Clutch verses the e-brake

Is it possible to burn a clutch out if you drive with the Emergency break engaged? I have a 94 VW Jetta that has a bad habit of a non-releasing Emergency break when the weather gets cold. Having to get back to Stamford ct … to my job, I decided to drive home despite the fact that the emergency break. Now my clutch is slipping. As I have burned out about four clutches in the ten years I have owned this car … I know what a slipping clutch feels like. Please advise… Yes yes, I ride my clutches hard…

My comment is that it is not the Jetta with the bad habits,but you.

Are the brakes really engaged or are you just getting the warning light?

If it is true that the brakes are engaged, hows that working for you?

If the parking brake (It is not an emergency brake, it is designed for holding the car still not stopping it, is on anywhere close enough to cause a problem for your clutch you should be running through brake shoes about once a month.

If the clutch was weak…very weak, maybe. But, if you are that hard on clutches…Four!!! I would say its possible

Yes captain sarcastic the brakes were engaged. I was told that VW parking brakes are notorious for freezing when the temps are cold. It isn’t something I intentionally did … just happens at the wrong time when you have to be somewhere … like work. By the by, my new car is an automatic … so I am done with the riding the clutch…

Do you want me to say yes for something you already know?

You will very likely be slipping the clutch much more while taking off from a stop with the parking brake angaged, and doing so against much more than normal resistance. Yes, you can wear out your clutch prematurely this way. You’ve proven it to be true no matter what we say.

Is it really necessary to use your parking brake all the time in the winter?