Sim Racing 101 : Shifting - Rev Match it! (Ep14) 

one day i woke up and suddenly i could heel and toe. idk why.

If you're trying to learn Heel'n'Toe downshifting, start (not actually racing) by practicing the rev matching side of things. Drive in a straight line and slow down by downshifting through the gear box, blipping the throttle of course ... you're not after speed you just want to get used to matching revs as you drop down through the gear box. Don't even think about the brakes yet, that's why you pick a straightaway where you have a lot of room to slow down. Once you get that part down ... you can start using the "slanted right foot" with toes/ball of your right foot on the brake, and the heel end of your right foot covering the gas pedal. Depending on the size of your foot, a long foot (size 15 scale of things) you'll use more the side than the heel, but a size 8 or 9 might use more heel. Anyone can do it with practice, Matt's video pedal cam view is very instructive. Now, left foot braking, that takes ENORMOUS amounts of practice because most people have almost zero sensitivity for control in their left foot. It's best to gain the first degrees of left foot sensitivity (control) by driving an automatic so you can not have to worry about the clutch. Once you can brake 100% with your left foot in an automatic shift (no clutch) mode and do it well, then you are ready to learn the drivers foot-well fandango where you left foot brake, right foot brake, left foot clutch, heel'n'toe downshift ... or brake and gas together for balance not slowing down, all as the situation demands. THEN you'll be a race car driver. :D

Sim racing newbie here. Just want to say this was the most helpful video I've found on shifting and gear boxes I've found on RU-vid. Thanks for all the help. New sub!

Flatshifting (keeping it pinned while shifting) a traditional gear box (such as the MX5) is a real technique that is valid and does work in the real world. BUT, on the flip side, it's not something you would do every shift because you will turn the box to dust sooner rather than later. There was an article on the iR forums where one of the drivers mentioned they flatshifted to win the race at Sebring a year back actually. Funnily enough, both guys were iRacers. lol

There is actually another type of sequential gearbox (ignition cut ) it just cuts away the ignition between the gear changes instead of cutting away the throttle, because the ignition cutting takes Leser time to engage and disengage the engine power, as soon as you changed your gear the combustion caber runs to rich on fuel because the the ignition system is cut away but not the injection so in the time of changing a gear the is no ignition spark but there is fuel injection, that causes the flames on some cars during up and downshifts (all in all a really nice Video I’m glad to see some one having a clue what’s going on under the chair you sitting on :)

Thanks empty box this really helped me out and i can rev match heel and toe now!

Im glad someone finally addressed this. I wish iRacing would atleast have the car stall if you didn't hold the clutch or spun out. Glad i subbed.

Oh, a bicycle! Finally somethinhg I can relate to

I usually show the foot cams for HnT cars, if you don't see one it's probably LFB with blip on downshifts as I spend most of my sim racing time driving GT2 / GT1 cars which don't have autoblipping. Unless of course I'm driving an open wheel car, then you will know by the clicking of my paddles 15x in each brake zone. Mash paddle to get a gear, mash paddle to get a gear.

That applies to sequentials and dogboxes (one and the same for our uses in a sim). Like I said, you are slamming it into gear, speed is of the essence. Even still it's quite common to see NASCAR drivers HnT with clutch despite it being "bad", largely due to the amount of power and lack of grip relative to weight. I bet you would see more drivers driving a NASCAR style car as a standard H pattern manual than a sequential because of that. The goal is to not overcomplicate things.

And I heel-and-toe when downshifting when driving around fast in my car all the time. It's tricky to match the revs to get perfectly smooth changes and it's much harder at low and very high rpms but it's super fun once you get used to it!

i recently changed my shift aid settings to Auto Clutch on my wingman and OMG i feel i can accelerate faster. This is on Iracing.XP ROAD HERE I COME

In my opinion, i think nascar sticks with h-pad because they do so little shifting compared to other series. You brought up a great point with v8 supercars. That is part of the reason why i think marcos ambrose has had more success that montoya in nascar.

I can honestly say in all my time with rFactor I've literally never lost a gear. Ever. I've blown engines, but never lost a gear.

First track is Charade, 70's version if I'm not mistaken. Awesome track to have fun - tons of mods for any sim out there.

Yeah most of these new cars in the last 15 years where having a slap shifter or even paddle shifters on the sport trims of most cars is standard even on a camry lol, but it's just a standard TC auto with some electronic gizmo that allows you to put it in manual mode. Now there not all bad, my awd g35 for example has 5at with rev matching and it will hold gears at high rpm's unlike my old pos 2000 eclipse gt. But generally your slower using the manual mode on trannys like this when it comes to all out acceleration and shift times BUT the computer can be goofy downshifting. I really like being able to control when it downshifts but these TC auto's are nothing like a DLC or a true sequential transmission. A dlc is really the ultimate tranny for speed but there is nothing like rowing through gears and using a clutch. Especially once you master it, it is very rewarding once you nail it. I got in to sim racing for it to transfer over to real life as much as possible. I'm not delusional, I know this 100% does not transfer but if you have the correct set up you can 100% improve real life. If anything I find some things easier in real life because I can feel the revs and the g forces, you just have a lot more info coming in where as in a sim you really have to rely on visuals and feel from the wheel. I'm just about to install 4 bass shakers next week and im very excited for that. Just to feel the shifts would help a ton. Hopefully by the end of the year I can get a dof reality p3 or p6. For the money they are absolutely incredible. If you can settle for a seat mover like NLR's V3 motion platform, you could get the m2 starting at $750!! Or the heavier duty one for around a grand. They have a pro model with tougher motors for commercial use or whatever and then they have a standard version. You can get there 2dof for around 1500 and upgrade to the 3 and 6 dof versions. Lol honestly I'm almost having as much fun planning and building my rig than actually using it. I'm 26 and I am very late to the game. I had a wheel growing up but it was a joke. I didn't realize these ffb wheels were even around and it sounds like the logitech has been around since the 2000's. I wish I would of discovered this back then but oh well. My set up so far though is a t300rs that came with a conquer cockpit, T-LCM pedals, fanatec 1.5sq shifter, drivehub adapter for ps4. Im using an old 43in 1080p vizio for my display and also have PSVR. The cockpit was not working so I built a hybrid using the conquer seat and an old printer stand for the wheel stand on a plywood base lol. It's not pretty but solid and its a temporary rig although it's good enough to be a permanent rig but now I see where I can improve.

If anyone else watches this video 4 years after it was published, what car mod is this and do links to it still exist?

In the mid 80s the number one cause for race retirement in F1, was mis-shifting, lol. Clutchless manual for the win.

After watching Jimmy Broadbent race in rallies in Dirt, i started to automatically heel toe.

I have tried driving Iracing with no shift assistance and its pretty fun. But watching your foot work with only two pedals gives me an idea of how I am suppost to dowwshift cause I find myself jumping up and down when downshifting.XDD

A lot of japanese time attack cars I watch have sequentials but still use clutch and some even heeltoe. Im not sure though if its just to eliminate action and time with hpatterns but retain the manual use of clutch and blipping.

You are the fuckin BEST mate hands down this video alone dropped like 3 to 4 seconds off my times

About your comment on NASCAR and the h-pattern I'm fairly certain nationwide and sprint cup ran sequential gb's at the road courses this year not sure about the trucks though

Sorry to bother you literally 9 years later lmao. But I have a question. I've learned that I should double clutch when downshifting. Essentially "clutch down, shift to neutral, clutch up, blip, clutch down, shift into gear, clutch up." But this video shows blipping while the clutch is still down. Is there any real difference? Is there a benefit to the extra effort of double clutching or am I just expending extra time and energy into my downshifts?

Ended up deciding on the ClubSport Pedals... not sure when they'll get here, but I'll resume my quest to blip then.

I would've loved to see the inputs (like, level of braking or acceleration) alongside your foot cam. Sweet stuff :) I'm new to racing sims (err, well, anything outside of GT) and I don't recognize this sim! rFactor? Love to see your skill on Clermont Ferrand!

Nominally, if we break down the sequence into discrete steps its typically clutch-in then apply throttle to raise up the RPM. In practice, there's a significant amount of overlap here. Racing sims tend to let you get away with a lot more than in a real car. In sims, my motions tend to be simultaneous. In my real car, I have to lead with the clutch a bit more if I want the shifter to actually move out of gear when I want it to. You already have the theory down, use what works for you.

Oh I get that but I'm wondering if his pedals provide enough realism to allow the skills to transfer directly to your average car.

Nascar uses helix cut gears which allow for the "slamming into gear". They don't even use the clutch now too. Just a little factoid.

Question, when driving a car with a sequential gearbox that does not have throttle cut upshifts but you don't lift the gas, the revs go up then won't it "pop the clutch" each time you upshift giving to a better jump into the next gear? I just feel like it would be faster. Would like to hear other peoples thoughts.

I have to ask. Do you think it's okay to downshift multiple gears with one move? For example: When I raced in iRacing at summit with the mx5 once, there is the slow left corner taken with 2nd, while you're aproaching it with 4th. So instead of going through the gears one at a time, I go from 4th to 2nd in one move, but after I slow down the car enough to not over-rev it. All that in a heel and toe of course. So what do you think, is it okay, do you stress the gear box like that?

No, they run H-Pattern. Most drivers though left foot brake and just blip with their right foot. They don't have to use the clutch with the transmission type (dogbox) they have.

So with regards to V8 Supercars, in which all but 2 drivers (Greg Murphy and Fabian Coulthard I believe) use the clutch on downshifts, why is that? Does it just extend the life of the transmission?

Learning to heel-toe in real life was a huge boon both in simracing and in everyday driving. The only problem is when my cat and/or dog get in my lap.

How do you set it up to not auto-clutch for you (as well as for it to not allow pre-selection [cheating]) in iRacing? I have a G27 and I set it for no shifting assist, but the clutch still cuts in automatically at low speeds and it's annoying!

Matt, have you ever tried the Grinding Tranny Plugin for rFactor? If so, what did you think about it?

Im so sorry for my troubles but im having a seriously hard time understanding breaking. Ive been 100% locking breaks and it seems to stop quicker that if im not locking the breaks. very confused

I had to drive a car without a clutch once, master cylinder pooped out on a car coming back from a dealer auction, it was a challenge being forced to learn how to perfectly match rpm up and down gears.. i made it 20 or so thankfully mostly highway miles without completely destroying the gearbox so i guess i did okay

Empty, what is the name of the track you are driving with the Flat 6?

As I move off the MX-5 I am trying to learn how to "properly" drive. I currently have the DrivingForceGT with only two pedals. Would you recommend learning how to heel and toe anyway, or is it better to start of just left foot braking and then learning heel ant toe after rev matching with two feet? Thank you for all the great videos!

Hey Empty Box, great video. I got a quick question about shifting. I race a lot in leagues for rFactor and I've noticed that the mod I've driving is a sequential with throttle cut... but I've noticed that if I still blip while braking it still has an effect even if the car is supposed to blip for me? I'm pretty sure this isn't a placebo effect as when I try to brake very late I either spin out of the car due to how fast I'm shifting down or the car just doesn't slow down enough. Can you offer an explanation to this? Thanks

A buddy of mine races the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, and actually won the Watkins Glen and VIR races last year. Thing is, judging by his footcam, he wasn't using the clutch. I noticed a similar technique from AJ Allmendinger's footcam, where the clutch just wasn't used. I know on iRacing in an H pattern car you can up shift by just lifting off the throttle, and downshifting by simply blipping the throttle, but in real life, especially on a budget K&N team, why would the clutch just be sitting doing sweet FA?

Is there ANY cars on iRacing that require a clutch to shift? I very rarely touch my clutch at all on any of the cars I drive, which is most of them in the service, and I don't seem to lose much time. The only cars that I've ever been stuck out of gear was the Miata and one time an SRF (still finished 4th on lead lap during week 13 lol). For this reason I wonder why I should bother learning how to heel/toe, besides it being the "right" way to do it.

Thanks for the video. I have a question about sequentials, specifically the CTS-V in Iracing. I think it has throttle cut upshifts but no auto blip downshifts. Is it pretty much standard practice to drive with left foot always on brake and right for throttle to blip downshifts? Feels completely counter intuitive to me but I've been pretty much exclusively using H shift race cars (like GT Legends/Power and Glory) for years now.

i just started iRacing, is it better to learn this now (along with everything else like driving racing line, braking, and throttle app) or should i take it as progression once I'm a bit more settled with other basic stuff? or do you think might as well try to learn all of these altogether?

Thanks EB. I was leaning that way. Glad you made it easier.

When running H-Pattern cars in R3E, I keep tearing the gearbox to bits on downshifts, and I'm not sure why. I don't feel like i'm doing anything wrong in terms of HnT, yet after 15 minutes or so, shifting is nigh impossible.

When do you blip the throttle on sequential transmissions w/o autoblip, at the same time you press the downshift paddle?

i only tought that heel toe was therefore for preventing to lock up the rear tires

i play project cars with no assists and everything turned off exept abs and use the manual clutch too but with some cars even when im using manual cluch i can shift without using the clutch. is that normal ? for example the group a cars like the sierra.

Do you have any intention to make a sim racing 101 episode on X Motor Racing?

What track and Sim are you racing here in this video?

he should have said "harder, better, faster sronger"

So I have a DFGT which I know you have experience with. So far I've actually been doing alright practicing in Assetto Corsa with auto-clutch but no auto-blip. However I notice its a real pain in the butt to keep my brake pressure consistent. Did you learn to Heel n Toe with the default pedals or did you wait til you had a better set? What if anything did you do while you were locked to the DFGT pedals to get better? So far to avoid locking the brakes up I'm having to brake way earlier because I can't really threshold brake.

Correct, though you will still see some guys using the clutch from time to time.

i got a used g25, i never plress the clutch enough on down shifting (and when trying to heel and toe, well i never press the brake enough, so i never manage to do a corner) should i just start with basic braking and downshifting, getting htat correct and then start heel and toe

Autumn ring! Love that track.

I have yet to find a racing sim that satisfies me completely in terms of Body and mechanical damage Visuals Handling and behavior of the car. Richard Burns Rally and iRacing are my favorites but have so much that could be improved :c

what pedals do you use?

Thanks for this vid EB, really helped me make sense of how to shift properly :]

Do I have to blip the throttle everytime I down-shift.

When i HnT in iracing every time i blip the throttle i get no brakes

I'm getting there with heel and toe but left foot braking still is f*cking difficult. With my left foot I'm as sensitive as I would be if I would brake with my butt.

'Dat Autumn Ring.

this is difficult part for me cause i only have 2 pedals no clutch

Took me a really long time to get this right, and still I mess it up sometimes.

do u race in the real world too Empty Box??

What car & track? (Also which sim is this?)

no clutch pedal :(

EmptyBox you say you can't beat electronics when it comes to using gears, but you haven't see me drive lol good video I always learn something more and that's the point of your videos to inform us sim noobs, a job well done, keep bringing us great content as I for one am happy to learn as much as I can.

All three are rFactor.

GooD

Crunching the gears in Assetto Corsa will destroy the gearbox in a short time.

i have strait cut gears so i dont need the clutch

csshhhhewwwwwwrnrnrnrnrnrnnrnrnr.

Thanks for the vid but I wanted you to show more shifting while explaining what your doing, your way past 101 with a lot of the things your talking about.

you missed a Daft Punk joke at 14:49 :)

Nice socks

I truly enjoy using the clutch and H shifter in iRacing but it appears to me to only be a disadvantage while actually racing. Watching replays in the MX5 series it appears everyone is using paddles with auto/clutch. Either that or everybody in rookies are gods when it comes to shifting.

Clubsport v2s.

I came here in 2022😊

Wats goin on gayz

Nr2003 you can lose a gear

I drive automatic in real life and I use heel toe. I don't use my left leg at all. My friend taught me to drive a clutch and it was weird learning to use my left leg. But when I get my rig and it set up I'll probably be using both feel to brake. Just depends on what track.

Do you drive and automatic or manual?

I know what you mean by people doing things without regard to it being appropriate or safe in reality. For example, don't you just hate when people drive motorcycles in sneakers, or do sim racing in socks?

Left Foot braking? eww

Are you serious. It's a video game.

When I started watching this series, I thought I knew a decent amount about driving... Ohhh was I wrong.

"Oh yeah, you also get a really cool sound with a properly rev-matched downshift. Yeah. That's reason enough to use this technique, and master it." Perfect, so true. Also, what pedals are those? They look really comfortable to use barefoot when you only have socks.

If you are talking about the "manumatic" type boxes those are entirely different from a racing sequential, and more or less an automatic that allows manual gear selection.

I've been having trouble with shifting, mainly getting both of my feet to hit the brake and gas. I'm using G27 pedals and due to me being younger than most (13) I can't reach across until my foot's basically sideways. Do the Elites you use have an easier feel on the gas and brake?

Yes, they all use sequential boxes now. HnT is an old world technique that now-a-days is pretty much forgotten about at in the high levels, but none the less is good to understand as that is pretty much the same thing that is going on with all these fancy transmissions.

Really wish I could learn to heel toe, but thanks to my military service, I'm left with a bum left leg below the knee. I have tried left foot braking, or learning to, but with no feeling in my left foot, I just can't get it. I make do and I've noticed I do things when braking no one else does but that comes more from adapting and trying wierd things somtimes to try and duplicate an effect that you might achieve when you can left foot brake. It's still a handicap for me and there are times I feel lacking, but it's all learning. Eventually I come up with stuff to at least close the gap.

Yes, it's one of the main advantages of an H pattern box. There is a vid actually here on YT of some guy in an IMSA GTP car (with only about... say 800 HP lol) going from 5th to 1st in the corkscrew - just one epically large downshift. Nothing wrong with it, I just naturally go through them all as it's the way I've always done it.

This video is 6 years old, and is still as relevant today. Thanks for teaching me how to tackle the chaos of a DRM car. Edit: Sub earned too.

Awesome video, although at 8:50 the text mentions that the transmission howls because it's a sequential. It howls because the gears are straight cut and the howl is the sound of gears smashing together hundreds of times per second instead of engaging smoothly like helical gears, this gives the gears the benefit of creating no longitudinal force on the shafts which eliminates the need for a thrust bearing which in turn makes the transmission lighter, that can also be a thing in a manual so yeah. (Source: I study mechanical engineering) Sorry for being a smartass but it didn't sit right with me not to correct it :C I hope whoever reads this has learned something interesting though.

I was shopping for a manual car in my younger years when asking a car yard owner if they had any manual cars he quoted "If god intended us to drive manual he would have given us three legs" after hearing that I turned and ran as fast as I could. haha. Good video, very thorough explanation. As in using the clutch driving sims for me has been an easy transition as I drove trucks for most of my career. I just gotta keep it off the dirt now. lol. Keep the videos coming. :D

Already know how to heel and toe, but it never hurts learning a little bit more about it. best advice for everyone is to understand why you do it before you begin to learn it, just like Empty Box just explained. its not the easiest thing to do but when you get it right the rewards and feeling of doing it without even really thinking about it is amazing, you feel like a pro racer lol

just found your channel and i wanted to point out why i liked it from the began, a) you advice ppl to become better drives and the biggest b) footwork cam, your videos are enjoyable to watch