In my continuing quest to save gas/money, I've started putting the G in neutral and coasting when exiting the highway or approaching a stop sign or when entering a "reduced speed" area. And, believe it or not, I am noticing results. But then I started wondering if this practice of putting the car in neutral then drive is in anyway damaging the transmission. Any thoughts?

 

my friends do it all the time...
its all about the clutch i think...for MT cars
my friends dont wanna replace the clutch often
i wanna know more about this as well but i dont think it hurts you any.

 

In PA anyway, coasting, which is what you're doing by disengaging the drivetrain, is illegal. Have no hard evidence, but I would think that the shock to the drivetrain every time you re-engage Drive, though small, is not beneficial. You are also giving up some control and engine braking, which since you have an X, was probably your goal from the outset.

 

so its not good lol hahaha

 

Coasting is a bad idea period. You are giving up contorl of your automobile (especially in emergency situations) as well as putting more wear and tear on your brakes. For what gain? How much could you possibly gain by doing this. The single best way to increase gas milage in a G is to go easy on the accelerator in the first place. Nothing sucks gas like WOT! Nothing is as much fun either (unfortunately).

 

You can reduce the shock to the transmission by tapping the gas to bump the engine speed back up to about what it would be if you were in drive in the first place.

It's technically illegal in most states, not just PA. Enforcement of such a thing is rather difficult. I wouldn't recommend it, though. You loose the ability to accelerate rapidly if an emergency calls for it. Plus, I seriously doubt the coasting is affecting your gas mileage. You're whole driving style has probably shifted a bit to conserve gas, if you're being that drastic.. if you're accelerating milder or reducing your top speed on the highway a bit, that would have a big impact on your mileage. Especially the top speed. The difference between 55mph and 80mph is about 3-4 mpg in my car.

 

I completely disagree. There is absolutely nothing wrong with coasting, and saves wear & tear on your clutch, which is much more expensive to replace than brake pads.

As far as losing control...I don't see it. All I'm losing is my ability to accelerate as fast as if I was in gear. It takes me 0.5 second to put it in gear.

I've never ever had an emergency driving situation where I had to accelerate. I would say that 99.9% of emergency maneuvers are done with the brakes and the steering wheel. Perhaps when you misjudge the speed of the car you're passing and you need to get back in the lane before running head-on with oncoming traffic, you need to make an emergency acceleration move. You could just as easily hit the brakes too.

 

Oops, I just realized he had an AT. I don't know what kind of wear or damage you could be doing by doing that, so I don't have an opinion.

 

Besides what PotomacG says, coasting in an auto can stress the rear gears and drive shaft (a little) too. Best to keep at least a slight load on everything.
C.

 

Wrong wrong wrong! You have obviously never had an emergency situation. Reaction times change drastically based on too many factors to name. You simple don't have as much control of a vehicle coasting than you do in gear....period! Auto, Manual...it doesn't make any difference.

 

dirrtybear,

No hassle, but if one takes their foot off the gas and coasts down in speed while in gear, or does this while applying the brakes, their is no appreciable wear and tear on the clutch as the two plates are completely engaged with no slippage or relative motion.

Again, no hassle intended.

Looking at your Avitar, want some photos of Polar Bears on the ice lookng at the rudder and stern of a US Submarine surfaced thru the ice in the Arctic Basin?

 

whooops..... I do it all the time going down the causeway or after im driving a little fast. Well, I'de rather be safer than sorry.

 

I would not recommend coasting either because of the lack of control. As mentioned, in an emergency you want to concentrate on what needs to be done, not take time to remember to put the car in gear first. Imagine if you had a little panic and in trying to put it into D you pushed it into neutral or reverse! I'm not sure of the stress issue. I can't imagine that putting it into neutral for the length of an off ramp would save a measurable amount of gas.

My father taught me to put it in neutral at a stop light, in case of being hit from behind, especially in a MT where if your foot were on the clutch it might be knocked off and if you were in gear you would lurch forward into the pedestrian or car crossing in front of you. I do this with the AT too.

For historical interest, anyone else remember the Saabs (my dad had one) that used to freewheel (coast) at highway speeds automatically? It was a two-cycle engine-available with or without oil injection into the gas. Without, you had to mix the oil with the gas at fill-up time. Our engine failed and Saab replaced it.

 

not to be mean but i get so perplexed by people that do this. how much could u be saving. two dollars a week? if u wanna save two dollars a week you could do it so many more ways. dont buy one cup of coffee a week. i dont see any logic in doing this because it does put slight strain on the tranny and .5 seconds to put in back into drive is if u remember to. how many people have put there cars into manumatic and forget its there. i think its safe to say that could happen if u put it in neutral. if balkey from perfect strangers was here he'd say dont be ridiculous! haha.

 

I don't understand your argument. First you say doing this is perplexing because it (according to you, using your statistic) saves so very little money, merely $2.00 per week. Then in your next breath you say this practice shouldn't be done because it puts a "slight strain" on the tranny and requires an outrageous half-second to put it back into drive. Now, if the saving were slight and the damage more extreme, then I'd see your point. But according to you the savings are slight and the damage/inconvenience is slight so that's the reason for not putting the car in neutral?

By the way, if you or Balkey would like to send me $2.00 a week or $104.00 per year until I sell the car, please PM me. I'll send you my mailing address. It is wasteful thinking such as yours which helps feed the gluttonous American society we now live in.

Not to be mean.