How To Nail The Perfect Heel And Toe Downshift

The heel and toe downshift is the art of combining three processes: braking, rev-matching and changing gear. Here’s how it’s done
How To Nail The Perfect Heel And Toe Downshift

Heel and toe downshifting is widely recognised as the ‘holy grail’ of driving techniques. It looks cool, it sounds awesome and high profile journalists like Chris Harris have made it famous on the interwebz. So who wouldn’t want to learn it?

Well, many of my friends have been put off attempting the technique because it looks rather ‘intimidating’; a skill reserved for pro drivers. Thankfully this is not the case - you don’t have to be Ayrton Senna to pull off the perfect downshift. In fact, it’s one of the easiest skills to master, and once you’ve cracked it, you’ll find it as simple as operating a light-switch.

How do I perform a heel and toe downshift?

How To Nail The Perfect Heel And Toe Downshift

Heel and toe downshifts are performed in the braking zone of a corner, so we’ll run through the process methodically:

As you approach the braking zone, move your right foot from the throttle to the brake pedal. When you reach a speed where it is appropriate to downshift (to avoid over-revving), rotate your right foot so that your heel is hovering over the throttle. Alternatively, if you’re in a track focused machine where the pedals are close together, you can use the side of your foot in place of your heel.

How To Nail The Perfect Heel And Toe Downshift

To change gear, depress the clutch with your left foot, then rotate your right foot while you’re still braking and give the throttle a short, sharp stab with your heel (or the side of your foot), then select the lower gear. When you blip the throttle, be careful not to over-rev the engine, which is a major problem in vintage race cars with no limiter. Once you’ve selected the lower gear, release the clutch smoothly and with purpose.

If you’ve done everything perfectly, the downshift should have been buttery smooth with minimal forward weight transfer.

Why is a heel and toe downshift smoother?

How To Nail The Perfect Heel And Toe Downshift

If you don’t use heel and toe, when you depress the clutch to select a lower gear, the revs will drop as the engine is disconnected from the gearbox, but the wheel speed will remain high. So when you downshift and release the clutch, the clutch speed and the engine speed are completely mismatched. This will cause a shock to the driveline resulting in sudden engine braking.

This can upset the balance of the car, and in some circumstances - usually wet and greasy conditions - you can lock the driven wheels entirely.

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So the advantage of using heel and toe is that when you blip the throttle during the downshift, it matches the engine speed with the road speed. Therefore, when the clutch is released, there should be no sudden jerk, which reduces forward weight transfer and the likelihood of lock-ups. As a result the car remains stable on the way into the corner giving the driver greater control.

Can I use it on the road?

How To Nail The Perfect Heel And Toe Downshift

Absolutely. Any technique that helps to keep a car balanced and under control is worth using on a day-to-day basis. Just like left-foot braking, it will make you a smoother, quicker, and ultimately safer driver on the road.

However, we do recommend that you have the right car/pedal set-up. If you’re in a car with pedals spaced far apart, heel and toe-ing can be a real challenge. Try to practice in a car where the brake pedal, when fully depressed, sits at the same level as the throttle.

Like with everything, practice makes perfect, so get out there and nail that technique!

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Comments

ivan morales lopez

Thankst for the advice

04/11/2016 - 18:48 |
0 | 0
Anonymous

“How To Nail The Perfect Heel And Toe Downshift” in one easy step: Pratice. Oh, and also you need a car with proper pedal placement.

04/11/2016 - 18:53 |
162 | 2
Ladd187

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

I dont have that problem.. thank god 😂

04/11/2016 - 18:56 |
2 | 0
Carlos Matas

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

Feel you, in mine its just impossible :_(

04/11/2016 - 19:41 |
8 | 0
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

It’s possible to change pedals in most cars

04/11/2016 - 21:40 |
0 | 0
MD Curmudgeon

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

If I could do it in a Ford Explorer and a Jeep Wrangler, most people have no excuse.

04/11/2016 - 21:43 |
0 | 0
Rishav

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

[DELETED]

04/11/2016 - 22:40 |
0 | 2
Hast

Saw it on Initial D when I was a kid. Been practicing it everyday since I got my licence. Now it’s a daily driving routine and I get pissed if I’m in a car where I can’t do it 😁

04/11/2016 - 19:03 |
0 | 0
flat8MR

Interesting, i use the heel and toe technique in my home simulator and the side of the foot technique in normal street cars, because at my Fanatec pedals brake and gas are direct next to each other and in the roadcar the brake is around 10cm closer to the driver

04/11/2016 - 19:03 |
2 | 0

On the G27 you can take off the metal pedal and move them closer by a few cm. The brake and clutch is also raised a few mm

04/12/2016 - 09:07 |
0 | 0
Anonymous

I bet Chris Evans can’t heel and toe.

04/11/2016 - 19:10 |
34 | 0
Hoon the Galaxy

I have been trying to nail it for a long time but this confirms my suspicion, the pedals on my family van are not made for heel-toe(ing?). What a suprise :p
Could someone make a list of streetcars that are good for learning this technique in?

04/11/2016 - 19:10 |
14 | 2

Miata bro miata is always the answer. (It is actually really easy to heel toe in a miata haha.) And any performance car you can think of with a manual trans

04/11/2016 - 20:48 |
4 | 0

Komb its look strange but works great XD!!

04/11/2016 - 20:54 |
0 | 0

You may not be able to do a full heel/toe. That said, if you have good footwork you should at least be able to improve your downshifts at the expense of maximum braking.

The general concept can reduce wear on your drivetrain in everyday driving.

04/11/2016 - 21:45 |
0 | 0
Anonymous

‘Head, Shoulders, Heels and Toes, Heels and Toes’ Thats the Car-guy nursery rhymes

04/11/2016 - 19:20 |
52 | 0
SkigE39

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

This comment made my day

04/12/2016 - 04:04 |
0 | 0
Zguy

Yep, my feet are too big.

04/11/2016 - 19:30 |
0 | 0
Anonymous

Had an ep3 and couldn’t do it to save my life due to pedal spacing. No problems in the cayman. I do it without thinking now.

04/11/2016 - 19:35 |
2 | 0
tom023

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

I have great difficulty doing it in my EP2 due to how far down the accelerator pedal is. Perhaps if the gas pedal sat slightly higher it would be easier in an EP civic.

04/11/2016 - 22:45 |
0 | 0
Anonymous

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

I never had a problem doing it in an ep3. In fact, I foundit as easy as always. However it can be trick af in a diesel.

04/12/2016 - 10:13 |
0 | 0