lukemc01

Hey all-

I just have a few questions about preserving the life of the clutch.

1) I assume a smooth and steady push and release of the clutch while shifting is better than a abrupt stab to maintain the life of the clutch, but is it better to push the clutch half-in (just enough to let the gear lever pop into gear) or push the clutch all the way to the floor?

2) Because the transmission has syncros, the gearlever can be pushed from in gear out to neutral w/o pushing in the clutch. Does doing this wear out the syncros? Is it better long term to just pop in the clutch when shifting out? (This question really only pertains to when you're stopping - is it less wear on the car to pop out of gear and coast or better to depress the clutch and then apply the brakes)

3) Am I just being a ninny and worrying too much?

Thanks in advance guys

Beave0101

bump up for a good "?"

nalVle

this is also what ive been wondering. my clutch engages really high, so i dont have to push the clutch down far (probably because its going). i wonder if im making it worse by still not pushing it down (to the floor) even though it engages high.
-Chris

edit: as for rev-matching, should u "blip" the throttle when youre in neutral, or in gear? it works either way...

Optimax

[QUOTE=lukemc01,Dec 14 2004, 11:26 AM]Hey all-

I just have a few questions about preserving the life of the clutch.

1) I assume a smooth and steady push and release of the clutch while shifting is better than a abrupt stab to maintain the life of the clutch, but is it better to push the clutch half-in (just enough to let the gear lever pop into gear) or push the clutch all the way to the floor?

2) Because the transmission has syncros, the gearlever can be pushed from in gear out to neutral w/o pushing in the clutch.

RACER

If you want your clutch to last a long time, engage the clutch at as low of an rpm as possible without bogging or chugging the engine. Any where from 1,600-2,200 rpm. If you engage your clutch at around 2k rpm's, it should last a long time. Try to avoid lengthy slippage of the clutch upon engaging from a standstill.

No wheel burners, donuts, spinning the tires, 360's, swapping ends, lighting them up ect.

As far as shifting, I press in the clutch all the way when shifting up or down. As far as how much throttle I use when shifting depends on how high my rpm's are prior to shifting. If I shift at 9k rpm's, I use full throttle otherwise the rpm's might abruptly drop due to engine speed not spinning fast enough to match the speed of the wheels in a given gear at a given speed when upshifting.

The OEM clutch's are a little bit soft meaning that if you time your clutch release and application of the throttle just right, (throttle foot buried to the floor) it will feel somewhat mushy or soft. For me, it is pretty easy to adjust my clutch/throttle timing to prevent this mushy, soft feeling in the clutch. Part of this includes not trying to put your throttle foot through the floorboard when upshifting

I would recommend pushing the clutch pedal ALL the way to the floor whether you are putting the transmission into gear or taking the transmission out of gear. This car (as well as most manual transmission cars) need the clutch to be fully disengaged to prevent damage to the transmission when changing gears.

If you want to extend the life of your clutch master and slave cylinders, I fully recommend flushing the system once a year, or every 5-10k miles. I at least bleed and do a partial flush 2-3 times a year. The amount of bleeding would would be higher with track use. I also replace the fluid in both the clutch and brake masters without bleeding using a turkey baster. Don't spill brake fluid on your paint.

Chazmo

Actually, I'd think an "abrupt stab" when pushing in the pedal is the best way to preserve the clutch. You want to minimize the times when the clutch (tranny) is spinning at a different rate than the flywheel, particularly at rapid RPM. If you push the pedal in quickly, you break contact before either the engine or the wheels have a chance to slip and change RPM.

Releasing the pedal is the tricky part, of course. Smooth and steady is not necessarily the best way to maintain the life of the clutch. The more slippage, the more wear -- I think that's a given. But there's a lot to consider here. Your clutch exists to provide some slippage so you can do a standing start and basically smooth out your shifts.

Optimax, I'm sorry you've had such a bad experience with your clutch. Mine is going strong at 30K miles, and I still think the S2000 is the smoothest shifting car I've ever owned. I even accidentally grabbed 5th when I thought I was in 3rd last year and seriously slipped the clutch for about 3 seconds last year. Other than stinking up the works, there was no evident damage.

steven975

my clutch has 50k miles and is still going strong.

if you learn how to rev-match and double-clutch when you don't need to abruptly shift, the syncros should last the life of the car and the disc for several years.

the less the disc has to slip or correct rpm differences the longer it will last. if the input shaft spins close to that of the output shaft, syncros will last a long time.

going from 9000-6000 rpm on the 1-2 upshift is murder on syncros...ANY SYNCRO! That is a lot of inertia to bleed off. be kind and double clutch when you don't need to do fast shifts. It is second nature to me now and adds no significant delay. when downshifting, blip the throttle to match the input and output shafts.

Red One

do you double-clutch shifting up as well?

I found this worked when shifting from 1 to 2 when the gearbox is cold, as it stops that damn notchy feeling when the synchros engage (which my dealer says is normal for the car. at least that's what I think he says as I speak crap Japanese....). I have an 04.

Any other views on double-clutching when downshifting? some say it takes too much time and isn't necessary, others say it saves the gear box......

BTW, the notchy gearbox feeling goes away and things smooth out when the thing is pretty warm, like when I get off the motorway after doing 110 kmh for a while

kevin @somewhere in Yokohama

dhayner

For clutch life, the rule is simple - don't slip it. Of course, to get going, you need to slip it a little, but minimize the slipping for maximum life.

Denis

S2KANDRE

some good advice