Smooth Shifting The Model A

Hi David I just do Chandler AZ in the spring and fall and am a long range "snow bird" .I am on that flight back to London mid April latest . I was in AZ in June 2008 and got cooked prior to going to Dallas for the big joint meet . I started out as a passenger in a fordor but had to bail out to a Lexus 400 LS as the heat got me !!! My youngest daughter aged 21 at the time was not bothered at all by the heat and did the trip both ways Chandler to Dallas return in the fordor so I guess it is an age thing .

John in light rain but better weather on the way Suffolk County England .
 
pgerhardt said:
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If you want to consistently shift your model A smoothly, forget about “double clutching”!

Now let me be perfectly clear. I am not talking about the act of double clutching, but just the term “double clutching”. It is misleading, in that it leads one to believe the there is some magic involved in pushing the clutch pedal twice.

Smoothly shifting the model A every time does involve pushing the clutch pedal twice.

1. Clutch out of gear
2. “De-clutch” (foot off the pedal) in neutral
3. Clutch into the next gear

Happy shifting!
Click to expand...

Hi

Can someone explain me what exactly will be the process of "Double Clutching ".

What I quoted above I always assumed that was double clutching.

1. Clutch out of gear
2. “De-clutch” (foot off the pedal) in neutral...FIRST CLUTCHING (1+2)
3. Clutch into the next gear
4. De-clutch (foot off again) ... SECOND CLUTCHING (3+4)

In other words, for me each time you push the clutch and then let it free is "one clutching process".

Thanks !!
Daniel

Ps: When I was driving more modern cars, for upshift I only used "1 clutching" due to synchronized gears.

1. Push clutch
2.upshift directly (i.e 2nd to 3rd)
3. De-clutch (take out the foot)

That's why in my mind the term "Double Clutching " always means "do that twice" (the clutch movement).

Now I am confused on how the terms are being used.


Best !!
 
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You don’t need to double clutch up shifting. Just spend a little time in neutral before you go to second. If you want to play with the clutch pedal to spend the time, that’s okay.
If you are not in a hurry, just quickly shift from 1 to 2 as soon as the car is moving. Just use first gear for launch. You can’t screw up the 1-2 shift doing that. Second gear will pick up the load nicely.
 
Forddan said:
Hi

Can someone explain me what exactly will be the process of "Double Clutching ".

What I quoted above I always assumed that was double clutching.

In other words, for me each time you push the clutch and then let it free is "one clutching process".

Thanks !!
Daniel

You are doing the correct thing just keep on doing it.

It is just that the term double clutching gives some the wrong impression that just pushing the clutch twice the all that is needed, but it is step 2 (stopping in neutral) that is the important thing.
Click to expand...
 
Jacksonlll said:
You don’t need to double clutch up shifting. Just spend a little time in neutral before you go to second. If you want to play with the clutch pedal to spend the time, that’s okay.
If you are not in a hurry, just quickly shift from 1 to 2 as soon as the car is moving. Just use first gear for launch. You can’t screw up the 1-2 shift doing that. Second gear will pick up the load nicely.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I almost never double clutch from 1st to 2nd. However it was suggested to me by our "club mechanic" that I rev a little higher before shifting to 3rd to avoid lugging the engine. Doing the "three step clutching" allows that to happen smoothly.
 
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If you think of it as what is the engine RPM going to be when you end up in the next gear you are going to. Either up shifting or down shifting if you have the RPM right you would not even have to use the clutch. As kids we used to do that all the time in Pop's car. Never broke anything but if he knew he would not appreciate it.
 
I think the double clutching is good for most people as it forces you to take the time to shift gears and gives you the proper rhythm to do it. You can use the other method suggested
But I think it’s a little harder for the average driver.
On a side note I have gone all day using the clutch just to start off and timing the shifts up and down with no clutch and not grinding very often, just a little snick into gear.
I normally use the “double clutch method” though.
 
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