Best way to engage clutch on 996

I've had the car for a few days now and as strnage as it sounds since I've owned 3 stick cars, I just want to make sure I'm doing it as smoothly as possible while maximizing clutch life. The clutch seems to start engaging around mid-point of travel and that's when I'll start giving her gas (gas to around 1k rpm) and slowly let the rest go. I can also just fully get the car moving by slowing releasing the clutch the whole way and then adding gas...is this a better way? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

What you are doing is fine. If you worry about clutch wear, you will never drive the car properly or smoothly. Don't even think about what you are doing.

Best way to engage clutch on 996 I use my left foot. Anytime I try using another appendage it just chafes.

HA!

I find the lighter-weight flywheel winds down a lot quicker than other cars. With the speed at which I am shifting (not that fast), I find the optimal shift point for me is 4200 rpms. If I am granny-shifting at lower rpms, it helps not to take your foot off the throttle completely during shifts.

Clutch? Is THAT what that "extra pedal" is?

Step 1. Fully depress the throttle untill you hear the teltale burpburpburp of the rev limiter kicking in. Step 2. Depress the clutch with just the very side or tip of your big toe (using your left foot). Step 3. Quickly slide your left foot off the clutch pedal so that it snaps up and engages as quickly as possible. If done correctly this should result in massive tire / clutch wear. You will know that you have completed this procedure correctly when the cabin is filled with the expensive arroma of burnt clutch

You forgot Step 0: First, lower your Civic...

... and I'll bet you have to be wearing shorts to attempt to depress the clutch with your "other" appendage.

belive it or not that actualy caues very little clutch wear................unless your tires hook up then you may have problems, but as long as the tires are spinning the clutch will be just fine, way less wear on in then slipping it to take off. But you will burn the tires and shock the hell out of the trans the trans mounts the r&p the axles ect but what fun are these cars if you drive them like a 3 cyl geo

hahaha nasd... poor s14roller, ask a simple question and get simple answers..

LOL...i guess it's to be expected due to the nature of the question. I just hate the thought that I "could" be burning the clutch a tad if I'm adding a little gas before I engage her higher up...

I'm trying to burn mine up so I can do the lwf setup.. let her burn!!

As Lee stated above... I also shift around 4K it makes the shifting smoother not to mention it also increases the fun factor!

Yes, I find the Porsche to be an odd Beast. I have owned several manual cars in the past, & had the Porsce close to a year now, but I still find myself being very conscious of taking off from a dead stop in the P-car for some reason......

ZXR; really? I find it very easy to go from a stop. I had a old saab 900 turbo before, that was harder.

Unfortunately I have trouble with the right foot either giving too much gas or not enough when it comes to the Porsche.... Difficult for me to hit that "happy-medium". Maybe I am just more "self-conscious" because it is a Porsche & I want to take off from the lights perfect every time, lmao.....

Yeah I think I feel the same way...I'm trying to get a perfect release but still get slight bogging from time to time.

I'll bet I have killed my 996 about 50 times while either backing up or starting out slowly in a parking lot. I grew up in the late '60s and my first cars were VWs, MGs, Sunbeam, Austin Mini, Jaguar, etc. I didn't even have an automatic until I had been driving several years. I did notice that the 911SC that I had in the '80s had and unusual feeling clutch but it seemed more predictable than my Carrera. I feel better knowing it's not just me as I let a friend drive my car who has driven manual forever and he killed it first try. What does that tell you?

I think it's partially due to the e-Gas system.

I usually rev to about 1K RPM and then take out the clutch as quickly as I can while slowly feeding the gas at the same time. No jerkiness, but it sure feels different (not in a good way) from my M Coupe. One thing that ticks me off big time is that this car bogs and dies if you try to let the clutch out til the revs drop before adding gas. Its how I used to do it in the M Coupe, but it seems as if this car does not have enough torque that low to withstand even a small dip in revs. Annoys me all the time.

Get rid of the clutch pedal booster spring and, although the pedal will be harder, it will feel more like a clutch rather than a switch.

joking aside: best way, least wear -- only add gas when the clutch begins to engage. then add some gas and release the clutch as quickly as you can w/o stalling or jerking the car. between gears, match revs, release clutch very quickly, never ride it.

I have experienced the same thing on this topic... to the point I was thinking I needed a clutch. I also have noticed it's very sensitive to what's and who is in the car. I had mine loaded with luggage and travel goodies for 2 and on a steep hill I thought I'd never get it going. Eventually I did but probably chewed through .050" of clutch material.

BEST WAY; Stop thinking about wearing out the clutch, starting off smoothly, etc and just drive the car. Over analysing what you are doing will ALWAYS make it worse. It's called "performance anxiety".

Curious... How much harder? Bill

Posts 23 & 24 accurately show what I don't like about this car (yes, I spend a lot of time on stop and go traffic). I usually let the clutch out til the revs drop and then accelerate, but if I miss the acceleration part by a nanosecond, it stalls. In some steep driveways/parking lots, I have to rev to something like 1,400 rpms or so before I even consider slowly letting the clutch out (yes, riding it and wearing it out), but if I don't do that, its a guaranteed stall. Glad to hear I am not the only one who has noticed this. This was not the case with the M Coupe.

Not as difficult as the old stock muscle car's cable controlled clutch pedal. I guess if you are used to drving a hydraulic and/or power assisted clutch, you will notice it more, I find that the feel of engagement is so much better without the booster spring. It is easy to do (one you see how). I have it on right now for a trip to Vegas in 2 weeks, but often keep it off around home. I plan on modifying the spring connection this winter to allow for quick disconnect with a flip of a lever.

Sounds like a new product in the making.