I watched "The Transporter" last night for the second time because i just love how smooth and precise that guy drives. He wears driving gloves, sits up straight when driving, and keeps both hands tight on the wheel until he shifts. And when he shifts, drool. I want to be like that.

I noted a local club member wearing driving gloves, and from his video, could tell he kept both hands on the wheel until he shifted. (Ahamos, if you're wondering :smile I think he mentioned something about power shifting?

I've only been driving manual transmissions for a year now. I never really paid attention to where i had my hands, what rpm's i kept the car at, or even what times i shifted. I just naturally do it "whenever" and i get a little sloppy at times.

My last car's shifter was directly connected to the transmission... i had a lightened flywheel, racing clutch, lower shift ****, blah blah. Every shift FELT snappy and crisp, because everything was so tight. I had an arm rest, so i kept both hands on the wheel until i shifted, while resting my elbow on the arm rest. I jump in the mini, and the shifting feels squishy and very plush. And the clutch is so different! But the past couple days i've made a point of watching what RPM's i shift at (3500 everytime, without even thinking) and have kept both hands on the steering wheel, and don't touch the shifter until i'm ready to shift... and it's cleaned up a little bit. I realized i left my hand on the shift **** at all times, and that seemed to throw my shifting timing off. And gasp.. i realized i shifted in turns! I had no idea til my passenger asked why in the world i did. oops once i stopped shifting while turning, i got so much better handling the turns. I felt like an idiot.

My question is... what techniques to you use to shift? Are you quick with the clutch/moving gears? Do you keep both hands on the wheel or one on the ****? I drive hours and hours everyday on my commute, so i have plenty of time to practice... so i'd like to try and clean up my shifting so i can work on my handling next :P Criticism is more than welcome.

 

My shifting technique leaves much to be desired, but definitely both hands on the wheel. I learned that lesson very quickly, with a JCW kit installed. I can't one-hand a turn on grooved or uneven pavement, the wheel will jerk right out of my hands, thanks to "tramlining".

I tend to shift around 5500 unless I'm setting up a turn. I've got the intake, so for me, life begins at 4500 rpm :-)

Can't wait to see everyone's responses on this.

Cheers,
Matthew Z

 

I shift around 5500 from a stop if i'm feeling frisky. I pay CLOSE attention to my RPM's and only put my hand on the shift **** when i'm about to shift when i'm in the mood to shift that high in rpms. When i'm in regular traffic, though, i shift in the 3000's.

 

I keep both hands on the wheel unless reaching down to shift, even if in a straight line.

My goal is to make the shift (up or down) so smooth you don't feel it happen. This comes from road racing motorcycles, where something as benign-sounding as a simple up shift can upset the bike enough to lose traction and crash. We have to shift while leaned over at times, one has to be smooth. Imagine being at full lean angle and needing to downshift? That is why smooth is important.

I just take the same attitude with me to 4 wheels. Smooth and quick. Smoothness is particularly helpful if you trail brake deep into a corner and need to shift while making the transition off the brakes and back to the throttle, reducing the effects of the weight shift from upsetting the car.

It takes a lot of practice.

For street, smoothness is good for the car and your passengers appreciate it.

 

>I realized i left my hand on the shift **** at all times, and that seemed to throw my shifting timing off.

You can wearout your syncro's that way too.

>And gasp.. i realized i shifted in turns! I had no idea til my passenger asked why in the world i did. oops once i stopped shifting while turning, i got so much better handling the turns. I felt like an idiot.

Most 1-2 shifts from a stop making a right turn will require you
to shift while turning during a normal start. it's a little tricky cause
there's more resistance from the differentials. I find this the hardest
to get use to on a new car. Left turns are easier as the turn itself is
much larger.

>My question is... what techniques to you use to shift? Are you quick with the clutch/moving gears?

No, quick is not the answer unless you are drag racing. smooth shifting and seamless engagements is what I go for...even at WOT i rarely
powershift and never slip the clutch other than 1st gear rolling from
a stop.

>Do you keep both hands on the wheel or one on the ****?

I never rest my hand on the ****. Going straight I use only one
hand sometimes but at expressway speeds and while turning I
alway use both hands.

>I drive hours and hours everyday on my commute, so i have plenty of time to practice... so i'd like to try and clean up my shifting so i can work on my handling next :P Criticism is more than welcome.

I guess you might want to start by cleaning up your engagements
so that you have seamless shifts. It should be smoother than AT cars.

Do you now how to heel & toe? If not, that would be the next item for
faster turning and smoother transition from braking to acceleration. :smile:

 

Aw, I'm blushing.

One thing I've learned about this car that makes hard turns easier: when you step off throttle, the rev's stay up for .7 seconds. If you stomp the gas, downshift, then get heavy on the brakes before entering a turn, you'll be in the power-band at the apex, and able to rocket out of the turns. That's what you were seeing in the video.*

On that drive, anything less than two-handed driving with gloves would have been too unpredictable. There were many times when the wheel wanted to get away from me.

There's a wonderful video of Hans Stuck driving the Nurburgring, and watching that video taught me a lot about keeping the car stable (even though he has no clutch pedal in that car). His hands are always on the wheel, and when he shifts, he doesn't grab the shifter -- he just pushes it. Flat, open palm on top, and he pushes it.

I know I've linked to the MINI "Mastering the Asphalt Arts" pdf before, but here it is again: http://miniusa.com/crm/downloads/asphalt_arts.pdf




*Heel-toe is very similar, but since the ECU keeps the rev's up, I haven't found much need to be that precise.

 

I shift like crap but 1 thing that helped me was driving my dads SLK... if you screw up it bucks the hell out of you... so you learn quickly how your car likes it.

From stop: I usually feel the clutch grab and adjust RPM's accordingly so I am very close to stalling.

While moving: I add a little extra RPM depress clutch wait till RPM's drop just a hair then shift after shifting i slowly add gas and slowly let the clutch grab

Slowing down: Not everyone does this... I do, anyway: Depressing clutch when my RPM's are dropping below a range where I can't *** gas and speed up. I shift down and SLOWLY let the clutch grab INCASE it is too high RPM you can depress clutch and choose a different gear.

I always like to have power to the ground and the ability to always have the "passing power" if i need it. It really bugs me when I drive an automatic to have it upshift when you want the power and then it goes to neutral then downshift and takes like 2 or 3 seconds!

This may not be the correct way to drive but its the way I drive

-Josh

 

While I certainly don't recommend anyone try this, I learned a lot about technique in my old 94 Jetta III. If I wanted to up-shift, I could--without touching the clutch--pull the shifter out of gear, watch the tach. fall 800 RPM, and push the shifter into the next gear.

This was smooth as glass, when done right, but made a horrid noise when done wrong. You only have to hear the grind a couple of times before you really focus on getting it right.

I haven't done this with the MINI, but I understand most German cars will allow it.

It's a good way to learn the difference between being "fast" with the shifts and being "smooth" with the shifts.

But don't try it. I don't want any wrecked trannys because of how I drove a 1994 VW.

 

I occaisionally shift my MINI without using the clutch, but only while cruising around. I've never done it under heavy load or while getting on it. Shifting between first and second (either up or down) is the most likely to get a grind if done worng. everythign else seems pretty good.

 

Do you guys push the clutch all the way to the floor between shifts?


The thing I find hard to get used to is the travel of the clutch engagement seems really long and its hard to sync the rpms with the clutch so you get a perfectly smooth shift. I'm used to driving semi where you don't use the clutch except to start out, after that you sync all the gears with the rpms which is really nice because you get a perfect shift every time.

 

No, only when sitting at the light.

There's a clearly perceivable clutch-point where engagement begins, and once you find it, there's not much need to dive more than an inch or so deeper.

 

After lunch break:

This time i kept both hands at just before 3 o clock and just after 9 o clock. Instead of grabbing the **** with my whole hand, or just using my palm, i only used my thumb, forefinger, and middle to shift. I grabbed it like i owned it, and i was alot more precise with moving the stick in sync with my clutch. I don't know how much of a difference how you hold the **** makes, but it was easier for me to grab with my little hands. I had to spread my fingers really far apart. I need a smaller shift ****... that may help me out alot

I don't push the clutch all the way down. I just push down far enough for it to engage. My boyfriend does heel toe. (First time i heard of it was on Initial D :P)

Do driving gloves just help you grip better? Do your hands get sweaty? I wasn't doing so hot in those turns on Rt. 250 because of the lack of experience, and i think a pretty big factor was my hand placement. I'll just have to jump in the passenger seat of everyone's mini to see how they drive :P

 

Yes, I do. Then again I didn't learn how to drive stick on a car... I learned on a truck which had a 12in clutch throw and a shift pattern of like 8in apart (rough estimates) so ANY car for me is a short shifter! At stop lights on an incline I NEVER use my break i just feather the clutch, prob not good for it but it taught me clutch control.

-Josh

 

I also push the clutch all the way down. I've tried shifting with it partially down but I need to let the revs fall until they match (like if I was doing a clutchless shift). I find the fact that the MINI revs so slowly to be the main problem with my shifts. I've driven other cars that rev freely and shifting quick was very easy. By the time the MINI's revs match, the mass of the flywheel is draging the revs down so even if you get a shift in while they're matched, the clutch engagement is sloppy since the throttle response is slow. I need to save up some money for a lightweight flywheel and ecu upgrade.

 

Trying to shift very quickly is tougher on the synchros and leads to premature wear and future shifting problems. Also replacement of the synchros at some point.

Resting your hand on the shift **** will also wear the synchros so it is a good thing to keep your hands on the wheel unless actually shifting.

Unless you are actually racing, where wear on the transmission synchros is a given and part of the normal maintenance of rebuilding the transmission, there is NO advantage in rushing shifts. It is much better to try to be smooth. Sudden applications of either torque or braking force will upset the balance of the car and is undesirable when entering or exiting a corner.

This will upset your line thru the corner and can make you either run wide or throw you into oversteer. Both of these are a little too exciting for street driving in my book.

Whether you choose to shift at 3000 or 6750 rpms smooth shifts pay off in the long run.

 

i only shift when it gets in the red - am i doing something wrong?








just kidding - i only look stooooopid!

 

Yes: driving gloves help me grip better, because my palms get all sweaty when I'm riding the MINI roller coaster.

And, yes, 9 & 3 are the "ideal" hand positions (at least according to MINI), as that will give you a 90 degree turn of the wheel without having to reposition.

I see people driving around with one hand at the 12:00 position. They try to take corners by yanking on the wheel, and their positions are very sloppy. I used to do it all the time in the Jetta, and even when I first got the MINI. When I started reading about hand placement and performance driving techniques, I found I could take my highway exit 10 mph faster.

Now, with a few suspension mods, I can take it even 5 - 7 mph faster. I would be dead trying these speeds with poor technique.

Short Bus, if you want a good example, take the 95-N exit at Lakeside. I used to think 30 mph was FAST for that exit, and it's a tight right-hand sweeper. Now I do it regularly at 38 - 40, and have seen the speedo as high as 43. I'm not pushing that, though, until I've done a driving school.

 

mmmm... I'm smooth now, before trying these tips i could hardly be smooth when shifting from first to second. It was slopping and a little rough. Now it's as smooth as butter, I would recomend a set of driving glove, but not for the summer. Speaking of butter, not I am going to buy some for the toast i wanted to make..

 

Yep, to the floor each shift.

hummm...on my 03 MCS the engagement travel area is very short.
and it engages close to the floor. it's great to do fast shifts as
I don't need to go flopping around my left foot just to get the clutch
to engage (like on my G35C which engages high, pedal much
heavier than MCS) :smile:

 

I've been driving manual tranny vehicles of all kinds for 40 years.
I tend to go for smooth, quick shifts. I generaly keep my foot on the throttle when I shift, if the RPMs drop to much the car will buck around, and if you shifted a bit to soon, it will lug as you get into it again.

I rarely shift below 4500RPMs and general run it up to 6000, unless I'm in heavy stop and go traffic.

Both hands on the wheel, unless shifting, mostly at 3 and 9, but sometimes at 10 and 2. I do rest my arm on the ELD sometimes when on traffic free, straight highways, but my hand never rest on the shifter. Usually touching the wheel at the 5 o'clock postion.

When downshifting I always rev. match. But I generaly brake.

I notice there is some confusion about engaged/disengaged.

The clutch is engaged when your foot is OFF the pedal, and you disengage it as you push the pedal down.

I find the weight very light, and the travel short on the MC clutch pedal, I touch the floor every shift, not that it stays there long

 

I totally agree. My new 05 Mustang GT has a clutch pedal that's three times heavier with twice the travel of the MCS. When I've been driving the GT a ton (like I have) I find my first few shifts are very choppy - the clutch pedal gets to the floor faster than I'm expecting and the clutch engages with the new gear way before I'm expecting also.:smile:

 

There's really something to be said about heel-toe downshifting. Not only does it take pressure off your brake rotors by using the engine to help brake, but it really helps you to master smoothness in your shifting, if you can master it.

It is a bit of an art form, but once you master it, you'll feel that much closer to a race car driver.

On the MINI, it's actually quite easy, thanks to great pedal placement, and that tall gas pedal. Good designing job, MINI engineers and designers!

There's nothing like tackling a couple ess-turns while heel-toeing, matching the revs perfectly as you downshift; ready to put it to the floor to come out of the turn.

It's a real adrenaline rush when you do it right. There's info on the art of heel-toe downshifting in some of your MINI literature, and probably on the MINI web site.

 

Believe it or not, the Mini is at least 3x heavier than some others, like our New Beetle! That thing is so light you just rest your foot on it, and it's almost to the floor! Absolutely no feel through it either, really a poor driver's setup. The mini outshines just about every car I've ever driven with respect to petal feel and feedback!

 

What video are you talking about? Do you have a link to it?
I'm shifting better than when I first got the car, but I believe I could still be smoother. Is there anyway or technique to make your acceleration shifts smoother or more refined? Is there anything I can focus on to do this?

Thanks
Mike

 

I don't have a link. I downloaded the video some time ago, and have it on my computer at work. I did that because I can never remember where I find stuff on the Internet.