Here's a simple question that most likely has already been covered, but I could not locate a thread. Any word on whether it's better to disengage the clutch when at a stop or keep the clutch engaged? I think they like to call it "riding the clutch." Reason I ask is when I swapped out my stock clutch for the performance clutch the techs from Toyota said the stock oem clutch had alot of wear and was black and they wanted to know if I ride the clutch and how much stress I place on the clutch. Way I was brought up is if you come to stop disengage and leave car in neutral...anyone have any different news? That's what I did with the OEM clutch and the TRD folks made it sound like I was doing something wrong.

 

riding the clutch is when you apply more gas while holding in the clutch still...it will jerk when you shift...holding in the clutch and not revving the engine will not do anything to the clutch

 

actually ^^^that^^^ is not riding the clutch.

Riding the clutch occurs when the driver never fully releases the clutch pedal and so the clutch disc is constantly slipping against the flywheel and thus some of the rotation of the engine is never transferred to the wheels. Most drivers have done this while driving in reverse or in stop-and-go traffic since it is easier to control the throttle and acceleration at very slow speeds.

In a vehicle with a manual transmission, riding the clutch refers to the practice of keeping the clutch partially disengaged when not required. This results in the clutch disc being unable to fully engage with the flywheel and causes premature wear on the disc. Sometimes used synonymously with "slipping the clutch," although some degree of slipping occurs every time the driver shifts -- riding the clutch can be avoided completely. Another example of riding the clutch is when the driver keeps a slight pressure on the clutch pedal while driving (i.e. if the driver has a habit of resting his foot on the pedal instead of the floorboard) and even though this pressure is not enough to allow the clutch disc itself to slip, it is enough to keep the release bearing against the release springs, cause the bearing to constantly remain spinning, leading to premature bearing failure.

In a standard passenger vehicle, when shifting, the clutch pedal is pressed to the floor to disengage the clutch. The driver shifts to the next gear and then releases pressure on the clutch pedal to re-engage the engine to the driveshaft. If the pedal is released quickly, a definite lurch can be felt in the vehicle as the engine catches up to the driveshaft's rotation speed. However, if the clutch is released slowly the clutch disc will "slip" against the flywheel and allow the engine a smoother transition to its new rotation speed. This slipping causes wear on the clutch (similar to wear on a brake pad wear when stopping). Some amount of wear is unavoidable, but with better clutching/shifting technique it can be minimized.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riding_the_clutch

when coming to a stop sign, downshift to 2nd, let off throttle and allow rpms to drop (engine braking), use brake pedal to assist in slowing car to stopping speed (don't come to full stop), then get back on the throttle and accelerate away from the stop sign.

when you're coming to a red light, shift into neutral, release clutch pedal, use brake pedal to slow car to a stop. At green, depress clutch, shift into 1st, and off you go.

 

I just want to add one exception to that suggestion. If you're the car in front at a light, and you're not watching for the light to turn green and have your act together when it turns green, then just keep the car in gear with the clutch in so that you're ready when it turns green.

IOW, don't impede traffic if you don't know how to drive a manual.

 

this is how i drive my manual, tell me if its wrong or not.

at a stop light, i always leave it in first gear and hold the clutch down (is that bad?). then when it comes time to go, i rev to around 1200-1500rpms, and feather the launch to go, i dont get a jerk or anything cuz of the feathering. when it comes time to shift gears, i left off the gas while im depressing the clutch, then once i have shifted, i press the gas a tiny bit while im letting off the clutch.

am i wearing the clutch out? sometimes when i put to much gas while im shifting, it kinda get this scratching sound, its very faint and soft. its not a grind or antyhing. is that bad? only happens if i give to much gas when letting of the clutch.

 

yeah.. it's bad to hold down the clutch long.

it wears out the throwout bearing when you do that which in turn will cause it to need to be replaced sooner..

which costs a bit cause you need to open up the tranny..

as far as you taking off.. feathering is fine.

 

That's ok, lots of people drive that way for years with no throwout bearing issues. This isn't as big of a concern as some people are making it out to be, I'm sure you'll be fine driving as you described. If holding the clutch in at stoplights resulted in throwout bearing failure, I would have experienced it over the last 30+ years, but there was no such issue.

 

You're doing fine. Just make sure you rev-match on downshifts and your tranny will live long and prosper.

 

if its going to be a long stop light, it is recommended that you just disengage the clutch, put in neutral and take your foot off the pedal (releasing stress on the throwout bearing). Theres no need to keep the pedal down, uneccessarily putting stress on the throw out.

if its going to be a quick lite, then yeah, theres no point in going to neutral if your going to have to be right back in first in 5 seconds... get it?

its really about driver discretion. but yeah, keeping the pedal depressed (on the floor) is stressing the throwout bearing (not the clutch itself) and possibly the clutch fork/rod, because its having to hold the weight of the clutch assembly away from its natural resting position.

I just don't trust our TO bearing too much because that whole "clutch squeak" issue is apparently TO bearing/clutch fork/master cylinder-related. Don't want to risk putting any lengthy stress on it. ya know?

 

I leave it in gear until I'm almost at a complete stop at the stop light and then put it into neutral. I try to keep my eye on the lights perpendicular to me. Usually I can see the light being reflected off something on the light housing. Once They get a red light, i shift into first and rev up the engine( use my hand brake if it's on an incline). By the time my engine gets up to 1000-1500RPMs my light turns green so I'm good to go. If I can't see the light if it's bright out or if the intersection is on a weird angle, i just keep on eye on the traffic and my lights, If they start to slow down and stop I can assume they got a yellow or a red so i shift into first and rev.

 

can i adopt you? ^^^^^