In a stick shift car, is it easier on the clutch to pop it and get some jerkiness, or to ride it a bit for a smoother transition?

The clutch is designed to slip, but it’s also designed to wear slightly over time. If you ride it too much you can conceivably wear it out in a couple of hours. If you decide to pop the clutch as you mention it’s technically easier on the clutch itself (assuming you’re not giving it too much gas) but much harder on the transmission which is much more painful (and expensive) to replace.

I don’t know if there’s going to be an absolute answer for either of you to be “right”. Of course, slipping the clutch somewhat is how it’s meant to be used and how people get their cars moving.

I would guess someone is learning how to drive stick and wondering which side is better to falter on? Too much gas is really the problem that will wear the car out in both scenarios. Try to get things moving with a minimum of revs and you’ll get familiar with the car faster and really lessen the chances of causing damage.

Good luck with the dispute.

You need to ease up on the clutch very slowly coming out of 1st gear. You can take it a bit quicker with each higher gear, until at 5th you can just pop it right in.

A smooth ride is the thing.
Here in Ireland, automatics are almost unheard of, we all use stick shifts. You would fail your driving test if your gear changes were too jerky.

If you ‘pop’ the cluch out on a regular basis, you will soon learn how expensive U-joints or CV joints cost!

i have been a passenger with people driving who leave their foot on the clutch when they shift and i hate that pulling feeling, and i’m sure that’s not good for the car. popping the clutch is not good either. the correct answer, i think, is just smooth transition of foot on gas and foot on clutch going up and down oppositely. also, don’t go by the revs on the tachometer, go by the way the engine feels. you don’t want to shift too soon, or the car will have less power than if you shift at the right time, which is just when car is starting to rev, but not rev too much that it’s loud.