synth19

iTrader: (11)

From one newbie to another, this is what I did:

Complete Stop: Car in Neutral, but when it turns green, I hit the clutch drop into 1st gear and go. You dont want to leave it in 1st gear and hold the clutch down, that is putting ALOT of wear on the clutch....and if you leave it in first, with no clutch------ STALL!

julian

Nope. there's no clutch wear when it's fully engaged or fully dis engaged. only when the pedal is not at the ends of its travel.

i leave it in neutral because i don't want to keep on pushing my clutch foot for the length of the light. doesn't matter hill or flat ground. pop it into first when the light's about to change.

orhanz33

i got my z like 3 weeks ago...i love it, but hate that I can't drive it everywhere, I hated myself the first week for not looking into getting an SUV or soemthin...the week I got it I barely even got a chance to practice cause i had term papers and finals to worry about...I can drive arright (need some improvement) on pretty flat roads, but the hills scare the **** outta me....I try to plan all my routes ahead of time before going out (avoidin all hills where I might have to come to a complete stop)...i stalled out in 3rd on a hill (having no clue the car can stall out in third) cause there was a slow *** truck goin up a hill, I had to pull up the e-brake put on my hazards and signal people to go around me (it was a steep hill)...I tried using to e-brake to get going when no one was behind me and ended up doin a lil burnout to get goin...i wanna drive my car everywhere I go instead of havin to rock my parents Windstar to some places, but don't know if I'm gonna end up on hill somewhere...anyone have any tips to get goin from a stop on a hill?

p.s. people tell me the clutch on this car is real high, and it's a good thing...they also tell me it's gonna get easier to catch the clutch after it breaks in, it makes sense, but is it true?

polar

iTrader: (2)

True, but there is extra wear on the throwout bearings with the clutch pushed in, hence why I put a standard in neutral while at a stoplight and leave the clutch out.

woogemooge

also, i hear it's bad to keep the clutch depressed for long (e.g. at a stop light) cuz the fluid heats up too much...

jnebill

I had driven MT a little previously in the past but not much...the Z is a little tricky. A little hint when you're learning:

You can start off in second gear on level road or facing downhill at a stop. This allows you to gas the throttle more when launching from zero and there is a bit more room for error on the friction point. First gear is SO short that starting in second allows for a little easier transition into driving full speed in 3rd on city streets (30-45), thus lowering stress for new drivers.

Going up hill or stopped facing up any grade of hill, its still best to start in 1st. Not sure if this is bad for the car, but sometimes I will sit with the clutch and accelerator at the friction point facing up the hill, allowing me to stay in place and ready to launch without even stepping on the brake. It continually revs at a low RPM without actually moving up or down the hill...this will take a bit of practice.

Once you get the hang of things, you will want to go back to starting in 1st as this allows a better launch, of course, and is better on the engine long term.

Good luck!

afr0puff

iTrader: (1)

Oh man... how the hell did you stall in 3rd? It sounds like you were riding 3rd gear at too slow of a speed. Very bad for the car. You should never let the RPM drop below 1,400 for any gear above 2nd.

julian

yup, bad for the engine. puts a lot of stress on the components.


cool, i didn't know that.

starting in 2nd and using your clutch to hold you on a hill are easy ways to go through your clutch.

synth19

iTrader: (11)

dood- This is EXACTLY what I wanted to know! 1st gear sucks! I would rather start from 2nd from a COMPLETE STOP IF it's not bad for the car or CLUTCH.... what does everyone else think of this technique????? If it is bad, then I wont use it... I'm getting the hang of the car. Today I practiced and did very well in multiple stops.... didnt stall once! My launching is getting faster too... woo hoo!

Zulu

You know, 2nd gear in the Z is a pretty heavy gear. I would recomend practicing on the first gear, it's all about foot play- one goes up, the other goes down, you gotta know when. Tip - keep an eye on the rpm needle, rev it up above 1000 before letting go of the clutch. On hills - I used to do the friction point clutch play, but that wears it out fast. Just break, then clutch, pop in first, and start letting go of the clutch slowly while accelerating quick but steady. It takes some practice, but after you master it, your car won't roll back a bit. Have fun while learning your car, and take care of it.

snook789

Hey synth19 Congrats on the new car!

Do you remember me ?

synth19

iTrader: (11)

Did you used to have a CL?

snook789

No, a TL. You bought your CL parts through our company ACP

See alot of customers/ former TL/CL peeps over here.......

Zedekiah

Speaking of neutral and wear...

I was on the phone a few days ago with my salesman for a follow up. We got to talking about the transmition a bit. It got to where I asked him if it was ok to coast in neutral and letting go of the clutch to which he got very distressed. He said something would wear out...but i didn't quite catch it. Not wanting to get into an argument on the phone I let it go.

So now my quesetion is: does coasting in netural with ur foot off the clutch wear down anything? I have asked a few of my friends who drive stick and they all agree it shouldn't because the clutch insn't enaging anything. Any insights?

steig

i'm a mt newbie also, just got my z last night. Stalled it out once on the way home at the start of a left hand turn I need serious practice. All my friends want me to drive when we go out so they can be in the car but i'm afraid of traffice at this point. I've been practicing in a church parking lot for starting up and then around residential streets. If it would stop raining, i could practice more.

MannishBoy

iTrader: (1)

I learned on a Renault Le Car! We were an AMC/Jeep dealer,and that was our parts running car (I worked part time in the parts department). I pushed the shifter bushings out trying to ram it into gear

synth19

iTrader: (11)

Oh yeah! That's right, arent you also the admin @ acura-tl.com? Cool... So you got a 350z? cool

synth19

iTrader: (11)

Interesting.....never heard about this....... Anyone have any insight? ....This thread has become very informative! Thanks everyone!

alphared

this question I had for a long time. when on the highway, and you shift up, like 3rd to 4th or 4th to 5th. I clutch in, shift up then gradually release the clutch so that it doesn't jerk. (this was before I tried rev matching) now does that wear the clutch when i do that?

35oZephyR

iTrader: (4)

I first learned stick on my cousin's heavily HEAVILY modded Twin Turbo 300zx in the open parking lot of Qualcomm stadium. (back when it was Jack Murphy Stadium).

What a rude awakening it was..to be praticing stick in such a extremely modded car. Neck was snapping back at every gear.

It was like race car boot camp..he didn't care about his car so at fourth gear he'd yank the E-brake...we'd go spinning..and he'd say something along the lines of..

"Start over..you shifted on the wrong RPM!!"


Point is: I got so worried and stressed out about watching the revs while praticing that eventually it became second nature. You just have to know and feel the car you're driving..know when its at what RPM without actually looking. Feel when the car engages its gears etc... pratice pratice..be one with the car.

Best luck in the future.