One of the things that most instructional texts/manuals doesn't seem to cover very well is the act of downshifting with a manual gearbox without heel-toe downshifting. The stock pedal layout/placement/design on my 07 GT w/ TR-3650 doesn't seem very intuitive for heel-toe downshifting. I can sometimes blip the throttle using the right side of my foot but there's not a lot of sensitivity there and compounded with throttle lag (yes, apparently my 07 GT manual does have throttle lag after some thorough testing) I either give it too much gas or not enough.

So what are some tips for downshifting w/o heel-toe downshifting, such as coming to a slow turn where you don't have to fully stop, but you have to use the brakes right beforehand?

For downshifting to pass, I just rev-match it by blipping the throttle.

 

The only reason for heel toe is to be on the brakes and throttle at the same time. May have racing applications but is not needed in daily driving type operations. I will preselect the lower gear, keep the clutch in while braking, then rev match and let out the clutch for coming out of the turn. Much simpler and fool proof.

 

 

I like double clutching.

I don't heel/toe but when I'm on 2 lane twisties I'm busy - especially going down mountain passes. I always want to accelerate into/through the turn for proper balance and avoid understeer. (Or at least be neutral to light accelerate at a minimum, to hard accelerate depending on the tightness of the curve and the steepness of the down slope.) So I'm double clutching, down shifting & engine braking, hard braking right at the last, just before entering the curve, then on the gas thru the curve. Really resets the spring load/shifts the balance to just right. Also when under acceleration if there's uneven road surface that some whine about with SRA, the rear wheels (both w/track-lock) stay well planted.

I almost always double clutch just too be easy on the syncrho's. I don't have to but years of habit in several manny trannys.

What I don't understand about the GT40 dubs in Bullitt is why SMQ is double clutching when he upshifts too. That GT40 had some crazy throttle response! (And zero run-on.)

 

Good question, having never been exposed to an unsyncronized trans so I never questioned the sound clip from the movie.

Anyways, syncro's - god bless'em, sometimes I doubt I actually disengage the clatch at all when I shift. As an experiment I've found I can shift from 1st to 3rd by letting up on the throttle without the need to actuate the clutch in normal driving.

 

I would have to double clutch my cars to get into first above about 5 MPH because up until this car, first was not syncroed. My Mustang has a syncro first and first goes in much easier and at higher speed but some times I will still double clutch into first because it seems a bit easier on the syncros.

 

What I do,

Press the clutch in,select the gear, rev match as best I can and let the clutch out smoothyl, the throttle lag on the stock tune makes this process longer, but since I use a tune the response is almost instant so this all takes less than 2 seconds for me at any speed.