How do you downshift?

[sigp220.45]

My Dad taught me to drive in a stick shift 1973 3/4 ton 4x4 single-cab Chevy pickup. I've since then owned a number of manual transmission vehicles, mostly trucks and Jeeps, but also a 1989 Fox body 5.0 Mustang. My daily driver now is a manual transmission Explorer.

My two boys learned on a stick shift and drive manual transmissions. (My pink-haired leftist daughter hates to drive anything, but I love her dearly anyway.).

Recently I was driving my son's 5.0 Mustang and he was visibly uncomfortable with my downshifting.

So here's the question: Long straight level road, you're in top gear, you need to stop 1/4 mile ahead, other traffic isn't a factor. Do you go down through all the gears, using the engine to slow you, do you put in the clutch and hold it in, do you put it in neutral and let the clutch out, or is there some other way?

I downshift through the gears, but I'm willing to change my ways. The boys put in the clutch and "rev match" if they don't need to come to a complete stop.

100% of my minimal car knowledge comes from listening to "Car Talk". They advise putting the car in neutral and slowing down on the premise of you're either gonna wear out the brakes or the clutch, and brakes are cheaper.

What do you do?

 

[Tom S.]

Brakes are also easier to replace but done properly, clutch wear from down shifting shouldn't be excessive. In dire situations, I did both.

 

[Nevada Ed]

Some learn to single, some learn the "Double cluch" and yes the gas pedal can also help in "Power shifts".

A lot of is rythem or timing and if we got it right............

a old Willey's jeep going down a gravel road at 40 mph can almost stand on it's nose if you drop down two gears and let the compression and gears slow it down BIG time.

Just don't do it a lot of times.......................

 

[bigwheelzip]

Down through the gears, on manual and auto trans, on cars and motorcycles.


Sent from my motorola one 5G using Tapatalk

 

[Rustyt1953]

On my "throaty" muscle cars I would down shift just to hear them talk back.

On my imported economy models I would pop it into neutral and let the brakes brake.

 

[WuzzFuzz]

Listen to the way the big rigs did it when they did have manual shift transmissions...one gear at a time....

Before sync transmissions, then it was double clutch..

WuzzFuzz

 

[Justin T]

I'll downshift if i'm close to the change point on the tach/speedo, but i'm not really an aggressive downshifter.

I learned on a three-speed column shifter, and the shift points were all pretty close together anyway, so it wasn't really much of a thing for me.

 

[GypsmJim]

If its all the way ahead by 1/4 mile, take your foot off the gas and then let the car slow down by itself. When near, push in the clutch and use the brakes.

Downshifting is needed for massively heavy trucks, or kids with hotrods wanting to get attention.

On one of my main roads used buy local truckers there are many signs that say downshift braking is illegal. (the neighbors complain about the noise). The cops are diligent on that street.

 

[Truckman]

With all my previous manuals I used every gear, up or down...My present ride, a 2009 Dodge/Cummins 3500 C/C, was only available with the Aisin 6-speed auto, so I let it do its thing...I do leave the exhaust brake on all the time, so my brake life is still good...175,000 miles on the original brakes and they still look good at every inspection......Ben

 

[Ματθιας]

What kind of speed are we talking about? Top gear means different speeds for different cars.

I'm lazy driver when it comes to manuals. I'd take it out of gear and brake.

 

[Rustyt1953]

There are quite a few of these dotted across the Tri-State.

 

[yugolovr]

I would downshift to slow down. It's the way my dad taught me, and with my last truck the clutch was cheaper to replace than the brakes. I think on my truck I made it around 150,000 miles before I put a new clutch in it. It wasn't bad but the slave cylinder was. So I went ahead and replaced it.

 

[robvious]

learned on a 65 GMC with a 3 on the tree... you learn the vehicle and it becomes second nature to go up & down... in modern vehicles with computer control you will never be able to out guess the vehicle's computer... so I go thru the gears in my 67 Mustang.. and don't bother (most of the time) in my 2013 Mustang

 

[llowry61]

Combination of downshift and breaking depending on if I was coming to a complete stop or not. If a complete stop maybe down a gear, then neutral and brake. I never really thought about it when driving a stick, it was just second nature. My last stick shift was a 96 S-10 which I put 180k on before the timing chain snapped at highway speed in 2005. I have had automatics since.

 

[Onomea]

Been a long time since I drove a manual transmission, though I learned on them.

Re "rev matching" while slowing down, does this mean the boys hit the accelerator whenever they down shift to keep the RPMs up at where they were at time of downshift? I guess that would make sense if you were trying to maintain a high torque capability, say, going through a curve when you're having fun on a twisty road, but I don't get the point in the scenario you describe.

But, I also don't get the point in the scenario you describe of downshifting prematurely so that the RPMs jump way up there. With a quarter mile to go, inertial, the cars natural slowing down, can do most of the work, with the downshifts helping the brakes, or vice versa, as seems appropriate.

My cars have all been auto trans for decades. I will switch to manual for a long down grade, but never for enhancing performance or driving experience.

But I am not much of a car guy, either.

 

[ladder13]

Downshift a 1/4 mile away here and you get rear ended.

 

[Nevada Ed]

By the time I was 30, I was mellowing out and taking it a lot easier on my cars
plus with kids in the car you had to stop doing crazy things, so the little wife
would not get up tight.

However there were times when I would meet friends or other drivers and............

the gas pedal would hit the metal and stay there as I went up through the gears
and hopefully have a smile all over my face, in a short time.

Nevada highways and back farm roads are a young drivers dream, for a little fun, if you were raised on the ranch or farm and had chores when you got home from school.

We just had to make sure we did not do anything to make mom or dad mad or at best, just miss a meal or something.

 

[Absalom]

Downshift a 1/4 mile away here and you get rear ended.

I learned in Europe; same issue. You got to race up to the stop and then slam! No time for fancy shift work, it's over too fast.

Having spent the last four decades in semi-rural America, the first three in stick-shifters, I learned to appreciate the joy of leisurely driving and usually, when anticipating a stop from highway speed, let the engine slow the car, shifting into an intermediate gear like 3rd to assist if necessary, like on a downslope.

 

[ZGrand]

In my 5-speed manual '06 Mustang GT, if I'm cruising along in 5th gear and approach a stop, I'll let it coast down to about 35 MPH or so in 5th. I'll downshift to 3rd and let it coast down to 20 or so. Then I'll clutch it into neutral and come to a stop clutch out.

 

[Jessie]

With the condition you stated, flat and a quarter mile to stop, I'll clutch go into neutral and give my leg a rest. If I need to slow down more without braking, I'll just clutch again, put it in the appropriate gear and let the engine slow it down.
But normally it's neutral and brake to a stop.

 

[375hh1973]

I'm 47 yrs old.

Have never driven a manual in my life.

Reading this thread is like reading something in a foreign language LOL!

I can't comprehend shifting gears, would seriously get in the way of my drinking a coke while texting.

 

[ladder13]

I'm 47 yrs old.

Have never driven a manual in my life.

Reading this thread is like reading something in a foreign language LOL!

I can't comprehend shifting gears, would seriously get in the way of my drinking a coke while texting.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

In June of 1974, the Monday after graduation, was my first day with my family business's 1972 pick-up. a 3/4 Ton Chevy special ordered to pull equipment trailers, so it was a 4 on the floor. But it started with Low, then 1-2-3. Wound out l would get maybe 10 MPH!

From 1987 to 1999 I had a 1979 4x4 1/2 Ton Suburban with the same transmission! Pulling a camper uphill from a stop sign with a tailgater, always bothered the wife. My philosophy was, if he doesn't want a new grill, he will quit tailgating!

My wife had learned to manual shift in economy cars, When she had to run around in the "Tan Tank", it really bothered her at first. Then she realized, every car on the road was worried that "She had nothing to lose, and she's going to take us with her!" Then driving in traffic became a game, instead of a chore!!

Ivan

 

[Hair Trigger]

So here's the question: Long straight level road, you're in top gear, you need to stop 1/4 mile ahead, other traffic isn't a factor. Do you go down through all the gears, using the engine to slow you, do you put in the clutch and hold it in, do you put it in neutral and let the clutch out, or is there some other way?

I downshift through the gears, but I'm willing to change my ways. The boys put in the clutch and "rev match" if they don't need to come to a complete stop.

In the situation you mention 1/4 mile to stop and no traffic to consider, I let off the gas and apply brakes until I'm doing about 15 mph, then push in the clutch, come to a stop, shift to 1st, and wait on the light to change. No need to downshift through the gears, unless I'm towing a heavy load and need the engine braking to assist my wheel brakes.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

Grew up in vehicles with manual transmissions. Shifting gears, both up and down as required, was second nature to me.

Past 4 years I've been driving a new Nissan Titan pickup, 5.6L V8 390-HP with 7-speed automatic. I swear I can hear the computer controlling the transmission as it thinks! Constantly shifting up and down, keeping the RPM within optimum range, utilizing engine breaking on extended downhill runs. Very impressive technology.

I can override the automatic functions and select a gear setting with a touch of a button. That has been handy on a couple of occasions while driving on snowy mountain roads in 4-wheel drive at modest speeds, keeping the engine RPM up in the 2500-3000 range to have better engine breaking and throttle response. Not a good thing to constantly rely on the brakes while driving in the Rocky Mountains, and not a good thing to have the engine turning near idle when you need some RPMs to correct for drifting on packed snow or ice.

My Titan is 4 years old now. I'm sure the newer vehicles have even more impressive performance built in.

I learned about double-clutching in my younger days driving a 1959 Austin Healey Sprite, then a 1963 MGB. If you expected your clutch plates to last very long you had to learn how to anticipate engine RPM to shifting points and treat the mechanical parts gently. With the old drum-style brakes and pads, downshifting became second nature. I spent more than enough of my time working on those cars and paying for parts.

 

[Squarebutt]

Next time you're driving his Mustang, shift without using the clutch. It can be done on most standard transmissions by matching RPM to road speed, the "sweet spot." With practice, I could work through the gears in my old F350, only using the clutch starting from a dead stop. My daughter couldn't believe I was driving her Subaru that way after her hydraulic clutch failed.

 

[grover99]

Reading this post took me back. I started driving at the age of 12 on my uncle's ranch and all of the work trucks were sticks. Always drove a stick until I was around 65 and started to have problems with left knee using the clutch. Hated it but had to go to automatics then.

 

[John_M52]

Depends how aggressive/lazy I'm feeling at the time. No wrong answer.

 

[31FordA]

Most of my manual transmission driving has been with the unsynchronized transmission in my Model A. I put it in neutral and use the brakes. My Model A never goes past 50, and with the mechanical brakes I am careful to avoid the need for sudden stops as much as possible.

My Dad, who would absolutely never buy a truck with an automatic, always downshifted. He was a really good driver, he could shift gears matching rpm's by ear instead of using the clutch. Dad was a gifted, he could steer and shift gears while drinking a cup of coffee and eating a donut, all at the same time.

 

[LVSteve]

If you are not rev matching using the throttle and you can feel the car slow as you let out the clutch and that makes the engine rev, you're doing it wrong. You could fail a UK driving test dragging the clutch against the motor.

One car I had in the UK had quite a big motor (for the UK ) and not much weight. In the snow I would downshift without the clutch, that way I couldn't mismatch the road speed with the motor because it wouldn't go into gear until the match was right.