what is the purpose of the neutral gear in cars, when is it to be used when driving, do you save fuel if used?

Question

i want know cos i use to let my car roll downhills in neutral and when am in top speed or about braking but i hear its not good to do so

Answer 1

Ummmm....... without a neutral gear, you could never let the vehicle just sit there at idle without keeping your foot on the clutch.

Answer 2

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First off, it's illegal in most states. Driving without being in a gear prevents you from accelerating during an evasive maneuver. But to answer your question, it really depends on whether your vehicle has an overdrive and fuel injection. In overdrive, the transmission doesn't provide any engine braking--it's coasting down hills. That can be a bad thing if you're driving on ice where you want engine braking to give you more control. However, once it slows to the point where it drops out of overdrive, then it DOES provide engine braking. You assume that because it's kicking up RPMS downhill, that you're using more gas. In a carbureted non-computer controlled vehicle that would be true. But it's not true in a fuel injected vehicle. The computer is getting it's input from the throttle position sensor and the MAP or MAF sensor. All those sensors would tell the computer that you've taken your foot off the gas, or at least back off. The computer would then turn off the fuel injectors until it sees you apply more throttle. Putting the vehicle in neutral during this period of downhill driving eliminates engine braking. But since the engine isn't using any (or much) fuel at that point, it's not saving you much money. What you ARE doing, however, is unnecessarily cycling all the clutch packs in your transmission on and off. Whatever you save in gas you will spend 10X that in premature transmission repair costs. Drive the car like it's supposed to be driven--in gear. If you want better gas mileage, buy a more fuel efficient car.

Answer 3

In simple language, when the car is in neutral gear, the engine is disengaged from the wheels. When you stop at a signal with the engine running, you have to put he car in neutral, because you don't want the wheels to turn at that time.

Driving a car downhill in neutral may save an insignificant amount of fuel, but it is risky, because there is a danger that the car may accelerate due to its own weight and go out of control. Believe me, even applying brakes in such a situation cannot control the car effectively. Even on level roads, where there is no danger of the car accelerating, you Will find that he braking distance increases significantly when you are driving in neutral. If, normally, your car stops within 30 meters, you will find that when you are driving in neutral at the same speed, it will travel considerably more before stopping.

I would say that it is not worth risking your life - and probably others' as well - just to save on a few drops of petrol. I have been driving now for several decades, but I never drive in neutral gear, even on level roads.

Answer 4

Neutral Gear

Answer 5

1) it is illegal in most states 2) It takes some control away from the car, especially when you're on a surface that is not dry 3) It's possible to forget you're in nuetral and either slide it into park or race the engine thinking you're in drive 4) the engine braking effect actually helps you maintain control and have less wear and tear on the brakes 5) you have no control over the car in an emergency 6) the car is still turning over at idle, and coming down the hill with your transmission engaged, the car is still in idle - you're not saving as much as you think 7) the rear seal of the transmission is not being properly lubricated when you're in idle and the drive shaft is engaged. This is one of the reasons a rear wheel drive vehicle should not be towed great distances. All in all, your friend is correct. Just let the engine idle as you come to a traffic control device that requires you to stop.

Answer 6

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RE:
what is the purpose of the neutral gear in cars, when is it to be used when driving, do you save fuel if used?
i want know cos i use to let my car roll downhills in neutral and when am in top speed or about braking but i hear its not good to do so

Answer 7

The short answer is that neutral exists to let the motor idle and buffer the next gear shift. You should have the vehicle in gear while in motion for two basic reasons. Safety requires being in control at all times while in motion and neutral prevents that.
Neutral exists also to move vehicle when drivetrain power is off. This is where the long answer begins; you must immediately contact the mechanic(s) who service gearing to report your previous habits. Don't let your SHAME kill customers later.

Answer 8

Neutral gear means load of gearbox is not taken by the engine. Therefore the engine easily attains the idle-set speed. All vehicles are designed in such a way that they can be safely parked at any inclination provided they are kept in any gear; except the neutral gear. Therefore if the car is rolled in down hills in neutral gear it can't be stopped only by brakes & when the car is in speed, engaging to another gear is impossible, hence any car should not be moved in downhills on neutral gear; it is not safe as it has no control over it.

Answer 9

Nuetral was meant for sitting for periods of time, where it would be work to hold the brakes or hold the clutch and the brakes.
Nuetral helps when having to puch the car if you run out of gas.
Nuetral is used when towing.
Nuetral is BADBADBAD for coasting.
What happens is the gears are spinning in the transmission, but the primary gear is not spinning, so there is no transmission fluid getting sloshed around to help keep the bearings lubricated. Not Good, don't do it!

Answer 10

You shouldn't use neutral when driving. With your engine disengaged from the rest of the drivetrain, you are lacking a major control of your car's speed, relying on the brakes alone. The risks you are taking are either damaging your brakes, or damaging your engine and/or transmission because the car may be going too fast or too slow when you re-engage a drive gear.
Your engine does burn slightly less fuel when the transmission is in neutral, but the savings is negligible, are not worth the potential danger you could be putting your car (or yourself) in.

Answer 11

The Neutral gear is used only for starting your car or idling. In most states it is illegal to use your neutral gear while driving. That is called "coasting".