In this
article, I will talk about 5 bad habits that one may follow while driving a
manual transmission vehicle. Not following these don’ts might affect the
transmission and engine performance of the vehicle.
1.
Don’t rest your hand on the
gearshift:
This habit is commonly
seen among the experienced drivers who prefer to rest their hand on the
gearshift and steer the vehicle with the other hand. We all know that during
gear shift, selector fork engages the dog clutch to the respective gears.
If we rest our hand on
the gearshift, we might apply unwanted pressure on the selector fork against
the dog clutch. This can lead to wearing of the selector fork and the dog
clutch. The scenario looks like forcing gear change without pressing on the
clutch pedal which can damage the components.
The best way to deal with
this situation is to use both the hands for steering. Gearshift should be
touched only while changing the gear. Whenever you need a gearshift, press the
clutch pedal, use your hand to shift the gear and then put your hand back on
the steering wheel.
2.
Put the transmission on neutral at
the stop light:
Drivers should have the
practice of leaving the vehicle at neutral at stop lights instead of pressing
on the clutch pedal and shifting to 1st gear. The clutch assembly
has a release bearing which presses against the diaphragm spring when the
clutch pedal is pressed. This applies unnecessary pressure on both the release
bearing and the diaphragm spring which leads to wearing.
The best thing to do is
to bring the gearshift to neutral and release the clutch pedal to avoid any
unnecessary wearing within the clutch.
3.
Never use clutch to hold the vehicle
on a slope:
When you have halted your
vehicle on a steep hill, there is always a tendency for the vehicle to roll
back. In this scenario, we should never use the clutch to hold ourselves from
rolling back, as the clutch plate and pressure plate would be rotating at
different speeds and this would lead to the wearing of the friction material on
the clutch plate.
Hand brakes come in handy
under this situation. Apply hand brakes to prevent the vehicle from rolling
back. When you want to move forward, press on the clutch pedal and shift the
gear to 1st gear. Then slowly start releasing the clutch pedal. As
you feel a forward movement, quickly release the handbrake and then press on
the accelerator to get the forward movement. With regular practice, one should
be able to control it perfectly.
4.
Downshift the gear at lower vehicle
speed:
On some occasions people
get lazy to downshift the gear at a lower vehicle speed. In other words, we
shouldn’t apply a lot of throttle when we are at a lower engine rpm. For
example, if you are at 5th gear and the vehicle is running at 40
kmph, it is not a good idea to press on the throttle because the engine will be
at a huge gearing disadvantage. You are simply going to ask the engine to put
more effort to accelerate the vehicle. This will affect the fuel economy.
So if you are running the
car at a lower speed, it would be in your best interest to downshift to a lower
gear for better and smoother acceleration.
5.
Don’t rest your foot on the clutch
pedal:
Resting your foot on the
clutch pedal can affect the power transmitted to the transmission because the
clutch may not be fully engaged. In this situation, you might also be wearing
the clutch disc due to slipping.
6.
Don’t start your vehicle at 2nd
gear:
This is again commonly seen among
professional drivers who seem to have better control over clutch pedal. Moving
the vehicle by up-shifting directly from neutral to 2nd gear will
lead to engine lugging. It simply means you are asking the engine to put more
effort in accelerating your car which can be done quite easily at 1st
gear. We all know the fact that the transmission transmits maximum torque at 1st
gear; hence it is always desirable to launch the vehicle at 1st gear.
In this
article, I will talk about 5 bad habits that one may follow while driving a
manual transmission vehicle. Not following these don’ts might affect the
transmission and engine performance of the vehicle.
1.
Don’t rest your hand on the
gearshift:
This habit is commonly
seen among the experienced drivers who prefer to rest their hand on the
gearshift and steer the vehicle with the other hand. We all know that during
gear shift, selector fork engages the dog clutch to the respective gears.
If we rest our hand on
the gearshift, we might apply unwanted pressure on the selector fork against
the dog clutch. This can lead to wearing of the selector fork and the dog
clutch. The scenario looks like forcing gear change without pressing on the
clutch pedal which can damage the components.
The best way to deal with
this situation is to use both the hands for steering. Gearshift should be
touched only while changing the gear. Whenever you need a gearshift, press the
clutch pedal, use your hand to shift the gear and then put your hand back on
the steering wheel.
2.
Put the transmission on neutral at
the stop light:
Drivers should have the
practice of leaving the vehicle at neutral at stop lights instead of pressing
on the clutch pedal and shifting to 1st gear. The clutch assembly
has a release bearing which presses against the diaphragm spring when the
clutch pedal is pressed. This applies unnecessary pressure on both the release
bearing and the diaphragm spring which leads to wearing.
The best thing to do is
to bring the gearshift to neutral and release the clutch pedal to avoid any
unnecessary wearing within the clutch.
3.
Never use clutch to hold the vehicle
on a slope:
When you have halted your
vehicle on a steep hill, there is always a tendency for the vehicle to roll
back. In this scenario, we should never use the clutch to hold ourselves from
rolling back, as the clutch plate and pressure plate would be rotating at
different speeds and this would lead to the wearing of the friction material on
the clutch plate.
Hand brakes come in handy
under this situation. Apply hand brakes to prevent the vehicle from rolling
back. When you want to move forward, press on the clutch pedal and shift the
gear to 1st gear. Then slowly start releasing the clutch pedal. As
you feel a forward movement, quickly release the handbrake and then press on
the accelerator to get the forward movement. With regular practice, one should
be able to control it perfectly.
4.
Downshift the gear at lower vehicle
speed:
On some occasions people
get lazy to downshift the gear at a lower vehicle speed. In other words, we
shouldn’t apply a lot of throttle when we are at a lower engine rpm. For
example, if you are at 5th gear and the vehicle is running at 40
kmph, it is not a good idea to press on the throttle because the engine will be
at a huge gearing disadvantage. You are simply going to ask the engine to put
more effort to accelerate the vehicle. This will affect the fuel economy.
So if you are running the
car at a lower speed, it would be in your best interest to downshift to a lower
gear for better and smoother acceleration.
5.
Don’t rest your foot on the clutch
pedal:
Resting your foot on the
clutch pedal can affect the power transmitted to the transmission because the
clutch may not be fully engaged. In this situation, you might also be wearing
the clutch disc due to slipping.
6.
Don’t start your vehicle at 2nd
gear:
This is again commonly seen among
professional drivers who seem to have better control over clutch pedal. Moving
the vehicle by up-shifting directly from neutral to 2nd gear will
lead to engine lugging. It simply means you are asking the engine to put more
effort in accelerating your car which can be done quite easily at 1st
gear. We all know the fact that the transmission transmits maximum torque at 1st
gear; hence it is always desirable to launch the vehicle at 1st gear.
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