Date: Tue, 29 Jun 1999 22:37:02 -0700
Reply-To: Coby Smolens <cobys@WELL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Coby Smolens <cobys@WELL.COM>
Subject: Re: Clutch Use
In-Reply-To: <l03010d07b39f3980146d@[209.167.75.120]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Right on! My dad taught me that trick when we were tooling up and down the
six mile dirt road on the ranch where we lived for a while in the sixties. I
was just learning to drive (at 12 years old)- in our '59 Transporter. I
think this skill should be taught in every driver training course. Not only
does it add to one's useful repertoire of road survival skills, it fosters
an enhanced awareness of your ride. Awareness is the first step toward
kindness and as the good book says, "Be kind to thine ass for it bears
thee". This does not necessarily imply the reciprocal -- baring thine ass
can get you in big trouble, especially if you're driving at the time...
Coby
Valley Wagonworks
"Intimately acquainted with VW Vans since 1959"
Volkswagen Bus, Vanagon, Westfalia and Eurovan
Repair and Service Specialists
1535 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., San Anselmo, CA 94933
Voice:(415) 457-5628
Fax: (415) 457-0967
http://wagonworks.com
mailto:contact@wagonworks.com
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM]On Behalf
> Of Douglas Taylor
> Sent: Tuesday, June 29, 1999 8:23 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Re: Clutch Use
>
>
> Mick,
>
> The fact that your Ghia's clutch and tranny are still intact is a
> testament
> to the okayness of slipping the car out of gear when not under load. As
> long as it's done properly, it shouldn't be a problem.
>
> There are a lot of big truck drivers out there that rarely use the clutch
> outside of putting their trucks in gear when the truck is standing still.
> All subsequent moving shifts are done clutchless. Not a bad skill for
> anyone to learn, so that you can get yourself home when your
> clutch's cable
> breaks or the hydraulic clutch goes kaput.
>
> Cheers,
> Doug
>
>
> Mick Owens <owens@UH.EDU> wrote:
> >
> >I've been reading the traffic regarding pressure on the clutch
> pedal while
> >in idle, and I offer the following.
> >
> >I am the original owner of a 1973 Ghia Vert. It has ~95K on the ORIGINAL
> >clutch (all components). I do drive conservatively, and have always
> >"tapped" the transmission into neutral upon coming to a stop. By
> "tapped",
> >I mean easing up on the accelerator pedal and just tapping the
> gear shift
> >lever into neutral without depressing the clutch pedal at all. I don't
> >really know it this has contributed to clutch component longevity or not,
> >but it seems logical to me that the less one uses a moving part,
> the longer
> >it may last.
> >
> >Does anyone have a comment on this practice of tapping into
> neutral without
> >depressing the clutch pedal?
>
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