just had a couple of questions...

A)-when u come to a stop like a red light, do u put the car in neutral and let go of the clutch, or hold it in first...?

B)- is it better to hit the gas in first and get ur rpms to like 3500 then let go of the gas, and then let go of the clutch and hit the gas again to catch up before u reach 500 rpms...

i talked to someone and they said this will save your clutch, that holding the clutch in 1st gear at a redlight will make u wear ur clutch faster and weighing it out while shifting would too.. he recommended i do (a) and (b)...

just some advice....

 

um...don't rev to 3500 and then let the clutch out, rev to about 1000. taking it to 3500 will burn the **** outta your clutch. it's more like a smooth transition. while you're letting out the clutch, step on the gas...dont just drop the clutch.

also, i dont see how keeping the clutch in while at a light could wear it out faster, considering the car isn't moving.


[Modified by milanoGSR, 4:19 PM 10/3/2002]

 

At a redlight I put it in neutral. I dont understand your second question, doesn't make too much sense to me.

 

also, i dont see how keeping the clutch in while at a light could wear it out faster, considering the car isn't moving.<< he said your putting pressure on your clutch...

 

There is a bearing between the flywheel and clutch called a throwout bearing. Putting you car in neutral at long lights will save this, as will not riding the clutch while you drive.

 

plus..why would you want to hold the clutch in while at a light? so you can get a beefy left calf? makes more sense just to put it in neutral. takes less than a second to get to first.

you will know with your car if you're riding clutch or not. a smooth 1-2 is tricky; figure it out and don't worry too much about whether or not you're saving like 0.00001% of your clutch every time. if it's oem it should last a good while.

 

you want to take your foot off the clutch and put it in neutral when your at a light to save your throw out bearing.

I usually blip the throttle up to about 1000 rpms then put the car in gear and go.. i have noticed that my car sometimes dosent want to go into 1st and if i do this it usually does.

 

damn i dont even think about what im doin nemore.....if u wont to save ur clutch only use it if its absoulute necessary....as long as ur rollin u wont stall....but downshifting while braking is alot more effective but u only need to do it if there isnt alot of time to stop

 

When starting from a stop, just give a little gas and engage the clutch, modulating both gas and clutch so that the engine speed stays approximately constant as you engage the clutch. Just don't do that too slowly, as that would be putting unneeded stress and friction on the clutch disc and flywheel.

 

A)

B) i engage clutch as early as possible, similar answer to A), the more you hold the clutch in, the more it is being used... so.. if you rev up to 3500, you're using the clutch more as you release clutch pedal as applying gas... i engage as quick and as low as possible

C) same would apply for other shifts, if you ride the clutch as you shift from gear to gear, you are using the clutch more... lets say i shift 2-3rd, i release the gas, push the clutch in, shift into gear, and apply the gas right after i release the clutch..

in short terms for last 2 paragraphs "don't ride the clutch"


[Modified by vtec.dc2, 8:11 PM 10/3/2002]

 

I put it in neutral at a light. sometimes I get really lazy and put the ebrake up as well so I don't have to step on the brakes either. Come to think of it, having to keep my foot on the brakes at a light is a lot more annoying than keeping my foot on the clutch.

 

I have my feet on both the clutch and the brake when I'm stopped at a light. Having the brake lights lit up is just common sense, so I'm not going to waste my time explaining why. As for the clutch, let's face it... it's a part that's designed to be replaced. It will eventually wear out, no matter how much you baby it. Do you also keep your engine under 3k rpm to prevent it from wearing out faster? Besides, I seriously doubt that the majority of clutch wear comes from having your foot on it when stopped. If you put it in neutral and let the clutch out, you're working the clutch twice instead of once per light, so I would think that would cause extra wear itself. And when the light turns green, it takes you longer to get going, especially if it does that nice thing where it takes a few tries to get it to go all the way into 1st.

I think someone was just too lazy to hold their foot on it for 30 seconds so they made up a BS story about reducing clutch wear to justify it.

 

The only time I hold the clutch in at a light and keep it in first at a light is if I'm infront of traffic and doing something at the light: Like getting stuff for the bank drive through ready, looking for a cd, etc. That way the light turns green I can start moving w/ out using my hands.

I don't drag my clutch though like you're recomending in your second question.

The only time I would rev my engine before I started is if I was launching for a race and that's not at a light.