly and RPM's matched, there is no harm done to your car. Besides, it adds to the fun factor of driving the manual gearbox.

Like CA Lightfoot suggested, I use the double clutch method myself, I learned it from a Skip Barber school I took in the early 80's and found it so enjoyable and also easier on my cars parts, that I have done it on every manual shift car since. One of the first things I check out when buying a car is if I can heal and toe the gas and brake pedal without difficulty . . . :crazy:

[Mustanganatic]

Basically, it'll just take getting used to the stick. Once you're truly accumstomed to it, you'll find that you're hitting the gas right at the time when the clutch is grabbing. As far as downshifting, it's the same story, just match the engine speed to how you're driving at the moment, ie whether your just puttering around or to keep it in the power band when the parnelli side of you is showing.

[badjoey]

no matter how much advice you get you just need practice-everything will eventually fall into place[hopefully before you go through too many clutches]

i personally drive by feel--i only watch tach if i'm really getting after it

[BlackMachOne]

Thanks for all the great input guys, wow this is a great site with alot of great owners, you don't get that on every site you visit..But that's really cool...Right now there's about 3 inches of snow on the ground, so all I can do is sit in the car in the garage..I'm sure we've all been guilty of that at some point!!LOL..But yeah tomorrow is suppose to heat up a bit so I hope the roads dry so I can put this info to the test..
Rock on..:THUMBSUP:

[DSG2003Mach1]

good info guys, thanks. I was actually coming on to start a thread just like this. Im gettin better everyday, but anything that shortens the learning cuve is good!

[blazinsteed]

HEY I AM STILL UP FOR LESSONS:D