Is Coasting in Neutral Gear Good for Cars?
2 Answers
Coasting in neutral gear is not good for cars. It not only fails to achieve fuel-saving effects but also causes significant wear to components such as the clutch and gears. Most importantly, coasting in neutral gear poses considerable safety risks. More details about coasting in neutral gear are as follows: 1. Coasting with gear engaged, commonly referred to as engine braking, maintains a power connection between the engine and the drive wheels. 2. The primary reason for not advocating coasting in neutral gear is for driving safety. Once the gearshift is placed in neutral for coasting, the drive wheels lose their driving force, and the power connection between the engine and the drive wheels is severed. The car relies solely on its own inertia to move forward. In case of an emergency requiring braking, all braking force must be provided by the braking system alone, which has limited braking capacity.
I often see people shifting to neutral in advance at intersections to save fuel, to be honest, this habit is really not good. The biggest problem with coasting in neutral is the safety hazard, especially on downhill sections where the engine loses its braking effect, forcing the brake pads to bear all the load, which can easily lead to overheating and failure of the braking system. Moreover, modern fuel-injected engines actually cut off fuel supply when coasting in gear, making it more fuel-efficient than idling. As for automatic transmissions, coasting in neutral puts a lot of stress on the planetary gears inside the transmission, and repairing it can be very costly. If you want to save fuel, it's better to regularly check tire pressure and air filters—this is much more reliable than risky coasting.
