Is flooring the accelerator harmful to the car?
2 Answers
Flooring the accelerator is harmful to the car. Flooring the accelerator means pressing the throttle all the way down, essentially driving with the pedal to the floor. Although flooring the accelerator won't directly damage the engine or cause any immediate malfunctions, it does increase additional wear and tear on the engine, adding unnecessary strain. Driving under such conditions causes the engine RPM to surge and the vehicle speed to suddenly increase, which is very damaging to the car. Flooring the accelerator can also lead to a phenomenon where the car drifts to one side even when the steering wheel is not moved. This drifting occurs due to the strong instantaneous power output from flooring the accelerator, causing "torque steer," which is a normal phenomenon.
I've been repairing cars for nearly 20 years and have encountered many vehicles with issues caused by frequent flooring of the accelerator. Although slamming the pedal to the metal gives you a strong sense of acceleration, it suddenly puts immense pressure on the engine and transmission, easily overloading and deforming critical components like connecting rods and piston rings. Doing this often in an automatic transmission car can also wear out the transmission seals, leading to hydraulic system leaks, and instantaneous fuel consumption can skyrocket to more than three times the normal rate. Long-term operation like this can cause severe carbon buildup in the engine and premature aging of the catalytic converter. I've seen cases where a new car needed a complete engine mount replacement within just six months because the rubber dampeners were all cracked from aggressive flooring. It's advisable to avoid launch starts in city driving, and if you really want to experience it, wait until the coolant temperature reaches 90 degrees before trying.
