Quote:
Originally Posted by Thymeclock
Let's say there is no traffic and you are driving along a long block with a stop sign at the end. Accelerate briskly enough to cover the distance needed to coast, then shift it into neutral and coast to the stop sign. However don't do this when approaching a red signal, because if the light turns green your shifting back into drive at speeds of over 10 MPH might damage your tranny.
That's about all you can do with an automatic without putting it at risk.
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Rats. I thought I was the first one to discover those tricks...
I have been able to achieve about 32 in town using these and other fuel conservation tricks, compared to my all-time record highway trip MPG of 38 (thank you, no applause necessary). It never fails to amaze me when I see other drivers accelerate to get right on my bumper on a descending highway on-ramp, just to hit the brakes for the corner ahead, as I merrily coast along at 25 MPH or so
. It just goes to show how inefficient the standard driving style in this country really is.
I shift in and out neutral at 70 MPH all the time, it gets me some good time at over 120 MPG on a good stretch of highway exit lane. There is definitely some skill involved though. From steady-state cruise, lift your foot off the throttle. The trick is to shift to neutral at the exact moment that the engine crosses the RPM that would match the transmission if the TC were locked (about 1500 for my car), Scangauge comes in handy for this purpose. This is usually about a second or two delay as RPM momentarily increases as the TC unlocks, then slowly drifts down toward idle. If you catch it at just the right time, you can't even feel the change. Shift before and you'll feel the car lurch backward because the engine was still providing forward power, shift after and you'll feel the car lurch forward because the engine was providing engine braking.
Shifting back into overdrive is pretty basic for the most part, just shift to drive and the PCM will automatically find the right gear and (relatively) smoothly engage it. However, I like to try to match the speed at it engages, so as to further prevent wear and tear. Shift to D, and immediately apply
VERY light throttle, this will spin the engine up just enough to match the transmission. It takes about a second at cruise to engage. This is tricky to master, too much throttle causes the transmission to "slam" into gear (not good).
I have found that below about 35 MPH, there is no engine braking effect whatsoever with the transmission in drive - in fact it actually pushes the car a bit - and fuel consumption and MPG are comparable to coasting in neutral. So the only time I shift to neutral below this speed is when I know that I will be coming to a complete stop, otherwise it's just excess wear and tear. Also, after coasting down from cruise speed to a stop sign or light where I will only be stopped for a short time, I pop the gear back into D at about 10-15 MPH. It will smoothly reengage at that speed, rather than coming to a complete stop and getting the typical automatic "clunk" when shifting into gear.