- OK, i know it ain't a manual, and you shouldn't shift auto's. But is it a bad thing to hold a gear? like if i am at a stop sign and put it into 1st (while stopped)and take off, and let the RPM's rise to about 4ish( or what is a safe RPM?) and let off the gas and let it back down and then get it on it slowly again. Is this a bad thing to do? cuz i kinda like letting the car be heard cuz i love the way the hooker sounds when you let off it and it backs down. i just got to show what i got to all these awsome Trans Am's around . gotta love a loud trans am.

- Another thing, what is a good high way rpm range? when i am on the highway i like to just keep it in D (drive). prolly like 3,000 RPM's rolleyes: ( not exactly sure). I like it cuz they car is a little louder, and it got a little more pull when i want it.

 

well, letting it back down after that is slowly burning up your clutch packs IIRC
i know you like the sound but, i would be prepared to replace burnt clutch packs in the long run

if you're in drive on the highway, you're in 3rd gear (it won't shift to 4th in drive and that's why it pulls harder)
(D) aka overdrive, is gonna let you shift into 4th and save some precious gas mileage (trust me, i've stayed in drive and watched my gas run out a whole lot quicker)
i'd say if you need a little more umph, so to speak, shift into drive then once you're done a) showing off b) racing c) just passing (which i think all 3 are justifiable ) then just shift into overdrive and save some trips to the gas station

hope that helps

 

hey thanks a lot man, so keeping it in D on the highway isn't bad on the tranny, just gas milage? jsut making sure... yah i won't do that 1st thing anymore, unless there are some lady's out HAHAHA . i got a tranny temp gauge, what is a good temp for the tranny to be at? what temp should i start to worry at? just curious..... thnaks in advance

 

There is absolutely no problem I can see with driving in 3rd (drive) on the highway, since the old TH350's and TH400's never even had a 4th gear in them!

And as far as holding the tranny in 1st and accelerating/decelerating, I don't see how this would burn up the clutches (that would mean the tranny is slipping, right? ) but it would probably create more heat in the tranny, and over time, heat is the killer of automatic trannies.

Maybe I'm going to pay for how I drive one day too, but I hold the tranny in 1st occasionally, and I always drive on the highway in 3rd (upto ~70 mph) because I like the way the power is instant when you hit the gas too.

 

yah me to... love the instant power what is a good trany temp? when does it start to become to high? just curious.

 

anything over 200 degrees is getting dangerous. mine runs around 180 or so until i beat on it. it will spike over 200 during abuse but should come right back down afterwards...any prolonged use over 200 degrees and you're gonna start smoking the tranny.

also, i had a tranny builder tell me that holding any gear other than 1st (purely because first is SOOO low) on deceleration is not bad....with the shifter in second for example, there is MUCH more line pressure and thus more clamping force on the clutch packs then when the shifter is in OD. any slippage in the drivetrain while in second will likely be through the converter, not the clutch packs. i wouldnt do this all the time, but holding 2nd while slowing down (engine braking) once in awhile is not going to hurt anything really. just dont go around driving like you have a manual trans....that will not be good for it.

 

also, when you declerate in 1 or 2, you are engine braking, which isn't really a good thing

 

How so? What do you think 99% of drivers do with their standard transmission cars? Engine braking is not a bad thing AFAIK?! That would be news to me if it was, and I've been around cars long enough. Hell, watch Nascar or any other form of circuit racing, they're constantly using engine braking going into turns.

 

nascar and other racing motorsports can rebuild their engine after a race
that's not really an economical thing for a daily driver

yea, it is bad to keep putting strain on the engine like that and it is always easier to replace the brake pads instead of the engine

 

Yeah, but engine braking is just decelerating with the engine, which is no different than accelerating, which you do after every red light.....so I still don't see the difference?

I agree that YES, it is 'technically' putting more wear on the engine, but I don't think it's excessive wear, or something that shouldn't be done, 'cause it's what engines were designed to do:blah:.

Maybe I just don't care if my motor lasts until 300,000+ miles, since I'll probably rebuild it before then anyways .

 

i agree with you wholeheartedly
i mean, it's not really excessive but it does take life away from the engine
i just wanted to point out that it's doing a little more wear and tear than it would if it was driven "normally" persay
and yes, i'd be rebuilding the engine before that also with heads, cam, ...

 

Using the engine as a brake with throttle completely closed at mid or high rpm creates high vacuum in the engine which can pull more oil past the valve seals or maybe the rings. That's probably the worst thing it will do. Oil in the combustion area can lead to detonation if you are borderline on compression.

At high rpm (6K+), it's the worst thing you can do to the rod bolts. The infamous 5-2 downshift with closed throttle when a 5-4 was desired.

Using the engine and lower gears (A4) on long downgrades isn't really a problem and is done automatically (pun intended) on some GM cars. With the 'fuzzy logic' trans software in Saturn, for example, if you foot is off the gas and the car is accelerating due to going down hill for a certain time, the trans will downshift into 3rd or even 2nd to control the speed. If you put you foot back on the accelerator, it will upshift.

FWIW, I don't think 99% of manual trans drivers engine brake the majority of the time. Under hard braking conditions, engine braking with a manual usually increases stopping distance, rather than shortening it. Brake hop can also occur, and it screws with the ABS software. Weren't you taught to maximum brake by pushing down with both feet...clutch and brake? Maybe we went to different driving schools?


My $.02

 

I drive like Tom Cruise in "Days of Thunder" .....brake and gas at the same time!!!

 

That explains some of your posts.