2007-03-05 00:54:21 · 4 answers · asked by MRT 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Other - Cars & Transportation
Overdrive is just the "highest" gear in an automatic transmission. it's called over drive because of the gear ratio. In lower gears the engine is spinning faster than the wheels are. 1st gear might be as low as 4 or 5 to 1. meaning the engine rotates 4 times for every one rotation of the wheels. As you go up in gears this ratio decreases. In a car with 5 gears what you typically see is 4th gear at a 1:1 ratio and 5th gear is the "over drive" gear where the wheels actually move faster than the engine. Something like .7 or .8 to one. Meaning the engine turns only .7 times for every full turn of the wheels.
Over drive is good for highway crusing because it allows your engine to spin more slowly and you end up using less fuel.
L is for Low range. All it does is prevent the engine from going above a certain gear. You genearlly don't want to use this unless there is a reason. Sometimes L means that the car will not even shift out of 1st gear.
2007-03-05 01:05:00 · answer #1 · answered by Louis G 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
L is for Low. It provides a lower gear ration with more torque. It is used for pulling heavy loads and climbing hills.
Overdrive is a higher gear ratio and generally give higher top speed and better fuel economy at lower speeds.
2007-03-05 01:03:03 · answer #2 · answered by David V 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
OD is to save fuel and wear, low is to force it to stay in low gear
2007-03-05 01:03:29 · answer #3 · answered by occluderx 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Passing cars and climbing hills.
2007-03-05 01:13:28 · answer #4 · answered by ezbxxx 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋