when i'm done driving around and turn it off i get a weird smell coming from the front of the car. i don't know if it's burnt clutch smell or what. i'm relatively new to driving manual so maybe my technique is what's causing this. should a rebuilt clutch have this smell when you're breaking it in or is it most likely me wearing it out? sorry if this post isn't coherent. if you guys need me to explain something better please let me know. thanks

 

I'll give you the same advice my Dad gave me when I bought my first car when I was 15 with a MT...push the clutch in while changing gears and get your foot off the pedal! Never let you foot rest on the clutch pedal. Since the clutch was recently rebuilt you might have the mechanic check the work they did for pedal engagement/travel. New or old clutches don't have a odor when used correctly...fact!
Gary

 

Good advice... I will second that..

 

thanks gary i appreciate you responding i will be honest and say that maybe i was stepping on it as well(gas) and i know i shouldn't be doing that just yet since i need to practice my technique first.(smooth first then quick)

 

Try this when at a dead stop, clutch pedal fully depressed and in first gear, RPM @ around 750.
Practice releasing the clutch getting the vehicle to move forward without slipping the clutch with the RPM remaining at 750 or no higher than 1k.
Once the vehicle begins to move forward and your foot is off the clutch pedal you are good to go.

Without constantly slipping or abusing a clutch they will last 200k miles

Telcoman

 

what do u mean by "slipping the clutch" i hear that a lot but i don't know what it means

 

In other words, it is all about learning and familiarizing your clutch engagement point without revving past 1k rpm in 1st gear then fully releasing the clutch. If you're revving 2-3k rpm in 1st gear and barely moving, that is where you start burning the clutch and causing that smell.

 

i tend to rev to 2-3k rpm when i'm taking off on a hill when i practice. do u think once i get better illl be able to take off on a hill and not roll back using only around 1k rpm?
and
another question how can i prevent jerking from my car when switching from 1st to 2nd even a little jerking when i switch from 2nd to 3rd? should i give it a little gas as i'm releasing the clutch? thanks any tips are greatly appreciated

 

When on a hill begin by using the emergency brake. As you begin to release the clutch pedal release the emergency brake. Eventually when you begin to have more skill you will no longer need to use the emergency brake.

Rev matching (giving a little gas) will reduce/eliminate the jerking when shifting

Telcoman

 

Haha..man, this is not the car to learn how to drive a stick in.

In an empty parking lot, put your foot on the brake and depress the clutch. Very very slowly start to release the clutch. As soon as you feel the motor bogging a little (your rpms will start to drop), that's where you want to give it gas. That's your engagement point. Learn that point. If you hold it at the engagement point on a hill your car won't roll backward. Not that you should sit there and hold it there, but when it's nearing your time to go, start going for that engagement point.

 

haha i know however no one in my family drives stick and i don't have access to a different car to learn on. okay i think i'm beginning to understand most of what everyone is telling me since i've been taking it very night for a drive

 

Giving it gas between your upshifts will make it buck/bounce even more. You actually want to do the opposite and give the RPMs a slight moment to drop to the point where they are close to the same RPM that they would be at when you go into the next gear.

So say you are shifting from 1st to 2nd gear at 3500 RPM and you'd normally just hit the clutch in and bang it into second gear and let the clutch out. In this situation (depending on how quick you are with the shifter and clutch), your RPMs are dropping as you go into the next gear and let the clutch out, but they are probably still at around 2500 or 2700 and too high to allow for a perfectly smooth transition. Once you let the clutch out, they will drop to around 2100/2200 as the clutch engages. A perfectly smooth shift without slipping the clutch would involve timing it perfectly so that the engine RPMS are exactly at 2100/2200 RPMs as you let it out. So a slight hesitation between shifts while the clutch is in (or a double clutch) will make it shift smoother into the next gear on upshifts.

Now this next piece might seem a bit advanced, so if it confuses you, just ignore it. I often double clutch in my G35 if I'm not in a hurry or speeding around, because it makes for less wear on the tranny syncros and gives the motor more time to drop RPMs to the next shift point... particularly when skipping gears (greater drop in RPMs between gears doing this).

 

what would u do in my position? I cant rent a car since im only 20 and no one in my family has a stick shift car? my bro in law is whos teaching me on the g but hes usually always busy? I take it out at night and can drive it but i feel like im wearing out my clutch more often than not

 

I would read more of the "how to drive the manual" thread here, watch more youtube videos, drive the car more often to practice and then If i feel like I'm doing the same thing over and over without improving, I would re-evaluate what was I doing wrong. Nothing is more rewarding than being self-thought. There is an art in every struggle, you just need to learn how to go through it.

Renting a car would not be an option for me cuz obviously I am stuck. I'd rather suck em in.
It's like marrying a fine @$$ gf then later on you find out she's a real pain in the b... I'd rather do her HARD every night than complain about it. GL

 

i've asked this before but i'm going to ask again. how can i change from 1st to 2nd smoothly without the car jerking? some of u guys said to good be it gas as i'm releasing the clutch and another said to not do that as it will cause even more jerking. i've tried doing it what u guys say and giving it gas as i'm releasing seems to be what's working. i've also noticed when i do change gears especially from 1st to 2nd my rpms drop from about 2-3 to 1k and as i release the clutch it jumps back up to about where i originally was between 2-3k