Is it bad to change between the Drive gear and Neutral gear while driving?

Question

I have a Hyundai Elantra with automatic transmission.

Answer 1

Jeremy, the other folks are full of you know what. If one is going to answer a question, they need to know the answer. No, shifting from drive to neutral or neutral to drive while in motion won't hurt a thing. The only way you could do any damage would be to be in neutral, rev the engine way up and put it in drive (or any other gear). You'd get a big jerk and a loud clunk which would stress the drivetrain. If you're coasting in neutral at a slower speed, shift into drive and don't worry. If you're coasting at a higher speed, say 30+ mph, rev the engine up to the speed it would normally be turning before putting it into drive. What IS hard on a transmission is to be stopped in traffic and you set there forever with it in gear and your foot on the brake. This causes the oil in the tranny to get hot.

Put very simply, the automatic transmission works by one fluted device attached to the engine throwing oil onto another fluted device attached to the transmission shaft. When idling, little oil is being thrown onto the transmission side and thus the car wants to creep forward slightly. Rev it up, more oil is thrown and the tranny starts turning. Think of it like a garden hose, squirt a little water against your hand and you barely feel it, turn up the pressure and you feel the energy. When stopped in traffic in drive, the oil it being thrown around and since it can't turn the tranny, the energy of the moving oil is turned into heat. Shifting into neutral lets the oil turn the tranny side but you don't go forward since the transmission gears aren't engaged. Since things can move, no heat is produced by the moving oil.

Answer 2

So far from what I have read, everybody is telling you that you are right or wrong, but not what is happening to the car so you can make your own decision. When you have the clutch pedal I, you are moving an actuator similar to a fork, that presses a bearing (clutch bearing) down on the fingers of the pressure plate. The pressure plate is what captures the clutch plate by pressing it against the fly wheel (back of the engine) and transmits the power to the transmission. While you are pressing the clutch pedal down, the bearing is carrying all of the forces and at the same time spinning at the same rate of the engine. Here is what your husband is worried about, the bearing is not meant for continual pressure and the lubricants in it will not take the amount of heat developed. The bearing can freeze up and when it happens it can either tear up the actuating fork or the fingers on the pressure plate, either of these will make it so you can not use the clutch and will be expensive. With that being said if you expect the light to be short, 5 to 10 seconds, go ahead and keep the clutch in but if you figure you will be there for more than 10 seconds, let it rest.

Answer 3

In any car, automatic or manual, the gear box remains in constant contact with the engine system.

On an automatic, when you are in Drive mode, you have engaged the Drive gear. In case you suddenly change to Neutral without the car coming to rest, the gearbox comes under tremendous strain and could even get damaged permanently without any hope of repair.

On a manual car, you change gears only after engaging the Clutch which effectively temporarily disengages the gear system from the engine system, while the gear is being changed.

Simple rule to be always remembered:
Automatic car: Change gears ONLY when car speed is ZERO.
Manual car: Change gears ONLY when clutch is engaged.

Answer 4

yes, it is. automatics are made to stay in gear at all times.

Answer 5

yeah it can damage ur car

Answer 6

it might, try sropping first befor shifting