Jump to content

Apply brake


Nom107
 Share

Recommended Posts

Everyday tips to make you a better driver

 

Road and track driving techniques are very different animals, but there are many skills you can practise on the road every day which will make you a better all round driver and this in turn will greatly benefit your performance on the track. Remember, it has been proven time and time again that the quickest drivers are also the smoothest.

Weight transfers

 

Avoiding dramatic shifts in weight due to aggressive driver inputs is vital for every performance driver. You may be able to get away with this behaviour at lower speeds, but as soon as your car approaches the limits of grip even a tiny weight transfer in the wrong direction can cause you to lose traction. Practising smooth driving every day will make the journey more pleasant for your passengers, but also allow you to cover the ground more quickly and safely.

 

Braking - smooth yet rapid

 

Progressive application of the brakes is vital to maintain stability and composure at speed. To do this, press the brake pedal until contact is made between the brake pads and discs (i.e. take up the slack), then squeeze on the pressure until the required rate of deceleration is reached. This doesn't mean you can't brake firmly or quickly but it's important to make the application progressive rather than simply stamping on the pedal. Equally important is the smooth release of the pedal. Remember you can brake much faster than you can accelerate thus the weight transfers while braking (and easing off the brake) are more extreme. Progressive braking will make you less likely to lock a wheel or lose control due to loss of traction.

Acceleration - squeeze on the gas

 

No matter how much (or little) power your road car has, you can practise progressive acceleration, although the benefits will be more dramatic in more powerful cars. Applying the throttle too early or too aggressively can lead to unwanted weight transfers and spinning wheels.

 

Steering and cornering lines

 

Steering position should be at the nine and three o'clock positions, as this is the position which gives you a good range of motion without forcing your hands off the wheel. Adopting this position will allow you to turn the vast majority of corners without shuffling hands or taking one off the wheel. Allow both hands to do the work - don't simply pull with one or push with the other, splitting the effort will allow you greater control and give you more feedback from the road. Finally, make sure you take every corner in a nice smooth arc and use as much of the road as you can (within the limits of the law of course!). If you find yourself tightening up the steering half way through the corner you probably have taken the wrong line. Start to straighten up as soon as you hit the apex - again if you find you can't do this you've probably got the line wrong and hit the apex too soon.

 

Gear changes

 

Changing gear is often overlooked but is often where the greatest gains can be made. Rev-matching and heel and toe should be second nature for anyone changing down in a manual transmission car. When making any gear change, the shift should be imperceptible from the passenger seat as in extreme cases, dodgy shifts can lock wheels of cause wheelspin any any loss of traction means you're losing time on the track. Don't use the gears to slow you down, modern brakes are very good at doing this for you and give you a much greater amount of control, if you do decide to change down before a corner this should be done to give you maximum acceleration on the way out, not to slow you down on the approach. Finally, when changing down before a corner, ensure you brake first then change down - this will get the engine speed down to a point where the gear change is easier to perform smoothly.

 

That's all for now - happy motoring!

Link to post
Share on other sites

Gear changes

 

Changing gear is often overlooked but is often where the greatest gains can be made. Rev-matching and heel and toe should be second nature for anyone changing down in a manual transmission car. When making any gear change, the shift should be imperceptible from the passenger seat as in extreme cases, dodgy shifts can lock wheels of cause wheelspin any any loss of traction means you're losing time on the track. Don't use the gears to slow you down, modern brakes are very good at doing this for you and give you a much greater amount of control, if you do decide to change down before a corner this should be done to give you maximum acceleration on the way out, not to slow you down on the approach. Finally, when changing down before a corner, ensure you brake first then change down - this will get the engine speed down to a point where the gear change is easier to perform smoothly.

 

I have been doing this. When I want to slow the car down, I would downshift then to simply apply the brake. Is this a bad practice?

 

Regards,

Link to post
Share on other sites

I have been doing this. When I want to slow the car down, I would downshift then to simply apply the brake. Is this a bad practice?

 

Regards,

 

 

if you really use gears to slow your car, your ride will be jerky mostly.

dont need to give your tranny unwarranted workout.

 

you should apply brake first , then downshift to match the lower gear to the lower speed.

 

 

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

Downshifting to slow down the car is fun.

Because you get to hear your car rev, but you don't waste fuel in the process.

 

The down-side as throttle2 mentioned is that it will be a jerky ride.

 

if you really use gears to slow your car, your ride will be jerky mostly.

dont need to give your tranny unwarranted workout.

 

you should apply brake first , then downshift to match the lower gear to the lower speed.

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

yes it's fun, i mostly do it when i "exercise" the car or on the track .

 

both engine and brakes are used together for maximum stopping power.

 

 

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

Downshifting to lose speed is fun but you have to match the revs well or it will be jerky and uncomfortable for passengers. If done properly however you will feel a distinct slowing down from engine braking effect but the transition will be smooth without the jerk that comes from a badly done shift. But still I feel its good to always cultivate the habit of braking first before downshifting to make use of engine brake, mainly because in a real road emergency it will be very difficult if not impossible to stop in time just by downshifting alone.

Link to post
Share on other sites

How u apply brake ???

 

my fmly complaint i my riding hose cos i use to step few times [sweatdrop]

 

actually u step a few times intermittent is ok... but dun use too much force if u using tis intermittent method... sometimes, it's useful to let ur pads last a bit longer... [thumbsup]

Link to post
Share on other sites

if you really use gears to slow your car, your ride will be jerky mostly.

dont need to give your tranny unwarranted workout.

 

you should apply brake first , then downshift to match the lower gear to the lower speed.

 

Generally acceptable to me. I find downshifting using paddle shift is alot smoother for my car. Pretty smooth from 5 to 4, 4 to 3 still ok, but from 3 to 2, 2 to 1, it is jerky and the ride suddently become very tight and machiam have a vaccum effect.

 

Downshifting using gear stick, is quite jerky though. Perhaps should change the habit but find the paddle shifting too convenient to ignore [laugh].

 

Regards,

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

How u apply brake ???

 

my fmly complaint i my riding hose cos i use to step few times [sweatdrop]

Use your right foot and step on the brake pedal lah. [laugh]

 

Just when you are about to come to a full stop release the brake pedal a little and dan depress the pedal back to your original position. With a few practice you will be able to brake smoothly. My driving teacher taught me when I was learning how to drive.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Use your right foot and step on the brake pedal lah. [laugh]

 

Just when you are about to come to a full stop release the brake pedal a little and dan depress the pedal back to your original position. With a few practice you will be able to brake smoothly. My driving teacher taught me when I was learning how to drive.

 

I was told some cars tend to go jerky when braking due to the gearbox design, was it the MTA? Correct me if I'm wrong. Thanks all.

 

Regards,

↡ Advertisement
Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...