Clutch IN, or Clutch OUT?

At a stoplight (or anyplace where you might be stopped for a period of time) do you sit with the car in gear and foot on the clutch? Or do you put the car in neutral and leave your foot off the clutch?

 

 

I've only recently started moving the the keep the car in gear camp, unless it's a really long light and I dont feel like having to keep my foot planted on the clutch.

 

 

I know supposedely keeping the car in neutral is illegal.. but who really takes that into consideration?

 

 

 

So, clutch or throw out bearing, do you really even have to worry about either of them?

I keep it in gear unless I pull up to a long light right as it goes red and I know I will be there for awhile. Keeping it in gear is a safety rule for motorcycles so you can GTFO when a car comes barrelling up on you.

If I know the light will be red for a little bit, Ill just throw it into neutral and rest my foot on the floor, but if I know the light will change quickly, Ill leave it in first and keep the clutch in.

holding the clutch in wears the throwout berring. the clutch should only be in when shifting. just like your hand should only be on the shifter when shifting. not when cruising at 70mph. its not an armrest

braking wears out your brake pads, yet it's still a necessary part of driving

I know supposedely keeping the car in neutral is illegal.. but who really takes that into consideration?

 

I didn't know that.

 

I think it all depends on how desperate I am to make a jump on everyone else from the green light. USually I leave that to Michael Schumacher...but sometimes I do it too.

 

No..generally speaking...I put the car in neutral and i press the brake pedal. It is more protective of the clutch as well.

 

Now if you were telling me that you are left-foot braking, I would be impressed. I guess I would do that myself if the brake pedal was on outermost left and the clutch in the middle - or the pedals (clutch and brake) were somewhat more to the left of the foot-well.

dont wear out your pressure plate. Always anticipate for the green light. You'll also get fatigue from holding that clutch down at the red lights (which eventually get you annoyed and filled with road rage).

in neutral........

Always anticipate for the green light. You'll also get fatigue from holding that clutch down at the red lights (which eventually get you annoyed and filled with road rage).

 

+ PLUS + eleventy million !

Clutch out and massage my foot while waiting for the long light! J/K on the massage, but I usually let the clutch out. Now on gridlock traffic where you move an inch every few seconds, that is a different story.

 

X

Clutch out, shifter in neutral. As someone mentioned, the tob can wear prematurely if you hold the clutch in all the time like that.

Definitely in neutral. Got rear ended at a red light once where I was sitting there for a few seconds. Someone plowed into me doing 54 MPH and shot me well through an intersection and across 4 lanes of traffic (yes my car was totalled). The police and firemen all commented that it was a good thing the car was in neutral. I thought it was only illegal to sit in neutral at an intersection without having brakes applied (so no brake lights on)? Not sure.

Clutch in, brake with other foot. If doing this really accelerates the wear on the throw out bearing, more power to it, I want to get rid of that crappy ass clutch and flywheel and put something better in there anyways.

Clutch in, brake with other foot. If doing this really accelerates the wear on the throw out bearing, more power to it, I want to get rid of that crappy ass clutch and flywheel and put something better in there anyways.

 

Put a 5EAT in there instead then, there's a thread that tells you how to do it somewhere.

btw, that dead pedal in the car next to your clutch is there for a reason And you'll appreciate that dead pedal more on the track or road race type of environment.

Clutch in, brake with other foot. If doing this really accelerates the wear on the throw out bearing, more power to it, I want to get rid of that crappy ass clutch and flywheel and put something better in there anyways.

 

 

if that's the case, why not just hill hold the car with the clutch and gas and screw the brake, you know rock the car back up and down from an uphill? And if you really hate the clutch that much, on a downhill, yank your ebrake up and burn the snot out of your clutch..

btw, that dead pedal in the car next to your clutch is there for a reason And you'll appreciate that dead pedal more on the track or road race type of environment.

:kekeke:

 

http://premium1.uploadit.org/cultofthejedi//heelandtoe.gif

Definitely in neutral. Got rear ended at a red light once where I was sitting there for a few seconds. Someone plowed into me doing 54 MPH and shot me well through an intersection and across 4 lanes of traffic (yes my car was totalled). The police and firemen all commented that it was a good thing the car was in neutral. I thought it was only illegal to sit in neutral at an intersection without having brakes applied (so no brake lights on)? Not sure.

 

 

that kind of hit would damage your tranny anyways even if it was in gear.

 

it is illegal to coast and sometimes illegal to park the car in neutral, but not just sitting at the redlight.

if that's the case, why not just hill hold the car with the clutch and gas and screw the brake, you know rock the car back up and down from an uphill? And if you really hate the clutch that much, on a downhill, yank your ebrake up and burn the snot out of your clutch..

 

I hear ya . Nah, I really don't hate it that much, mildly annoyed at some of it's eccentricities, yes. I just think they could ironed out some of the rough edges to it better.

it's probably the dual mass flywheel that you are not liking..

it's probably the dual mass flywheel that you are not liking..

 

You're probably right. I read in R&T or C&D and they had the same complaints I have. All the action seems to take place within 4" of the fire wall, and I think they're right on that one. I've driven manuals all my life, and I've never stalled a car so much as this. The engagement is just way too abrupt for my liking. And the DMF has some people linking it to the stuttering issue, so I may change the whole package out when I've worn the original out.

neutral, handbrake/e-brake up

Wierd! I have an easier time getting a nice smoothe launch from a dead stop when I'm ON an incline!

 

In any case... I keep the car in gear because I've almost been rear ended at stop lights TWICE! I wanna make sure I can get outta the way in time.

I've driven MT cars for over twenty years and never worn out a throw-out bearing... and I usually leave the car in gear with clutch pushed in at a light (unless I know it will be long one). Might the "throw out bearing wear issue" be a bit of an exaggeration?

dont wear out your pressure plate. Always anticipate for the green light. You'll also get fatigue from holding that clutch down at the red lights (which eventually get you annoyed and filled with road rage).

 

Agreed, I came from an automatic car, and the manual keeps me more alert at lights. You want to start reading the lights. On my normal commute to work, I pretty much know all the patterns of all the lights, so I know when it is going to go. But at other intersections, just use common sense, if the cross traffic lights are green, you are good until they turn yellow, then get ready.