Hi, just for the record this will be my first post. I want to know how easy the clutch on the cobalts are to learn on. Ive driven a few manual cars but nothing major. Im looking to buy a 06 or 07 ss if that matters. Thanks

 

While the clutches aren't overly difficult, I recommend you take out a beater (or borrow a friend's if they're willing) in a parking lot a couple of times to get a feel for how a clutch and manual transmission work period. My '05 LS was my first standard but two friends of mine took me out and taught me before I even purchased the car to the point where I was comfortable driving on city streets since it's going to be a LOT to take in the day you pull your car off the lot.

The cars I learned on were an 80 somethin CRX (clutch was heavy as ****) and an 05 Civic EX (which btw has a very nice clutch/tranny) and it took me a little over 4 or 5 days to feel comfortable with my LS as my daily driver in heavier, rush hour traffic. I have never touched a clutch on an SS/SC, or the 2.4L SS, but I wouldn't want to learn from scratch on the setup of the SS/TC since it took some adjustment (primarily due to how quickly it engages) from what I was used to with my 2.2.

Permafried-

 

U might actually have an easier time adjusting to the TC clutch if uve never driven another stick car. This is due to the extremely high catch point on this clutch (and very little distance from the catch point to full engagement).

I had taken about 4 hours of lessons before buying my first manual car, the 2009 SS/TC. I stalled twice in the parking lot until I could figure out the clutch, after that I drove it home across a bridge and through rush hour traffic without stalling or any problems.

My advice to you is to get a friend to let u learn on his car for a few hours. When you actually have to drive ur TC home, take it very slow and dont worry about cars behind you. Take your time with the clutch, give it a little gas and slowly let up on the clutch. I tried to do everything as slow as possible in terms of getting the car moving since I didnt want to burn the clutch on my first day.

Good luck, let us know how it works out for u.

 

^^^ actually I found the engagement of the SS/TC way lower than my LS. It felt like it was either on the floor or fully engaged.

 

Exactly the same with myself which is why I'm having difficulty with a) finding the correct positioning of the seat including raised/lowered and the seatback b) avoiding slapping the clutch plate off the flywheel when I engage.

My timing is completely out the window though has improved some over the last week but man was I shocked the first time I went to shift gears. It went something along the lines of:

1) Disengage clutch, pulled from first to second too early, popped out of first. Clutch was depressed just in time that I engaged seconds with no problems (phew)
2) Begin to engage clutch, heard slap of the plate off the flywheel, damn near **** myself continue with shift.

All I could think the whole time was a thread that I read from sometime ago where the poster described his drive from the dealer to the gas station as "what....the....hell....is....going....on" .

It's been a constant learning process to/from work and random cruising at night trying to get a feel for it since it begins engaging almost immediately and is fully engaged within a VERY short period of travel. Overall I believe it will allow for much more crisp and precise shifts...that is once I get myself in sync with this one as opposed to what I drove for the past 4 years .

Permafried-

 

It took about 5 shifts to get used to the SS/TC for me. I didn't try shifting quickly though.

 

In the LS I could get away with slipping it somewhat in slower moving traffic when I wasn't sure what the hell the driver ahead of me was going to do. With the TC it seems to prefer quick, precise shifts which is understandable but it's required I make some adjustments in heavier traffic since too much gas or bad timing going into second = Cobalt taking off like a bat out of hell .

This is also only my second standard vehicle and the engagement is totally different than the cars I mentioned above as their point of engagement was closer to the midway point allowing for more travel from the floor up. I like the feel of it and I'm sure I'll adjust I just feel like a complete 'clutch noob' at this point while I get more familiar and comfortable with the clutch.

Permafried-

 

Took me a while to get used to the clutch on mine since I'm used to the HD clutch on my Dakota.