I dunno if its my driving style, but I find the car quite impossible to drive around without doing heel toe when downshifting, does anyone else have this problem?

 

I certainly don't find it to be "impossible", but I believe that H/T makes it smoother and more fun.

Why do you say it's impossible?

 

I HT every day when I drive.

When I am going into a corner I HT right before every time.

I find it very easy now but it certainly takes practice.

The first step is to just do rev matching and work up from there

rob

 

It's not exactly h/t'ing for me...it's more like I roll my right foot over to the gas. The tunnel gets in my way when I try to turn my leg over to get my heel on the gas pedal. It's quite doable...I do it all the time.

 

I heel/toe only when I'm really hustling. In normal driving I just get my braking done in a straight line, then downshift after I come off the brake. When I downshift I just skip the intermediate gears rather than going through them.

The only reason to heel/toe is to be ready to begin acceleration the instant you're done braking, which in my normal life isn't a high priority.

Of course, I guess another reason to heel/toe in normal driving would be to practice so that when you really want to go ten-tenths you have the technique down cold. You really don't want your foot slipping off the brake in that situation.

 

I do it every time I'm slowing down... it's great practice. When you do it all the time it becomes second nature on the track. Plus, it sounds so cool!

 

Hootsama: Sorry, maybe not 'impossible', but a few days ago I went through a street with 3 roundabouts and somehow I decided not to heel toe on the last one and I got the car completely sideways(it was raining).

 

I always match revs when driving.

 

Ditto. You should match revs whether you're H/Ting or not. Also, though experienced racers might disagree on the details, IMO you should have your exit gear already engaged before turning the wheel into a corner. Downshifting during hard cornering will unsettle the chassis, even if you do it perfectly.

 

right. downshifting without rev-matching is a bit like braking: you transfer weight from the rear to the front, something you may not want to do in the middle of a corner.

I also do it all of the time. But I double de-clutch. I know this is controversial and I have heard strong opinions about it.

I'm now sideing with the non-believers and I'd be willing to let go of the technique, but it has become so second nature that I haven't succeeded so far.