Technical Side -Stepping the Clutch

Actually, that's not correct, Gene
The three amber lights would be at a drag strip, and a quick reaction time helps to win races.

Whenever the tall tales start to fly, it's usually in the context of someone strapping a huge hole shot on someone or getting a race winning , quicker ET by "side stepping the clutch". One guy on this thread said his dad told him he used to side step his new Road Runner when it was brand new, at the dragstrip.

I really didn't need to go here , but I've been driving and racing stick shift cars since I was 14. I've won National and Divisional events, and many local eliminators, and never "side stepped a clutch" once, and I don't intend to.
I'm sure I 've broken more parts than most of you guys, too. I'm not sorry I missed out on anything.
As far as burning rubber just for the hell of it, I can assure you I've done that too, without side stepping anything..
Of course, I usually drove Pontiacs at the time
Carry on...

 

I row my M20 the old fashioned way. I think the hydraulic clutch makes a different. When I'm on the gas having fun I shift at 4500-5000.

 

These days with hydraulic clutches it's easy enough to manage with something akin to a line lock. And as said on page one, absolutely with a delay box (it's not cheating). There were more neutral drops with automatics in my tenure on the streets. One night (morning really) I'm heading home with a car capable of 11s in the 1/4mi. This kid and his girl pull up in a raggedy Monte Carlo complete with exhaust leaks and mis-matched sheet metal. It's just us at the red light, he revs the car, she screams "Not him! HE'LL KILL US!" I look at Mrs Highlander and say "This will be funny. No, I'm not racing but he doesn't know that." So I give very light rev and a 1/2 grin, kid goes to neutral yells to his girl "Watch this!" Light changes, he drops from neutral at like 4000 RPM and promptly shells the rear u-joint like walnuts as I just drove away. "Aren't you gonna turn around and help em out?" "Nope, he's in school right now." It took a minute but she got it. Well seeing as how I'm not the heartless bastard some think I can be I did turn around after a couple miles just to observe. They were safely on the side of the road waiting for help of some kind. I sometimes wonder what became of that young couple. Did they learn anything? Continue with hot rods or give up?

I side-stepped the clutch in a 383 4spd car once. Traction was so shitty it was like being on ice, car didn't move much, just wanted to sway side to side. Then I did it from a 20 MPH roll and still spun like hell but it "felt" fast. Shit, this topic reminds me of a whole bunch of silly shit back in the day, but once I reached a turbo 400 with a brake and 5500 stall those days were greasy kid stuff.

 

In 1958, It was fun! had a 52 Ford 6 cyl with an Ansen floorshift with a backwards pattern, I'd have the passenger pull the stick and I'd sidestep the clutch, the car would leap across the intersection. I beat built Olds's, 57 powerpack chevys, just about everybody, (across the intersection). It was all about having fun on the street!

 

Sidestepping the clutch works very well in destroying the rubber stop that the clutch pedal stops against when fully out.. I have run hydraulic actuation from first build and have had no worries of the clutch not engaging quick enough at launch or shifting a non-slick shifted Ford top loader trans behind a 289 at 7k..

 

I had a Olds Cutlass F-85 Convertible with a 4 speed. In 1973 it was a $100.00 dollar car.
Ran great. I got real angry once because something stupid happened and side stepped.
Then the stupid kid I was got to walk home because "something" made a weird noise.
I've never done it since.

 

I'm with Mark on this. I have probably over half a million miles manually shifting gears in cars (mostly big block Chevelle's - 68 & 70 SS 396's) and trucks, I don't believe I ever side stepped the clutch once. I may have been tempted to a few times, but better sense prevailed. Always seemed like a stupid thing to do. I hate destroying parts doing stupid things. It's one thing to break things driving hard, it's another to break them being stupid.

 

Ahh.. the memories! 66 GTO 4 speed 3500 rpm side step clutch, car goes into a slight side drift, tires starting to bite, tach reads 5800, drive left leg down at an angle on clutch pedal as I grab 2, as my foot hits the end of travel due to the angle of my leg my foot naturally comes off clutch and bang! 2nd, tach read 5800 and on to 3rd. Do it all over again

With the straight gate shifter I could shift the old M22 fast enough that I had to put synchronizers in it every so often. With a standard Hurst gated 4 speed shifter never had that problem.

Man I need another v8 /4_speed !!

 

For some reason the clutch that was in my Chevelle could be side stepped when it was cold but after I got some heat in the flywheel I didn't dare do it.
That 8.2 rear was not up to the task.

 

It can be done.... but be prepared to shed some tears.

 

I broke enough parts without ever side-stepping the clutch. Who knows how much more I could have broken had I tried it.

 

Side stepping the clutch was great for putting on a show. After the expensive early lessons of side stepping the clutch, I learned that if I wanted to smoke the tires, that was the surest way to do so. If I wanted to move the car, a different approach was required.
Street tires (or at least the ones I could afford to ruin) were pretty poor traction equipment. At some point, traction was non-existent. I discovered that if a guy side stepped the clutch above the traction threshold rpm, very little damage occurred (except tire life) to the car, as long as you paid attention to the engine rpm. With my off topic Road Runner, I could smoke the tires at will, or I could launch the car pretty hard in contests of street performance. The concept was above many guys on the street, most couldn't understand how a car that seemed like it could not get traction, could drive away from them when challenged. Gene

 

Hey Guys,

The above points are valid. Everyone has their own technique and if you look at the time periods, techniques change with new stuff and effort. If someone ran a national record, his technique was THE ONE. If someone quotes a term, that is the one everyone else has to follow...not. It all boils down to traction and timing. If you don't have the timing down, you won't get the traction to win or at least get off of the line. It takes a second for the eye/brain to tell the feet what to do next, so timing and quick reactions are necessary.

Back in the 3 speed 58 Impala days, the trans was in first, the clutch in and foot on the gas pedal. So, what was to slide? Adjust the throttle and when the arm comes down, out comes the clutch, race off the line. No forward movement of the car on the line as the street/dragstrip staging area was level. When the 58 Impala went to the C&O Hydro, the left foot was on the brake and the right, upping the rpms on the throttle. Much easier on the car and definitely quicker off the line.

Many years later, with a 5 speed and a push button hand lever for the emergency brake, the left foot clutch, right foot throttle, push in the button was the procedure for smooth, fast starts off of the line. But, it still boils down to timing and reaction.

Jnaki

Modern racers use line locks which weren’t for every day cruisers.
Teaching someone to drive a clutch and manual trans:
1. Right foot on brake
2. Left on clutch, motor at idle.
3. Ease out the clutch until you feel a “clunk” and a slight movement
forward. The brake lever is still engaged
4. The idle should keep the motor running in this stage
5. Now, the right foot can move to the throttle at the green light.
6. Ease out the clutch a little more and there will be no hops, skips, and
jumps. The car moves forward on the idle until you adjust the throttle for more speed.
7. This method can also be used for manual transmissions on hills and
slopes. That way, there is no rearward motion of the car when the
right foot moves from the brake to the throttle to go forward. The
idle keeps the car in one place fighting the downward pull of the slope.
8. My recommendation for new/old drivers is to keep a distance away from
all drivers at lights and stop signs. There is always a chance that the
manual transmission drivers will roll back.

Many years ago, I taught my wife this method in order for her to drive a 4 speed stick as a daily driver. She wanted the car, it came with a stick shift, so after a couple of weeks of practice on small slopes and streets in Laguna Beach, she was ready. The final test was a 900+ mile drive up the coast and back.

The hill starts were: Several off camber stop sign corners in Morro Bay to hilly slopes in Santa Cruz/Aptos to the all time hill start city: San Francisco. There was even a mountain drive through Yosemite and the 395 Highway mountain towns back to So Cal. She drove her 4 speed stick shift car for 13 years and followed up with another 5 speed car for 11 more years. The method works...

 

Riding the clutch isn't any good either.
Lots of folks do it, I see cars floating on hills and just shake my head. Riding the clutch Apparently gets them where they are going so one could effectively argue that" it works".

 

Hello,
The hill start method is technically not riding the clutch, as it is sitting at idle with the emergency brake engaged. When the light changes, the clutch is let out until one hears and feels the clunk. Then the brake is let off and forward movement starts. Yes, those that sit at lights with the car only using the clutch to stay in position is "riding the clutch" and causes excessive wear.

If used correctly, the hill start does little damage to the clutch. In the 13 years in one car and 11 in another, no clutch adjustments or replacements were necessary. It was minimal and the ease of driving a stick shift car on a hilly environment is more enjoyable using the hill start method.

Jnaki
But, the suggestion of staying a car length or so back is always a wise choice in any situation. Roll backs are bound to happen, slipping the clutch or not.

 

When I was about 16 ( 50 years ago ) I had a Forty Ford. I side stepped the clutch and the bottom of the transmission blew out on the road. Lesson learned.