Diesel/clutch?

AM.101

I was reading this thread, concerning a possible burnt out clutch, with interest:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055667640&highlight=clutch




I recently changed to a diesel car myself, after years of only driving petrol cars, and I'm a bit concerned at how easy it is to burn out a clutch.

Is there any particular way you should let out the clutch in a diesel car when taking off?

I usually let the clutch out about three quarters of the way and rev it up 1000, when taking off. However, I've noticed that sometimes when I do this on a steep hill, the car stutters a bit. Should I rev it higher when taking off on a hill?

alo1587

AM.101 wrote: »

I was reading this thread, concerning a possible burnt out clutch, with interest:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055667640&highlight=clutch




I recently changed to a diesel car myself, after years of only driving petrol cars, and I'm a bit concerned at how easy it is to burn out a clutch.

Is there any particular way you should let out the clutch in a diesel car when taking off?

I usually let the clutch out about three quarters of the way and rev it up 1000, when taking off. However, I've noticed that sometimes when I do this on a steep hill, the car stutters a bit. Should I rev it higher when taking off on a hill?

I drive my VW tdi caddy van like i drive a car,but on hillstarts i have to give it extra welly as they tend to conk out if you dont.I think the dual mass flywheel is to blame for this to be honest.Do you drive a diesel vw by any chance

AM.101

alo1587 wrote: »

I drive my VW tdi caddy van like i drive a car,but on hillstarts i have to give it extra welly as they tend to conk out if you dont.I think the dual mass flywheel is to blame for this to be honest.Do you drive a diesel vw by any chance

No, it's a 320d. I was a bit reluctant to give it extra welly as I thought it might wreck the clutch. I've been driving petrol cars for years and it's pretty obvious where the 'biting point' is, but the diesel is a bit different. On a level surface, 1000 rpm with the clutch 3/4 of the way out is usually perfect for taking off. What should I rev it to on a hillstart?

Mr Benevolent

AM.101 wrote: »

No, it's a 320d. I was a bit reluctant to give it extra welly as I thought it might wreck the clutch. I've been driving petrol cars for years and it's pretty obvious where the 'biting point' is, but the diesel is a bit different. On a level surface, 1000 rpm with the clutch 3/4 of the way out is usually perfect for taking off. What should I rev it to on a hillstart?

You're worrying about it too much. Just give it whatever power feels right.

MarkR

I put 50k miles on my diesel avensis in the last two years, and I don't spare it any more then I would a petrol. Drive it how it feels it should be driven.

robbie99

I know this seems counter intuitive but rather than revving more would you try not revving at all? i.e. let the clutch out (slowly) with the engine at idle and with zero throttle. The 320d (well the latest ones) have an anti stall feature in its engine management system that feeds in the power to maintain idle revs.

I'm driving a 320d too after years of petrol cars and I found it difficult to adjust to it at first. The clutch judders if you rev it beyond about 1300 rpm. Sometimes the car bunny hops when you release the throttle while taking off slowly. Being a diesel the gearing is longer and it revs slightly higher at idle speed than a petrol would. And the 320d also has a dual mass flywheel which I never experienced before.

What I recommend is not to rev the engine at all while taking off, even uphill. Let the clutch out slowly while the engine is idling. It won't stall. The anti stall takes care of that. Once the car is moving you can feed in the power. Try it first on a flat stretch and you'll notice that you can take off quite quickly with no throttle. The revs don't drop. Now this won't work if you want to make a jackrabbit start but that would involve a bit clutch burning - which is what you're trying to avoid.

AM.101

Thanks for the detailed reply Robbie.

My own car is an E46 320d. I've also driven the E90 320d as my father has one, and it does seem to be smoother at taking off than the E46 when you let the clutch out with no power.

However, I think it's slightly different with the E46, as I've tried taking off with no power on a hill and the car shudders a fair bit.

I guess the question I'm asking is: would it be reckless to give the car 1000-1500rpm whilst letting out the clutch? If I did this constantly over a long period of time would it destroy the clutch?

voxpop

Most newer diesels have an anti-stall system, its still easy enough to stall the car though - ive done it a number of times (with a golf) especially just after getting it. Plus its a bit strange in slow traffic, where the car wants to go faster with the clutch half out than fully out - im assuming this is the anti-stall again.

Driving off in a diesel is the same as anything else - let the clutch out and feed in the throttle - you wont wreck your clucth doing that. You will wreck it by resting your foot on the peddle, slipping the clutch and dumping the clutch.

I thought there was something wrong with mine after moving from a petrol car - got use to it after a few weeks