38
votes
Accepted
Need I press clutch pedal while starting my car in neutral?
It depends on the specific vehicle. Many modern standard transmission cars in the US have a clutch pedal sensor that will not allow you to start the vehicle if the pedal isn't fully depressed. You'...
- 24.3k
27
votes
Need I press clutch pedal while starting my car in neutral?
Being from Canada, I feel compelled to mention that if you do not depress the clutch while starting when it is at all cold out (let's say < 0 Celsius) you will notice the starter motor labouring ...
- 422
24
votes
Accepted
My (manual) transmission won't engage any gear 1 day after escaping bog
I've narrowed it down to the most likely possibilities:
You may have burned out your transmission, or cracked the casing and lost all your fluid, in which case you're going to have to replace the ...
- 16.2k
22
votes
Accepted
Motorcycle moves forward when in gear even with clutch lever pulled
This is common among all motorcycles that have a "wet" clutch system. What that means is that the clutch is surrounded by fluid, usually engine oil. Even though you have the clutch pulled ...
- 12.1k
20
votes
Accepted
Turning off a manual transmission car by stalling the engine
Using the clutch engagement to turn the vehicle off can definitely hurt the car.
Essentially what you're doing is wearing the clutch, bearings that lie within the motor, rings and valve seals. If you ...
- 3,343
19
votes
Accepted
Clutch smell after botched attempt at accelerating on a ramp
If it was just once, I wouldn't be overly worried... particularly as you say the car is driving fine.
You took a bit of life off your clutch, and I'd keep an eye out for issues in the coming weeks ...
- 1,945
16
votes
Accepted
How does the clutch prevent stalling?
The engine is connected to the drive wheels through the transmission.
In order to continue to run (not stall) an engine needs to turn at a minimum speed (for instance 600 RPM).
As a car slows down, ...
- 411
15
votes
Accepted
What does a flywheel do and what is it connected to?
A flywheel serves four main purposes (in most vehicles):
It provides mass for rotational inertia to keep the engine in motion
It is specifically weighted to provide balance for the crankshaft
It ...
- 153k
15
votes
What mechanical action is heel and toe (clutchless) shifting trying to accomplish?
Heel-Toe shifting and clutchless shifting are 2 different things. I guess they can be done together....
The one thing both of these techniques have in common is rev matching. There is the RPM you ...
- 8,443
14
votes
Accepted
what damage or extra wear (if any) is caused by turning over the engine while in gear (manual transmission)?
Until the engine starts the only thing applying torque to the drive train is the starter motor, the engine itself is not providing any torque.
Starting like this will not cause any damage to the ...
- 311
13
votes
Accepted
Holding clutch when braking
why using your clutch during braking can be considered unsafe
I have ridden motorcycles for years. Engine braking is a component of safe riding.
The engine itself can be ok and not receive any ...
- 33k
13
votes
Accepted
94 Toyota Pickup hard to put into gear after clutch in too long
If its a hydraulic clutch, it may be bleeding off, either a leak or a bypassing clutch master cylinder.
- 8,010
12
votes
Why is it that the front of the car lifts up when releasing the clutch?
Newtons Third Law
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. The statement means that in every interaction, there is a pair of forces acting on the two interacting objects. The size ...
- 33k
12
votes
Accepted
Does rolling forwards while in reverse gear damage my car?
Absolutely not. There's no issue here. The engine/transmission were not coupled. There was no stress on the transmission. It just was running backwards from what it usually would. Really, it's no big ...
- 153k
11
votes
What does a flywheel do and what is it connected to?
This is addition to Paulster's answer.
Here's an animation
The disc in Grey is the flywheel
Wikipedia provides a good general outline -
A flywheel is a rotating mechanical device that is used to ...
- 2,196
11
votes
Should I depress the clutch pedal when braking to a stop?
No other problem than using slightly too much fuel.
The recommended way to brake is to use the current gear and keep the clutch engaged during braking until idling RPMs at what point one presses the ...
- 14.5k
11
votes
Accepted
Is it worth replacing the entire clutch assembly when the clutch release bearing fails?
At ~110k on the clock it's quite likely that it's the original clutch, and if so you're going to be significantly closer to the end of the clutch's life than the start.
Given the big labor cost/...
- 9,989
10
votes
Accepted
When stopping, should I put the transmission in neutral?
I was always taught to put the car in neutral while waiting at lights. I ruined my throw out bearing by always holding the clutch in. Apparently it was a very difficult replacement because it was a ...
- 1,487
9
votes
Accepted
What exactly is a clutch?
In general, a clutch is a part which allows to connect / disconnect two shafts also while they are rotating.
The most simple clutch consists of two discs, each firmly attached to one shaft. Press ...
- 7,047
9
votes
What mechanical action is heel and toe (clutchless) shifting trying to accomplish?
I'm going to expand on rpmerf's answer, where he has disambiguated between Heel and toe and clutchless shifting.
I'l briefly explain the driving technique only to better illustrate what it hopes to ...
- 2,196
9
votes
Accepted
Is it correct to downshift to brake?
So there are several aspects to keep in mind if you use engine braking.
No brake lights! Don´t do this when somebody sits at your back!
Don´t over-rev. Only downshift to an appropriate gear. Never ...
- 1,062
8
votes
Manual transmission at stop: 1st with clutch in, or neutral with clutch out? -OR- Throwout Bearing wear
As a somewhat paranoid motorcyclist, I'm a huge fan of remaining in first, with the clutch disengaged until at least one vehicle has fully stopped behind me, after that if the remaining stop time is ...
- 583
8
votes
Accepted
How to tell if you have a bad clutch?
When you are traveling 20-30 mph, shift into high gear (6th IIRC) and push the gas 1/2 to 3/4 of the way down. If you see the RPM rise with no immediate increase in speed, the clutch is worn to the ...
- 6,037
8
votes
Accepted
What would happen if you shifted into reverse while you are going forward?
My theory is that the engine would be forced to rotate the other way around, wouldn't it? Then, because of that, the engine would stop, and therefore it will "generate" a lot of force to the ...
8
votes
my motorcycle take more time to accelerate
Your clutch might be bad
If your clutch is slipping then the RPM's of the bike can go up but the bike doesn't accelerate as the clutch slips.
Many times a clutch will start slipping when the engine ...
- 33k
8
votes
Accepted
Why don't cars have multiple disk clutches as motorcycles do?
It all comes down to size.
There is one thing which makes a clutch work, whether wet or dry. It comes down to friction. There are two ways to achieve the friction needed to transfer the energy from ...
- 153k
7
votes
Accepted
Clutch dragging and making squeaking/grinding noise
If I am not mistaken the 2001 Yamaha Diversion has a clutch cable and does not have a hydraulic self adjusting clutch mechanism.
This was my son's first motorcycle and we experienced similar issues ...
- 33k
7
votes
When stopping, should I put the transmission in neutral?
No. The gearbox does not get worn if the clutch pedal is fully depressed. Actually, if the gearbox could get worn depending on the position of the clutch pedal, it would get worn when the engine is ...
- 14.5k
7
votes
What does "clutch grabs hard" mean?
It's the difference between where the clutch grabs and releases. It means that area between the two is very small (relative to clutch pedal travel). You will find there won't be a lot a smooth ...
- 153k
7
votes
Clutch smell after botched attempt at accelerating on a ramp
It is technically harmful, but if it only happened one time, and you don't notice any difference now, you're fine. If it happens a lot you can damage your clutch (or other parts) but once in a while ...
- 365
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