hi guys, this may seem like a stupid question, but does it damage the gear box or the engine parts etc when i stop the car by pressing on the brake while the gear is still on "D" for auto transmission cars?? I have the habit of switching to neutral gear whenever my car is not moving even when i'm waiting for the traffic light or car is not moving when i'm stuck in the traffic. but however my car is stolen and thus i'll be driving my dad's old '08 civic and he never switch to neutral gear whenever the car stops. will this damage any engine parts or gear box???

yup, surely, mostly the brake pad!

nope, no damage unless you let go of the brake pedal without noticing and crashing into the car infront.

the torque converter continues to spin but nothing is worn as only hydraulic fluid is being pumped around causing no wear

actually pushing to D and N often causes more damage as the clutch packs and valve body is used a lot more, having to switch constantly from D to N defeats te purpose of a auto gearbox.

just keep enough pressure on the brake pedal

thanks for the reply and info, i always thought this would damage the engine and maybe consuming more petrol when not switching to N gear while the car is not moving because before that i was driving an old saga and the car vibrates vigorously while car is not moving and still on D gear.

it can't consume any more than what the idle setting is allowing, if the engine mounting is broken it will also vibrate like hell

Your engine will be under stress without make it neutral..

It's ok. In D, the torque converter kept spinning fluid around the GB effectively cooling it down. In N, fluid will heat up.

err... It's the other way around la...

The fluid circulate as long as the engine is running ler... It's hotter in D

It consumes more cause the engine is having to push harder not to stall cause it is trying to move the car forward.

All auto transmission cars will disconnect the clutch/ torque convertor once it detects it is completely stopped and the brake is still pressed. Keep changing between n and d damages the gearbox faster than just pressing on the brake pedal.
I have friends driving same car where 1 will also change to n while waiting while the other just pressed on the brake. In the end the one who keeps changing to n need to change gearbox earlier.

I really didnt know that...

INM I heard CVT is not good if brake in Gear D....as well as DSG? True?

I believe quite so for CVT....since they are not EXACTLY conventional AT

But interesting topic though...since is related to good caring of the sensitive and 2nd most expensive component of the car after engine

All AT? CVT n DSG leh?

Serious? Wat car? locol or jdm or conti? tq

u sure that's not a typo error...

The torque converter is directly bolted to the engine flywheel, there is no such thing as disconnected, unless you're removing the engine / gearbox from the car.

Oh dear. I am one of those guys who always change to N whenever the car fully stops. If this damages the gearbox faster, then I might as well waste some fuel on D rather than spend thousands for a gearbox replacement later ...

Seen on jazz 08 and toyota altis. One should be cvt and the other is 4at.

U really mean both friends drive jazz and altis...n the one shift more D<->N GB kong earlier?

mebe the fren who shift more forgot to change GB oil

My 8.5yo City also No problem. I m a frequent shifter...

I read here:

http://www.topgear.com.ph/features/columns...uck-in-traffic#

Hi, Ferman!

I recently bought a Toyota Vios 1.5 equipped with a four-speed automatic transmission. I have a habit of shifting to neutral during stop-and-go traffic conditions and while waiting for the light to go green.

My question is: will this have a bad effect on my transmission? I feel like leaving the gear set to D during traffic consumes more fuel and might place additional stress on the brakes because it is trying to stop the car constantly. Is this true as well?

I used to drive a Lancer 1.6 equipped with CVT. I never really had a problem with the transmission despite doing the same thing. But I've read that CVT is different from a traditional automatic transmission, which the Vios has. I'm really wondering if this driving habit is good for my car or not.

Thank you very much for reading this letter.

Regards,

Dennis

Hi Dennis,

What you are doing is correct.

Quite a number of drivers, particularly the ones who picked up bad driving habits from other drivers who didn't know any better, often practice improper driving by not shifting to neutral when the car is not moving. While I would like to tell you that there is a good reason (under normal circumstances) for keeping it in D and stepping on the brakes at a stop, I can't. It's mostly born out of laziness and improper training.

As you have correctly surmised, the engine does consume more fuel and you do wear down your brake-system components more when you leave your transmission in D or Drive while the traffic light is red or when you’re idling and waiting.

With automatic transmissions, the engine is energizing or driving the transmission to move in the direction of the gear you've selected--forward or reverse. When you keep it in gear, you are telling your vehicle to move; when you're on the brakes, you're preventing motion. You're unnecessarily and slowly raising your automatic transmission fluid, wearing out your transmission clutches, and consuming more fuel because you're on the brakes to keep the car from inching forward. You're also unnecessarily wearing down and heating up your brake pads. By simply shifting to N or neutral there would be no need to apply the brakes with the amount of force required to resist forward motion.

If you notice all of the above result in unnecessary wear, all of which increase the cost of operating and maintaining your vehicle. It's also a very unsafe practice as if you happen to accidentally lift your foot off the brake, you will most likely get into an accident.

While we're on the subject of automatic transmissions, it is also a very bad habit to shift into P or Park when you're at a stoplight. Numerous drivers have adopted the practice as well and, quite frankly, it is also an accident waiting to happen apart from slowing damaging a different part of your transmission, which will eventually lead to the a different sort of automatic transmission failure.

It won't matter if your car has CVT or the conventional multi-speed automatic transmission. Shifting to neutral under most normal conditions is good practice.

Best regards,

Ferman Lao
Tech editor

Thanks. Pls contribute more links/reading material pls...I often googled for littlest shit, time to relax and let the young ppl google for me to read only Tx





This post has been edited by wayfeel: Dec 28 2013, 11:50 PM

Ok take that when you change to n. The ecu will tell the transmission to be disconnected, when you keep changing mode. The transmission will keep changing also, at the end it strains the ecu and the transmission, wears it out faster too right?
Which one more costly to replace? Brakes or transmission?

This post has been edited by DonMe: Dec 28 2013, 11:55 PM

Well I would do say it also depends on the atf used and the driving condition.