martens@auditor.sk.ca wrote:
>
> Isn't it pretty hard on the gearbox to be sitting with the clutch in at
Not the gearbox, thats stopped, but the ENGINE & CLUTCH...
> stops? I always pop into neutral at a stoplight to minimize pressure on
> the thrust washer and at the throwout bearing. Anybody else have any
> thoughts on this?
CORRECT, it ruins the carbon thrust bearing, wears it out quickly, and
can overheat the clutch bearing face. On stripping down cars for clutch
changes, you can see the " Clutch-Riders" cars, this bearing is often
blue with heat.
>
> As reported in a previous post: There's a thrust washer on the crankshaft
> that takes the load when the clutch is disengaged and the spring pressure
> in the pressure plate shoves the crank forward. The RPM drop is caused by
> the increased friction there and at the throwout bearing.
Correct again. There are two central thrust bearings on the crankshaft
centre bearing, just two simple half washers faced in babbit, or copper
alloy. These will wear. You can see bad cases by watching the fan pulley
on a running engine. When the clutch pedal is depressed, the pulley
moves forwards a little towards the radiator. The spinning and
reciprocating parts inside must have a rough time with a 'mobile'
crankshaft.
On Tr***ph six cylinder models, this movement of the crankshaft is
common, and shows up advanced wear on those thrust bearings. You check
it the same way, just watch that fan pulley......
Neil
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