Clutch Lock System - Is it really useful ?

mithun · 28th October 2006, 23:22

Quote:

Clutch Lock, is a feature no GETZ competitor has. This feature disallows the ignition until clutch is pressed thereby preventing jerk start.

Courtesy

Please clarify my doubts....

Is it a wise security feature taking into consideration our levelheaded thiefs ?
What will happen if a thief intrudes inside the car and messes with the car's security from inside ?
Does anyone had any bad experiences due to the Clutch lock system ?

Merc · 29th October 2006, 17:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by mithun

Is it a wise security feature taking into consideration our levelheaded thiefs ?
What will happen if a thief intrudes inside the car and messes with the car's security from inside ?

I don't see it as a major security feature. It will help those people who forgets to check if their car is in neutral before starting the engine. Thus clutch lock will prevent Jerk start and avoids engine/transmission/starter damage that might occur.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mithun

Does anyone had any bad experiences due to the Clutch lock system ?

Not much of bad experience, BUT it will not start if you don't know about this, and people thinks something is wrong with the car.

Merc

Pankaj401 · 29th October 2006, 23:34

Isn't it like seat-belt fastening light/buzzer, door ajar warning or gear lock on auto transmissions which do not let you go into R /1/2/3 from D or N if you don't press a provided interlock release lever/button?

DRC · 30th October 2006, 11:55

Only funny utility I can thing of is it prevents kids accidentally turning the ignition on. But then there are better ways to avoid it. Why let the kid in the first place.

esteem_lover · 30th October 2006, 14:00

i was told that pressing down the clutch when you start the car is a good practice, whether it is in gear or not. maybe thats why they have included that as a feature in getz.

nitrous · 30th October 2006, 14:13

This feature is present in the Verna too.
Its NOT a security feature.

heelntoe · 30th October 2006, 14:15

even if your car does not have the interlock, it is a good habit to keep the clutch depressed when starting.

i read about a guy who was off-roading when his fuel pump died on him. on his last attempt at starting the jeep, he forgot to clutch in. and the car moved forward. so he made it to the top of the hill. but he had to replace the starter though.

theMAG · 30th October 2006, 15:39

Its definitely not a deal-clincher. Its uses are preventing inadvertent starting attempts like when in gear or a kid turning the ignition.

mithun · 2nd November 2006, 05:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

i was told that pressing down the clutch when you start the car is a good practice, whether it is in gear or not.

Can you please explain the reason behind that practice and whether it applies to both Carb & MPFI vehicles OR to one specifically ?

I've heard from some Hyundai guys that Clutch Lock System prevents the thefts that are committed by cutting the inside wires of the car. Is that true ?

HotChillyPepper · 25th November 2007, 02:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by mithun

Can you please explain the reason behind that practice and whether it applies to both Carb & MPFI vehicles OR to one specifically ?

I've heard from some Hyundai guys that Clutch Lock System prevents the thefts that are committed by cutting the inside wires of the car. Is that true ?

I asked one Hyudai sales person at Noida shworoom about Clutch lock. He dont have any idea what it is

vivekiny2k · 25th November 2007, 03:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by mithun

Can you please explain the reason behind that practice and whether it applies to both Carb & MPFI vehicles OR to one specifically ?

if the car is left in gear, or gear is just pressed enough to engage with slight movement, car will jerk forward with the start, causing damaged to unforeseen number of parts. pressing clutch basically isolates the engine with the load completely, even if gear engages. type of engine doesn't matter.

Ram · 25th November 2007, 09:31

John Doe, the common American avoids driving cars with manual gearboxes. USA has been used to automatic transmissions for the last sixty years.

The routine taught (in high school to nearly 30 crore Americans) is: Get into the car, slot the key and turn it. Then hold down the brake pedal and whilst holding down the brake pedal, click the shift lever from "P" to "R" to "D".
Let go the brake and press the gas pedal. Off you go!

Then one post oil-crisis day in the early 1970s, some foreign vendor introduces a small economy automobile from overseas that actually gets 35% more miles to the gallon! But there's a severe inconvenience. The darn thing has three pedals on the floor and a stick that must be manipulated all the while, like granddad used to until the 1940s.

Simply slotting the ignition key in the morning and turning the key is now dangerous. The car may leap forward and cause an accident.

Thence the source of the sometimes forgotten instruction: Always depress the left pedal before turning the ignition key. A safe practice even if the car is in gear.

A protective clutch-ignition interlock prevents the driver from activating the starter, unless the clutch pedal was depressed. Noticed this, twenty-some years ago, in the smaller cars in California (e.g. Ford Escorts, Toyota Corollas, ...).

Ostensibly the Hyundai Getz, which may have been originally intended for markets with low-skilled drivers, had to have this feature.

A couple of other things I discovered about the everyday drivers in the USA, vis à vis their counterparts in Europe, India, etc.

Americans never learn to reverse the car properly. Comes from having acres of paved parking space across their nation, plus huge cars and personal trucks.
Americans don't blow the horn -- again results from their vast spacious expanses, lane discipline, culture of stopping for every rare pedestrian and the mild tooters fitted in American cars. There are so many dead horns in old American cars, it isn't funny.

Ram

CrAzY dRiVeR · 25th November 2007, 10:09

One confusing thing is that- Hyundai sales people seem particularly proud of this 'feature' as i discovered during TD. They were repeating it.

Ram · 25th November 2007, 11:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

One confusing thing is that- Hyundai sales people seem particularly proud of this 'feature' as i discovered during TD. They were repeating it.

Salesmen are salesmen after all. They must hawk their wares, spin-doctoring, positioning and glamorizing whatever they have, good or bad. If they don't have some feature, they badmouth the feature as a "market phel" (failed in the market). If they have some gizmo or gimmick, they claim it as the "lattes advons" (latest advance).

Thad E Ginathom · 25th November 2007, 12:33

Utter waste of time.

Procedure as taught to millions of Brits:

Check that gear is in neutral by moving the lever from side to side. Also check that the handbrake is on. Start engine.

Added refinement taught to me by my father decades back: depress clutch before starting engine. Gives the starter motor very slightly less work to do, as it then doesn't have to drive half the gearbox (maybe that mattered when my father learnt to drive in 1920s, and old habits die hard!) and is also belt and braces precaution.

Added refinement for AT drivers (after checking gear is in P); put foot on footbrake before turning key.

Many auto boxes have a lock which prevents the car starting if the gear is not in N or P; I guess that is where the idea came from. This is a feature that left me struggling and puzzled the first time I encountered it.

Thumbs down for this one.

29th October 2006, 23:34	#3
Pankaj401 BHPian Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Bangalore, India Posts: 215 Thanked: 6 Times	Isn't it like seat-belt fastening light/buzzer, door ajar warning or gear lock on auto transmissions which do not let you go into R /1/2/3 from D or N if you don't press a provided interlock release lever/button?
	() Thanks

30th October 2006, 11:55	#4
DRC BHPian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Cockpit Posts: 911 Thanked: 64 Times View My Garage	Only funny utility I can thing of is it prevents kids accidentally turning the ignition on. But then there are better ways to avoid it. Why let the kid in the first place.
	() Thanks

30th October 2006, 14:00	#5
esteem_lover Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Madras/Py Posts: 7,556 Thanked: 502 Times View My Garage	i was told that pressing down the clutch when you start the car is a good practice, whether it is in gear or not. maybe thats why they have included that as a feature in getz.
	() Thanks

30th October 2006, 14:13	#6
nitrous Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2004 Location: UAE/Lon/Madras Posts: 6,965 Thanked: 325 Times View My Garage	This feature is present in the Verna too. Its NOT a security feature.
	() Thanks

30th October 2006, 14:15	#7
heelntoe BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: navi mumbai Posts: 240 Thanked: Once	even if your car does not have the interlock, it is a good habit to keep the clutch depressed when starting. i read about a guy who was off-roading when his fuel pump died on him. on his last attempt at starting the jeep, he forgot to clutch in. and the car moved forward. so he made it to the top of the hill. but he had to replace the starter though.
	() Thanks

30th October 2006, 15:39	#8
theMAG Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: May 2006 Location: Avon, CT Posts: 7,217 Thanked: 1,807 Times View My Garage	Its definitely not a deal-clincher. Its uses are preventing inadvertent starting attempts like when in gear or a kid turning the ignition.
	() Thanks

25th November 2007, 09:31	#12
Ram Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Singapore, Mumbai, Nagpur Posts: 2,166 Thanked: 219 Times View My Garage	A safety feature for not-so-bright drivers John Doe, the common American avoids driving cars with manual gearboxes. USA has been used to automatic transmissions for the last sixty years. The routine taught (in high school to nearly 30 crore Americans) is: Get into the car, slot the key and turn it. Then hold down the brake pedal and whilst holding down the brake pedal, click the shift lever from "P" to "R" to "D". Let go the brake and press the gas pedal. Off you go! Then one post oil-crisis day in the early 1970s, some foreign vendor introduces a small economy automobile from overseas that actually gets 35% more miles to the gallon! But there's a severe inconvenience. The darn thing has three pedals on the floor and a stick that must be manipulated all the while, like granddad used to until the 1940s. Simply slotting the ignition key in the morning and turning the key is now dangerous. The car may leap forward and cause an accident. Thence the source of the sometimes forgotten instruction: Always depress the left pedal before turning the ignition key. A safe practice even if the car is in gear. A protective clutch-ignition interlock prevents the driver from activating the starter, unless the clutch pedal was depressed. Noticed this, twenty-some years ago, in the smaller cars in California (e.g. Ford Escorts, Toyota Corollas, ...). Ostensibly the Hyundai Getz, which may have been originally intended for markets with low-skilled drivers, had to have this feature. A couple of other things I discovered about the everyday drivers in the USA, vis à vis their counterparts in Europe, India, etc. Americans never learn to reverse the car properly. Comes from having acres of paved parking space across their nation, plus huge cars and personal trucks. Americans don't blow the horn -- again results from their vast spacious expanses, lane discipline, culture of stopping for every rare pedestrian and the mild tooters fitted in American cars. There are so many dead horns in old American cars, it isn't funny. Ram
	() Thanks

25th November 2007, 10:09	#13
CrAzY dRiVeR Team-BHP Support Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Bangalore / TVM Posts: 17,175 Thanked: 73,466 Times View My Garage	One confusing thing is that- Hyundai sales people seem particularly proud of this 'feature' as i discovered during TD. They were repeating it.
	() Thanks

25th November 2007, 12:33	#15
Thad E Ginathom Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Chennai Posts: 10,990 Thanked: 26,386 Times	Utter waste of time. Procedure as taught to millions of Brits: Check that gear is in neutral by moving the lever from side to side. Also check that the handbrake is on. Start engine. Added refinement taught to me by my father decades back: depress clutch before starting engine. Gives the starter motor very slightly less work to do, as it then doesn't have to drive half the gearbox (maybe that mattered when my father learnt to drive in 1920s, and old habits die hard!) and is also belt and braces precaution. Added refinement for AT drivers (after checking gear is in P); put foot on footbrake before turning key. Many auto boxes have a lock which prevents the car starting if the gear is not in N or P; I guess that is where the idea came from. This is a feature that left me struggling and puzzled the first time I encountered it. Thumbs down for this one.
	() Thanks