How to get the most life out of your clutch?

[2ksev6]

Hey guys,

I had to replace a clutch recently, something I'd like to avoid doing again for a while. I know some of you are getting over 100k on your clutch. Are you driving like grandmas, just good at driving stick, fine with driving on a slipping clutch for a few thousand miles, or do you know something I don't?

Figured I'd ask: How do you all get the most life out of your clutch?

1. I found one post here: http://www.saabnet.com/tsn/bb/NG900/ind ... bID=108132 about matching revs when you down shift. What does that mean? Gas it to the same rpm? Hold your foot steady on the gas through the shift? Maybe I'm already doing this and don't know it.

2. They also say push the clutch all the way down when you shift, sounds plausible, maybe I already am. Thing is, driving a stick becomes habit, and I want to make sure that my habits are proper. What happens if you don't, mechanically?

3. How about when you're driving around town in 3rd gear, coming up on a red light, you can pull the stick into neutral without pressing the clutch at all. Is that ok? How about gear to gear going at the proper speed that the transmission allows you to do so?

4. For 1st gear you want to start out gently of course. For the rest of the gears I treat it the same way, albeit not as slowly. Is that right or would dropping it (just sliding your foot to the left off the clutch and letting it pop up, as opposed to gently letting off of it) be better for clutch life? I've seen people drive both ways.

5. When slowing down - always in neutral or let the transmission do some of the work for a bit (in addition to the brakes or on its own)? I've seen people push the clutch pedal in while braking, that seems wrong to me. That's riding the clutch, isn't it?

Anybody with any little tips for scenarios, I'd love to hear them. Thanks!

[mig0s]

I have 96k miles with my original clutch and everything's fine as of right now.

- What I know is that DO NOT push the clutch and the brake at the same time as it will use the clutch WAY faster. It's written in the solara manual.

- You do not have to downshift. Just put it in neutral and when you need to accelerate, put it back to the right gear. And if you do downshift, make sure that u rev match (let's say you're at 4th gear and at 45mph, when you downshift to 3rd gear, press the gas pedal to like 2500rpm before releasing your clutch.

- When you're putting your stick to neutral, don't forget the press the clutch. It is easy to forget since you can shift from any gear to neutral without pressing the clutch.

- And yes, try to put it in neutral when you're stopping. If you wanna go from 70mph to 60mph of course you won't need to put it in neutral, but when you are STOPPING you should. Trust me it even makes you brake better.

Hope this helps!

[Mole]

i would want to see OP drive...

sounds like you're a beginner.

when you're at a stoplight, what gear are you in? (serious question)

[mac-phisto]

"fine with driving on a slipping clutch for a few thousand miles"
uhhh....no. f-ing. way. do you know how much it sucks to climb the hills around where i live on a slipping clutch? i did it for 2 days & that was enough.

-the big thing, imo, is don't rest your foot on the clutch pedal when you're driving. it may not feel like it's engaging, but you'll strip it quick that way.

-another HUGE factor - make sure your seat is adjusted properly for shifting. if you're always shifting too shallow, you're too far back. if your legs feel cramped & you have trouble moving them around, you're too close. not being in a comfortable driving position WILL affect your clutch life b/c you'll be engaging it improperly.

-don't sit in gear (& ride the clutch) at lights, stop signs, stop & go traffic - also, don't rock with it (you see this a lot at stoplights on inclines - people will ride the clutch to avoid braking). the better alternative is to yank the handbrake - that's what it's there for.

-there's a lot of controversy on the web about clutchless shifting or powershifting or whatever people call it. everyone who does says something along the lines of "it doesn't hurt if you do it right" - yeah, but your reducing your margin of error down to a sliver - doing it wrong is going to cause damage (ever drive a car with blown synchros? NOT FUN!). my advice is don't do it.

-i don't always rev-match on downshifts because i frequently use downshifting to slow my car (& rev-matching is counterproductive in this respect). does this wear the clutch faster? i dunno, but i know it saves my brakes, which imo is one of the big features of driving manual. brakes all around cost more than a clutch & they already wear 3 times as fast - i'd like to save them as long as i can.

personally, i think the toyota clutch is pretty robust, so i'm not too concerned about it. my lara's only on her second clutch (replaced about 20k ago) & she's got 170k. she's the forth manual yota i've driven (also had a 99 camry, an 89 camry & an 85 corolla) - all have had exceptional clutch lives.

[1gSE]

-i don't always rev-match on downshifts because i frequently use downshifting to slow my car (& rev-matching is counterproductive in this respect). does this wear the clutch faster? i dunno, but i know it saves my brakes, which imo is one of the big features of driving manual. brakes all around cost more than a clutch & they already wear 3 times as fast - i'd like to save them as long as i can.

I'd much rather replace brakes than a clutch even if i have to do it more often. With that said, i do rev match (sometimes) and down shift to slow the car.

[mac-phisto]

I'd much rather replace brakes than a clutch even if i have to do it more often.

not me, but that's b/c i do the brakes myself; she goes to the mechanic for the clutch.

[2ksev6]

i would want to see OP drive...

sounds like you're a beginner.

when you're at a stoplight, what gear are you in? (serious question)

The reason I'm asking these questions is to get beyond the basics. Like Clutch Techniques 201 or something.

I drive pretty smoothly to the point that passengers don't always notice I drive a stick until a ways into the drive when they notice my arm doing the shifting. No whiplash inducing moves like when I first started (exaggeration, but it was jerky). That said, it doesn't mean I don't have any bad habits, and that's what I'm looking for. I speed, but I don't accelerate like a bat out of hell. Smooth starts, very rarely will I be in a situation where I kill the motor.

I've been driving a stick for 140,000 miles, so I wouldn't say I'm a beginner, though it is my first car with a manual transmission. It's been kind of confusing determining what works and what doesn't since I had a master cylinder issue that I was told effected the clutch fairly early on.

- I always leave it in neutral at stop lights with my foot off the clutch.

- I also don't rest my foot on the clutch, that's what the footpad to the left of the clutch is for.

- On up shifts I don't drop the clutch, I ease off like I do in first gear, but I ease off of it more quickly.

- I live in Los Angeles. I have a GPS with traffic that keeps me out of a lot of it, but I still get stuck in traffic fairly often, which I know can effect clutch life.

Thank you for the responses, so far it's been pretty helpful.

[2ksev6]

-i don't always rev-match on downshifts because i frequently use downshifting to slow my car (& rev-matching is counterproductive in this respect). does this wear the clutch faster? i dunno, but i know it saves my brakes, which imo is one of the big features of driving manual. brakes all around cost more than a clutch & they already wear 3 times as fast - i'd like to save them as long as i can.

Thanks for the very useful post. On a side note I have Stillen slotted and cross drilled rotors (and stainless lines) which have been a godsend. I used to have trouble with warping rotors and more frequent brake issues, and since I got the rotors my braking has been better and I have yet to change the pads, despite hearing that slotted rotors would eat through them more quickly. It's been 3 or 4 years since the fronts were changed to Stillen. I had the rear pads replaced with the clutch last week (stock rear rotors) but I don't think I need to upgrade the rears since they don't do nearly as much braking. Since the squeaky rears were changed I think may be hearing a slight squeak from the fronts with the Stillens, but I may be mistaken, and if they are squeaking I still have a ways to go on them. I love these rotors, and just thought I'd share if you're dealing with brakes more than you'd like.

[mazen222]

dont push the brake and clutch pedal at the same time... new to me! not that i do it often, but never thought it could hurt the clutch

[2ksev6]

dont push the brake and clutch pedal at the same time... new to me! not that i do it often, but never thought it could hurt the clutch

It's probably fine if it's just for a second to get out of gear, just don't hold it down while braking, like all the way to a stop light..

I really appreciate the replies to this post. I've been paying close attention to my clutch technique and I've noticed little tweaks which may add longevity.

[dug320]

I know this may sound odd but have someone watch you that has a lot of experience with clutch driving. They may pick up something you overlook.

Sometimes we think it is the current driver but if the car had a previous owner then perhaps they rode the clutch. Is the clutch original or aftermarket? I have seen some cheap jobs for a new clutch, cheap parts and poor prep.

Neutral at stop, matching revs, determining contact points (don't push the clutch to the floor) and not down shifting to stop are great strategies.

[2ksev6]

How do you determine contact points? I had misread someone's earlier post and thought I was supposed to push it down all the way, I'm glad to see that I don't. I have a feeling I may have been doing that part right all the time, though I've been catching myself trying to keep the clutch in more often than I should.

[dug320]

Contact point is by feel. You will feel the clutch plates engaging and friction overcoming the slippage. The degree of wear and the degree of glazing will have an impact on the contact point. Keep testing, the fact you are concerned has already started to extend the life of your clutch.