Explaination of heel-toe shifting

[JGard]

Hey, could somebody here please tell me what exactly heel-toe shifting is? i've heard of it, and i've gotten pretty good at quick shifting, but then i heard people talking about heel-toe, and i would like to know exactly what encompasses that. Thanks

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[wonj]

I'll start by identifying the benefits of matching engine speed when downshifting, which ultimately is also the key benefit of heel & toe.

Downshifting: I guess the secret to a long lasting gearbox, less engine wear and smoother shifting is to match revs when doing so. Try driving at a steady speed in 4th gear (80kph or 50mph is good). Check the engine speed. Let's say 3000 rpm for the sake of argument (which we all know is NOT the exact speed). Downshift to 3rd. Let's assume the engine now revs around 3500 rpm. When you downshifted, chances are the car lurched because the gearbox is suddenly putting additional strain on the engine. If you were on snow or ice, or even possibly in rain, you would certainly have lost traction and fishtailed. Put the car back in 4th. Let's try again. This time, clutch in, blip the accelerator (a blip is like a stab or jab -- quick) to get the revs up to, say, 3600 or 3700 rpm. While you blip the throttle, put the car in 3rd. Now clutch out. If your timing is right, the extra 100 or so rpm was lost somewhere in this exercise, and you should be letting the clutch go at around 3500 rpm, which is precisely the engine speed required for 50 mph in 3rd. If all was performed admirably, you shouldn't feel the downshift at all.

Upshifting: This is simple. let's assume same speed, 3rd gear. Clutch in, put car in 4th, allow revs to fall to 3000, clutch out. You shouldn't feel a thing.

Practice: Before even attempting to heel & toe, you must get the shifting right. Starting out, I found that the 4th-3rd exercise is the easiest. Practice this often, downshifting, upshifting, over and over. Then start varying your speed a bit. Naturally, this will require a different amount of throttle input to match revs for the lower gear. Then start practicing the 5-4 and 3-2 shift. 2-1 is hard, it'll take ages. The only advice I can give here: you must get to the point where you just 'feel' the engine and you just 'know' how much throttle is required for a downshift, or how long to wait for an upshift. You guys with 8 gazillion gigawatts of stereos and amps might want to turn down the music a bit to hear the engine. Believe me, once you get the hang of this, it's very rewarding. Try taking a passenger along to get their input on whether they feel the up/downshifts.

Heel & Toe

Why: specifically on a racecourse, let's say you're barreling down a straight at 6000 rpm in 4th, approaching a hard 90 degree right hander. Fun, eh? You need to be in 2nd to exit the corner with optimum available power. Somewhere in about 100 feet of space, you must brake REAL hard, and also snap off two downshifts before turning in. You can't shift first, obviously, if your engine is already near redline. You can't brake a bit, and then let off to downshift -- there's just not enough room and you'll unsettle the car (the front would become light, and you'd loose turning traction). It would be much more efficient if you combine these two actions (braking and downshifting).

How: Heel & toe could be realistically referred to as ball & edge, especially in the BMW with its pedal placement. You brake with the ball of your right foot (below the big toe) on the right hand 1/2 -1/4 of the brake pedal. The right edge of your foot is now available to pivot towards the accelerator for 'blip' duty. Remember not to change the pressure being applied on the brake. You must practice this well. Get used to only ever using the right hand 1/2 - 1/4 of the brake pedal, and also get used to how much effort is required in any braking situation.

Now, Bob, let's put ourselves back on that straight, at 6000 rpm in 4th with 100 feet to brake and downshift to 2nd. Your mirrors are full of cars, sweat is dripping off your brow, your heart is pounding, you've got the line for the corner and there's no room for error. Are you with me here, Bob? The guy behind you and to the right is looking for a late braking opportunity if you mess up. You decide to cut your braking distance by 10 feet or so...Hard on the binders! 50 feet. Engine must be down to about 4000 now...clutch in...blip the throttle with the right edge of your foot...5500 rpm...downshift to 3rd...clutch out...30 feet...your competition gives you the line...4000 rpm...clutch in...blip again...5500 rpm...downshift to 2nd...clutch out...0 feet...4500 rpm...gently off the brakes...turn in...balance, balance...scrub off a little speed...4250 rpm...peak torque...nearing the apex...floor it!...upshift to 3rd...you're gone...he's dust! You take the checkered flag, kiss the bikini-clad women, and sign autographs until it hurts. If anyone asks, yes, I suppose you could have downshifted from 4th to 2nd.

This technique does have benefits on the street in accident avoidance (brake, downshift, change lanes and accelerate hard out of someone's way), or just plain fun on your favourite twisties. Another piece of advice: if trying heel & toe on the street, remember to get your foot off the throttle after you blip. It's a very easy to be braking and find yourself applying some force on the accelerator without intention. It's scary, and I've done it.

[spshultz]

I've also wondered what that meant. Thanks for the great definition/descrip.!

[JGard]

damn, i never realized how complicated it really is. but thanks dude! i have a new thing to practice on my sunday drives!

[jImp]

Takes some time to learn. There was an old thread that got deleted, and it had a really good description of how to heel-toe.

[Siper2]

wonj,

Great description!!! I've printed your statement out and will read it many times, I'm sure! I've always wanted to learn how to properly shift for performance.

I mean I'm pretty good as it is--I've been doing it since '92--but more practice is always better!

-S2-

[HRE | giulio]

I've been doin that for like ever... and didnt even know there was a term for it! haha cool
g0

[Subu WEX]

It was probably a year or so ago when I learned what that meant. Fortunately that's how my dad taught me to drive when I learned to drive on my old '84 Saab. No matter what cars I drive I still miss the quirks of the Saab.

[ttoversteer]

Damn my old post is missing.

Go buy these two books

Porsche High Performance Driving by Vic Elford

and:

Going Faster by Skip Barber Racing School

Read them in that order.

[Pilot]

Damnit I hate when TTO uses my computer and doens't log out, that last post was me.

[Bob OM,Md]

Great description of the process. I also kept a copy of the "treatise on Shifting" that reappeared on this site awhile back. But its amazing that so many of the younger drivers have no idea of what this is. But, at least they are asking!!

Many of us geezers, learned to stomp on a clutch on with a column shift. (I learned on a '38 Plymouth). Synchromesh??? That was to be in the future!! But its great that people are taking the fun back into driving. You control the vehicle, not the other way around. And besides brakes lasting longer, the roads will be just a bit safer when more and more drivers are concentrating on DRIVING! 'Twas pleasant to read in a post the suggestion that the woofers and twoofers, etc might be turned down a bit so you can HEAR your engine. Great stuff!!!

[skeletor25rs]

what size feet do you guys have?

skel

[This message has been edited by skeletor25rs (edited September 06, 2000).]

[JGard]

Size 12, and the fact that i'm 6'6" makes it tough to fit my foot in that angle but i'm doing it!

[skeletor25rs]

I have been practicing since yesterday. I'm getting better, but it's more like heel arch shifting. Thanks for posting all of this though. VERY helpfull. peace out. haha

skel

[Red-Imp]

wonj,

Good post informative and fun to read.

The RS is really the first car I've owned where I've had to opportunity to practice heal-toe downshifting. I'm still no damn good at it, but I'm getting better. There's just not much need for it in a Tercel or a pickup. I remember driving V8's with standard transmissions as a kid, but I didn't know what the heck I was doing then.

Oh, and my stereo is only 1.21 giga Watts, but it's OK because my Flux capacitor keeps my battery from going dead.

-Red

[Cool Hand]

Don't forget, if you shift from 4th to 2nd, you need a lil more than a "blip" of throttle. but I'm sure we all knew that already right?

[STORER]

Once you get heel toe down, try double clutching. This allows the input AND output shaft of the transmision to rotate before you down shift allowing smoother down shifts and less strain on your syncros.

[Porter]

Here's a great reference as well, more information than you can use:
http://www.drivingtechniques.co.uk

Enjoy.

[Bonzo]

The pedal placement in your car will depend on how easy it is to "rock" your foot to achieve this technique. The distance between the brake and throttle side to side and front to back are important. My current car (galant vr4) has excellent placemnet for heel n toeing. It seems many more cars produced today are designed to accomplish this. I find myself doing this on almost every down shift in town or on the highway. I also found different shoes work better at this. Suprisingly my golf shoes with a wide, stiff and flat soles work very good. Sandals tend not to work to well. Barefeet is possible but kinda hard on yer feet

[2yLiTe]

Let me get this straight.... So is it safe to say that the point is to keep the revs high throughout the turn, so that you have enough to come out with peak power?

There's that, and you avoid also screwing with the balance of the car when coming into a turn, or going thru the turn. But anyways you shouldn't be downshifting in the middle of a turn
I guess I'll go practice some heel-toe action later, my friend's doing it and he says he's getting the hang of it.
Oh no even more time in my sube!

[Red-Imp]

I'm finding it very helpful in smooth, daily driving. Since scooby has so much torque, he can be a little bouncy on the downshift (feel free to read that as "the loose nut behind the wheel can be a little rough on the shift"). However, I'm concerned about trying this during performance driving. I've had my foot slip off the break when cornering hard.

Do I need more practice or a different technique?

-Red

[hacman]

tryin to bring new life to this GREAT writeup on heel-toe. I've always wondered myself how to do this, and now I know!

This just killed my whole weekend! I'm gonna have to find a nice parkinglot, and practice till the gas or clutch runs out!

[shabby]

Here a video of heal'n'toe in action http://members.home.net/shabster2/itr-healtoe.avi its 7.5megs