Quote:
Originally Posted by GeneralAnarchy
Perhaps not if it charges while decelerating and coasting downhills faster than you'd like. A mercury switch controlling a relay should capture "free" energy to some extent. Or more conservatively, a brake pedal circuit. Better the drivetrain forces the engine to spin and alternator to charge as much as possible, than all the kinetic energy turns to brake dust.
|
I've kind of tried this, manually. Leave car in gear for a downhill coast to charge the battery. Unless the hill is very steep, you lose too much speed if in gear with the clutch engaged. On my somewhat hilly commute on "limited access" roads (pretty much like an interstate), I more or less maintain speed on the steeper downhill coasts, with tranny in neutral. If in top gear, the coast ends pretty soon and I need fuel to complete the downhill.
Another concern is that my engine still has some issues with fuel cut coasts in gear. Every now and then that type situation will throw a CEL with code P0401: Exhaust Gas Recirculation Flow Insufficient Detected. I know there are fixes for this but haven't been able to get to it yet.