Expert: Josh Fields - 5/14/2006

Question
my daughter is thinking of buyin a bmw z3 but she is 5foot 4 and with the seat fully forward, still cannot fully depress the clutch.. is there any way the seat can go further forward?

Answer
Sam,
 I'm not familiar with these cars as much as the older cars, but either way, she shouldn't have to depress the clutch to the floor anyways.

 As long as she can press the pedal down past the engagement point, that's all that matters (she might still be too short for that).  The only reason I can see her needing to be able to push the clutch to the floor is when she's sitting in traffic or something... and this isn't recommended.  Instead of sitting at a traffic light with the clutch depressed, she should put the shifter into neutral.  The clutch has a throw-out bearing, and when you press the clutch in, this bearing gets used.  Like most bearings, they will eventually wear out, so keeping your foot off the clutch will be a big help.
  As long as she can see over the steering wheel and reach the break pedal fine, I wouldn't be worried about it causing problems.  I understand the predicament though!

 Hope this helps,
 Josh