What gear should an automatic car be in when reversing?

[Gonçalves]

When an automatic car is stopped at a red light: If the expected wait time is less than 30 seconds, keep it in D gear + foot brake; if the expected wait time is more than 30 seconds, shift to N gear + handbrake; if the expected wait time is more than 2 minutes, shift to N gear + handbrake + turn off the engine. More details on gear selection when stopped at a red light are as follows: 1. Consider the waiting time. If it's less than 30 seconds, simply press the brake and keep the car in D gear. 2. If the wait is longer than 30 seconds, shifting to N gear is a more reasonable choice, and use the handbrake if on a slope (there's no need to shift to P gear). 3. The most reasonable way to handle gear selection at a red light is to shift to N gear and engage the handbrake, which applies to both manual and automatic cars. However, we should still be flexible in different situations. If the red light is very short, there's no need to shift to neutral—just keep it in D gear and brake gently.