You don't want to hold the clutch pedal part way when changing gears at highway speeds. Once you're moving in gear, even 1st gear, you need to take your foot off the clutch pedal. However, to smoothly take the vehicle from a standstill to movement in first gear, you have to partially engage the clutch.
Though riding the clutch on the odd occasion won't cause any significant damage, doing this long-term could cause excessive wear on your clutch. This will mean you need a replacement sooner than expected. The clutch is considered a wear-and-tear item, so is unlikely to be covered by your car's warranty.
Many drivers will do this by holding on to the clutch biting point to keep themselves steady on the incline. But, by doing this, you're burning up the friction material on your clutch disc as the clutch will be spinning at one speed while the engine's pressure plate is moving at another.
#2: Don't use the clutch to hold on a hill
Repeatedly tapping the clutch pedal means you're burning out your clutch's disc. Instead: If your car has a Brake Hold and you have the clutch pressed in, slowly ease your foot off the brake, and the car will remain stationary.
Using the clutch to slow down works in tandem with the accelerator pedal. Let off the gas and let your car slow down a bit. Then press the clutch, downshift, and ease the clutch back out. If you time it right, you will feel a firm but smooth deceleration.
Wherever you drive – you always hit the clutch first and then the brake even when it's not needed. Remember this that hitting brake without hitting clutch helps you brake quicker because the friction provided by engine aids you in slowing down fast (Read up about Engine braking).
The average lifespan of a clutch is anywhere between 20,000 to 150,000 miles. Luckily, your clutch will likely give you ample notice that something is going wrong.
However, if the clutch is released slowly the clutch disc will "slip" against the flywheel; this friction permits the engine a smoother transition to its new rotation speed. Such routine slippage causes wear on the clutch analogous to the wear-and-tear on a brake pad when stopping.
This usually happens when a driver has failed to take their foot of the clutch pedal after changing gear, so the clutch isn't fully re-engaged. There may be a few reasons for this, but riding the clutch is something that you must try and avoid. One reason for riding the clutch could be a poor driving position.
Within the engine at that point, an over-rev condition will occur and internal-engine components will momentarily spin far faster than what they were originally designed to do. The valve spring keeps the engine's valves seated, opening and closing following the camshaft lobe.
Can I go from 5th to 2nd/1st? Yes it is recommended that in a modern manual transmission you can skip gears when going up or down.
The maximum recommended speed in 1st gear is: 31 mph (50 km/h). CAUTION: Shift into or out of reverse only after the car has come to a complete stop; the transmission may be damaged if you shift while the car is moving.
Before turning the car on, locate the clutch. The clutch must be pressed down when shifting gears! Practice pressing and releasing the clutch pedal with your left foot. You will begin to feel (in your foot) when the clutch is engaged or disengaged.
The habit of pressing or releasing the clutch suddenly can be dangerous since it causes a lot of friction. Therefore, it is strongly advised to release the clutch slowly after moving the transmission lever to maintain a clutch life.
Clutch balancing, as its name suggests, happens when you try to hold the car on an incline by using clutch and accelerator, which actually should be done by applying the brakes. Doing so causes the clutch to quickly overheat and even leads to instant clutch failure sometimes if the clutch is already worn out.
Coasting has no real affect on the internal mechanics of your car. However, it does lead to the overuse of one clutch component in particular for manual cars: the throw out bearing. The throw out bearing is the part of the clutch system that disengages the engine while the clutch pedal is pressed.
Additionally, holding the clutch at the biting point is bad for the clutch. Due to the clutch discs beginning to join, but rotating at different speeds, the friction material heating up and causing wear. Ultimately this will shorten the lifespan of a car's clutch.
For one reason or another, there are times were you think it might be beneficial to start off from a stop in second gear rather than first in your manual transmission car. In most cases, though, doing that will cause more wear on your clutch.