A friend of mine just told me that I am shifting wrong. Here is my version, which is not my fault, I have only had one other manual shift (BMW3) in 11 years and this is how I was taught.

Press clutch all the way in, move to first, let out clutch smoothly as I apply the gas, repeat.

Friend suggestion: when going from first to second and so on, I should slightly pull down the the stick and press in the clutch until it pops into second, not pressing the clutch all the way in, while rev matching at the same time. Repeat.

Now, I consider myself an above average performance driver (not shifter) but these seems about as easy as patting my head and rubbing my gut at the same time...or like learning to play the drums!!!


What in the hell do I need to do and what the hell is a double clutching, is that like doing two chicks at once?? Help!!

 

You should slap your friend.

 

 

x 2

~Andrew

 

x3

 

x4

 

I don't think you should slap your friend

I think you should kick him

there is some truth to his statement though

technically, you do not need to press the clutch in all the way to change gears. After a certain point, it is useless to keep pushing the clutch. But many do including myself most of the time as it makes me feel safer. Unless you know the exact point of clutch engagement while redlining and performing this task with quite a bit of speed, don't do it.

In terms of slightly pulling down on the stick while the car is in gear and you are not yet on the clutch is a bad bad idea. You are asking for trouble. One day it is going to bite you in the ass.

 

x5.

I'm sure you've revmatch shifted without meaning to before. I do it all the time in spirited driving. You have to have a feel for it. That being said I wouldn't try it as a practice manuver.

 

AWESOME!!!!!!!!!! I am still laughing. I wasn't expecting all of the replys to be the same

So how do I shift my car like a Road and Track tester??? To his defense, I may be describing it a little wrong but he says that he is basically pulling on the gear towards the gear he wants to go to before he applys pressure to the clutch so the when you press the clutch in, it will go only so far as to allow the stick to go to the next gear, and then somehow rev matching comes into play in between the shifts....if I try this my car will gears will look like my Baitcaster, like a birdnest!!!

 

Is that some magic method (in his mind) of reducing the throw of the shifter? No matter how you do it, the range you have to move the shifter is going to be the same.

Sounds to me like he's talking about pulling the car out of gear without pressing the clutch and then depressing it when you're ready to go into the next gear. How this saves time or makes it easier I have no idea, no matter what you have to depress the clutch (unless you rev match it perfectly to get it to slip into the next gear) and you have to throw the shifter.

Slap him and kick him.