I dont understand your "quote" Are you saying that downshifting to slow down a vehicle is a bad thing?
Ive been doing it for over 20 years and never hurt anything on any car. It extends the life of the brakes greatly as a matter of fact. I use downshifting whenever im coming to a stop. Most people do it, its just one more advantage of owning a manual over an auto

 

If you have ever had your car on a track or even a large autocross course you would know exactly why we have 6 gears. The gearing allows you to be in the powerband at almost any speed. This is gift not a problem. And besides how useful it is, isn't it just more fun to row through every gear when getting on the highway? I can understand the argument about getting better gas mileage, but it does not make a big difference for me. If I flog the car for an entire tank, I get 32 MPG. If I granny drive for a tank I may get 34 MPG. I would rather spend the extra $15 a year on gas having fun then fretting about getting the best gas mileage possible.

 

It's numbers like this that make me wish the accursed winter gas would hurry up and go away. I want my MPG back!

 

I tried the 3rd to 6th thing at about 60mph on the feeway yesterday...ugh. it sucked! definitely not for me, I could see skipping one gear, but two?!? whatever makes you happy.

I feel the same, but 28mpg isn't really bothering me too much.

 

Definitely true, but we don't always want to play. Sometimes it's just a milk run, and even a MINI can't make it otherwise.

 

Me, too!

I do...especially having had an R50 Cooper!!

Or my morning commute! Cruising in 5th, downshift for a corner into 2nd, ready to hit the gas......and there's a train crossing!!!! Very glad to have 3rd.

 

28??? Must be nice. I've been living with less than 25 ever since the switch to winter gas occurred. Stupid freakin' winter gas and 5'000 ft elevation.

 

My shift pattern is 1 2 4 6 and dont exceed 3k in normal driving. I rarely use 3 and 5
I dont downshift, but dont believe in leaving the car in neutral as you slow down. It is best left in gear. When your rpms drop to about 1000, you can shift to neutral without touching the clutch.
Clutches cost a lot more than brakes, so the less the clutch is used, the longer it will last.

 

I'm sorry man! At least you have some fun Alta bits to keep ya hpaay

 

Quite true, but as has been pointed out before, the brakes are cheap. A brake job costs hundreds; an engine job costs thousands.

Not to say there isn't a use for engine braking, of course. If you're heading for a corner or curve, it's a part of the game. But for just coming to the average stoplight or sign...I say no. And don't forget the clutch wear. That cost is not insignificant, either.

I've been driving for 40 years, but it shouldn't be a case of one-upmanship. Or in this case, one-upwomanship. I've never had an engine or clutch problem, and darned few brake jobs, either.

 

I don't agree with this in some situations. For example, I live in a subdivision at the end of a highway with some gentle hills. There is a point at which I go into neutral--about 60 mph. Figured right, I coast about 1/2 mile, exactly to the point where I need to put the car into gear to make the turn, at about 30 mph. It's a great way to conserve gas. (There's rarely anyone behind me.)

Back in the early 70's I used to have a SAAB Sonett. That car actually REQUIRED you to go into neutral--it freewheeled! If you were driving back then, you might remember there was a lot of trouble with the early pollution-control measures. The Sonett bypassed all of this by making freewheeling a default setting. Take your foot off the pedal and it went into neutral. Even with the day's inefficient engines, I got about 35 mpg, as I recall.

You could lock this out by moving a lever, and of course there were times I did--snow, autocrosses, etc.