From: Katharine Thayer (kthayer@pacifier.com)
Date: 02/24/03-01:06:25 PM Z
Who says you can't get useful safety information on this list? Thanks,
Dan, for clearing that up for me.
Katharine
FDanB@aol.com wrote:
>
> Katharine said in her message...
>
> >Is it really a bad thing to shift
> >while you're turning, for example, or was that a joke? All I know is
> >that I've driven 225,000 miles on the original clutch, so I guess I
> >can't have hurt it too much by shifting while turning, if it's true that
> >that's a bad practice, but I still would kind of like to know whether
> >that was a piece of useful information or if they just said it as a joke
> >and assumed everyone would know it was a joke.
>
> In a previous (and more lucrative) career I was an import auto mechanic
> (the cars were imported, not I) so I can speak to that gear shifting
> question. It's hard to think of a wear-related reason that would make
> shifting-while-turning good or bad. And as you said, with 225,000 on the
> original clutch, you obviously don't camp with the abusive types. There
> is a minor safety issue in that your traction is compromised by any force
> other than the centrifugal (or centripetal, depending on your school of
> physics) that is trying to keep your vehicle going in a straight line
> instead of around the corner. If you made a abrupt gear change (on a
> slippery surface for instance), that could be the proverbial last straw
> and send you slipping to the outside of the curve. As you can imagine,
> neither accelerating nor decelerating is best, at least in non racing
> conditions.
>
> I remember once in my teen years when I was hotdogging in a VW bug. I was
> accelerating around a turn and power-shifted (that's when you keep the
> throttle floored as you quickly slam the clutch and gearshift) at the
> apex of the turn. The rear end of the bug promptly broke loose
> (traction-wise) and I very neatly slid backwards into a residential
> driveway. Fortunately, the whole thing looked like an neatly executed
> trick rather than a stupidly dangerous maneuver but it sure left a
> lasting reminder of the power of physics over testosterone.
>
> Note: I am not suggesting that any woman, man, child or alien invader on
> this list would ever need such advice but...there it is just in case.
>
> Hope this helps with the shifting question.
>
> Dan
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