One of those ***** are you
Good Gear Changing - Clutch Wear
- Thread starter Orion21
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One of those ***** are you
Soldato
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I drop down to first at every opportunity. I don't like synchros.
That is engine braking
It's not in the realms of 'slam it in second at 60mph' but that's why you confused me, if you're slowing in gear, the engine is contributing to the braking effect still.
Caporegime
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I find it less stressful, I try to stick to 40mph on most roads, and keep to the middle lane as its safest to not change lanes often.
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That is engine braking
It's not in the realms of 'slam it in second at 60mph' but that's why you confused me, if you're slowing in gear, the engine is contributing to the braking effect still.
No no no, this is coasting with a degree of engine braking, old school engine braking is synchronus downshifts to constantly maximise deceleration with crap brakes.
I think you missed the bit which said braking, which completely overpowers the engines braking effect.
Modern engine braking is lifting off the gas early enough to slow down gradually using no fuel.
If you drive a modern car with an eco computer it scores you on 3 things, acceleration, deceleration (coasting in gear) and cruising.
The more time you spend decelerating early without braking scores you higher on eco.
No no no, this is coasting with a degree of engine braking, old school engine braking is synchronus downshifts to constantly maximise deceleration with crap brakes.
I think you missed the bit which said braking, which completely overpowers the engines braking effect.
Modern engine braking is lifting off the gas early enough to slow down gradually using no fuel.
If you drive a modern car with an eco computer it scores you on 3 things, acceleration, deceleration (coasting in gear) and cruising.
The more time you spend decelerating early without braking scores you higher on eco.
That's generally how I drive but I've always referred to it as engine braking, because it is still contributing to the braking effect
You're the first person I've (knowingly) encountered who doesn't refer to slowing down in gear as engine braking.I wasn't driving in the days you needed such extreme assistance from the engine just to show acceptably
I agree, this is the only piece of advice I ignored when I had my advanced driver training... The rest was quite helpful.
Habit, from having to use the technique on my first car, as I mentioned, and it has had no negative effect on any car I've owned, another point I mentioned in my post. I'm not in anyway saying it's right/wrong or good/bad, it's just my experience.
I know this will come over harsher than I intend and is not aimed only at yourself in particular as I've noticed that this seems to be a forum wide issue - please read my posts, not just a quick skim but actually spend the time to actually read them as it'll save both of us time in the future
You are still raising the engine RPM via the clutch though, exactly as Clarkey said.
Because it put no more strain on the transmission or engine. This is a fallacy/old wives tail, how many people have to replace an engine regularly because they use engine braking?
Engine braking is engine braking, irrespective of how much or how little you are using. Changing down a gear whilst using engine braking has nothing whatsoever to do with having crap brakes, and everything to do with being in the optimal gear for maximum acceleration should you need it.
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Drive like the teach you to do in advanced driving courses. Engine braking isn't used leave it in gear till you know what you're doing, match the revs ish, change and off you go. It's much more gentle less work less tiring and less wear. It's so unusual it takes time to learn.
If it had to raise the engine rpm the car would dip at the front, it doesn't. the engine stays @1k rpm and then you accelerate. If you come to a halt completely you downshift into first from whatever gear you are in.
Just because you don't understand it or do it, doesn't make you right.
As you cannot quantify how much damage is done to an engine after it has long left your possession and heavy engine braking is known to cause premature small end and piston wear, asking me to prove something you cannot also prove otherwise is just pointless.
Bang on!
It is the case that if you shift down, even with the engine at idle rpm, then to engage the lower gear the engines revs need to raise. If you shifted at 20mph from 4th to 2nd and the rpm stayed at 1000rpm you'd be in the same gear. The difference is the effects are far less pronounced as the lower gear is an rpm multiplication of the higher one and not an absolute difference in rpm.
So, if 2nd was twice the gearing of 4th (fairly typical), then shifting from 4th to 2nd at 800rpm would raise the revs to 1600rpm. Shifting from 4th to 2nd at 2000rpm would raise the revs to 4000rpm. The effect that you benefit from by shifting at lower rpm while braking is that if you begin the shift at e.g. 800rpm in 4th at 20mph while braking, then perhaps you are travelling at 15mph when you engage 2nd and so the engine rpm will raise by only 400rpm to a total of 1200rpm.
So, if 2nd was twice the gearing of 4th (fairly typical), then shifting from 4th to 2nd at 800rpm would raise the revs to 1600rpm. Shifting from 4th to 2nd at 2000rpm would raise the revs to 4000rpm. The effect that you benefit from by shifting at lower rpm while braking is that if you begin the shift at e.g. 800rpm in 4th at 20mph while braking, then perhaps you are travelling at 15mph when you engage 2nd and so the engine rpm will raise by only 400rpm to a total of 1200rpm.
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You should be a comedian with jokes like that. Clearly don't know how gears work and shouldn't be listened to.
I watched that video too, that guy is much the same, is it you? My favourite part is where he blatantly coasts along then says it isn't coasting. Claims the disadvantage of coasting is that you are not in control and that the accelerator does nothing.
Wait a god damn second, how effective is the accelerator when you're bogging the engine right down to idle speed all the time?
I'm sorry, but that whole thing is total and utter nonsense. You should keep the engine in a reasonable operating range at all times, that means downshifting while you're going faster than a crawl, that means rev matching. Really not difficult at all.
I have my suspicions that he's talking about a rate of braking and speed of shifting that, when combined with the very small differences involved around the 1000rpm mark, mean that there is no discernable rise in revs, as the the new 'required' revs have dropped considerably, compared to a quick ish shift at a constant speed.