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Ok. I am relatively a newbie to driving a stick. A question I have is how do you take a sharp 90 degree turn? I usually slow down, but not enough for shifting into 2nd gear. This is because I don't want to slow down the cars behind me.
So I shift to neutral and coast for some time while the car is slowing down, make the turn, and by that time, the car has come to a speed low enough for 2nd gear. I then shift to 2nd and hit the throttle.
Shift to second before the turn, be done with the gear change and any braking. You might need the engine power at some point during the turn, you don't want to be coasting if that happens.
Shift to second before the turn, be done with the gear change and any braking. You might need the engine power at some point during the turn, you don't want to be coasting if that happens.
Agreed. It's always best to be in gear for those 'what if' situations. If you haven't already, start practicing smooth downshifts. It's a great skill to have. You don't need to be some 'heel toe' master, but rev matching will make everything nice and smooth, plus it's fun IMO.
i dont get rev matching. while slowing down, the speed of the car is going to drop (due to braking) as well as the engine rpms (as we dont use gas while slowing). so why should i increase the engine rpms to shift to a lower gear?
Also, if I have a stop sign 20 mtrs ahead, and I am in 1st gear, doesn't it make sense to give a little gas, then shift to neutral and coast to the stop sign.
In the first case I'd slow the car down with the brake and immediately press down on the clutch while leaving the car in 3rd gear (unless it was low enough to switch into 2nd) and let the rpms drop while your cornering. That way you can put the car in gear immediately by lifting up on the clutch.
I'd do the same thing in the second case. Brake, clutch, but leave the car in gear.
why don't you just shift to second to slow you down in the slow corners use the engine to brake and slow dowb the car instead of the brakes then get going again and upshift to third.
with a stick shift you should be use your gears to slow your car down and only use the brakes when you need to come to a complete stop otherwise you can engine brake by down shifting.
as for first gear you never downshift to it you only use it to get going from a dead stop
GTOLover: Good advice. I'd say which gear to be in depends upon the gearing of the car. My little car doesn't mind going into 1st gear if I'm in a big hurry (or driving very slow), but I usually keep it in 2nd.
Don't do rev matching, unless your clutch is from 1950's
Don't downshift to 1 while moving, ever (it's doing more harm than good)
Don't use neutral before/during situation when you might need power (turns, crossroads, railroad crossing lol)
Let say you have 4 and expecting 90 degree turn. Just brake and press clutch pedal, put 2 gear.. once speed is lower release the clutch pedal (don't do this on ice). Doesn't really matter in what phase you do what. Try it few times to see what works best for your car.
Shift to second before the turn, be done with the gear change and any braking. You might need the engine power at some point during the turn, you don't want to be coasting if that happens.
Agreed again. My g/f called one night and said she was in the ditch and when she told me where she was I knew what went wrong before I even got on the scene. It was a rural 2 lane 55 mph that has a 90 that should be taken at 15 mph. I've noticed she doesn't downshift or if she does she drives right up on the turn and takes it in 3rd gear or coasts around the curve in neutral. Trying to take the turn to fast to begin with and then when trouble struck not enough time to shift , brake and correct too deep into the turn sent the car straight.
i dont get rev matching. while slowing down, the speed of the car is going to drop (due to braking) as well as the engine rpms (as we dont use gas while slowing). so why should i increase the engine rpms to shift to a lower gear?
the usual reason is that your engine is turning a certain rpm in, say, third gear. At that same speed, if it were in second gear, it woudl be turning at a higher rpm. If you shift from third to second, even when not on the gas and slowing down, there is a "shock" to the system when the engine suddenly has to turn a higher rpm as you let the clutch out. Or worse, the difference in rpm between the input and output shafts can cause damage to the synchros and gears as you try to move the slelctor forks from one gear to the next. Rev matching does exactly what it says, it matches the rpms on the input and output shafts to minimize gear and synchro damage and shock to the system.
It's not exactly necessary in modern cars, but was absolutely necessary in non-synchro race boxes and older transmissions, or in any car with weak synchros. It's a good skill to have in case you end up having to drive a car with broken synchros OR clutch (with rev matching you can shift a car wihtout using the clutch at all, soif you lose hydraulic pressure or break a clutch cable, with the ability to rev match, you can still limp the car home/to a shop).
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