Guys,
anytime I come to stop for more than let's say 10 secs I shift the gear into neutral. I also sometime do it when I am approaching a traffic light at about 30mph which has just turned red .

Is this driving style bad for the transmission?

Greenbat

 

Assuming you have an autobox. Bad. Especially if you have the ZF box.

Please follow this:

 

Thanks for the reply jagv8. Why is it bad?

I have also tried the link on your signature and I get this error. I have activated my account obviously.


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You just might not have enough posts to see that thread - some features of the site require 10 posts - so keep posting! Also - please provide the details of your vehicle - year, engine, etc. This is really important to provide with your questions so that forum members have enough info to answer your questions accurately. Put it in your sig is a good way to always have those critical details shown.

Don't bother with the shifting into neutral bit - no gain to it and you are just inviting something bad to happen.

 

What would your intentions be by shifting to neutral, better mpg?

 

That would be my guess as to why he would do that. But if you just let the vehicle decelerate on its own, you don't really consume any fuel anyway.

 

Thanks guys for all the replies. Signature updated.

1st ever automatic car, all previous have been manual. I guess the reasons are 2 fold.
1. better mpg
2. protect the clutch (as you would with a manual car)

What is the best practice then? Leave in P with park brake?

Greenbat

 

You got the sig updated fine!

Changing to N or P makes various things move/wear more. Any mpg saving is going to be incredibly tiny, especially if you read up on the ZF. Search will get you previous threads on this if you really want to read more, and google will get you far more.

An autobox like the ZF is quite a bit different to a manual so don't assume it behaves like one.

By all means use the EPB but whether it's reliable enough I'm not convinced.

 

^ Agreed. I don't even bother with the EPB unless parked on an incline. You don't need to protect the torque converter in the slushbox and this method really wouldn't do that anyway. You won't get better MPG by shifting out of Drive.

You get to a red light, just keep foot on the brake and car in Drive. Resist the urge to keep the car static on an hill by using only the throttle though, that will stress then driveline. Just use the brakes.

Thanks for updating your sig! And welcome to the forum!

 

Bad.

 

I will sometimes shift to neutral if I am at a traffic light I know to be a r.e.a.l.l.y long one. During these hot South Carolina summers, I always believed the higher revs of neutral helped the A.C. compressor operate more efficiently, thereby keeping me cooler...

Still bad?

 

I am new to the STR, and also having the current MPG displayed on my dash. With the new info to my disposal I am obsessed with maximizing my MPG (when I don't feal like a being a lead foot). Since I am about 70/30 street/highway I try to find acceleration and stopping patterns that maximize my gas. It seems that putting off the line slower than the all the others next to you actually uses more gas, as compared to accelerating with normal to above normal acceleration and just letting the Jag and nitrous tires do the work. Any input or thoughts on the habit... or general MPG efficiency including the use of Sport?

 

Nitrous tires! Better be careful with those. LOL...

Internal combustion engines operate most efficiently at WOT, may explain some of the instant MPG readings you see. Less braking would probably go a long way toward maximizing fuel economy. I would just keep pace with traffic as far as accelerating.

If the car's AC isn't keeping up with cooling needs at idle (in D), then you may want to have your cooling system checked to make sure you have the apprppriate amount of R-134A.