manual transmission visible clutch engagement

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a cut away from a 1998 bmw 323iS with a windowed ZF310 trans and m20 single mass flywheel.

the transmission used to be in an M3 track car, the release bearing failed, overheated and friction welded itself on to the transmission input shaft guide tube. the windows were cut in to the bellhousing in non structural areas and it was installed with a new guide tube on a 1998 323iS to see what would happen. Input shaft bearings were very worn in this ZF, hence the wobblier than average release bearing here.

[_Ronaldo__]

Cheers to this guy for cutting a hole in his transmission to keep us entertained at 2am

[leokimvideo]

Very nice, now the clutch dust has somewhere to vent, we all need this mod.

[exothermal.sprocket]

One reason to avoid developing the habit of sitting at stoplights with the clutch depressed for minutes every time you stop. The pressure plate puts side-force on the engine crankshaft, the throw-out bearing on the clutch is constantly turning, lots of stuff wears more quickly. Best to pop the transmission into neutral while sitting stationary for any length of time, and release the clutch. Develop the habit early and a manual will last much longer over the years.

[AxelDayton]

You gotta love the engineering behind these magnificent dry clutches

[sloanienz]

you should do this with a water pump on a bmw so we can see it not working

[nishitsinghbirman]

I see I have entered into the "its time to go to bed now" section of YouTube

[vilnv]

This feels like I’m looking at an open surgery and I’m just seeing the heart beat

[thetrollslayer]

I studied automobile engineering for a semester as part of mechanical engineering, but never in my life saw a clutch engage and disengage until this video.

[guntherrall]

finally found someone that cut a hole in the bellhousing and not more of that animated crap

[macmac]

You cut a window in a perfectly good bell housing to show us how a clutch works?? Great job...thanks. This is a terrific training aid for any instructor.

[CYER]

Everyone learning to drive manual should see this. When I first learned almost 10 years ago I absolutely sucked, but after I watched a video explaining how a manual trans works I was instantly 100x better. The next week when my dad took me out to teach me again he thought I had been sneaking to drive my car and practice, but nope just understood what was actually happening under the hood.

[marcellenel]

This is definitely a valuable contribution to the world of knowledge

[djkasdjkasdjdjdj]

this..THIS is what im looking for, not some animated crap

[mv-photo]

Couldn’t really be a mechanic because my intrusive thoughts would be like “put your finger in there”

[Johnny-tzyd]

As someone who knows nothing abt cars but drives a stick it’s really cool to see the clutch at work, I’ve always wondered what it looks like!

[antonsvids]

Can we appreciate the camera guy running alongside the car and filming just so we can see the clutch work

[getvivek]

Clutches get engaged all the time and I can't even seem to find a girlfriend

[philno]

it didnt smooth out, it oscillated faster creating persistence of vision

[rayoflight]

My Beetle in the '70... The very first clutch disk didn't had the helicoidal springs to dampen clutch engagement.
The clutch was driven by a tiny steel wire, which had the habit to break the last weekend of the month - never during the work week.
The disk was high quality but was undersized, especially when you always had four passengers, and drove over steep inclines. The surface of the disk was like soap at the touch... it was high quality asbestos, just like the brake pads. We didn't know yet, at the time, of the damages to the body the material was capable of. Just like the lead in the petrol.
Thank you for this slightly crazy video, it took me to a moment of my life when I was able to change from a mechanics overall clothing to a black tie evening dress in less than half hour.
Regards,

[stanleydenning]

I have replaced a few clutches in my lifetime. I always understood how they work and could only see it in my mind's eye. Thanks for the visual.