Sorry if this is a re-post. If so, please delete.


Do you members perfer to downshift, or stop in neutral? Personally I stop in neutral, but I was told it is much better on the transmission to downshift, as it will help maintain a longer life on the car. Is this true? Whats the benifits and effects of each long term (5+ years)?

 

I always go into neutral when stopping, as far as I am concerned, it's easier on the tranny. Unless it's a very quick stop and go, in which I may downshift.

 

Sometimes I downshift when approaching a stop, but seldom in a dramatic way. Most of the time I ease up on the gas well ahead, then just brake as necessary to stop smoothly, easing into neutral at the end.

I think it's smarter to use up the brake pads instead of the clutch and xmission. Don't you?

WayneTN

 

Someone today told me downshifting is much better for the transmission?

 

you mean downshifting to slow the car instead of braking? how could it be better (on the transmission) than just not engaging the transmission at all?

if it isn't harmful to the transmission, then since it saves brake wear, it's better in that sense.

 

i'm guessing this guy probably meant that downshifting is better (for the transmission) than leaving the car in a high gear while slowing to a stop, but not better than putting the car in neutral. but if i'm wrong, i'd be interested to find out the explanation.

 

I just put the car in neutral when coming to a stop.

 

Personally I just put it in neutral and let it coast to a slow speed, then gently apply brakes. I don't see how this can harm the tranmission at all, only thing I think it'd do is as someone said on this board, wear the pads more.. which I'd rather do than strain the transmission!

 

neutral definetly... pads and rotors are by far cheaper and easier to replace/resurface than a transmission. it's an art form though really, downshifting correctly. i think if you feel your body lunge forward when downshifting into the next lower gear, you went into that gear too early and at two quick of a speed- if all you wanna do is stop.

If you are downshifting before a turn and know you want to power out of the other end, then that would be fine.

 

Downshifting is not "better" for the transmission. Done properly down shifting will not hurt the tranny but not doing it certainly causes no damage.

 

Avoid engine breaking cause by downshifting when coming to a stop. As xtreme350z stated, break pads are cheap replaceable items.
Remember and repeat after me in your best Germanic accent:
"Brakes for slow, engine for go".

 

Row through the gears downshift till 2nd, then stop in neutral

 

I dont row through the gears, just clutch wear, and all that.

stop with the brakes, it is there purpose, the most engine braking I do is SOMETIMES letting it coast in the gear Im in, but ussually not even that.

 

I chirp my tires often while downshifting into 3rd while braking before turns.. Kinda funny because its not fast enough to really take the engine rev'ing up.. but the agressive braking.. followed by engine braking will chirp 'em

 

Leaving the car in a high gear while slowing to a stop is harmful? I often leave it in whatever gear it was in and just brake until I throw it in neutral.

Anything wrong w/ this?

 

I almost always brake first, then down shift to an appropriate gear (usually 2nd) around 30 mph. Downshifting adds a little stopping power as I'm braking. If I come to a stop, I throw it into neutral; if not (light changes green before full stop, for example) I can just step on the gas and go.

On a side note:

For people who regularly throw it into neutral as soon as you start braking--that's not smart IMO. Coasting along at 35-40 mph in neutral can be dangerous because often you need to pick up speed quickly.

 

I never made a habit of putting my MTs into neutral while coasting to a stop. What if you needed to speed up suddenly, and couldn't get the car back into gear? Glancing in my rear view mirror as I do every minute or two, I leave the car in gear to try and escape from a rear ender if I can.

Example: In 1985 , my wife and I were leaving Prescott, Arizona heading south on a 2 lane road and it was lightly misting rain, a Dual-tired truck was following too close, so I tapped the brakes lightly to warn him he was getting too close. He backed off for a few minutes and we continued down the road where a lady(?) was stopped with her left blinker on. I slowed down in 2nd gear to start coming to a stop and put it in 1st gear when I stopped, guess what, the truck was not slowing down! I was watching him with my foot on the brake continuing to bear down on me and the lady stopped in front of me. When he was about to smash my 1984 Prelude with me and my wife between him and the lady's big Chevy Impala, I yelled, f**k this, turned onto the right shoulder in 1st gear and floored it. He hit the woman's car going at least 50mph while we were passing her on the shoulder and heard a LOUD crash.

My wife thought we had been hit and said stop the car, I want to look at the damage to my car. I told her we weren't hit, the idiot hit the poor woman's Chevy as we were accelerating past. OK, you can say poor lady and I agree, but if we were sandwiched between the Impala and the Dually, we would have been KILLED. No doubt about it, the little Prelude would have folded up from the rear and front and crushed us. The 84 Prelude weighed about 2400 lbs, the Impala about 4000lbs and the truck about 6000lbs. If I were in neutral, I couldn't have avoided being hit because the truck was about 30 FEET behind me, traveling at least 50mph, and shifting into gear would not have given me time to get out of the way because the truck smashed into her car while our car was BESIDE hers.

Coasting to a stop in neutral is NEVER a good idea, much less making a habit of it. If I had the habit in 1985, my wife and I would be DEAD. Don't try and say your reflexes would have saved you, because nobody could have shifted that fast, under a second, and gotten out of the way. BTW, 18 yrs ago, I had excellent reflexes, and there is no possibility I could have escaped the crash if I had to shift into 1st gear AND turn onto the shoulder. Anybody who thinks they could before the truck hit us is ********ting him/herself. There wasn't time for 2 actions, only 1, and I took it successfully because I was in 1st gear, not in neutral.

Those of you who ride motorcycles know what I mean, you don't have time to think, you react as fast as you can and thats it.

Boomer--my opinion, use it or lose it, its your funeral.

P.S. Don't bother tapping the brakes if someone is really too close, use your hazard lights so you don't have to slow your car down and let them run into you.

 

clutch in, keep it in gear, tho I doubt Im gonna catch it and take off, if Im slowin down, probably because theres something in front of me...

in my truck I went off the road 3 times to avoid a rear end, but cant do that in the Z. either drive into the back of the guy in front of me, drive into oncoming traffic, or take a curb. none of which are ideal.

 

If you take a curb, all you're out is money, depending on your insurance. The alternatives are unacceptable. My wife and I were lucky.

 

There is nothing wrong with slowing down using engine compression. It puts no more wear and tear on the clutch and transmission than driving down the road does. If you're driving down a long decline, you folks in mountainous areas know what I'm refering to, do you put it in neutral and ride the brakes or do you leave it in gear and allow engine braking to help control your speed? I hope you're doing the later. As I said, it doesn't hurt the clutch or transmission and it goes a long way toward saving the brakes for when you really need them. I wound up behind a lady coming down from Slumgullium (sp?) Pass in Colorado a few years ago. We could smell her brakes five miles before we caught up with her, she was burning them that badly. NOT a good thing.

There's also nothing wrong with slipping into neutral as you're coming to a stop and then slipping into first gear. Having said that, it's NOT a good idea, as someone else pointed out, to slip into neutral at 40 mph (give or take) and coast down with the brakes. If you need to accelerate again, you've got to find the correct gear and that can take time you may not have, depending on the circumstances. You're much better off downshifting to the appropriate gear as you slow down. If you're using a proper technique with the clutch and throttle, there will be minimal added stress put on the drive train and synchronizers.

Drive Safe,
Steve R.