altima35

Hi Guys,

My new Redline Z is only my second manual transmission vehicle. I'm past the break-in period and I have a question concerning the clutch. Do you fully depress the clutch to the floor or do you only depress to the friction point to shift gears? I recall reading somewhere that you should depress the clutch completely. I appreciate any feedback.

Thanks.

fdao

I have always been thought to depress the clutch completely in between shifts. Doing it the other way may lead to gear grinding if you're not careful.

koba8

I would depress past the friction point, but all the way to the back is not necessary. Like pretty much all car manufacturers Nissan builds in extra distance between where the actual end of the friction point is and where you can shift from and where the factory clutch stop against the wall is. In my current car I generally don't take it all the way back to the wall, as the clutch stop on that car is so far back. In fact, many other owners of Z3s and M Roadsters/Coupes have custom clutch stops that come out farther. As long as you know how far back to go there is no problem. However, be careful, and remember, going back too far is far better than not going back far enough.

visitor

you should press it in far enough so that you can shift with ease. not enough, you run the risk of grinding gears....it's not pretty when you hear your transmission grinding itself a new whole. not that i do this on a regular basis.

cotmfk

I put mine to the floor on my VR-4.... but then again, I JUST replaced the transmission, so I want to be EXTRA careful!!!

350zSpeedRacer

Definitely past the point of friction, you don't want to accidently grind those gears! Every manual is different so you need to drive it to get a feel for what is best. Maybe start off pushing it all the way down, but as you get more comfortable, you can really tell where you need to go.

droideka

Just push it all of the way in. We're talking a matter of inches here, not feet. I do 50 miles stop-and-go everyday and always fully disengage. Every single shift.

Boomer

I agree, always push the clutch all the way in, don't think you are OK at just the friction point and then shift. Someday it won't be enough and you may knock a couple of teeth off your trans. or ruin a synchronizer. Don't be lazy about this, it isn't worth the chance of expensive damage.

TEDT350Z

in some cases you can adjust the clutch pedal so that there is less distance to depress (or less "play")...so in other words it will help to increase your shifting speed...but again if you aren't carefull it is easy to grind gears when you don't get into the habit of depressing the clutch fully...also when I want to shift faster I make sure I depress down (about 1/4) to eliminate the intial play that you have...it takes time to get used to where the initial play is at and stiffer clutch pedals are easier in feeling where the intial play starts and ends if that makes any sense to you at all...I remember the last time I replaced my clutch that I had less play on the pedal which meant that I had to retrain my driving habits...practice practice practice...once you get used to it you can really get aggressive when you get into situations that require faster and more responsive shifting...good luck.

altima35

I appreciate the tips. So, to be on the safe side, I'll press down fully. I want this baby to be around and running trouble free for a long time to come.

rouxeny

Seeing as this is a new car and you seem like you're fairly new at shifting, I would definitely stick with fully depressing the clutch. Sure, you can get away with not pushing all the way down. You can get away without pushing at all, but who really wants to do that to their new Z?

The amount of time and effort saved aren't worth the potential for transmission damage.

ares

iTrader: (2)

to the floor here, just to be safe, no huge trouble. if for some reason I need to shift fast, I can shift just past the friction point but ussually I only do this when racing or something, which isnt often.

WashUJon

Push the clutch pedal ALL the way in to make sure the clutch plate is ALL the way disengaged. Otherwise, you'll be replacing clutches twice as fast. Clutch jobs aren't cheap. I personally like to get max life out of my clutches while still driving spiritedly...

digerydingo

If I conciously think about it I will depress the clutch all the way to the ground. But if I'm doing some spirited driving and definately while racing, I barely brush the clutch. Mind you in a race car we do drop the engine every two races and replace the clutch when necessary.

CZredZ

This is thread the closest to “Unanimous” as anything I've seen on this site, glad to know I have been doing something right all this time.

TereP

Yep, for the neophyte shifter, it's all the way down. Don't know how many have noticed this put the clutch pedal play is one of my biggest complaints with the Z. I'm about to take a look at modifying the thing for a much shorter clutch stroke. Given the hydraulic clutch with the very short range for full engagement, it seems really odd that Nissan gave it so much unnecessary travel. If you're gonna do the advertized 0-60 in 5.4, you're gonna have to ride the clutch so you only have to give it an inch or so travel to power shift, otherwise, forget even coming close to 5.4 (it'll take ya 5.4 practically just to push the pedal down).

Finding the clutch "sweet spot" takes a little practice because of all the pedal travel. Mine occurs about 3 inches out from the floor.

Tere
Brickyard Performance
SA, TX