downshifting in the turns means your car doesn’t have enough torque
---------- Post added at 05:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:58 PM ----------
really? i just push in the clutch and slam on the brake.
if youve ever driven an older mazda youd know that the brakes are shit. hitting the brakes and downshifting is the fastest way to slow the car down.
This, and I drive a 4 cyl. with no torque.
Whenever we are racing and comparing notes I’m always in a higher gear than my co-drivers.
“When are you shifting into 4th?”
“I never down shifted to 3rd.”
If I’m out and there is no traffic, I just brake hard, and dump the clutch, no rev-matching. Guess what? I’m braking hard enough that compression/engine braking isn’t going to do anything.
Now if I am battling with someone, trying to out brake them and pull through the corner, sure, I put the ball of my foot on the stop peddle, and then blip the throttle with what ever is remaining of my right foot. Sometimes it’s the heal, sometimes it’s the outstep, sometimes it’s my pinky toe, and when things get ugly I roll my ankle and hit the gas with the top of my foot.
I honestly feel for my level of driving it is a ricer move more than one of necessity. And yes, it is more fun, but lap times show that going for the absolute lowest gear out of every corner is simply not the fastest way around the track.
I always preach if you want to learn a track go into one higher gear than you need to be, you’ll punish yourself when you can’t keep your speed up.
In our car:
7000 rpm - redline
5500 rpm - safe to downshift
4500 rpm - bottom of the power curve
I’m lazy, I’ll dog the car around a corner at 4000 rpm, before I waste my time rowing through gears.
depends on the car.
My miata I use to have to shift my foot around.
The 3 is easy, foots wide enough to bridge the gap
I lol’ed 