when driving a stick car?

Question

When driving a stick car, when needed to brake (slightly) do you need to press the clutch all the way down ? And at what point, will the engine stalled?

thanks

Answer 1

Pressing the clutch when braking is NOT the correct way to slow or stop manual transmission (stick shift) vehicles. When you do it, you are needlessly not using the "motor brake" effect (the braking that the motor does just buy taking your foot off the throtle) and adding extra load on your breaking system.

The extra load on the brakes has three effects. You wear off the pads and/or shoes faster, which means more frequent replacements. The second effect is what is refered to as "fading", and is only an issue when driving downhill for lenghty periods of time and with several curves that require constant braking or in a race track situation. The problem comes from overheating the pads, which produces tiny glass crystalls on its surface and reduces tramatically the efficiency of the system. The brake "fades" away and this is undesired for obvious reasons. So using the motor as an aid and avoiding those "one long brakings" on downhills (without giving the brake a break to allow them to cool down is the correct thing to do. The third effect has to do with the power of the brake relative to the tire/track friction. If a car without ABS does not lock the wheels when the brake is presed down full force, this means that there is still some extra "stoping power" that could have been used.

The total stopping power available is the weakest link in the chain brakes-wheels-track. Typically, very heavy vehicles (like trucks) have more friction between the tires and tracks than the brakes can use (and most vehicles have more in the fron tires than the back). This means that, when stopping under good enough road conditions, using the engine can reduce your stopping distance.

Well, that is the basics. Now for some details. Of course you should press the clutch just as the motors starts to stall. If you down shift (once or more) as you brake, you can get extra help. This is easy to do in a downhill situation, in which you can foresee the braking moments, but very hard to do in emergency stops. Personally, I like to downshift from 5th to 3rd and, if the traffic slows down a lot, to 2nd. When doing this, you have to heed of two things: if you do it to roughly, the wheels can lock and if you don't have the two ends of the clutch at aproximately the same speed, you overwork it and have basically the same effecs (1 and 2) I mentioned above, but on the clutch itself. A way to avoid this is slightly reving up the engine as you relieve the clutch in downshifts (much easier said then done).

As that woman above said, it comes down to experience. If you have a place you can practice these techniques (specially emergency braking and NOT pressing the clutch untill needed), under different conditions (dry and wet), it may prove to pay off someday. When I was learning to drive, I used to stop at an empty parking lot before going home late at night after partying and practice under different situations (dry, wet, D.U.I. lol) until braking became a second nature (including relieving the brakes on non ABS vehicles). I can tell you that for me it has payed off more than several times.

There are a lot of other things that I am forgetting or just to lazy to mention, but this is a start.

Answer 2

It actually ALL depends on the vehicle, the terrain, the weather, the rate of speed, & the individual driver! This is where EXPERIENCE is the best teacher. In order to learn HOW to operate your vehicle correctly, the driver must be able to recognize the engine sounds & the rate of the rpm of the motor. In other GET TO KNOW YOUR CAR & WHAT WORKS BEST TO RUN THE ENGINE IN THE LEAST RESTRICTIVE MANNER! This means that you shouldn't have the music cranked up until you understand the noises of your vehicle because if you can't hear the engine & gear sounds, then you won't know when to brake, clutch & release in ANY gear! The engine stalls when the clutch disengages BEFORE the engine has been able to burn off the fuel in the cylinder & dispose of the vapors. This is why you NEED to learn how to "juggle" your 3 pedals in unison. First, you release the gas pedal, then apply the brake pedal, then use your clutch pedal at the same time as you are applying either the brake OR gas pedal in a rhythmic pattern that does not allow your engine to get too much OR too little gas, thus avoiding STALLING the engine. ONE pedal goes IN as another ONE goes OUT! For some reason, NO ONE TEACHES THIS METHOD & many people just don't get it. You aren't alone.

Answer 3

Unless you plan to come to a stop or downshift, you don't have to press the clutch down at all. Just brake slightly. Stalling point is different on every car, depending on what shape the clutch is in(worn down or in the best condition) You just have to get the feel for your car and when the RPMs are too low for the gear you are in, the car will begin to jerk before stalling. Cars usually won't stall in a higher gear, the weight from the car pushing forward will keep it going, that's why you can brake without pressing down on the clutch.

Answer 4

It's been a long time since I've driven stick but if I remember correctly, you don't need to press the clutch all the way down unless you are making a complete stop. The engine will stall if you brake all the way and don't clutch.

Answer 5

no, you can brake without depressing the clutch at all. The engine shouldn't stall until you get down below 10 mph or so. The only reason you would have to clutch when braking is if you need to stop completely, or if you need to switch gears in order to keep going forward.

Answer 6

If you are an inexperienced driver then I would say yes, every time you hit the brake, definitely hit the clutch. Push the clutch all the way in or you will "burn" it out. As you learn more there are times when you can use the brake slightly without the clutch.
Be patent it just takes time to learn. Good luck.

Answer 7

You have to push the clutch in when you brake or it will stall. Get into the habit of using your brake and clutch at the same time. Always push the clutch to the floor.Some cars wont start until it is pushed to the floor.

Answer 8

Depends on how fast the car is going and in which gear you are in. I personally like to let the engine slow itself down by down-shifting around corners and such.
The engine stalls if it doesn't get enough gas for the amount of strain put on it. In my 2 seater convertible it would be just under idle (800 RPM or so).
It won't hurt a (newer) car to hit the brakes with the clutch out, just be careful and listen/feel what is going on. Older cars have syncros in the tranny that wear out with time and stress.

Answer 9

You have to press down on the clutch enough for it to disengauge or, like you mentioned, the car will stall. You'll get the feel for it the longer you drive stick. That's really the best solution to your question.

Answer 10

You don't have to touch the clutch if you are only braking slightly. You only need to use the clutch if you are coming to a full stop or you are changing gears. If you want to reduce your speed you can down shift (go into a lower numbered gear) to accomplish that without using the brake.This is a good skill to learn as it makes winter driving easier.