A clutch replacement is expensive, and many clutches are changed considerably sooner than they should be. By using proper driving practices and doing routine vehicle maintenance, you may extend the life of your clutch.
Your driving habits determine the amount of time your clutch will last. Follow these steps to decrease wear and tear and get the most out of your clutch:
Do not ride your clutch. This quickly degrades your clutch. Instead, when pressing on the accelerator, keep your foot off the clutch. Also resting your foot on the clutch pedal while driving down the road or waiting at a stoplight can excessively wear the throw-out bearing over time, as well as wearing the clutch disc and the cover diaphragm. Changing old behaviors is sometimes the best clutch maintenance. It’s a good idea to leave your left foot flat on the floor while you’re not moving.
Use Your Clutch Only When Absolutely Necessary: If you come to a halt, shift into neutral and let go of the clutch. When the clutch is not in use, keeping it pushed down might increase the risk of a clutch failure in the future.
If you’re driving a car with a manual gearbox, don’t downshift every time you slow down. Use the brakes, instead.
Make the most of your vehicle’s parking brake. While leaving your car in gear will keep it from rolling, it will put a lot of strain on your clutch.
Routine Maintenance Is Important To Keep Your Clutch In Good Shape
Even if you practice correct driving skills, if you do not maintain your car, your clutch will wear down. Complete vehicle maintenance, including clutch maintenance, extends the life of each component. Among the things you should do to extend the life of your car are the following:
Maintaining the quality and cleanliness of your gearbox’s fluid. This includes routine oil changes to avoid dangerous buildup from forcing your car to work more than it needs to. Transmission fluid and filters should be replaced. You should take your car to a transmission specialist every 40,000 to 60,000 kilometers. Inspect the transmission, repair any essential parts, and change the fluid. A significant element of clutch maintenance, like other automotive components, is decreasing the amount of heat it is subjected to. To limit the amount of heat created by internal friction, avoid instances when the clutch is partially engaged, such as “riding” the clutch between gear shifts. Similarly, “slipping” the clutch when pulling or carrying a big weight generates a lot of heat, which can shorten the part’s lifespan. If you can’t obtain enough forward motion without sliding the clutch, go down a gear.
Listen to your clutch and vehicle. Drive with the radio off at least once a week and get used to the noises of your car. That way if you hear something out of the ordinary, you can take it in for a repair or at least an inspection.
Clutch maintenance is something you may not think about on a daily basis, but how you drive a car with a manual gearbox may have a big influence on how long this important component lasts. The way you handle your clutch and the basic but crucial maintenance actions you take can save you time and money in the long run.
