Heel-toe downshifting

[JetBlack]

This is very useful in auto-x and road courses. Not in drag racing :)

The first few days of practice feels really weird. I use the first guy's technique because the location of my pedals makes it easier. Others actually use their heel to hit the gas, by twisting their foot. The idea is to continue slowing with the brake, smoothly and match the revs of the engine to the revs of the transmission. This will make your clutch and transmission last a lot longer.

This is a racing technique you can practice on the street. Every time you come up on a red light, that might turn green, you can heel toe and therefore be ready for the green light, all the way till you have to stop or go.

Practice, with no one in front of your car, as your first attempts will be embarrassing.

In Seattle, a guy in a new BMW pulled up next to me at a stop light and I heard him quietly heel-toeing. He was about 80. That's old school performance driving. It warmed my heart.

[flash=425,344:2ewbhirv]http://www.youtube.com/v/H3ULS7pnxyg&hl=en&fs=1[/flash:2ewbhirv]

The more standard heel toe technique.

[flash=425,344:2ewbhirv]http://www.youtube.com/v/XR3LOl19G70&hl=en&fs=1[/flash:2ewbhirv]

Here's a good double view so you can see why it's happening. BTW, avoid downshifting in the turns. If your traction is already hanging by a thread and you suddenly slow your rear tires, what happens? You go face-to-face, with the drivers behind you.

[flash=425,344:2ewbhirv]http://www.youtube.com/v/klMur6TPkrM&hl=en&fs=1[/flash:2ewbhirv]

[jon]

ive always found myself trying to heel-toe....now just for clarification... you only tap the gas right when your actually shifting the gears..your not holding onto the gas your just giving it a quick tap correct>?

[Domesticated]

i believe so. i had to do that with my subaru wagon all the time, if i ev er let off the gas it would die. so i always had to be giving it gas whether i was downshifting or just sitting at a light.

[eliteautosport.net]

Yes you just "blip" the throttle to rev match i do this when racing the STI some time's but not all the time some times its pointless

[JetBlack]

Yes, just a tap, to match the revs so generally less than a thousand RPMs is sufficient. It is great to hit a series of perfect matches, where you cannot feel the downshifting at all. Just changing tunes messes me up. The car revs faster with the 91 and 93 octane tunes so mathcing is difficult until I get used to the new one, then I switch back and am all screwed up again.

You can heel-toe to keep yourself in the powerband and save time exiting the turns, in racing. Sounds good too.

[JDMJonny]

I tried this last night and it was really interesting trying to get my foot to twist that direction haha. The first time i "blipped" the gas i ended up hitting it a little too hard and sending my tach up into the 4 grand area lol.

[JetBlack]

LOL! I remember my first attempts. Wow. So glad no one was around to see/hear it. I almost gave up continuing to try to learn it. Occasionally, shifting into first, on a hard deceleration, I overrev a bit, too.

[eliteautosport.net]

Yea at first its hard to make your foot twist rite and get everything down just gotta keep trying.. I've been doing it for allmost 5 years now and i still mess up from time to time..

[2fast4usteeley]

i gave it a try in my friends subaru and it takes practice and getting use to the style.

[JetBlack]

Plus it sounds cooler than shit, when you get good at it. 'Specially, going around the offramp curves, entering a slower speed zone.