martinf

Can someone describe to me exactly what heal-toe driving means.
Does it mean breaking and accelerating at the same time, using only the right foot?

bert

Yeah, kinda. I am no expert but this is my take on it.

You use heel-toe in order to blip the RPM (up) in order to downshift not too abruptly. If you brake and downshift hard you can wind up with a case of "lift-off oversteer". Oversteer is when the back end wants to come around, swap ends. In the wrong place lift-off oversteer can really catch you out.

I would also guess that when done right you could also use it to keep the RPM up and the engine fed with gas so that the pickup is faster.

JJ-2001MAX

From: Chris Ball, Technical Editor, Toronto Triumph Club

Heal and Toe

A true "Heel and Toe". Naturally it goes without saying that this does not really involve your heel and toe! The name is just to make it harder to understand! (Actually it stems from a rather odd set up in the old Ferraris where the clutch and the brake pedals were switched-but that's another matter.) The technique involves combining the double clutch method with a second technique that keeps the engine RPM at a level to match the next gear to be engaged.

Everyone has had the experience of changing down into a lower gear and having the engine forced into screaming high revolutions. The other thing that happens is that the weight of the car suddenly shifts forward due to the 'engine braking effect'. If you happen to be going into a corner this can be enough to lighten the rear end and send the tail out on a visit to the front end! Here's where the heel and toe technique comes in. Unless you have a third leg you have to brake and 'blip' the gas with your right foot. The tricky part is timing it all right and keeping the brake pressure steady while you do the 'blipping'. A note of warning here. If you practice this in your driveway as I suggested for double clutching, some of the newer cars will flood as a result of the gas pedal movement (yes! even without the engine running). So if this happens just go off and have a cup of tea and let things settle for a while before heading off to try it in motion. Here we go:

1. Begin the downshift as before, using the left edge of the right foot to brake. Depress the clutch and shift into neutral.

2. Now, as you're half releasing the clutch, swing (or rock) the right edge and heel of your brake foot over onto the gas pedal and squeeze it gently to bring up the engine RPM. With experience you'll get to know how much is enough.

3. Then depress the clutch and complete the shift into second. The plates should have been spinning from your double clutching and the engine RPM, which dropped while you were shifting, was brought back up to the level needed by the next gear ratio. Everything just slipped together without a murmur, and there was no forward weight shift or unwanted acceleration of the car. Swing your right foot fully on to the gas, and you're off down the straight.

Confused? I was too, and I "sort of know" how to do it. Actually the brain is not capable of doing this at all-the method has to leave the area of your brain and become a fluid physical skill. You drive along and your hands and feet do it all, without you really being aware of it; it's a great technique to master!

Jim

martinf

martinf

Thank you very much.
I didn't even realise it is only for downshifting

bert

Though the general concensus is that the pedals are too far apart and the offset is too much (how low the brake goes compared to the gas) to get it done consistantly right.

vinnieloo

iTrader: (1)

it seems that on 2k2 at least, the break can go down almost to the level of the gas without providing too much stopping power, so heel/toe downshifting is sort of possible...i'm working on it but every once in a while i can get a really nice one. just takes practice like everything else.

00gxe5sp

iTrader: (1)

yeah...some of these guys are kinda on the right track. the thing about heal and toeing to double clutch is not really why you want to do this. the whole purpose is to be more fluid, and to keep the car better balanced. as someone mentioned before, say you are slowing for a turn, and you jam it down a gear and dump the clutch....WHAMO...a ton of weight is thrown onto the front wheels.

the best way to learn is to ride with someone that knows what they are doing (if you were close to atlanta..i'd be glad to show you )

but the whole point is to be able to downshift into a lower gear without throwing the balance of the car off, and to be able to use that lower gear to keep you solid and smooth through the corner, and to be at prime RPM range for accelerating after you clip the apex and are leaving the corner.

silverkorn

iTrader: (3)

not to be a ***** or anything but the weight gets transfered to your rear wheels. thus why we dont want it, cause you get no traction to steer and non to accel through the turn.

wdave

Under deceleration weight is transferred forward.

wdave

In the case of the Maxima and most other (non antique British) modern cars double clutch downshifting is not necessary, but rev matching does improve smoothness - process -

Left side of right foot on brake

depress clutch

roll right side of right foot onto gas, blipping engine to speed for next lower gear while shifting down

release clutch

The pedals on the max are badly spaced for heel 'n toe, my first mod was a set of Pep Boys pedal covers, worked great.

Watch the in car cam of any non sequential shift road race car - Speedvision cup, Grand Am Cup, Winston Cup (on a road course), Trans-Am, Australian V8 Supercars, and you can see/hear them do it. It does become automatic in time.