ive been trying to find some aftermarket pedals that will allow me to do heel toe downshifts. i want this because ive been trying to get into auto x'ing and just racing cars in general (legal races). i was just wondering if anyone on the org reccomends any aftermarket heel toe pedals. im not really a fan of the ebay junk. Ive also found these pedals http://www.injectedperformance.com/V...D=1363&VID=111
but im worried about dropping 60 dollars on aftermarket pedals and after installing them they actually arent heel toe at all. so basically what im asking is if anyone would reccomends any heel toe pedals.

thank you

 

I heel-toe consistently all day long on stock pedals. But if that is not working out for you, then basically what you want in order to heel-toe better is some overhang on the bottom left of the gas pedal, and a good surface so the pedals won't stick to your feet but they won't slide right off either (personal preference comes into play here as well). Those pedals have the right shape for heel-toeing but I can't say anything about surface.

Then again, if I can heel-toe on stock pedals then you can too. Just get used to pivoting your right foot around the brake pedal more.

 

my feet are too big to heel toe on the maxima....

 

there's not such thing as too big/too small feet you should be able to do it.

 

See I've always done it with my arch/heel on the brake & toe on the gas, is that how everyone else heel-toes? Because the above descript of the pedal overhang would only be useful for toe-heel shifting, lmao, but I can't do it like that.

Another thing (& this will be helpful to OP if he wasn't aware of this) But those goodyear adidas driving sneakers, where do they have the grooves for heel-toe shifteng?

 

I can do it just fine with stock pedals. You will NOT need to heel-toe in autocross.

Such as?

(NASA time trialing, SCCA club, ?)

To put it bluntly, you can enter a car like a Maxima in one of these classes, but until you have some years of experience you won't be the least bit competitive. I mean you can enter a race, but I wouldn't expect to be "racing" for quite a while.


Use stock pedals. They're much easier to heel-toe in when you are braking hard. Remember you're not using a heel, you're keeping the ball of your foot on the brake and turning your toe out so the outside toes just get the throttle.

If you're serious about getting into racing, don't spend a dollar on mods until you've been out there and have really good reason to invest in it. The cost of track time, brake pads, fuel, and tires is enormous (not so much in autox, but the point remains). Definitely don't change stuff until you've chosen a class to race and have studied the rules thorougly. By far the most important thing is to learn to drive well.

Dave

 

oh i understand completely that im going to be terrible the first time out and need to seriously invest a lot of money into a car to even come close to being competitive. i mean i really am not going to enter it in any serious races. just if the tracks had any open days, i might try and go out there and screw around. i mainly want to do autocross though.

thank you for the replies guys. i was taught it to be the other way around, to use your toes on the brake and your heel on the gas. maybe im wrong? i find you have more control with the toes on the brake and your heel on the gas. so basically you guys use your toe on the brake and your toes on the gas? that was the whole reason to buy the pedals though, i figured i would have more room to reach them with my heel.

 

As Dave said, the ball of your foot (toes) depresses the brake steadily while your heel pivots around the ball of your foot and stabs the throttle. The objective here is to have as much control over your brakes as possible (thus the toes on the brakes). Blipping the throttle does not require the same precision as threshold braking and therefore is secondary priority, the heel-stab can take care of it just fine. Using your heel on the brakes is not as precise and you will be more prone to having your foot slip off the pedal.

Around town I use the "toe-toe" sissy method (left side of ball of foot on brake, right side of ball of foot on gas) since heel-toeing requires some effort and isn't quite as precise. But you do NOT want to use that method when spirited driving--you will have to strain your foot too hard in order to grab enough rev, as well as not have the fine braking control and steadfast foot you would have with a heel-toe shift.

 

My heel never touches anything, on or off track. But no doubt I keep the ball of my foot directly on the brake for maximum control. It can require big feet, but many top drivers do it this way.

Dave

 

I cant heel-toe because my legs are too long . Is there away to either move the seat rails further back or have the steering wheel move up a little more I have both my seat back as far as it can go and my steering wheel as high as it will go, Ive tried moving the seat up and down but that doesnt help every time I try to hit the pedal with my heel my leg hits the steering wheel

 

lol +1

 

Heel Toe

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IuoZeuSgEj4

http://youtube.com/watch?v=klMur6TPkrM&feature=related

 

I find shoes make a BIG difference. I tried to heel toe in my Nike Shox but its wayyy to hard because the arch part is very thin so it just bends. they are the worst shoe to drive in anyways. My favorite sheos to drive in are either my first gen addidas racers (good year ones) or my porsche design addidas ones. Very stiff sole, very flat and thin so you have a REAL good feeling of the pedal. Well the best shoe to drive in would be my puma racing ones, but there kinda hard to walk in and i would never wear them in any weather other then summer because they arent designed to be walked far in lol.

You know whats weird, i find it easier to do it the opposite way, i think its just the maxima, because if i try heel toe the way int he video my knee hits the steering column, perhaps cuz i have to sit close because im only 5ft 5.

 

^^Im 6'2 and my legs are where my height comes from, Ur lucky U can try moving the seat up and down and a little further back and U'll be set If I try and pivot my foot my lower thigh right above my knee hits the steering wheel

 

Funny, I have never heard of doing it this way, all the videos etc I've seen have shown doing it ball&heel and I learned that way, I thought that was pretty much the official way to do it (also, racing pedals will have the little "heel-toe tab" on the bottom right of the gas which suggests this is what they are expecting you to do). But as long as the ball of your foot is on the brakes and you can manage to reliably stab the gas with something you're pretty much in the clear.

I think part of the reason I take to "toe-toeing" on the street is that it is hard to reach the gas with your heel if the brake pedal is not depressed enough. Braking hard levels the brake and gas pedal more so it's more condusive to stabbing the gas with your heel.

 

It's the way that's most accessible to me in my street cars since my knee is up against the steering column and my seat's not as low as a race car. Given enough room under the wheel to try both ways I'd re-evaluate. It doesn't hurt that like many people my lower legs tend to be duck-footed, and rotating my heel out puts my leg in a really screwy position. I know I'm not the only one to do it this way.

Dave