Do You Need to Press the Clutch When Braking in a Manual Transmission Car?
3 Answers
Whether you need to press the clutch when braking in a manual transmission car depends on the vehicle speed: 1. When the vehicle is running at low speed and the intention is to stop the vehicle, you need to press the clutch; 2. When the vehicle speed is too high and the intention is to reduce speed, you do not need to press the clutch. Precautions for using the clutch are: 1. The clutch must be cleaned before installation to remove anti-rust grease and debris; 2. The clutch can be installed coaxially or on separate shafts, but axial fixation is mandatory; 3. For wet electromagnetic clutches, lubricating oil must be added between the friction plates during operation; 4. The power supply and control circuit: the clutch power supply is 24V DC; 5. When installing a jaw-type electromagnetic clutch, ensure a certain gap between the end face teeth to prevent grinding when idling.
Having driven a manual transmission for so many years, I think this issue depends on the situation. During normal driving when deceleration is needed, I'm accustomed to pressing the brake first to reduce speed, then depressing the clutch to shift gears or stop when the RPM drops to around 1,000. This utilizes engine braking. However, at very low speeds like in stop-and-go traffic, braking without clutching will definitely stall the engine, so you must press both clutch and brake simultaneously. Emergency situations are more critical - last time when avoiding an electric scooter that suddenly darted out, I instinctively stomped both clutch and brake to the floor. This prevents stalling (which would cause power steering loss) while shortening braking distance - after all, the brake booster only maintains 2-3 effective brakings after engine stall.
During the driving test, the instructor always emphasized the coordination between the clutch and brake. He taught us: when stopping at a red light, you must press both the clutch and brake pedals to the floor simultaneously, otherwise it would be considered an operational error and result in an immediate failure. For normal deceleration, you should first apply the brake, wait until the speed drops to around 20 km/h and you feel the car shaking, then press the clutch to avoid engine lugging. However, what the instructor hated the most was coasting downhill with the clutch pressed, saying it's both dangerous and damaging to the clutch plate. When I was practicing, on a long downhill section, I only applied the brake without pressing the clutch, and the instructor slammed the co-driver's brake and scolded me. Now that I drive on my own, I understand that engine braking on downhill slopes can share the load on the brake system, preventing brake overheating and failure.
