Should You Depress the Clutch When Shifting to Neutral?

[Zoe]

Shifting to neutral requires depressing the clutch pedal. The clutch pedal is essentially needed every time you shift gears or start the vehicle. When downshifting, the push rod disengages from the two spring-loaded gears. Depressing the clutch merely cuts off the power from the engine to the main shaft. Below is additional information about the clutch: 1. Manual Transmission: All forward gears in a manual transmission are equipped with synchronizers. When shifting gears with the clutch depressed, the rotating drive gear engages with a driven gear of a larger or smaller gear ratio, achieving acceleration or deceleration effects at the same rotational speed. 2. The clutch's function is to cut off the power from the drive gear. However, during vehicle movement, the driven gear still rotates, requiring the synchronizer to coordinate the engagement between the drive and driven gears. Once the gear shift is complete and the gears are engaged, releasing the clutch restores power and rotational speed to the drive gear.