Will the car roll when in neutral gear?
3 Answers
When in neutral gear, the car may roll because there is no braking force or traction. Therefore, if you need to park for an extended period, you should engage the handbrake. Additional information: 1. Precautions: For automatic transmission vehicles, the gear must and can only be in P (Park) or N (Neutral) when starting the engine. This is because if the gear is in reverse or drive when starting, and the driver forgets to press the brake, the vehicle may move immediately, which can easily lead to accidents. Many manufacturers now design a protection program for automatic transmission vehicles, meaning the vehicle will not start if the gear is not in P or N. 2. Hazards of coasting in neutral with an automatic transmission: Automatic transmission vehicles should not coast in neutral. The mechanical principles of automatic and manual transmissions differ. When coasting, the engine speed and transmission speed may not match, which can cause overheating. No type of automatic transmission should be coasted in N (Neutral), as it can easily damage the transmission.
Putting the car in neutral can indeed cause it to roll, especially on slopes. Having driven a manual transmission for over a decade, I dread being honked at when stuck in traffic on an incline. The moment you shift to neutral and release the foot brake, the car slides backward like it's on a slide, startling the car behind into honking incessantly. In such situations, you either have to keep pressing the foot brake (which tires your leg) or engage the handbrake while waiting to start. Here's a practical tip: when parking on a steep slope, it's best to turn the wheels slightly so that if the car rolls, the wheels will hit the curb. Automatic transmissions aren't much better—even though the P (Park) position has a locking mechanism, shifting to neutral on a slope will still cause the car to roll.
As a car owner who loves to delve into mechanical principles, I've specifically tested the issue of coasting in neutral. On a level road, the car barely moves when in neutral, but even a slight slope makes a difference. The main reason is that with the transmission disconnected, only tire friction is left to counteract gravity. Interestingly, a fully loaded car is more prone to rolling than an empty one, as the increased weight amplifies the downhill component on a slope. I remember once unloading on a 2-degree incline—the car rolled over three meters without the handbrake engaged. Now I always engage the handbrake when parking, and with manual transmissions, I additionally leave it in first gear for extra security.
