Riceboy369

Hey .. I've had my 350Z for about 3 months now .. and this is my first manual car ... previously, i practiced on my friends Prelude SH a couple of times.. Anyway ... I'm always trying to work on my stick shift driving to get a smoother start and a smoother ride in general between shifts... I try not to 'ride the clutch' as much as possible, but some times i just have to hold the clutch a lil longer to get a smoother ride ....

Recently, ive learned that you'll get a quicker and smoother shift if i do not press the clutch down all the way .. maybe a lil above half before you disengage the clutch totally .. but i cant help but feel that its not as good for the car =\ .. Does anyone know if this a good thing / bad thing?

Also .. if anyone has any suggestions / tips on how to drive stick shift better... I would really appreciate it =)

ares

iTrader: (2)

always at a loss, most cars have dual clutches in the auto trannies so one gear goes off the next comes right on. no down time.

for manual I find you gotta stop accelerating so you dont get the sharp loss of accel with the release of the clutch, then match the RPMs at a constant amount, dont just let off the gas and let it fall, then let clutch back out smoothly.

1-2 shift is still hard to get smooth for me, so much power in that shift, the car will lurch very easily.

ChrisMCagle

Ok, I know I'll feel the heat for asking this... but I am curious.

What is "double-clutching"?? I've heard it mentioned a few times by Ricers... oops, I mean "Racers" and have always wondered what it meant.

-Chrismcagle

r34 racer

iTrader: (1)

Double clutching was a shifting technique used predominantly on older cars lacking a synchromesh. This is how it is done:

when you need to shift:
release gas
Step on clutch
Move to neutral
Release clutch
Blip throttle
Step on clutch
Shift into next gear
Release clutch
step on gas

If i remember correctly, the effect was to bring the tranny's internal gears to similar rpms so that the gear select collar could slip into gear without grinding. This technique is pretty much useless on synchromeshed cars.

350ed

iTrader: (17)

Nice how-to manual site:
http://www.10w40.com/individual/100186.asp

ChrisMCagle

I was just talking with a friend of mine and he mentioned that in "The Fast and the Furious" that main guy says that the blonde haired guy should have been double-clutching. Wouldn't those rice-mobiles be synchromeshed?

-Chrismcagle

Beamm

They were just tryin to sound cool I think...the only tranny that I can think of that doesn't have synchros is in some big trucks (well...maybe they were drivin with a Mack tranny in that movie). I could be wrong but my guess is they were tryin to sound 'cool' (for the record I hate that movie so I am biased).

As for the shifting technique...I don't have a Z yet (maybe tomorrow after I get outta class if all goes well????) but I can tell you what I do in my car. I always clutch all the way to the floor even though the friction point in my car is REALLY high (like all I need to do is tap it). I always try to match RPM when shifting in higher gears (although it just comes naturally now).

ares

iTrader: (2)

double clutching from what Ive heard is more applicable to down shifting(which really doesnt make sense for the movie of course)

gotta thing of the tranny as 3 peices(cause it is) engine, and output are 2, but there is a peice in the middle as well. the clutch disengages the engine from the middle section. but the other side doesnt have a clutch, not a problem cause its only matching to a lighter type item uses friction to match, in some cases this can be alot of friction.

so you sit in nuetral(now the engine and middle are locked, but not to the output) you hit the throttle, and let go, now the middle is moving at the faster speed with the output shaft so you can slip it into gear easier. then engage engine again.

ChrisMCagle

YEah, I agree on the use of that line in F&F. Most likely just to "try" to sound like they know what they're talking about (although I like that movie)

Hmmmm.. when I shift it's like my feet are on a see-saw. As I let up on the gas, I am pressing in on the clutch an equal amount until the clutch is pushed in all the way and my right foot is not depressing the gas. I shift to the next gear, then repeat the process in the opposite direction with my feet. I guess that's just how I learned many years ago and it works for me. I think that if I tried to do an extra step in there somewhere I'd get all turned around.

-Chrismcagle

yobri

iTrader: (2)

I think Ares was speaking about slowing the car down (downshifting) instead of braking. So Chris, the extra step you are talking about pertains to a different method of slowing the car.

Some people like to use less brakes (pads) and more tranny action to help slow acceleration.

w mitty

Double clutching was a good way to match the synchros in older cars as you downshifted. It was an art form in my 59 100-6 Austin Healy. At the risk of starting another thread with regard to shitfting, I find that the close ratio tranny in the Z gives me too many gears. I often go through the sequenc 1-3-5 or if I am barely rolling then 2-4-5. There is no great loss of power and more importantly, it doesn't seem to overload the engine. It also appears to improve the gas mileage. Are there any other gear skippers out there?

yobri

iTrader: (2)

Sounds like a good idea. I mean, I start from 2nd sometimes but never thought of skipping every other gear taxing the engine less... I'm going to try that on the way home.

ChrisMCagle

Hehehehehe... yeah. The day I got my Z and went for a test drive (first time driving a Z) I actually was shifting from 2nd to 5th and DIDN'T KNOW IT! There was no noticible bog down of the engine. After a few times the salesguy brought it to my attention. I still will occasionally do it accidentally, but then put it into the correct gear right away. I could never have done that with my Ford Ranger. It barely had enought power going from 2nd to 3rd!

-Chrismcagle

ares

iTrader: (2)

well prolly cause 2nd goes to 60mph, yet 6th is rated at 38mph+ 5th is 32mph+. they are very close, I often skip gears, but someone reccomended that I still go into the gate and not let out the clutch, it makes sense from a synchro standpoint, so I shift into each gear, but only let the clutch out and accelerate in some.

scottycoyote

im a gear skipper too......i never heard if it would hurt anything before......i was reading the post from ares about putting it in the gear but not letting out the cluth....anyone else do this/know if this is necessary?

yobri

iTrader: (2)

I don't do it myself, but I have watched some Japanese VCD racig movies. These movies depict some pretty well done race scenes which include interior shots of shifting and clutching techniques (loads of heel-toe.... for me = educational ).

Some of the movies have the driver skipping gears, but he'll place the shifter into the gear that he skipped on the way to the destination gear... kinda like what Ares said. So it is done, just not by many apparently.

Uber' 350

in F&F the term "double clutching" refers to over-revving the engine in an up shift to gain a "chirp" or gain some speed, kinda like a rolling launch. As for me i always rev-match in downshifting, i feel as if i have more control over thte car and its nice to have the rpms high than norm so i can make some evasive manuvering if i have to, and it sounds cool, and outta my group of friends im the only one that can do it, so i out corner them everytime... hahaha im also lucky enough to know how to heel-toe but that took a long time to master. I've also heard bad things about easing out the clutch on a downstift, its like really tough on the tranny, and i dont like the lurch when i dont rev-match.

03 Z for ME

I used to own a 95 Trans Am. The F - Bodies all have "Skip-shift" technology built into them for better gas milage. When you accelerate slowly (in traffic) from a stop the "skip-shift" FORCES you to shift from first to fourth. Many companies sell "skip-shift emilinators" to get rid of this gas saving feature.

Before I got my skip shift eliminator I used to be forced from first to fourth, I immediately downshifted to third before I ever let the clutch out... (I must have look funny driving, but I couldn't STAND the BOG from 1st to 4th.)

Buub

iTrader: (1)

Yes driving around town I like to get a little "push" in second, but I don't bog the engine down in first (bad). So I'll go 1 - 2, but if I'm having fun, by the time I'm done with second I'm already up to street speed, so I'll skip third and go to fourth. So it's 1 - 2- 4.

the doc

So if you aren't supposed to ease the clutch out on a downshift, then what is the best way to do it? Surely just popping it out quickly can't be good for the car.