i always wondered is it better to just keep the clutch pressed in at an intersection when stopped, or put the truck in neutral and only put it in gear when the light changes? im under the impression is easier on the throw-out bearing and clutch if you leave the truck in neutral until light turns green. does it make a difference?
Lot easier are on the leg. Plus you don't have to worry about accidentally dumping the clutch or having it engage for whatever reason when you might not be ready, and having it whack the vehicle in front of you.
I never heard of putting it in neutral at lights to save throw out bearing. Seems like doing that would cause more wear on the clutch brake.
The throw out bearing is spinning all the time anyways. Its just under a bit of load when you have your foot on the clutch rather than free spinning.
have never put it in neutral at lights , never had clutch problems. 500K same clutch on many trucks was told yrs ago, if you did that you were not in control of your vehicle. light turns green I want to go, not wait for you to find a gear and go.
I did that before when the rubber pad slipped off the clutch pedal. Gotta be quick with the wit to save it. Turned the key off a a millisecond before it slipped. It only lurched a little bit instead of smashing the car in front of me
Imo you would be right. Bitd that was hammered into me when l was learning. Put it in gear when the cross light goes yellow. Plus no worry of foot slipping off the clutch pedal and launching it into the car ahead if you. Plus l find it's too easy to get it into the clutch brake if you are sitting there with the clutch in. That's just me though.
Myself I always put it in neutral. Maybe it is negligible but when you hold your foot on the clutch you're actually using the Springs in the pressure plate. I'm sure someone is going to laugh and say they're heavy duty Springs you can't do anything to them! Maybe maybe not but if you think about it when you put your foot on the clutch and put it in gear and pull out, those Springs are engaged for a minimal amount of time. If you then shift without the clutch, again, no usage. If you stop for a lot of lights and at every light you hold the clutch in 3 minutes here, 3 minutes there, 4 minutes there, it adds up. By the way on a driving test they will fail you instantly for that. And as far as clutch brake goes use a two piece and you can change it in a few minutes.
