I'm attempting to learn how to heel-toe downshift with my car (pedals are stock), and I'm having a tough time because when I brake hard, the brake pedal position is a few inches below gas pedal. So when I roll my right foot over to blip the throttle, my shoe hits the side of the gas pedal instead of the top of it.

So my questions are: 1) has anyone else had this experience, and if so is it just something I need to get used to? 2) would buying a pair of racing shoes help? And 3) any other suggestions?

Thanks much.

 

It's sort of tough to do in the GK.

Remember, that heel/toe doesn't generally use your heel and toe, more toes and side of foot.

I put pedal covers on the Accent years ago, and found that they have enough of a projection on the brake pedal to make it much easier to do.

 

I learnt to heel/toe before I got my licence. I always found it easier when I was learning in a pair of Converse(canvas type). Now I can do even in Rigger boots(although it is a little more awkward). The other way whilst you are learning is to modify your pedals, build up the throttle(gas) pedal.

 

yeah
like 187 said its more toe and side of foot

i can do it on any car with any shoe
i brake with 2-3 toes (essentially the top left of my foot) and then roll my ankle over and use the right side of my foot to just dab the throttle

on hard braking i more so heel and toe and i will twist my foot about 60 degrees and push my right knee into my left knee
this will lift the back of my heel up over the throttle so i can blip it


its kinda hard to explain....you have to practice

 

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/JliPGde8jMM"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/JliPGde8jMM" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>

Above is a pretty good video to reference on the technique. For those that don't know how to "heel toe", this will be very useful. "heel toeing" does two things: by matching engine speed with transmission speed before you shift into gear it reduces the wear on your clutch and prevents wheel spin (for quicker shifts) which can be very dangerous on the track.

Practice the footwork with your car in neutral and the ebrake on, then try it with the shifting while driving

I actually removed the gas pedal from my 1971 bmw and heated it up/bent it in towards the brake pedal, as well as mounted it so it sits slightly lower making it almost second nature to slide off the brake and blip the thottle when shifting. You may want to consider doing something like that if better shoes aren't helping. Careful with modifications such as these though, you can really screw some stuff up if you don't know what you're doing.

 

Can't say I can see that video above, but I think I'm doing it a little bit different to the way you are:

Basically, when you brake, do so with the ball of your foot, with your ankle loose, when you get to the stage that you need to moderate the throttle, physically twist your ankle so that your foot is at a right angle to the pedals, using the ball of your foot as a pivot [to maintain accurate brakeing pressure] and pump the gas with the heel of your foot. Because your ankle is loose, then the heel should be much higher than the accelerator pedal even if the brake pedal is depressed.

What I think you're trying to do is roll your foot across the pedals, pumping the accelerator with the outside of your foot, and the brake with the inside. This works fine when you have a car that is well set up for this sort of technique, but it doesn't when the pedals are pissed.

 

Yea doing it your way gives me legs cramps after a couple laps, I "heel-toe" without actually using my heel..