I don't know if I'm alone in this. I'm pretty tall and using the heal-toe technique at the track is pretty difficult for me. Has anyone tried any aftermarket changes to the brake and throttle pedals to improve the ability to do heal-toe shifts? What are you using? Any pictures?


Thanks.

 

I'm also interested in this. I can heel toe like a pro in my buddy's STi and in my mom's miata, but for some reason, I have trouble doing it well in the Z.

 

Im not going to consider myself tall nor short (6'1"), but I don't have much trouble heel-toeing in the Z...Just took me a lot of practice with every day driving and I finally got the hang of it...A slight roll of the ankle for me does the trick.

 

Try ultimatepedals heel-toe extensions.

http://www.ultimatepedals.com/pedal.htm

 

sparco makes a cf pedal set that curves at the bottom, i had that on my spec-v and it worked wonderfully

 

Different styles available, but here are a few pics. Not all have the extensions.

 

Does it actually make it easier to heel and toe?

What if you don't have problems with reaching the pedal is as. Do you think the extensions would still be beneficial?

 

I got my pedals from Autovation. Here is their website and a picture of my pedals. They definitely make heel and toe shifting much easier.

Les

http://www.autovation.net/

 

rather than rolling my foot Heel-to-Toe, I roll my foot from left to right (the left side of the foot is on the brake, and the right side hits the gas.)

*I've tried both ways in multiple cars, and have just found that I'm much smoother with this method.

 

I roll too. It's more side of the foot and heel on the gas than anything. I think most people do the same, heel/toe is just the name.

I think proper footing and pressure on the brake is key, then just articulate the foot however you feel comfortable.

 

+1 heel/toe doesnt seem to work in the Z. I roll too and it works just fine.

 

I read something in Sportcar magazine a while back about bending the throttle pedel a little. Well i bent mine about 1/4 inch twords the brake and its so muck easier to heel toe now.

 

the Z is actually the easiest car i've heel-toed in so far. ball of foot on brake, and side of heel on the gas for me. And also, the harder you're braking, the easier it is to mash the gas, at least for me.

 

My technique lends itself, ideally, to a closer pedal spacing than is had in the stock Z. I was considering purchasing a brake pedal to bridge the gap. These pieces look very good. Don't know if I would want to drill holes through the pedal though...call it an irrational concern...

 

Hard on the brakes definitely makes things easier. I rev-match, but heel-toe is not something I normally use on the street.

 

Yeah, I usually have to hauling *** approaching a corner in 3rd gear for me to actually heel-toe into 2nd. But doing this on a regular basis is just asking for a ticket on the streets.

 

Guys, i hate to say this, but heel and toe is highly overrated. This technique goes back to the old fashioned square cut gearboxes where you had to match the engine revs to the gearbox to make a down shift.
While you are playing with the brakes and gas i'm coming into the corner as deep as I can possibly go and usually down shift into the gear that I want to use to get out of the corner. I hit this gear about 2 to 3 seconds before I let off the brakes and get back on the gas. There is no coasting in racing, you are either on the gas or on the brakes. Heel and toeing loses time on every corner you us the technique.
Flame away.

 

^Do you still rev-match?

 

OK,
First off, the technique for non-syncro'd gear boxes is rev matching, not heel toe throttle application. Heel to is to allow smooth transitions from the full application of the brakes to the application of the throttle. If you are going straight from one to another then you are off the throttle for that fraction of a second while you foot moves from one pedal to the next. If you are not heel-toing, you are in fact coasting for that fraction of a second. You are also upsetting the chassis with such abrupt transitions. If you ever look at a traction graph you will see you can apply more traction to the circle of the transaction from on vector to another is smooth. I would argue you are loosing roughly 1/10 or more a turn by NOT H/T. No flaming, but that is mine, and many others who know a lot more about racing than me.

Back to the OP - How are you heel and toeing, that will help deciding on the pedal set up. If you are trying to rotate you foot more then you actually want more space between the pedals. I agree with most on just a slight turn of the foot on the 350 and roll your ankle over a bit, but some are uncomfortable with so little of the ball of your foot on the brake. A lot of this depends on what size your feet are, and what you are comfortable with.

 

I agree that improper heel/toe technique will lose time in a corner from either a botched shift or not braking at the limit during the entire brake sequence. I also feel that not finishing a race due to synchro or transmission failure tends to lose time too...

FYI... a driver's care in upshifting and downshifting has a lot to do with who's paying for the transmission when it fails.