Going to the track, got a stupid question

[bigred90gt]

OK, before you flame me, I just never really asked or had the desire to know, but what exactly is powershifting? I have had different people tell me different things, but I want to try it to see if I can knock a little time off of the slips. Thanks in advance for the enlightenment.
Caymon

[HotRoddin]

Probably means different things to different people. To me power shifting has always ment shifting under power ... you shift without taking your foot off the throttle. If you're gonna do it, make sure you know what your doing because its hard on clutches and transmissions and rear ends and drive shafts and spider gears (learned that one from replacing them a dozen times) and if you miss a shift with your foot to the floor its hard on engines (thats what rev limiters are for !) and its hard on your ego when you do it at the strip

[mustanggt_50]

I was in a website one day and they were talkin about powershifting and they said you hold the throttle down, pull it out of gear then hit the clutch on the way to the next gear, then let it out when in gear, all this being done really fast, without letting off the throttle. I've never tried it before but it looks like it would take some practice, they say it can take 2 tenths off your 1/4 mile time. It may be different i really dont know, just thought i'd share what i read!!

[Fox Body]

Yeah, those are good definitions. You just need to do it right and it's not something you want to do, say, with a friend's '87 4-cyl stang. After a few times, something might just break... But doing it with a powerful stang with a good tranny and good tires will make a difference in 1/4 times.

[HotRoddin]

Originally posted by mustanggt_50
I was in a website one day and they were talkin about powershifting and they said you hold the throttle down, pull it out of gear then hit the clutch on the way to the next gear, then let it out when in gear, all this being done really fast, without letting off the throttle. I've never tried it before but it looks like it would take some practice, they say it can take 2 tenths off your 1/4 mile time. It may be different i really dont know, just thought i'd share what i read!!

Exactally Mustanggt_50 ... thats what it has always ment to me. You stomp the clutch and shove the shifter as hard as you can and as fast as you can and hope you make it into the next gear before your foot comes back off the clutch (which is very quickly if you do it right), cause your throttle foot never comes up. Very easy to miss a gear, and yes it does take some practice before you get the timing down. I wouldn't try it at the drag strip until you get the timing down pat ... practice at it awhile first.

[saltzstang]

Hey Caymon,

Just small advice.....if you plan on doing this a Houston Raceway maybe try not powershifting third unless you have a spare tranny on hand....third is the weekest in these T-5's. Hope I caught you in time.......goodluck.

[bigred90gt]

It may not be the brightest idea, but I'm down to try anything to get the times down. I'll try it out tonight and pst the hopefully positive results. My best time so far is a 14.2. I've been trying to get at least into the 13's so if I can knock off close to 2 tenths, I'm that much closer. Thanks for the replies. Got to go and change the oil take out my system for weight reduction purposes.

Caymon

[bigred90gt]

Just small advice.....if you plan on doing this a Houston Raceway maybe try not powershifting third unless you have a spare tranny on hand....third is the weekest in these T-5's. Hope I caught you in time.......goodluck.

Thanks for the warning. That is exactly where I'm going. Is HRP supposed to be a good place for traction or what? I have a horrible time with traction with the tires (cheapo Futura's) that I currently run.

Caymon

[saltzstang]

Ps.
Be leary of the other end(100 ft before 1320) last time I was out there the track wasnt in very good condition(last week of Nov.)Rumor I was hearing was that Nhra was going to make them re-condition the full track down to the base....dont know how true it is or if they've already done it.

[HotRoddin]

Originally posted by saltzstang
maybe try not powershifting third unless you have a spare tranny on hand....third is the weekest in these T-5's. Hope I caught you in time.......goodluck.

I'm learning from you guys on the more modern stuff ... I didn't know that. I was doing it on the old borg warner and toploader 4 speeds and they were pretty hard to break. Not impossible mind you, but pretty hard

[saltzstang]

In the past Hrp was known for loads of traction but now it's about average for a drag strip. If your talking about traction problems on the street(asphalt/blacktop) you'll be suprised how much the track bites(specially after a spill and they clean the whole length and put down a load of trackbite and drag it with rubber). Have you ever been to Hrp? If you were to walk out onto the track you would see how sticky it is....feels like walking on a floor with slightly dried molassis on it.

[Eric4Nitrous]

that's why I love my liberty..ahh no clutch..just stab the throttle and pull the gears.

[bigred90gt]

In the past Hrp was known for loads of traction but now it's about average for a drag strip. If your talking about traction problems on the street(asphalt/blacktop) you'll be suprised how much the track bites(specially after a spill and they clean the whole length and put down a load of trackbite and drag it with rubber). Have you ever been to Hrp? If you were to walk out onto the track you would see how sticky it is....feels like walking on a floor with slightly dried molassis on it.

Actually, I was talking about at the track. I get better traction on the street than on the track by a long shot. I have been about 10 times to HRP. I hear it is one of, if not the fastest tracks in the nation. Last time I went, I think either the last week in Nov or the first week in Dec, the track seemed fine to me. I don't remember any problems with the end of the track. I probably wasn't paying any attention. When you go, do you go on Fridays or Sundays? I have never gone on a Friday, but on Sundays I hate how they run the light. They don't run the ambers, and I think someone is pushing the button for the green. There is no consistency with the timing on Sundays. Let me know next time you are here to run, and I'll meet you there.
Caymon

[saltzstang]

dont understand how but...ok; probably be while....installing k-member and cage....

[chickendreamer]

While we're on the topic of shifting terminology, what the heck is grany shifting? Also double clutching, why would you want to double clutch, you would loose time no?

[lx mike]

Granny shifting: you take your foot comepletely off gas before you shift

Double clutching: from the movie fast and furious. you double clutch to show your cool. not need with modern tranmissions. roadracers double clutch when downshifting to match engine revs to the lower gear but for drag racing it's waste of time.

power shifting: hold gas to floor and pull slightly on shifter towards next gear and when time to shift kick clutch pedel while pulling into gear quickly cause your only kicking the clutch to release pressure to shift.

[bigred90gt]

Well, I went and sucked it up. I got three runs in. The first run I had a 2.5 60' and ended up with a 14.7. The next run I missed 3rd gear all together and ended up with a 14,9. The last run I missed 4th and left it in neutral and coasted the rest of the way. After the 3rd run I noticed my car pulling to the right quite a bit. I got out and saw a flat. I had no jack, tire tool, or spare, so needless to say, that was it for me. I think I'm going to shut the stang down for a serious overhaul, so be ready for a bunch of questions over the next couple of months.

Caymon

[Coupe50h]

heh, thats why i take jack, and leave spare in, never know when it can happen, i like the weight on my rear tires, when i took it out one time i ended up spinning 2.0 60' with e.t.s,

with it in, i do 1.8's.

[bigred90gt]

The last couple of times I went, my 60' times were between 1.9 and 2.2, on the same cheapo tires. This time around, I couldn't so anything right. Maybe nextime I go, after the overhaul, I can get the numbers I'm looking for. Only time will tell.
Caymon

[MEDIK418]

Hey, since you asked, here's one I learned long time ago. Before I go too far, I've never been able to easily powershift a T-5. I don't know whether they're too notchy or I'm too notchy in my advanced years but here goes. This works like a dream on most every transmission I've ever tried it in and it does work most of the time on T-5's that I've tried. You just gotta get the timing down right.
Power shifting shouldn't hurt too many things until you miss a gear. 5 liter engines rev really quick and an over rev can be costly in an engine that revs that quick especially one that you've redlined before you did that. I was told years ago by Carrol Caudle (multiple world championships in D-gas in the 60's and 70's) that manual transmissions should never be hitched to a big block chevy for this very reason, they rev too quickly to recover from a missed shift. 5 liters don't have the valvetrain problems that BB chevies do so there's some hope.
If a transmission is under a load it's all but impossible to pull out of gear. . .all agreed? If you cause any kind of lapse in the power going to said transmission while trying to pull it out of gear, even for a microsecond, it'll most likely pop out of gear. Quite easily I will add. I learned part of this racing motocross in my younger years, never use a clutch unless you're gonna stop.
Try this, as you start your shift, put some pressure (don't break it, just pressurize it a little)on the shifter in the direction you're going to shift. As you push the clutch in you should feel the shifter pop out of gear. (and I mean about as soon as the clutch pedal starts to move it will pop out) If you time the shifter movement right and are quick enough and most of the planets are aligned just so, . . . by the time you get the clutch pedal to the floor, the shifter should be going into the next gear. THen it's just a matter of the clutch pedal returning to normal flight and forward motion should be unimpaired. Do this a few times while NOT going great guns before you decide to try it under a big load at a rediculous rpm.
Like I said, popping one out of gear is easy, If you get the pedal to the floor fast and time the final throw of the shifter into the next gear you should have the clutch at full disengagement about then. Don't worry about letting the clutch out fast when you first try this, just ease it out and see iif it indeed went into gear. In actual practice, you'll be slamming the clutch in and out so fast you won't know if it hit the gear till it's either too late one of two things happens. . .you hung a good un or your rev-limiter just got a workout.