Do you double clutch when you shift gears?

[streetroc]

So a while back one of my friends got a new Audi A4 with a 6 speed and he let me take it for a spin. There is really no reason to double clutch on the upshifts but as we started slowing down I would double clutch it and give a quick tap of the gas as I downshifted. I wasn't being real aggressive with it or anything, just keeping everything smooth and coordinated. He had no idea what I was doing though and he freaked out thinking that I was going to somehow break his car by doing that. I tried to explain the difference in input shaft speed vs output shaft speed and that it was actually much gentler on the transmission. I even pointed out that by doing so the car didn't jerk forward like it did when you single clutched and just mashed the gears together. He remained skeptical though. I grew up around old cars and learned how to drive on manual transmissions that weren't synchronized so double clutching is just second nature to me. Am I alone in this or do any of you guys do this too?

 

[harrycalahan]

I dont double clutch. No need too since what Im driving doesnt have much reduction but I do tap the gas on a hard downshift to ease up on things. Makes for a much better transition.

 

[jeffdt]

Never did I double clutch and I never use the clutch on upshifts.

 

[GodBlessTheUSA]

Heel and toe every "Sports car" I can. Even taught my son to heel and toe in a saturn with a manual tranny.

You'd be surprised at the folks that own fancy sports cars that can't heel and toe, nor even understand why after you explain it to them.

 

[3clicks_Off]

I thought you only have to double clutch if the transmission didnt have synchronisers

 

[whitmo]

I never use the clutch on upshifts.

I showed my 16 yr old son that I could upshift his Ranger from the passenger seat while he was driving, without the clutch. He was surprised.

But I have never driven anything that needed to be double clutched. I just blip the gas on the downshifts.

 

[Shooters Edge]

In a rig. Not in a car. No need

 

[jcountry]

I thought you only have to double clutch if the transmission didnt have synchronisers

My thoughts too.

Never had a problem with single clutching.

 

[ErfurtLuger]

I thought you only have to double clutch if the transmission didnt have synchronisers

This!

 

[streetroc]

I thought you only have to double clutch if the transmission didnt have synchronisers

For upshifting there isn't much of a need to unless its an older car. My 1958 MGA has a synchronized transmission but I double clutch the upshifts because it is much smoother. However double clutching the downshifts with a tap of the gas in between is better no matter what you drive. To make a long story short, it is easier to slow down a spinning gear than it is to speed it up. On the upshift the input shaft inside the transmission is going much faster than the next gear you are shifting into so the synchro just has to slow it down. But when you downshift you have to speed up the input shaft to match the speed of the lower gear that you want to be in. The synchros can do this but it is still very hard on them. By tapping the gas between clucthes you are revving the engine to speed up the gears on the input shaft.

If you don't believe this then try it both ways. Get in a car with a manual and try going from 3rd to 2nd without double clutching. Then try it by double clutching. (ie- press the clutch, shift to neutral and let up on the clutch, tap the gas to rev the engine up approx 1500rpm, then press the clutch again and shift into the lower gear.) You will be amazed at how much smoother it is and how you don't lurch forward in your seat once you are in the lower gear. And yes this is true even in brand new cars.