Can someone explain this to me?

[35th-ANV-SS]

I've seen a few videos now of people trying to do burnouts and burning up their clutches in the process.

Most of us have seen the famous Corvette burnout posted on this site. He goes to attempt a burnout and after several seconds of flooring it, you see the smoke and his rear tires didn't even move....

My question is, what exactly happens to cause this to occur? Obviously the clutch didn't engage...but I am looking for a more in-depth explanation.

Thanks.

[35th-ANV-SS]

25 views...maybe this wasn't such an easy question to answer??

Or so easy that I should know

[Knight]

I'm thinking it's just as simple as the clutch doesn't fully engage. Once the rpms are up so high the clutch will never engage and just burns - plus then you're glazing the flywheel which certainly doesn't help. It doesn't take long for the heat to build up from the friction - and then it's toast.

Should say too that the clutches aren't really meant for that much abuse or can't handle that much abuse. More than likely the driver doesn't just drop the clutch, as much as feather it too much I'm thinking. If they do drop the clutch - they may just break it. If they feather it too much, well then you have the problems I listed above

[basballny2]

i think in that corvette video the guy held the cluth

[35th-ANV-SS]

But how does the clutch burn up?

If the pressure plate has not engaged the disc to the flywheel, what is actually burning?

To me, that would be like the car being in neutral. The flywheel would just be spinning freely from the motor RPMs.

[Knight]

It's like riding your brakes and pressing on the gas at the same time - once your doing, say, 65 mph. You'll toast the pads and not stop. Kinda the same for the clutch. The pressure is there for the clutch to engage, it just can't because the flywheel is spinning to quickly and then it toasts it. The pressure isn't great enough to force the clutch to engage and it slips.

[35th-ANV-SS]

Ahhhhhhhhhhh