# Clutch Assist Disable?



## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

Hi. Manual diesel cruze 2017.

I cannot stand the auto reving that the car does when you let out the clutch. Ive owned many manual cars that are way more powerful than this ans its incredibly irritating that i cant give it the amount of gas i want to as i let out the clutch, because itll just give it apparently whatever it wants to. It makes every first gear take off super ierky, and then coupled with the hill assist, its even worse. I go to give it gas to take off but its apparently holding the brakes... super irritating.

Does anyone know if theres a tune or some way to turn this sh*t off? I know how to drive a car, i dont need it trying to help me.
Sorry for the attitude but its irriating.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

I don't think there is a product made as if yet that will disable these features. Did you only recently get the car? You might find after you get used to it, it's a non issue. I got used to it. My wife likes it better than than the other manual transmission vehicles we have, in part because of these features.


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## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

Yea i know. Ive read some reviews where people like the features, "so easy to drive in traffic!", but i dont know. Its a shame that they didnt allow you to disable it and they force it upon you. 

I recently got the car for my new long (180miles per day) commute to work... gas milage rocks hard, pretty comfortable, but man its boring... and being the manual has all these irritating features its worse. my fun cars are manual and transitioning back and forth is a pain. 

Ended up buying it almost unseen cuz the manual diesels are rare, just happened to find one within a couple hours.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Keep in mind there have been quite a few dual mass flywheel failures. Mine failed at 12k miles. When it was replaced under warranty they also replaced the clutch hydraulics, and they were updated part numbers, meaning there was an engineering change. So there were some design flaws, but with the tiny number of cars out there, and it not being a safety issue.. no recall. I'm assuming you got your car used? They stopped making the manual in 2018.


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

Po0pdawgydawg said:


> i cant give it the amount of gas i want to as i let out the clutch, because itll just give it apparently whatever it wants to


Instead of actuating the accelerator pedal any amount, try slowly releasing the clutch and letting the ECU pull the car away from a stop. Once you've engaged the clutch you can then add accelerator input.

My driving style is I don't give it so much as any input on the accelerator when leaving from a stop. The car is very hard to stall so it's easy to just engage the clutch and then accelerate once the car is moving in 1st gear.


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## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

My car will definitely stall on a hill if you let it out just slow to get moving.

Its frustrating, because even in neutral, if you let the clutch out slow, it gives it gas.

The car has enough torque that you should be able to blip the gas as you let the clutch out and it would go silky smooth, but it wont let the RPMs fall so you cant get a good grasp on the clutch to motor engagement. Granted i can get it pretty smooth, i put nearly 1000 miles a week on the car for work so getting used to it, ive got plenty of time. Just sucks to have to routinely deal with it.

Didnt mean to start a hopeless thread, was hoping someone had hooked up whatever the chevy equivalent of a VAG com cable or OBDeleven was to the OBD port and figured out what codes turned it off.


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## Taxman (Aug 10, 2017)

Barry Allen said:


> Instead of actuating the accelerator pedal any amount, try slowly releasing the clutch and letting the ECU pull the car away from a stop.


My goal is to not replace clutches, so I try for full engagement within 3-5 feet with as little throttle as possible. With my 2007 Saturn I can do reasonably quick engagement without touching the throttle. 
The one car I bought new, still had the original clutch when I parked it at 232kmi, but I had to use the go pedal to engage the clutch without slipping it.


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## 6speedTi (May 18, 2018)

Po0pdawgydawg said:


> Its frustrating, because even in neutral, if you let the clutch out slow, it gives it gas.


When I release my clutch it gives it Diesel.


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## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

Agreed Taxman. In a car that isnt being routinely launched, IMO pending something being horribly wrong theres no reason the clutch should go out. When i let the clutch out slow on my audi or Z, you feel the engine bog a little bit, like it wont stall out, but the RPMs drop. The take off is smooth and the clutches always last. 

With this car, you can let it out smooth, the rpms should drop but they dont because its holding it at whatever RPM, then as it engages it just lets all the gas stop, so you have to give it some "diesel" to get it going smooth otherwise its jerky. Again, hoping there is something you can do via OBD2 to turn it off.


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## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

Honestly i think it giving it gas in first gear for you could very well be why people are reporting their clutches burning out in 12k miles. Again, ive always let almost stall on take off or its very very little gas,cuz thats all it needs. IMO You want a low difference in speed between the not moving transmission and the spinning engine to minimize wear. People cant slow it down if the car is giving it more gas then it should need to take off.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Po0pdawgydawg said:


> Honestly i think it giving it gas in first gear for you could very well be why people are reporting their clutches burning out in 12k miles. Again, ive always let almost stall on take off or its very very little gas,cuz thats all it needs. IMO You want a low difference in speed between the not moving transmission and the spinning engine to minimize wear. People cant slow it down if the car is giving it more gas then it should need to take off.


I'd bet the "clutch" failures are mostly DMF failures. The DMF is a weak point on any application that has one. As to letting the RPM drop below idle, that might be OK for your typical naturally aspirated gas engine, which going back to 1996 have idle air control via computer, which is actually opening up when the idle drops, so a bit more reactive, yet doing something similar to your current car. This however won't work well with a diesel. If you let that RPM go even a little bit below idle, it will stall real quick, if you do manage to shut it off you will almost certainly stall far more often. Then again from what you describe, you could have a problem. My engine RPM bump when I let out the clutch is a pretty tiny RPM bump, in fact if I'm not paying attention, I barely notice it. From what you describe, it seems you are getting a much larger RPM bump letting out the clutch, so you could have some other issue going on there if it's really that bad.


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## rocket_scientist (Jun 14, 2019)

Only 180 miles per day? I have a 400 mile round trip but I only do it once a week. Not sure who is luckier. 

I agree with what others have said. It's annoying, but you won't even notice it's there after you drive the car a bit. The only thing I really want to disable on this car is the hill-hold assist.


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

MRO1791 said:


> As to letting the RPM drop below idle, that might be OK for your typical naturally aspirated gas engine, which going back to 1996 have idle air control via computer, which is actually opening up when the idle drops, so a bit more reactive, yet doing something similar to your current car. This however won't work well with a diesel. If you let that RPM go even a little bit below idle, it will stall real quick


Say what now? Modern diesel vehicles are computer controlled. That ECU is programmed to start adding extra fuel at any time the engine slows below idle speed. Letting that clutch out slow means the car is adding fuel to avoid stalling the engine. In 1st gear on my car it is very hard to stall the car: You'd have to almost instantly dump the clutch pedal to do that. Any time I let the clutch engage slowly the engine takes right off to keep idle speed at the set point, so it's a smooth takeoff for me.


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## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

It is not linked to the RPM, it is clutch position i think. Even if you dont have your car in gear and let the clutch out slow, itll give it gas. If you drop the clutch or if you if its giving it gas as you let it out and youre on a hill, it will have no problem stalling.

The clutch is supposed to be all the way in or all the way out, not being ridden. If you have to be in the engagement area, you want the difference between the engine and tranny speed to be as low as possible to prevent excessive wear, right? I often find myself in a position where the car is giving it more gas than i would have. Or as the clutch is coming out you dont know where its going to stop giving it gas and you need to. 
I dont like the balancing act. Ill give it gas. Ill use the clutch. Im the driver. I dont enjoy the computer doing it for me, and it makes it unnecessarily difficult. Especially to take off in a hurry without spinning the tires. For me.


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## Z71 (Jan 1, 2019)

I am glad I read this thread because I suddenly realized that I have been driving my Cruze just like all other manual transmission cars I have ever owned. And as you say, there is no need to press on the accelerator when taking off in first gear, as the car automatically raises the RPMs. This is much different from my Sonic which would stall immediately if I did not give it any gas when taking off in first. The same for my Infiniti G37 6 speed manual. Does the car keep the RPMs up even when shifting from first to second?


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## 6speedTi (May 18, 2018)

Z71 said:


> I am glad I read this thread because I suddenly realized that I have been driving my Cruze just like all other manual transmission cars I have ever owned. And as you say, there is no need to press on the accelerator when taking off in first gear, as the car automatically raises the RPMs. This is much different from my Sonic which would stall immediately if I did not give it any gas when taking off in first. The same for my Infiniti G37 6 speed manual. Does the car keep the RPMs up even when shifting from first to second?


My sonic stalled when I first started driving it. I've driven many manual transmissions and the clutch on the sonic would grab really low on the pedal. The cruze grabs normal.
The idle shift assist is strange at first but I don't even pay attention to it anymore.


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## BodhiBenz1987 (Jan 13, 2018)

Weird, I haven't noticed this at all. I guess it works well for me because I feel like this is the easiest of my three manuals. I do manage to stall it out occasionally on a hill but I think sometimes the hill hold assist can actually work against you if you're used to launching on a hill in cars without it, especially slow ones. I feel like on a whole I drive it similarly to my other two manuals, a 78 Mercedes diesel and an 92 Peugeot diesel ... just everything is faster and a little smoother in the Cruze.


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## johnmo (Mar 2, 2017)

I noticed the ECU juicing the throttle even in neutral right away. I don't like it, but I've gotten used to it.


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## 6speedTi (May 18, 2018)

Honestly it's a non issue once you drive the vehicle for a while. I don't notice it unless I focus on it. What amazes me is all the manual transmission enthusiasts here never mention the lack of closed throttle engine braking when downshifting.
I first noticed this on my chevy sonic. Then my cruze. Unfortunately gm programmed the ECU to prevent this. If you really want to discuss about the flaws in GM with their manuals this is a big issue for real manual shifting enthusiasts.


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## phil1734 (Aug 30, 2019)

6speedTi said:


> What amazes me is all the manual transmission enthusiasts here never mention the lack of closed throttle engine braking when downshifting.
> I first noticed this on my chevy sonic. Then my cruze. Unfortunately gm programmed the ECU to prevent this.


Having never driven any of the smaller gas ecotecs, I always just assumed that was a diesel thing.

Unless this behavior carries over to the NA motors in the 'Maro and 'Vette, it's probably just a by-product of the modern electronic throttle body never actually closing entirely except near idle on small displacement turbo motors. When I ran a data-logger on a 1.4 Sonic for a powertrain class at University the throttle was never shut tighter than 14% open, regardless of what the pedal position was requesting. As far as I know, pretty much every similar engine does the same regardless of manufacturer at this point (and some F1 teams have been penalized for leaving the throttle fully open all the time to generate exhaust flow across their aerodynamic elements.)


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## 6speedTi (May 18, 2018)

2


phil1734 said:


> Having never driven any of the smaller gas ecotecs, I always just assumed that was a diesel thing.
> 
> Unless this behavior carries over to the NA motors in the 'Maro and 'Vette, it's probably just a by-product of the modern electronic throttle body never actually closing entirely except near idle on small displacement turbo motors. When I ran a data-logger on a 1.4 Sonic for a powertrain class at University the throttle was never shut tighter than 14% open, regardless of what the pedal position was requesting. As far as I know, pretty much every similar engine does the same regardless of manufacturer at this point (and some F1 teams have been penalized for leaving the throttle fully open all the time to generate exhaust flow across their aerodynamic elements.)


On my sonic 1.4 turbo when I downshifted to slow down I would Intentionally pull the clutch in and the rpms would hang around 2,000 with my foot off the accelerator. Then it would slowly decrease to idle.
This to me is a uncommanded throttle. In other words it's accelerating without driver input. Very dangerous. I first complained about this when I figured something was wrong. The dealer technician found nothing out of the ordinary. 
I'm glad I dumped the Sonic. It was a nice car but it had it's inherent issues.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

I got used to the little rev bump fairly quickly with the 1.4T. It does make it easier to stop and go in traffic with little to no throttle input.

Rev "hang" is also programmed there in between shifts for emissions purposes on the gasoline engines, and probably for the same on the diesels. Unfortunately, it's not well done on GM vehicles. Theoretically, when correctly done - old Honda K24's for instance - it avoids the revs falling to idle, avoids sudden change of RPM and fuelling, aids smooth gear change to the next gear when you let the clutch out, and reduces turbo lag in turbo cars.

My brother's VW TDI does have the hill start assist enabled by default, and THAT is infuriating. It holds the brakes until the car moves forward a few inches, then lets the brakes go. That, coupled with the new emissions programming that gives it zero torque off idle makes it very easy to stall in cars that didn't used to be.


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## phil1734 (Aug 30, 2019)

Love it or hate it, driver inputs are merely suggestions to the modern car.

That goes for everything from throttle, steering, gear selection (on autos,) transfer case position, differential locks, and soon to be brakes. Even simple circuits like windshield wipers and turn signals are now routed through the CAN bus and tuning the stalk on your car is merely a request to active the wipers. The computer decides whether or not it is actually going to do so.

Not to de-rail any further but a nerdy-automotive engineer game I play whenever I drive an unfamiliar car is to see which alarms and artificial sounds override each other, and imagine the hours that were spent in boardrooms with engineers and lawyers deciding the hierarchy of such things. As there is no longer a mechanical relay making the clicking of your turn signal, it's piped in through the speakers. Unless you're not wearing a seat belt, then the seat belt chime overrides it. Unless your door is open, then the door ajar warning overrides that. And so on and so forth.


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## 6speedTi (May 18, 2018)

jblackburn said:


> I got used to the little rev bump fairly quickly with the 1.4T. It does make it easier to stop and go in traffic with little to no throttle input.
> 
> Rev "hang" is also programmed there in between shifts for emissions purposes on the gasoline engines, and probably for the same on the diesels. Unfortunately, it's not well done on GM vehicles. Theoretically, when correctly done - old Honda K24's for instance - it avoids the revs falling to idle, avoids sudden change of RPM and fuelling, aids smooth gear change to the next gear when you let the clutch out, and reduces turbo lag in turbo cars.
> 
> My brother's VW TDI does have the hill start assist enabled by default, and THAT is infuriating. It holds the brakes until the car moves forward a few inches, then lets the brakes go. That, coupled with the new emissions programming that gives it zero torque off idle makes it very easy to stall in cars that didn't used to be.


All this makes my S2000 and my motorcycle so much fun in a free spirit mode of driving and riding. Upshifting and downshifting is the joy of a real machine when it reacts to your inputs and desires.


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## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

A lot of miles on the car now as you can imagine driving 600-1000+ a week (high tech mech engineer jobs that dont blow are hard to come by) and its not a matter of getting used to it. Anyone who says that probably just hasnt been put in a stop and go traffic scenario that consists of hills (southern CT). It sucks. Bad. Fortunately only 1/3 of my drive is that sh*t and the rest is highway miles. The gas milage is over 50 average.... hard to argue with that!

Rev hang sucks. My audi had it too, it blows when youre trying to shift in a hurry without revving it out.
Other parts of the car.. so far so good. Oil changes and things like that are easy. Maintenance is easy. Sucks that there's still no tune for it, but it is what it is... its a slug anyway. But man that throttle assist sucks. I cannot believe GM engineers didnt include a way to shut it off. Since i got this car ive driven some old and new tdi golfs and they 100% do not "stall when you let the revs down", so that isnt true. They all do have the... "rev hang"if you will but i think thats for emissions are previously mentioned.
Thanks for all the thoughts and feedback gents. Appreciate it.


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## Z71 (Jan 1, 2019)

Po0pdawgydawg said:


> The gas milage is over 50 average.... hard to argue with that!


Are you using A/C at all? How fast do you go to get over 50 MPG? With A/C on and steady 75 MPH I can get around 47 MPG. To get to 50+, I would have to slow down to 70 or less and not use A/C much.


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## phil1734 (Aug 30, 2019)

I'm assuming he has a manual/sedan.

I do and at 75 with the AC on my 450 mile average is usually around 53-54. 25 mile averages are frequently deep into the 60s with a best of 73.


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## 6speedTi (May 18, 2018)

My manual sedan cruising at 70 to 75 with A/C on peaks out at 54 mpg.


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## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

Without ac. 


Z71 said:


> Are you using A/C at all? How fast do you go to get over 50 MPG? With A/C on and steady 75 MPH I can get around 47 MPG. To get to 50+, I would have to slow down to 70 or less and not use A/C much.


Without ac mostly. I got it in august its winter in the north east


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## Po0pdawgydawg (Aug 3, 2019)

Stalled again just now on a big hill waiting at a light.

Your foot is on the break while you wait.. you put it in gear so the break is holding you there... but its giving itself gas in first... absolutely idiotic.


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## C4r7m4n (Apr 10, 2019)

I have put around 15k on my TD Hatch now and lots of stop & go traffic.

I adjusted to the clutch assist very easily. On large hills you have to remember that the brakes are automatically applied too. First couple times I was on large hills I was afraid of rolling back and let the clutch out before the brakes were disengaged so it stalled. Once I adjusted to how it worked it's a breeze now.


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