Clutch slipping

jblair1948

29th December 2005 - 10:42 PM

While this isn't really a homework question, I think it is interesting and hope someone
here can help.

I got into a discussion today about automobile clutches. The basic question is,
why when a clutch is failing, you notice it slipping in 4th (or high) gear first?

Intuatively, it would seem that it should slip in 1st gear first.

I guess we spent over an hour on this discussion and could not come up with any
mathmatical way to prove it. Can any of you explain it?

Thanks in Advance.

John

Montec

30th December 2005 - 03:44 AM

My guess would be that the torque seen by the clutch from the wheels is greater in a high gear than in a lower gear. Low gears would reduce the torque seen by the clutch from the wheels. IE The torque is reduced by the gear ratio in the transmission.

Guest

30th December 2005 - 04:08 AM

montec is correct

ANOther Guest

23rd June 2009 - 07:24 PM

I believe Montec is right too, but the explanation could be a bit better. The torque applied to the clutch by the engine is potentially the same regardless of which gear is selected, but you are more likely to apply high torque (a lot of throttle) in the higher gears.

If you “floor it” in the lower gears you’d get the clutch to slip.

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