Blurter

I think if people are new to all of this, they should start by practicing normal rev matching i.e. blipping the throttle on the downchange whilst not braking. Once they understand this and can feel the benefits it brings, then move on the H&T'ing.

MunkeyBoy

They used a chav in a Ford Puma to illustrate!!!

Scooby

Can't believe no-one has mentioned the most important aspect of heel and toeing - it sounds fantastic!!

MarkB

A note of caution before you go and practice though - it's not an easy skill to learn for most people, invariably you'll mess up the braking and either brake too hard or not enough. You'll probably get the revs wrong at first too - it goes without saying that with the roads in the condition they are at the moment, this could result in nasty consequences.
If you want to drive more smoothly on the roads, H&T is a good skill to learn but I would advise against using it until you can do it 100% of the time or as close to that figure as you feel comfortable with. A driver who can match revs on the downchange (so the car doesn't lurch as you let the clutch out) and who brakes smoothly and progressively is as safe as one who can H&T.

Practice getting the revs matched exactly on the downchanges and wait for the warmer weather or find somewhere private to practice H&T until the spring. No doubt we'll organise an airfield day sometime in the new year, maybe we should have a 'driving techniques' day somewhere.

euan

One of the things I was taught on the course I went on last year was not to change up a gear so often. On twisty roads, you can make very effective use of the engine braking in the S by not changing up to 3rd or 4th when you might normally do this as part of your acceleration after coming out of a corner.

The long rev range of the S2000 is ideal for this - by staying in lower gears, it can reduce the need for H&T to slow the car for corners while staying in the right gear (or much closer to the right gear) for the corner itself.

lower

i found heel and toeing essential at the trackday i attended last weekend. i had tried it a few times on the road but struggled to get it right. on the damp track at donington the rears were locking on every down change and the rear of the car would jump sideways. heel and toeing was essential to drive smoothly. on the road it is useful when braking very late into a corner, particularly if the road is slippery.

i found that matching the revs dead on wasn't required. just before lifting the clutch on the down change a good kick of the accelerator would lift the revs enough to stop the rears locking up without matching revs exactly. by the end of the day i was able to do it right virtually every time and it became almost second nature. i even found myself doing it on the drive home!

GTFCTIM

Thanks for all the info people.

I currently do the matching revs when downscanging, but not braking thing. It does sound cool.

I just wanted to take it a step further.

Had a little go this morning on the way to work. Felt very unusual. Will have to persevere with it.

ge2

I seem to be able to H & T when braking very hard but still have a bit of trouble maintaining a constant pressure on the brake pedal when driving at normal speeds, I occasionally give the brake an extra shove when blipping the throttle which defeats the whole object.

When we covered H & T on my second 1st Lotus day, I seemed to be able to do it perfectly at normal speeds with Andy (the instructor) in the car which was a real pain as I wanted him to see me getting it wrong! I explained my problem and he suggested I may be trying to do it all to fast and suggested I concentrate on gently lifting the revs rather than giving it a bootful, remembering I'd got the whole of the braking distance to make the downchange.

I'm still struggling a bit, but it's slowly improving. You know you've got it right when you can't feel the gear change at all, it's very satisfying.

Problem is it can make you look like a bit of an engine revving tw@t when pootling through town

MarkB

You only really benefit from H&T when you're braking quite hard. Otherwise there is (should be) so much time between braking and turning the wheel that rev matching is sufficient.

Since I've been racing H&T has become second nature, but I only use it on the road when it is required, which is not as often as you might think. But then on the road you don't drive like you do on the track, where late and hard braking is the order of the day.

Amuse Boy

with Mark. I tend to use heel and toe when pushing on a bit but I tend to do it every now then when pootling along just to practice. Keeps the car really balanced.

There's a really good animation on the US forums illustrating how to do it correctly or like me you can watch countless Japanese DVDs