took my car into the dealer and read three codes, PO833,PO171, and PO128. The PO833 is th eone i have the question on, it says that resting my foot on the clutch while driving set this off, which i do all the time instead of just putting my left foot on the floor. If any of you drivers out there keep your foot rested on the clutch even will little or no pressure, stop doing this because it will set a false code off for your car. My question is though.....when i am coming up to a light ans day im in 4th or 5th gear i just let off the gas and throw it into neutral...should i be downshifting instead or is putting it into neutral after letting off ther gas without touching the clutch perfectly fine to do. If this is going to burn out my clutch then i really need to stop doing it.

 

you definately do not have to down shift and ppl say downshifting is bad for the clutch and drivetrain. I always rest my foot by the cltuch pedal. im nver on the pedal but i do put my foot on top of it. That really can not be the reason for the code. What did he say the code meant??
P0833 Clutch Pedal Switch 2 Circuit -PCM idk what this means but maybe sum1 else does.

 

he printed me off staright from the gm site that "This code can set if the driver rests their foot on the clutch continously and could potentially keep the pedal from reaching the top switch." This is from service.gm.com. My main question was if throwing it into neutral without pressing the clutch is bad for the clutch, does this burn it out. I always normally coast to the lights in neutral.

 

yes throwing it into neutral without the clutch is bad for the sychnros. It will ruin them. You should always use your clutch to shift even if its into neutral.

 

well heres how i look at it. If you're in 4th/5th and u see a red, i just roll to the stop/red light until i hit like 1000 rpm, then i pop in neutral and coast til the stop. This way u dont put any wear on cluth/drivetrain. Id rather wear my brakes than my clutch.

 

that sucks because i have done that a lot

 

Putting it into N is not a problem. I do this. downshifts put more wear on your drivetrain/clutch then your breaks. Its up to you but think which one is cheaper to get replaced.

DONT REST YOUR FOOT ON THE CLUTCH. it can mess up your syncro's and is considered riding the clutch. How hard is it to move your foot to the side?

 

lol thats just how i have always been, i started just resting my foot flat on the ground

 

thats why they have dead pedals just to the left of the clutch..

i still find myself hovering over the clutch from time to time, but i wear size 13 shoes so not much room for me to put my foot

 

im the same size, i feel your pain haha

 

are any of you 100% positive that downshifting wears the clutch? bc ive asked numors people and they told me downshifting is perfectly fine and good to do as long as u do it properly....idk if i do it properly since i taught myself how to do it and havent really read up on it, but it is definitely very effective and efficient.....also keeps my rims clean for longer....which is good since its so cold here that i dont get to wash my car as often as i would like....and therefore i dont want brake dust baking onto my rims....either way if anyone has some feedback please inform me, ide appreciate it
thanks again
jay

 

1) Don't rest your foot on the clutch. I'm guessing the switch they're talking about is the one that shuts of the cruise. It does not take much pressure at all, simply resting your foot on the clutch will do it, to hit that switch in which case your cruise will not engage. It sounds like that's what they're talking about.

2) If you're going in to/out of ANY gear you should always use the clutch. I put the car in neutral when I come to a light. I'm not about to add wear and tear to the syncros and clutch by downshifting through all the gears. Brake pads/rotors are a LOT cheaper to replace than syncros and clutches.

 

Thats is not what he was trying to say. He is asking can he shift into Netural when coming up to a stop and then coast the rest of the way?

Yes you can do this. It will not harm the car at all. Just remember to take your foot off the clutch completely.

 

i had the same thing happen to me my check engine light came on, took it to the dealer and he said the same ****. it can be caused by riding the clutch or if ur in stop and go traffic. he printed it out for me also. i do not ride the clutch or even rest my foot on it. i do alot of heavy traffic driving, but damn who wants that switch to be that damn sensitive??

 

ummm reread post 3 he was asking if just throwing it in neutral w/o using the clutch was bad......

 

I don't know about guys but at about 1,500 rpms... in any gear... the shifter will slide out of gear w/o the clutch... no tugging or anything...

Like butter.

And Stop resting your foot on the clutch!

-Rich

 

resting your foot on the clutch = bad.... thats like driving an automatic with 2 feet or something.... u dont do it

errr... i dont know what is going through anyones head if they think shifting without the clutch is ok :O

 

resting ur foot on the clutch is a NO NO
downshifting is ok

 

Always, always, always no matter what the RPM is, use the clutch when shifting into or out of any gear. Even if it is neutral. Now unless you are racing and know what your doing you can powershift up not down without the clutch (Yes powershifting will wear the clutch out very fast). I dont know about the rest of you but my car does not like when I powershift.

 

Im allways in neutral coming to a stop. I downshift and never rest my foot.

 

Doest anyone know if pedal covers can have the same effect as resting your foot?
Mine are pretty light... but I really don't want my synchros wearing out because of some shiny bits I added.

 

that question is getting me thinking

 

This thread just said that downshifting is bad from about 4-5 people. In this same thread, people say downshifting is okay and even good for the drivetrain. Not one of these claims seems to have any evidence supporting either of them. When I drive, I downshift through every gear using my clutch. This is the 4th 5-speed vehicle I've done this with, and not once have I had to take a vehicle in to have the synchros or drivetrain worked on whatsoever. So my question at this point is to all the people here who say downshifting is bad for the drivetrain: I was taught to downshift by my father when I was learning how to drive at 16 years old, and that was 7 years ago. Where did anyone find any information that states in any way that downshifting is bad for your drivetrain? If anyone can point me to anything like that, I'll start neutral dropping.

 

id have to agree with you. ive driven a stick since i was 16 and now 21. and i also drove a 30k pound truck for 3 years and never had any problems with down shiftin. the vehicles are made to do that. if they werent then the cars manual would tell you to put it in N when slowin down. plus as a truck driver i know that its illeagal to let your vehicle coast for more than 2 lengths. they want it in gear when movin so if u need to move quickly you can hit the gas and go. but its not good to rest ur foot on the clutch. thats juss wears them out faster.

 

i forgot to answer that bit as well.

i also downshift through every gear when coming to a stop. if im lazy ill just coast with the clutch in when i get to 1st. just depends on the day.

from a racing standpoint, your car always needs to be in gear so you have the power when you need it.... i sort of carry that on into city driving.

if you pop the throttle with the clutch in and let it out when the tach is coming back down, you are essentially causing the same effect as double clutching. i dont see any problem with this, and it is nice to save the brakes. ill continue to do this until someone proves otherwise. i learned to drive a stick at 13 and have been doing that ever since.