Most people will put more wear on their throwout bearing at one or two stoplights, than I will use all year long. It's things like this, as well as release techniques, that can allow a clutch to last the life of the car, or be toast in a few years!

 

Even with the high mileage I get from my clutches, I know that my clutch technique isn't the best. I'd love to learn some tips from you to get better. Care to share any advice with me and the rest of us?

 

I know quite well how to use a clutch and have never had one go out. That doesn't mean that's its reasonable to expect 100 K from a clutch especially in a sports car. And the wear and tear from a SS trans is so severe that those clutches are doing well to last much beyond 20K miles. It will be interesting to see what the clutch life is on the V12VS down the road.

 

Basically the clutch isn't really a wear component. Sure, it Is used, but it should be like the e-brake as far as wear when you are shifting , you are operating it mechanically, but not wearing it.... If you match the RPM reasonably well, and select the gear (basically smoothly fitting the shifter into the next gear so it goes in without wear of the synchros, and the clutch discs.) the clutch should last a very long time.
#2. don't ever have the clutch depressed unless you are actively putting the car in gear. you should be coasting up to a stoplight or sign, slightly push the clutch in and get it in neutral at about 10mph before the stop. (release the clutch pedal). Learn to anticipate the moment when you want to go, and push the clutch in, select 1st and immediately slowly release pedal with some gas. no more than 500rpm above idle. the slow release, with high rpm release is what kills the clutch disc. even if you were drag racing, its a high rpm and then clutch dump, so the wear is on the tires, not the clutch. the clutch is only used to start the momentum going.
#3. go back and see #2. don't have the clutch pedal in at stop lights with the car in gear. most everyone I drive with, does this. its really sad because you are putting load on the TOB , so wearing it out 100x faster than If you didn't sit there for minutes at a time with your foot in the clutch, AND, you get slight wearing on the discs because they are spinning against a stopped flywheel and there might be some faint contact. Usually, the driver is temped to creep the car forward while sitting too, causing further disc wear. Also, keeping the pressure plate flexed for long periods of time, will reduce its clamping force and basically wear it out by inducing premature metal/spring fatigue. (causing clutch slip issues , like the corvette video)
4. learn the RPM drop of each gear at your RPM shifting point. for example. shifting at 4000rpm out of first gives you about a 1500rpm drop, while the other gears its more like 1000rpm. learn to feel and hear the sounds of what a clean shift feels like and get good at it!!


These cars have amazing granzano transmissions and a pretty soft disc clutch with high clamping force pressure plates. This is a pretty expensive proposition to get your shifting and techniques wrong.

 

I never leave the clutch in at a full stop, but what about stop & go traffic where you're moving about a foot every 3-5 seconds? I know that this is one point where I need to creep forward so I tend to leave the clutch in, which I know is not good. However, the alternative is clutch in/gear select/clutch out/creep one foot/clutch in /neutral/clutch out.

 

I have an old Honda Accord with the original clutch at over 200k miles, and it still has a decent amount of life left on it.
I know it's not an AM with over 400hp, but I just wanted to provide evidence that some of the members describing long-lasting clutches is possible.
My silver NSX currently has 115k miles with the original clutch, and still no sign of it failing.

 

better to exercise the mechanism, than to hold it in. time your spirts of movement. try not to ever leave the clutch depressed. coast as much as possible. try and put back in gear as you are slightly rolling to release and get a quick jolt of the car in gear to move forward and then release again. traffic is tough on a clutch.

 

again, my race car with 8 seasons of full racing on it, the discs still showed the part number in white ink on the discs. this was 20k of street miles too.

 

That's amazing and impressive! Letting the clutch engage as quickly as possible will provide the longest life for it, even if that means a slight jerky movement to the car.

 

and thats not being easy on the car at all. lots of victory donuts, 10s of 1000s of shifts, etc.

 

You spare one component and break another. In my Esprit, it was the pushrod return spring in the master cylinder that broke from exercising it more to spare the clutch disc. Of course rebuilding the master cylinder is still cheaper than replacing the clutch.

 

I bought my 2010 Vantage V8 manual with 10,200 miles on it in May of 2013. The clutch failed on the way home from picking it up from the dealer. They bought me a new one. Full cost including a new slave cylinder which they recommended but was still good, was $4400.

 

Great advice and glad to hear! I have found that on a level surface pulling away you can let the clutch out as soon as it kisses, applying no throttle and the cars just goes. (07 w/am power upgrade and high flow cats) the clutch slipping is a little longer than a fast engagement at higher rpm but the wear would most likely be the same as the fly wheel revolutions during slipping time would be about equal. in the formula fords we shifted no clutch, are the italian gear boxes up to that task? I normally take out of gear before clutch depression but have not been brave enough to no clutch. My p car is easy to shift up no clutch but down shifting not too happy. I just can't "feel" the engagement like a top loader. Any thoughts?

 

Since we are talking about proper clutch techniques, I've always been curious how you expert manual drivers navigate the parking lot. In a multi level congested parking structure where it's constant up hill and optimal safe speed is say 3 mpg and have to quickly stop if pedestrians or cars dash out, what do you do with your clutch and avoid stalling?

 

I park in a 6 level garage every day, often on the top level. I find I can climb all the way up in 1st or 2nd, without shifting. If I have to stop, I put it in neutral and then restart. On the way out at night, I coast all the way down in neutral!