I always have my car in gear while moving.....you give up control if you're just coasting to a stop. Driving by the brakes is just plain stupid

 

I always down shift to stop. Get it down to a low crawl in 2nd then use the brakes. As long as you rev match your downshifts you're not putting abnormal wear on anything.

 

wHAT IS REV MATCHING EXACTLY... The way I understand revmatching is what i'M DOING NOW. Pushing the clutch moving down a gear and slowly realsing so it catches and doesn't shake. the repeating till I'm stopped.

 

NO. What you're doing now is using the synchros to match the speed of the parts. Rev matching is where you push in the clutch (revs begin to drop), you blip the throttle to bring the revs up to match what they would be at the speed the car is currently at in the gear you just selected, you select the lower gear and let out the clutch fairly quickly. If you did it right, engagement will be smooth, there will be no jerkiness and the gear change will be near effortless. It takes practice and knowledge of your car to get it smooth.

Search rev-matching and heel/toe for more info.

 

press brakes, then go to N when you're about to stop. Much less effort, more consistent, and alot smoother, unless you like that complete control. I woudnt worry about the breaks, easily replaced. It's not any worse than braking with and auto tranny right?

 

Rev matching is good for the clutch and not so good for the synchros, if you want less work on the clutch and synchros, then DOUBLE CLUTCH. Match the speed of the gear train to the wheel speed.

 

Personally I think downshifting to slow down is not appropriate for a sports car. I used to drive a manual S10 where I would conserve the brakes by rev-matching and downshifting to a stop. The only thing is, that tranny was pretty much bullet proof, and if it went who the hell cares it was an S10. For a 350Z, I would say change the brake pads 1000 miles earlier and conserve the life of your drivetrain.

Just plain more logical

 

you ever seen Best Motoring Videos? they always downshift to slow down, it saves their brake pads and it wont destroy your synch if you do it right...

 

Difficulties shifting into first? That's because you're not double clutching. Any time you shift into first or reverse you should double clutch. Don't believe me? RTFM. Push the clutch in > take it out of whatever gear you're in > release the clutch while in neutral > depress the clutch again > select your gear. You should just make it a habit and you will never have difficulties getting into first or reverse. Note: First gear is almost never necessary if you're already moving unless you're creeping very slowly. If you do shift into first while moving you should not only double clutch, but revmatch also.

What does it mean to revmatch? It means to manipulate the engine speed to match the speed of the transmission during gear changes. The proper speed of the engine depends on how fast you're moving and what gear you're in.

As far as downshifting is concerned, you should *NEVER* clutch brake. This will kill your clutch faster than grease lightning. What I mean by clutch braking is selecting a lower gear without raising the engine speed to match the tranny speed. That feeling of hitting the brakes when you let the clutch out is from your engine having to be pulled up to speed, which in effect slows you down. The amount of wear that puts on your clutch makes me cringe just to think about. That's what your brakes are for.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with engine braking. By engine braking I mean letting the engine slow your speed. All you have to do to engine brake is let off the gas while in gear. You can also progressively revmatch downshifts and use nothing but engine braking to slow your speed. This uses more gas and puts more revolutions on your engine, but it can certainly be useful in several situations.

Heeltoeing is technique used by experienced drivers. It involves revmatching downshifts, engine braking, and using the brakes all at the same time. 3 pedals but you only have two feet. It's mainly used in racing situations that prepare the car to enter a turn while being in the appropriate gear. It assists braking, it maintains stability of the car, and it allows you to exit turns faster.

This post was far from in depth, but it should be enough to get a lot of people here interested in operating their manual transmission properly. If you have any questions, just shoot.

 

+1

 

anyone who says revmatching is stupid is a moron who doesnt know anything about driving stick and should have got a auto lol