BCS996TT

I do the exact same thing....

I always used this method when tracking my M3 and it works fine with the TT.

Les Quam

When I first began racing in the Barber Dodge formula series I was constantly asking the mechanics for pedal adjustments because I was not putting my right foot properly on the pedals. Dock has described it as close as possible as the way it is taught by Skip Barber and Derek Daly racing schools. But it takes lots and lots of practice to do it without thinking about it in every type of condition, wet or dry, under braking while passing etc. To learn it properly I believe one needs some form of training then just a great deal of practice. I practice on my 996's whenever I drive them and have never had any type of problem even under the most intense forces I could prevail upon the car. I found the 993's more difficult because of the space between the pedals. You should also note that this skill is quickly becoming obsolete with the advent of paddle shifters now found on BMW and Ferrari. Barber Dodge and almost all formula cars now have sequential gearboxes that almost completely eliminate the need for this skill. Smooth downshifting used to make a big difference in lap times. Now only sedan SCCA type racing requires it. I cannot believe Porsche would design something in their cars to prevent proper downshifting.As a matter of fact I believe the 996 pedals are closer together for just that purpose.

prg

I also use the method described by Dock with rolling the ball of the foot to rev match. I am still a novice and to describe my efforts as routinely smooth would grossly overestimate my current skill level. It is possible to do it smoothly and on the occasions when it occurs, it is quite satisfying. Even a blind hog finds an acorn once in a while.
The TT will not let you apply significant throttle with the car in gear, the clutch pedal released, and the brake pedal significantly depressed. I tried this maneuver to see if I could build some boost before a roll on contest. The ecu would not let me. It cut the engine output dramatically.

Sun Ra

offroader,

this is such a non-issue. you need to actually drive daddy's car!!!. the right side of your right foot can roll on/roll off to manage throttle while big toe/left side drills brake.

and tip is even easier as has been said.

get a vw and practise on a cheaper gearbox

offroadr35

on my S2000 i can get a perfect downshift every time. but like i said i usually use my heel on the throttle which i can't do on the GT2. Then i heard that the engine limits throttle input when the brake is depressed. This didn't seem right to me because i actually thought i was nailing it pretty well when i took the GT2 out to the track in July. But when i heard about the system i thought maybe that was just in my head. Also I knew that something must not have been right with that because there is no way to put up the kind of road course times these cars turn out without being able to properly downshift. By the way i wouldn't say i'm the best driver in the world but i'm by no means an amature. i guess i phrased my question wrong, it was really about the fly-by-wire system to begin with. i'd say it's pretty much answered now, thanks guys.

-Steve

KPV

Since Dock said it first, I will say that I agree with him and also use this technique. I have used the left half/right half technique for the past 20 years of driving. All of the cars I have owned lended themselves to LH/RH rather than Heel/Toe (H/T). Quite frankly, I do not know what car the H/T would even be appropriate.

Oak

I use the left half/right half technique on Porsches as the pedal set ups are usually ideal for this technique. On some of the BMW and Japanese cars the actual H/T technique works better for me. I find that if using the heel technique you can stab abit sharper on the throttle for higher reving motors.

sharkster

I just press a button. But that's what you get with MonkeyTronic.

MKW

I also use the left- half brake/ roll to right -half blip technique , with my right heel firm and still on the carpet for best feel/control of each pedal.

prg

If you are able to rotate you leg enough to get your heel on the brake and your toe on the gas at the same time you can choose a career with either cirque de soleil or the **** producer of your choice because you are one flexible dude.

FixedWing

This is a little bit of a guess but I believe the term probably came from some of the earlier Formula cars where the brake and throttle were swapped (clutch, driveshaft-hump, throttle, brake).

This allowed the driver to really press down on the brake peddle with the ball of his foot and to blip the throttle with his heel. He needed to be able to do it this way because the brake often needed a lot of force.

At least that's my understanding.

Stephen

FixedWing

I really cannot agree with this.

Sure it was necessary prior to syncros but that doesn't make it any less useful today. Using the syncros on the lower gears can be very, very slow at a time when you usually don't want to be slow.

I have been told (but haven't tested it out personally), that it is not possible to use the racer's technique to bed in brake pads (throttle and brake at the same time).

So it probably is true that left foot braking is impossible (i.e. the rally driver's technique of using brakes and throttle at the same time). But then why would you want to with an AWD car (excuding the need on the old Turbos to keep the turbo spooled)? Maybe with the GT2/3 it could be useful. I've talked to a bunch of people who swear by it but I'm yet to be convinced that it is really useful on hard surfaces. I certainly don't feel the need to go out and learn it.

Double-clutching works fine on the Turbo. So if all the information is correct, then the throttle must somehow be tied electronically to the brake. And I don't believe it is possible to shut off the traction control functions in the car even if you turn off PSM.

Stephen

Les Quam

Fixed wing, double clutching is no longer taught at the following racing schools Skip Barber,Derek Daly, and Bondurant. I know this because I have attended each one over the years. I have even asked about why it is no longer taught and was told that it is the slowest way to downshift in terms of lap times. However it still gets the job done and many well known but very old drivers still race this way simply because its habit and they cannot stop. If it works for you then do it, the alternative is missing gears or having your rear end come around on you. Left foot braking has been proven time and time again in study after study to be the fastest way around the track. People do not realize that in EVERY modern racing car such as Formula 1 and CART most everyone left foot brakes because the computer matches the revs for you. I was once at a shifter kart race and asked some of the CART drivers a heel and toe downshift question. They all laughed because they had not needed to match revs or use a clutch in over a decade. Virtually every young american racer coming up today has no idea how to heel and toe. Americans come up now thru shifter karts that have no clutches and graduate to formula cars with sequential gearboxes where they ALL left foot brake because thats the foot they used in karting, and sequential gearboxes do not require you to use the clutch. In Europe the F1 drivers all come up thru karting and they are not even shifter karts. Most have never heeled and toe in their life. Only the sedan racers still heel and toe. And this is the future, not long ago I drove a 360 Ferrari on the track at laguna Seca with the paddle shifter. Unlike the Porsche tiptronic Ferrari has a paddle shifter that matches revs for you in full race mode. No human can be as fast or smooth as a computer. Within the next 5 years I predict every high end car will have some form of clutchless tranny and I think it's a shame because it truly is an art. When Barber Dodge changed to sequential gearboxes it made all the guys who used to be in the middle of the pack now able to hang upfront because now they never missed gears and could just slam away when they downshifted. Technology has changed racing for the worse in my opinion. To me guys like Jackie Stewart and Mario would have kicked the butt of todays modern drivers. The drivers who raced in the 60s and early 70s, now those guys could drive. No radios, no telemetry,no computers. Just skill and tons of COURAGE.I'll take Graham Hill, Jim Clark,Revson, Surtess etc. over anyone today.

DaveH

I was rather surprised at all these comments about inability to heel and toe in a 996 car. I completely agree that half-foot blips under braking are very easy with our cars' pedal configuration and the most comfortable, but a full heel blip is effortless also. Of course the only reason heel and toe is preferred over half-footing is that during racing, if your brakes fade the accelerator and brake pedal height don't remain the same and it would be far more difficult to apply any throttle blip if you weren't using your heel. Not sure if I'd be too worried about that in DE or on the street though.

racer63

Hmmm. Mine works fine. No problems with heel and toe here... And I use a similar technique: ball of the foot on the brake, and the side of the foot (rather than the actual heel) on the throttle.