Mike said:
Well, I'm not sure this comment really sides one way or another, but it's a
clutch comment all the same. I had a Chevy S-10 with a 4 speed standard
that I plowed snow with. As I've said before, I live in upstate NY where we
get a ton of snow in the winter. I put 176,000 miles on that truck, plowing
snow every winter before it finally got totaled in a roll-over. I suspect
the abuse on that clutch was every bit equal to the abuse that aggressive
driving would create. Aggressive driving is really not that abusive if you
are not dumping the clutch. If the clutch is engaging properly, the amount
of acceleration is irrelevant, just as the amount of work was irrelevant to
my truck. Clutches wear when they slip on the flywheel face. Aggressive
driving does not usually slip a clutch. Actually, more conservative driving
tends to slip a clutch more than aggressive driving does. In my case, I
installed exactly 0 clutches in that S-10 over its lifetime.
I plow snow with my 5-speed K1500 also and I don't think it abuses the
clutch at all. I drove OTR trucks for a number of years so I'm pretty
familiar with shifting.
The problem is that most drivers today aren't taught how to drive a
standard shift car properly. I ride with people all of the time that
make me cringe when they start out and shift, but up and down. The rev
to 2500 RPM when the light turns green and then feed in the clutch
slowly to get a fast launch. This is fine for the drag strip, but wears
both clutch and pressure plate heavily and can cause heat damage if done
in succession too many times. And when upshifting they get on th
throttle before engaging the clutch and the car lurches forward as the
inertia in the engine is dissipated. And then on the downshifts, there
is no blipping of the throttle to match the flywheel speed to the input
shaft speed and slippage occurs again. This happens much more often
during spirited driving than during more sedate driving. In my pickup,
I can start out with the RPM never getting above 1,000 (it idles at 700)
and never stall it. I can match the RPM pretty well on both up and down
shifts such that little slippage occurs. I don't know how long the
clutch in the truck will last, but it is working fine at 97,000 miles,
including plowing snow which does require a lot more starts and stops
per mile than normal driving!
I'll be the first to admit that the Sonata is the worst standard shift
car I've ever owned. It is very hard to modulate the throttle and I
often rev to 1500 or even 2000 RPM if I get on the throttle just a
little ahead of the clutch. Alternatively, it is easy to get the clutch
just a little ahead and stall the car, especially if starting out going
uphill. I've gotten better with practice, but it isn't an easy car to
drive well with standard shift and I can see where the clutch wear in
the Sonata will be much higher than in similar cars with a well designed
throttle. However, I think the issue IS the electronic throttle much
more so than the valve in the clutch cylinder. Having said that, if I
get time, I would consider removing mine as well as I don't see it being
necessary either. I don't believe that will automatically quadruple the
life of my clutch, however.
Matt