Can you heel-toe a 350z?

[Danzors]

This might sound odd but seeing as I've never driven a 350z, I don't really know. However, in a recent article by Car and Driver, it says that the drive-by-wire throttle in the 350z does not allow for a "concurrent application of throttle and brake", which pretty much means you can't brake and press the throttle at the same time. So... how is the heel-toe done? Thanks guys.

Oh and you can find the article here: http://www.caranddriver.com/fe....html Sucks how it was ranked below the Solstice GXP and Sky Redline.

[C-Kwik]

Yes you can. If I remember correctly, it will intervene if the throttle is opened to WOT and the brake is pressed. It won't allow burnouts while holding the brake down. SCC magazine had to pull the ABS fuse to be able to do a burnout photo.

I heel-toed regularly in my G35 coupe and in a couple of Z's I've driven without ever triggering any intervention from the ECU.

[evildky]

yeah I think they just mean you can't do a brake stand burnout...unless you add a linelock or simply unplug the sensor as described in the article

[Danzors]

thanks for the clear up guys

[Shift_Tommy]

it would be retarded of nissan to design a sports car that doesn't allow heel and toe.

[badboy00]

yes im a newbie to the nico world..my 05 Z is my first 6speed...everyone tells me i drive stick very well,,so now that i can drive it, its time to play with it....sooo...on the heel toe-how is this preformed..i know your holding the front brakes and acclerating but how is your foot on the clutch and the brake at the same time.

[C-Kwik]

yes im a newbie to the nico world..my 05 Z is my first 6speed...everyone tells me i drive stick very well,,so now that i can drive it, its time to play with it....sooo...on the heel toe-how is this preformed..i know your holding the front brakes and acclerating but how is your foot on the clutch and the brake at the same time.

Actually as heel-toe downshift is a technique used by racecar drivers. As you enter the braking area before a turn, you press the brake with your right foot, then press the clutch with your left foot. You shift to the next lower gear and then while your right foot is still on the brake you blip the throttle with your right foot. The recommended method if the size of your foot allows it is to keep the heel planted on the ground, the ball of your foot over the right lower corner of the brake pedal and when you blip the throttle, all you need to do is move your right knee to the right side which should cause the right side of your foot to catch the gas pedal. Once you've blipped the throttle, if you did it correctly, the rev will have been matched so that when you release the clutch in the lower gear, it should engage smoothly. You can actually shift straight to the gear you need to be in for the turn/exit, and if you can learn to do so smoothly, will lessen tha chance of causing any kind of a bucking action. However, it is easier to learn to rev-match one gear at a time and once you get a good cadence, while braking and rowing through the gears backwards, you can be quite smooth and never need to think about which gear you need to be in for the turn.

The reason for this technique is that downshifting to exit a turn is generally not a good idea during or upon the exit of a turn as it may upset the balance of the car if you are not smooth. Since the car is laterally loaded in a turn, any upset to the balance could at the least force you to correct your line or back off the throttle losing you valuable tenths of seconds. Worst case, you spin out. Having to downshift at the exit of a turn also loses you some time that could be better spent accellerating. It usually helps to be in a lower gear during a turn so you can use the throttle to help you adjust your line.

Downshifting during braking is generally safest as most braking occurs while travelling straight. Errors in revmatching does not have as big an effect on the lap times and has less chance for losing control of the car during braking as it would have during a turn.

If you want to learn, start by learning to rev-match downshift without braking. As you approach red lights or stop signs, start slowing early. Blip the throttle and downshift while coasting to a stop. Try getting all the way down to 2nd gear. Learning to get down into 1st gear is generally not going to be useful (and is a bit trickier as the slightest mismatch in revs makes itself apparent). Once you get comfortable doing this add trying to brake. Give yourself plenty of room as it may feel pretty awkward trying to press the gas and brake at the same time.

[badboy00]

how do you rev-match and what is a "blip the throtle"

[C-Kwik]

I'm going to answer your question from the best launch thread in this post as they are very similar.

I'll start explaining by explaining what happens if you don't match revs when downshifting. You press the clutch and drop a gear. Release the clutch and if released quickly, the car will jerk violently as the car tries to slow down and the engine tries to speed up so that the speeds of each are where they should be in relation to each other for that gear. If you release slowly, it will do the same, but not as violently. If you ever tried to do this slowly you'll find it takes a little bit of time for it to occur(relatively). What rev matching does is (if done properly) by speeding up the engine to the correct RPM when you release the clutch, the car will not jerk as the engine will be at the right speed for the wheelspeed for that given gear.

Blipping the throttle is just pressing the gas pedal for a moment to speed up the motor.

That said, rev matching is a simple process. As your driving along in say 4th gear, press the clutch in, then shift into 3rd. Blip the throttle and release the clutch. You'll have to practice to get the engine speed in the right range, but if you do it correctly, the engagement of the clutch will not produce any sudden acceleration or deceleration.