Hi, if someone out there knows whether it is okay to change from D to N at the lights all the time is okay for the life of the Auto Gear Box?

Does it wear it more by changing it to N while stationary? or should I leave it in D?

I don't rev the engine before take off, in case you're wondering, I let it click into gear before I on pedal.

i think in the manual for the car it says not to keep the car in drive for a prolonged ammount of time standing still: put it in nutral or park!

In my opinion i think its ok?

Well thats what the book says?

Sounds like a good habit to me. The auto has been known to head west due to pressure or heat build up. This over a long time can cause problems. A mate who's a mechanic said that they should be stuck into neutral while not needed in drive.

well if you read in the manual, it says to shift to neutral during long waits. that's what i do. but from what i know, don't do it everytime you come to a stop. because afterall the autobox was designed for convenience. if you had to shift it to neutral everytime to prolong its life, then why the hell will they invent the auto?

There are some autos (dont think they're in magnas) that have what's called a Neutral Idle. So as soon as you're idle it shifts to neutral

It increases fuel economy as well. When you are stationary in drive, the engine is under load trying to push the car forward, thats why you need to keep your foot on the brake, obviously when in neutral the engine isn't under load so it will use less fuel.
Throw it into neutral everytime you stop, better for your car and your pocket cause it all adds up in the long run

i think it might wear more at the end of the day by constantly shifting from N to D. it's like turning your engine on and off everytime... well not that bad... but the idea's there.

i think it might wear more at the end of the day by constantly shifting from N to D. it's like turning your engine on and off everytime... well not that bad... but the idea's there.

No it wont be more wear. It'd be more wear from sitting at idle in D with your foot on the brake because the car is trying to move forward and the gearbox is trying to move the wheels.

i do this , the only thing that pisses me off is when you miss the lights changing and have to wait that fraction longer to get going. or you rev the car out and then slam it in gear which would probably be bad for the auto :P

ususally,

i just shift in neutral when i go down hills etc and sometimes at the lights, such a smooth idle

ususally,

i just shift in neutral when i go down hills etc and sometimes at the lights, such a smooth idle

i thought puttin it in N while driving was bad.

[quote:7db1bd62ce="MethoD1"]ususally,

i just shift in neutral when i go down hills etc and sometimes at the lights, such a smooth idle

i thought puttin it in N while driving was bad.[/quote:7db1bd62ce]
just as bad as putting your foot on the clutch all the way down a hill in a manual

just as bad as putting your foot on the clutch all the way down a hill in a manual

Is that bad? I didn't think it would be mechanically bad, just dodgy driving.

Running down hill in neutral is called running in angel gear as yo will soon be with the angels if you do that as the engine is designed to do some of the braking.
SHould move to melbourne so I can do your brakes avery few months when you wear them out lol
The Magna's have a system where they retard the timing on the engine and also select second while stationary at lights etc so there is little drag. SHifting in to neutral or leaving in gear will make absolutly NO difference in economy at all.

and seeing its a fairly new car i doubt youd be seeing an effects either way unless you were planning on driving it for the next say 30 years?

and seeing its a fairly new car i doubt youd be seeing an effects either way unless you were planning on driving it for the next say 30 years?

magwgn.

I tried to delete your multiple post, but it just deleted all of them, not just one.

Sorry! :(

I didnt know it would do that!

hey i tried to post that and a warning popped up saying sending failed debug mode, so i tried again, same thing. then i go out, come back in and its posted three times. whats going on?

two are still there, but when i posted that last one it happened again, but it still came up. whats happeneing?

I dunno what's happening mate, sorry again about deleting it.

I've emailed Blake to see whats wrong, I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

I dunno what's happening mate, sorry again about deleting it.

I've emailed Blake to see whats wrong, I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

i do it all the time it shouldn'e do anything to the gear box.

[quote:66593eabaf="gauss07"]i think it might wear more at the end of the day by constantly shifting from N to D. it's like turning your engine on and off everytime... well not that bad... but the idea's there.

No it wont be more wear. It'd be more wear from sitting at idle in D with your foot on the brake because the car is trying to move forward and the gearbox is trying to move the wheels.[/quote:66593eabaf]

from what i understand about the gearboxes it would cause more wear putting it from n to d all the time because it has to actually apply and release a clutch on the planetary gearset, where if you were sitting in D at the lights your torque converter is actually taking the load (like a big fluid pump thing) - theres a really interesting article about how torque converters work at http://auto.howstuffworks.com/torque-converter.htm

cheers

If it causes more wear then why would manufacturers be making auto gearboxes with neutral idles?

If it causes more wear then why would manufacturers be making auto gearboxes with neutral idles?

Just for our convenience, so we don't have to brake whilst sitting still. I think.

Safety, to an extent too. In a manual, you shift into neutral, while standing still at the lights, and leave the clutch out. At least I did/do with manuals. But if in an Auto, you accidentally move your foot off the brake, you move forward! into another car?

I have always left it in D. Except in an old Falcon where it idled so bady whilst stopped in D, that I moved it into N to stop the shaking! :D

But if your car goes into neutral and you're sitting at the lights...you should have the brake on anyway...

You *should* be sitting at the lights with the brakes on all the time. It shifts into neutral to stop the car trying to push the car forward when under brakes.

I think that if it's in neutral, you're supposed to have your handbrake on anyway.

If it causes more wear then why would manufacturers be making auto gearboxes with neutral idles?

because it may not actually be a true neutral - they might just do something to the torque converter so when you are idling it doesnt pull forward constantly - who knows..
all i understand though is when changing from N to D a clutch band thingy has to clamp around the planetary gearset, engaging the gear.. if you constantly change from N to D then you are wearing away the friction material on the band..
if you leave it in D, then the pulling forward and braking thing isnt like a manual with the clutch out a little bit where you are wearing away friction material, its like a fluid pump where the movement of the fluid in the torque converter is taking up the energy, therefore not wearing away any friction material..

i know what you are saying about why some manufacturers move into N - there arent many cars that i know of that actually do that, but who knows - it may not ACTUALLY move into N, it might be something to do with the torque converter so the engine doesnt pull the wheels when idling..
i see it as illogical that a manufacturer would make a gearbox move to N everytime you stopped considering the lag of tightening the band and applying power to the wheels everytime you took off...

Fair enough...I'll admit I don't know exactly how neutral idle works so I'm prepared to stand corrected.

I'll see if I can find out how it works so we all know

Not sure about normal auto's, but semi-automatic trannies automatically disengage the clutch when the car is at a stop, and quicklly engage it once the throtle is used.

Hey All, Thanks for all of your helpful input.

I may leave it in D now, as I can take off faster anyway.

When I was taught to drive years ago we were always taught that you should bein neutral with foot brake and handbrake when stopped. This was for auto and manual.

I think Handbrake is a bit extreme :roll:

but i guess different instructors teach differently.

at one stage during my learners, I came across a red light that was on a hill, so had to stop, however, didn't use the brakes but instead just let the car rolled up hill until it stopped and was in 1st gear, slowly lifted to friction point again, so the car won't roll back. Gosh, the instructor had a go at me! LOL... what was my excuse; "My Dad taught me to do that" HAHA...