Engine Braking - Bad?

[shaneyeend]

hey i'm posting this thread because me and my friend tend to get into these heated conversations about various things and one of the subjects we happened to stumble across was engine braking. Does anyone know, with valid proof, if engine braking is good or bad for your engine and/or your throwout bearing?

 

[peanotation]

doesn't really "hurt" the throwout bearing, but aggressive engine braking is bad and abusive. as long as the car isn't jarring back and forth and you don't pop the clutch out, subtle engine braking isn't bad.

 

[Defiant]

First, what engine braking actually is: it's what goes on after you've already downshifted and you're still moving down the road faster than idle speed, with the throttle closed. The throwout bearing and the rest of the parts are out of the game during engine braking.

If you want to have a conversation about downshifting versus just using the brakes, that's an entirely different battle, and we've waged it many times on this board, with no victor.

Engine braking by itself subjects the rings, valve stem seals, valve seats and lower end to the highest conditions of vacuum it can see. It's one of the many conditions the engine designers take into account, and it will not have negative effects on the condition of a healthy engine.

On DSMs, and most contemporary manual-transmission cars, the throwout bearing is spinning all the time. It doesn't much feel the load of engaging and dis-engaging. The hydraulic system is good for many hundreds of thousands of cycles. DSM clutch levers do have a small incidence of failure.

 

[awdLaunch16g]

I don't brake with my transmission because id rather change the brakes

 

[onepimpclipse]

I don't brake with my transmission because id rather change the brakes

Everyone always says this. When done properly I don't see how you can cause any ill effects or premature wear. I have downshifted my car since day one. It had 25,000 miles when I got it and now she's around 140,000. I've replaced the clutch once and that's it.

 

[EVIL X]

this might of been a freak occurance, but my friend had a n/t with the modular clutch, and down shifted to pass someone, when he down shifted, it blew the springs right out of the hub and killed his assembly..... take it for what its worth, i dont know if anyone else has experienced this, but i would imagine the turbo cars that use separate disc and pp would have different outcome

 

[onepimpclipse]

this might of been a freak occurance, but my friend had a n/t with the modular clutch, and down shifted to pass someone, when he down shifted, it blew the springs right out of the hub and killed his assembly..... take it for what its worth, i dont know if anyone else has experienced this,

I have downshifted with intent to accelerate many, many times. I have seen no ill effects. I have put 115,000 miles on this car too.

 

[wannyGSX]

Break pads are cheaper than transmission parts. engine braking is undo wear on your transmission. just something to think about.

 

[onepimpclipse]

engine braking is undo wear on your transmission. just something to think about.

Can we have proof as opposed to your opinion? If you break something you're not doing it right.