How to correctly drive an MT.

[Alan]

Originally Posted by chilibowl

Downhill braking eats up brakes, ur better off just using the engine to brake.

i gotta disagree with this. brakes are meant to slow you down. i know our engines are pretty tough but i would think excessive engine braking causes additional wear on the engine. i would much rather replace my brake pads than my engine.

[Klubbheads]

It is good for the engine to work at high rpm without any stress, which going downhill on low gear does.

[silentxnight]

oo ok thanks guys...i will put all this advice to good use

[Gdriver916]

Originally Posted by Alan

i gotta disagree with this. brakes are meant to slow you down. i know our engines are pretty tough but i would think excessive engine braking causes additional wear on the engine. i would much rather replace my brake pads than my engine.

Your motor and tranny can handle some something as simple as this. However, your brakes might over head from the stress and fail. It's a lot safer to just use the engine and tranny to slow you down on a downhill.

[chilibowl]

Originally Posted by Gdriver916

Your motor and tranny can handle some something as simple as this. However, your brakes might over head from the stress and fail. It's a lot safer to just use the engine and tranny to slow you down on a downhill.

+1, VQ FTMFW

[MIA BlazinVQ]

sorry for the newb question, but WTF is 'FTMFW' and 'FTW'???

[chilibowl]

lmao, it means , FOR THE WIN, or , FOR THE MOTHA F*CKING WIN !

[chilibowl]

Another tip I thought of...

Although I slip up myself sometimes with this on slow moving city and residential streets... When taking a turn, always be in gear, 2nd preferably. Don't clutch and gear in midway thru the turn, its not good practice. Brake before the turn, Rev-match into 2nd and take the corner. This way, you will be in gear immediately, ready to punch it if need be.

[ndlive]

what's the right way to launch? clutch in, rpm at 2k, hold the clutch at engagement point for like a second while giving little more gas, then flooring it?

what about the upshifts? is it supposed to be really jerky? i suddenly get off of the throttle a little before redline, which gives a jerk, then change gears and let the clutch out really fast (it's called dumping the clutch, i think?) which gives another jerk. is it supposed to be smooth?

[chilibowl]

Are you talking about launching for racing or for regular takeoffs? For race launches, I have my found my sweet spot to be at 2.5K RPMs. I have the clutch in, raise the RPMs to 2.5K, and then dump the clutch, but I dont dump it the whole way, I feather it at the top while I ease up on the gas until I have minimal wheel spin. Once I catch 100% traction, its 100% WOT from there. For launches, just practice and find your sweet spot. What you dont want is wheel-spin.

On upshifts, it all depends on what your intentions are. If youre just cruising along, the clutch should be let up slowly and any shift under 5K rpm should not be jerky. But if you want optimal acceleration, you want to push that clutch in as fast as you can, as youre pushing in the clutch youre already selecting your gear, and as youre letting it up quickly youre already mashing down on the gas pedal. This of course, will NEVER be smooth. If you want the best acceleration, VDC has to be off because once you redline 1st, your gonna chirp 2nd indefinitely.

[RBull]

Good post chilibowl. This is the first one where I can agree with all the points and it matches up with exactly how I drive.

Well done. Great advice for those learning to do it the right way.

[RBull]

Originally Posted by Alan

i gotta disagree with this. brakes are meant to slow you down. i know our engines are pretty tough but i would think excessive engine braking causes additional wear on the engine. i would much rather replace my brake pads than my engine.

i don't think we're talking about trying to stop the car with the transmission. We're assisting with scrubbing off a little speed or avoid gaining momentum downhill. That won't hurt the engine and no fuel is burned when the foot is off the throttle. Excessive downhill rpms or down shifting isn't the goal as the brakes should be lightly introduced before getting to that level.

[chilibowl]

Originally Posted by RBull

Good post chilibowl. This is the first one where I can agree with all the points and it matches up with exactly how I drive.

Well done. Great advice for those learning to do it the right way.

Thanks bro, Is there a way we can get this stickied?

[chilibowl]

Ive made a Microsoft Word document, all my key points in one document. To those wanting to practice, print it out and take it with you on a practice session, just leave it in your passenger seat .

[Bigd2k6]

Originally Posted by chilibowl

Ive made a Microsoft Word document, all my key points in one document. To those wanting to practice, print it out and take it with you on a practice session, just leave it in your passenger seat .

will it get me out of a ticket if i show the cop?