I downshift every gear when coming to a stop using the heal-toe shifting technique while braking, all the time without exception in normal everyday driving. Mind you, this is coming from a guy who barely passed his driver test because of things like unnecessary fast starts, cutting corners, taking corners above the posted speed limit, etc.

But if you match your RPMS correctly when downshifting there should be almost no above normal wear and tear on the tranny or clutch.

 

I downshift to save my brakes.

 

this is going to sound like a pretty dumb question, but how do you know exactly *when* to downshift. I've been hearing some horror stories that if you downshift too early you wil mess your transmission up. Is there a RPM I could look for when first starting?

 

when downshifting to slow down/stop the most important thing you want to do is make sure you don't let the clutch out so that the rpm's fly up to redline. If I was in 5th and the rpm's were at say 3500 (80mph) and I downshifted into 4th, I would first apply the brakes and then let the clutch out slowly, alternating between braking and releasing clutch pressure, until the rpm's were somewhat near where I started (3500), repeat 4 more times until ya stopped.

 

Because your brake pads are more expensive than your transmssion and clutch...

 

slowing to a stop, you do not have to downshift, coast until you stop then put to neutral when you are almost in stop. downshift only when you have to go downhill or uphill. shifting sequence is 1-2-3-4-5-6 then Neutral not 1-2-3-4-5-6 then 6-5-4-3-2-1-N.

 

If you wanted to downshift to stop you should heel toe, much smoother than just letting the clutch out slowly, and you can let the clutch out really fast if you do it right.

 

well, in a us lancer you can subtract the 6th gear. But coasting will require much more stopping distance, when downshifting you keep the car in a good power band, reduce stopping distance, save gas, save brake pads, and really don't put a whole lot of stress on the tranny if you do it right. Hmm, wonder what the guys at AAA suggest. But I don't think coasting or neutral brake method has any benefits over downshifting other than saving some minimal wear on the car, I'm trying to burn my clutch before 60,000 miles so I can get a free new one.


basically I heel toe, but rather than releasing it immediately, I feather the clutch out so that the rpm's don't go flying up suddenly.

 

I don't think keeping the car in gear will reduce stopping distance. By braking in neutral you can lock the wheels, which means the maximum traction of the tyres has been reached. You can only stop as fast as your tyres can.

 

true, now if you were going for str8up stopping distance, it's anybodies guess. probably just in neutral or gear should be the same but downshifting would take longer. But for practical driving on the streets, using the engines braking power will reduce your stopping distance. K?

 

Agreed.

 

shoot ....i down shift when i slow down and i even have an automatic.....i think its all those years driving manuals....

 

keeping the car in gear until the last moment when you are almost stopped helps in stopping the car because of the drag from the drivetrain, putting it in neutral will wear your brakes faster because it has no resistance to assist your brakes in stopping the car. it is like stopping a runaway train.

 

isn't using downshift to brake wear down your clutches? I heard it also add to engine load.

 

Downshifting obviously puts some strain on your engine and your clutch. But not enough to where it will harm anything. You downshift so you don't put strain on your brakes, because they wear out quicker than your clutch, engine, and tranny. I downshift because thats how I learned to drive MT and the factory brake pads suck.