hummm, good idea

 

I keep mine in neutral. I don't feel like holding down the clutch for that long. I guess I'm just lazy.

 

you can try using the highest gear ration gear such as a reverse to magnify the effect of engine brake.[/quote]

1st-3.82 reverse-3.60. 1st is the highest.

 

1st 3.82 reverse 3.60.

 

This has turned into two questions. 1) In gear at a red light? 2) in gear when parked?

1) I put it in neutral at red lights until moments before the light will turn green.

-I dont want to hold the clutch in for 1-3+ minutes.
-For those people that want to escape a possible accident, that logic falls apart once traffic is stopped behind you, or if traffic is moving through the intersection. If traffic is stopped, who are you trying to escape? If traffic is moving in the intersection, are you really going to drive into a side impact collision instead of getting rear ended? Thats genious.
- If you have it in gear and someone taps your (under 5 MPH) there is a good chance you could let go of the clutch and now you are driving into the intersection to get nailed in the door. Again, genious.
- Someone else mentioned it, your foot can slip off when trying to get something from the back seat and you stall the engine, or worse you release the brake too and know your getting drilled from the side.

Point is that your odds of avoiding an accident are much lower then getting into one. Risk vs Gain.

2) I always park the car and put the transmission in gear. Usually 2nd or 3rd gear. But dont expect a rotary engine to keep your car from rolling down a hill if you forget to set your ebrake.

 

yea, then 1st should be used.
I do wish it had higher reverse ratio so backing out is easier.

 

I just leave it at neutral...

 

dont you wear out the throwout bearings if you leave the car in gear?

my bearings blew up halfway from los angeles to san francisco and i had to drive up there without a clutch, and ended up having to replace fly wheel too

 

[quote=Highway8;3658136]This has turned into two questions. 1) In gear at a red light? 2) in gear when parked?

whoops my fault......lol

 

Some of us do not like to be pushed around by the "put it in gear when you park" crowd. Owner's manuals tell you to put it in gear when you park...and none of us ever believe what the manufacturers say.

Unless there's a specific reason to stay in gear (e.g., bad neighborhood) you should put it in neutral and take your foot off the clutch when waiting at a red light. That's a lot of wear time on the throwout bearing.

If you begrudge the time necessary to step on the clutch and put it back in gear when the light turns green, consider that you should pause anyway to make sure that the cross traffic has actually stopped.

Ken

 

Yup; it sure is hard on them!

 

I was also wondering about extra wear and tear.

 

I leave it in neutral at a light, as mentioned no reason to put unecesssary wear and tear on the clutch. The only time I might keep it in gear is if Im first in line at the light.

Heres another one for you guys: I have heard to keep your hand off the shifter when waiting at a light to prevent wearing out the shift gates by unconsiously putting pressure on them.

 

Yeah...it's a good idea to keep your hand off the shifter when not actually shifting. You can put extra wear on the shift forks. If you keep your hand on the shifter while driving, that means you only have one hand on the wheel.

Also, don't rest your foot on the clutch pedal when not shifting.

Ken

 

gear it according to the incline or decline where you park. I know from experience parking brakes do fail. A guy hit my 1958 with his grand prix. He left the car running and ran inside his house for what I dunno I never asked. But his parking brake failed and his car rolled right into mine busting out the front left headlight. It was all body damage but it pushed the headlight into the fender. Not fun or cheap to have a body fixed that has lead paint.

 

FTMF Truth - Last time I got rear ended I barely missed being pushed into a kid because the gearbox held me long enough to gain my senses and hit the brakes. Missed the poor kid by an inch and he collapsed on my hood. (I didn't touch him, but he pee'd himself and wanted to hide lol.)

Thank goodness the crossing guard (directly employed by the NYPD) witnessed everything, or I might have gotten fucked. Of course, the guy who hit me had no insurance or valid license.

 

I have no idea how the whole thing works specifically. But that is what I have been told, sitting on the clutch will wear out the throwout bearing.

Unless I know the light is changing soon I never sit on the clutch.

 

This makes no sense. If you are stopped at a light with the car in gear and foot in on the clutch, how can the gearbox or engine hold you back? You should have had your foot on the brake to begin with.

 

I don't know...if a couple teenage boys can push start this car, I don't know how much holding back our engine is going to do if a couple thousand pounds comes slamming into the rear end. I suppose if you're paranoid about it, you could sit there with your foot on the brake and set the parking brake. Of course then you wouldn't be getting out of danger's way in any quick fashion.

I'm also a part of the "put it in neutral at a stop" crowd. I always heard it was bad on the throwout bearing as well, so I try not to idle with the clutch in for very long. Besides, with the history of our clutch pedal brackets, the less stress on the bracket, the better.

As far as parking, I really don't know why somebody wouldn't put it in gear. I've had a couple instances where I jumped out of the car and forgot to set the brake and my car just rolled away from me, even though I thought I was on a flat surface . So as long as I don't have a brain fart, I always put it in gear.

 

Put it into neutral at a stop, unless I will be moving within a few seconds.

Even with automatic transmissions, I put it into neutral at a stop. It has become second nature to do so. I did find VW's to be annoying with my habit though. When I drove the ex's MKV Jetta, it would always have a neutral -> drive safety lock after coming to a stop for two seconds, I would have to step on the brake to unlock it.

 

Just stop in gear, let the car stall, restart it then move on...

 

My first instinct was to hit the brakes. My foot came off the clutch at the impact (and I stalled HARD) and I hit the brakes at the same time.

Imagine just releasing the clutch as fast as possible with a car that has a decent amount of torque (VW GLi - 209lbs) AND slamming the brakes -- you'd get the idea. I swear I broke something because gear changes would sound rattly after that...haha.

I also don't hold the brake on level surfaces a lot of the time. Bad habit, I know...but it's one of those perks of driving a manual.

 

replace the clutch often? id rather destroy a throwout bearing than a transmission. Which I have never been able to do. Even with the heaviest of pressure plates. Your talking about a bearing the same size as a wheel bearing that doesn't have near the load....

 

Haha

Uh... Remote start?

 

it boils down to personal preference ... my camaro is a mt n i always leave it in neutral coz that clutch is heavy n tiring idk how an 8s clutch feels coz i have an auto n have never driven and mt