Braking
The most overlooked aspect of driving is braking. Everyone thinks that poor or incorrect braking can be made up with blazing acceleration and perfect corners. It is much easier to improve your braking, however, than your acceleration.To be a better driver, it's important to keep in mind that your brakes are the most powerful component of your car. No matter what you are driving, you'll always be able to slow down faster than you can speed up. Braking is also what will set up almost every turn you take, so it's important to get it right.
The wrong way to brake is to continue accelerating until the very last second, then to jump on the brakes with both feet and frantically downshift, using engine braking to slow the car. Smoothness is the key to efficient braking. Ease off the accelerator gently, then squeeze the brakes in a progressive manner.
Once it's time to start accelerating again, you should also ease off the brakes gently. Jumping on and off the binders results in unwanted weight transfers, and upsets the balance of your vehicle. Balance comes into play, as heavy pieces of machinery are not meant to be thrown around in a random manner.
The same rules also apply for acceleration. Be smooth in your application of power, as mashing the throttle can either result in wheel spin or unnecessary weight transfer.
A word about vehicle dynamics is appropriate here: When braking, the weight transfers forward; this increases the size of your tire contact patches at the front and increases the amount of traction available to the front tires.
When you accelerate, the weight moves rearward, reducing the traction available up front. When taking a turn, the traction is greatest on the outside tires (in a left turn, the right side has the most grip). If you jump off the brakes too quickly during a turn, the tires abruptly lose valuable traction.
If you're still applying the brakes too hard when in a corner, the weight begins to move forward as well as outward, so the traction becomes greatest on the front outside tire and limited on the other three. It's obvious that smoothness is essential to maintaining a reasonable weight balance.
If you have ABS brakes, which all new cars do, you may feel the pedal pulsing or vibrating. This is normal, so step on that brake and keep it down. If traction is limited, don't try to pump the brakes. Let the ABS take care of that for you -- it will be able to do it much faster than you ever will.
You know that footrest or dead pedal on the left? Use it to brace yourself -- it will give you a stronger grip with your other foot, and you won't be using the real pedals for support.
Don't downshift to help slow your car down. If you have set up the turn right, you shouldn't need to. Downshifting should be used in a turn for the sole purpose of selecting the right gear for your exit. This entails getting the right RPM, the range at which your car has a good amount of power, and will vary from car to car.
The mistake most beginners make is entering the turn too quickly, then trying to reduce speed too late, and as a result exiting way too slowly. Do this, and you're guaranteed to be overtaken in a turn.
You are better off braking well in advance and building up speed rather than overcooking it altogether. It's much easier to make up a turn that you entered too slow than too fast.
To sum up braking, you should enter the turn decelerating, achieve a point of neither acceleration nor deceleration (which will require a moderated amount of throttle), then gently and progressively evolve into full-out acceleration.
Cornering
On a road course, and assuming that all vehicles are equal, cornering is what is most likely to separate the men from the boys. A turn begins with what is known as the entry; the apex is the heart of the turn; the exit is the back end.Once again, your aim should be to leave the corner as fast as possible, not enter it at some ridiculous speed. You should generally be either on the gas or brake throughout the entire turn, never coasting. Look at every curve well before you enter it. Draw a line that cuts through the entry, apex and exit in the straightest possible manner.
This line should require the least amount of steering input, thereby keeping the tires as straight as possible and giving your tires the most traction. While this may seem like the longest distance to drive, it doesn't matter. You will get through it at a much faster speed.
Since every turn is different, all cannot be covered here. Obvious adjustments should be made for different corners. A wide turn, for example, or one that requires a great deal of acceleration in the exit will mean an adjustment towards a later apex that has that car coming out of the turn at a different angle.
Shifting
The next important aspect is shifting. First thing's first: I don't care how cool you think it looks, your hand should not rest casually on the shifter. Your hand should only touch the shifter when changing gears; otherwise it should be on the wheel in the position mentioned in Part I of becoming a better driver.There is no need to force the lever into gear with all your might. Shift gently, yet quickly. Grasp the shifter with an open, cupped hand. Don't hold it with your fingers wrapped around it like an ice cream cone.
Form a cup with your palm and fingers by placing the palm of the hand over the top of the knob. Use your fingers and palm to flick it into gear. This is mostly wrist action, so your shoulder should not be moving very much at all.
Today's cars have very sophisticated linkage, and more or less know where you are going. When shifting across the H, (usually second to third gear in most cars, for example) you don't need to make the diagonal effort. Shift in a straight manner, and the linkage will guide you correctly.
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