hey,
i've only been driving a manual for a week now and i can't help but feel like i'm burning out my clutch. when i accelerate from a stop the only way for me not to stall or jump is to rev the engine and let the clutch out very slowly. i do the same every time i switch gears as well. i know that slipping the clutch is bad, but i'm not sure if this actually qualifies as slipping the clutch. i'm usually all the way off in 3-5 seconds. am i going to burn out my clutch in a month? if so... what's a better way to drive?

also, is there anything i can do for it while not driving? thanks!

 

your not slipping the clutch your "riding" the clutch...usually from a dead stop i will give the engine a quick little rev and as the revs drop i i ease the clutch out and begin to give the car gas....your clutch shouldnt burn out quick..usually it will burn out if u ride the clutch at high rpms...you will get used to it

 

do this:

get in car and start it, press clutch pedal down, release it slowly and find out where the point is to where the car will stall, but make sure it doesnt stall. You will have to keep doing this until you get it, you will fell it because the car will slowly move forward, and if you let the pedal go anymore, the car will stall. Its at this point, where the car slowly moves forward, that you want to apply some gas. I sad SOME, dont floor the accelerator pedal, just enough so the rpm guage is at about 1,500 rpm. and from here you can take off smoothly.

like stated above you are riding the clutch, this will prematurely wear it out. practice what i have wrote above and you should get the hang of it.

 

yeah... i've found where the clutch catches before. i do that sometimes when i'm on a hill and the jackass behind me pulls up within an inch... but for every stoplight am i supposed to sit there and find where the clutch catches? i'd be one of those people i hate that take 10 minutes to go at a green light, but i guess i'd get used to it. also, what about the people i see driving manual who role back on hills and then go? do they just suck at driving?

another thing is when i stop i usually just throw it in neutral and coast to the light. then i idle in neutral and shift into first when the light is about to change. is this ok? and should i avoid idling with the clutch caught for very long?

 

whenever i see slowing traffic or redlight, i always shift to neutral and hover my gas foot above the brakes... if traffic should pick up or the light turns green, depending on my speed, i will shift into whatever gear, rev to match the rpms (you will get to know this - generally, 2~2.5k rpm will be roughly at the decimal of whatever gear. so around that rpm range, 2nd gear will be roughly 20mph, 3rd is 30mph, 4th is 40mph.... thats roughly. experiment to see for yourself. if you're in neutral, it doesn't matter what your clutch is doing. there's no resistance torque.

as far as the clutch catch. you can actually get your car moving w/o giving any gas. just feather the clutch and when you feel the car start to move, give a little more (slowly) and it will move a little more. you can do it all the way up until you fully release .. as long as its not going uphill. thats how i learned the clutch catch point.

 

Don't hover your foot over the clutch when you're driving either. This will eat it up too, even if you're "not touching" the pedal.

 

so i should never, ever ride the clutch at all? i always do when i reverse... it seems like the only way i can go backwards at a decent speed.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by zomart &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">so i should never, ever ride the clutch at all? i always do when i reverse... it seems like the only way i can go backwards at a decent speed.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Ideally you shouldn't, but considering the short amount of time you spend in reverse, I doubt if it would harm it riding the clutch out in reverse. We all do it to keep the car from shooting off in reverse, especially in parking lots.

 

As for the whole "starting off on a hill" thing, once you get good at playing with the friction point, don't be afraid to set the ebrake when stopped on a hill. When you get he chance to go, let the clutch out to the friction point, gas it to about 1500-2000 RPM, let the ebrake go, and slowly let the clutch engage the rest of the way.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by zomart &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

another thing is when i stop i usually just throw it in neutral and coast to the light. then i idle in neutral and shift into first when the light is about to change. is this ok? and should i avoid idling with the clutch caught for very long?</TD></TR></TABLE>

This coasting in neutral to a red light is not "bad' for the car in anyway.
With the extremely rare chance you "could" cause premature brake pad wear. However one of the benifits of a manual trans, that you will learn more about, as you drive more, is the judiscious use of the "engine brake", as opposed to the brake pedal. You can slow the car down more quickly and safely and from a higher speed, if you use the trans and engine as a "brake" in conjunction with the brake pedal.
HTH