Should I use overdrive in my car?

To be more green, you should just use the overdrive on your feet.
I think it has no real effect on your gas consumption, no need to take it off.

You drive a 4 cylinder. Relax. If you drive my truck then you can start getting concerned. I keep a 4 cylinder in the bed as a spare gas tank. :)

The higher the gear ratio, the better the gas mileage, drive around in 2nd gear and you’ll find out soon enough. I can’t believe I’m even answering this. Maybe your wife should drive. Do you have a tach or MPG gauge (BMW). I like the Versa. Drove a rental Versa around Vegas and Grand canyon. Had a Thompson experience trying to make Standiford Field from the canyon. Balls to the wall.

If you want to be more green with your driving style, buy a manual – there’s not much room for change with an automatic.

My bitching about automatics (ugh) aside though, the best thing you can do is avoid braking. Instead of braking hard at the lights, lift your foot off the accelerator and let the car coast to the lights with its own momentum. Every joule of energy you lose braking must be made up with extra petrol when you accelerate back to the same speed.

@steve6 Not entirely true, if you’re doing 30km/h and are stuck in top gear, you need to push a lot more petrol through to get enough torque to keep moving. If you keep the car between 2–3k revs for an average family car, then it will be most economical. Select the appropriate gear to keep the car in this rev band.

An automatic transmission will do this for you, infidel.

@steve6 True, but with the lines of what is and isn’t an automatic being so blurred these days I thought I’d add that. Some people call the various forms of tiptronic and paddle shift gearboxes automatic.

Some Versa and lots of Nissan use CVT making it a moot point. I wouldn’t recommend CVT though.

@steve6 I just took a look at Google Images to see what a Versa is…. They call it a Tiida here in Australia. I don’t think they offer CVT in them here either. I’ve got a good excuse for my ignorance, honest!

What’s cvt?

If you want better mileage, pump your tyres (tires) up to maximum pressure, only use high profile tyres, use the highest gear possible once at cruising speed (including overdrive) Drive with your windows up and try to use your brakes as seldom as possible. Try to pick routes – even if a bit longer – that have fewer traffic lights.

@deepseas72 Continuously Variable Transmission. Basically, the ‘gears’ are conical, and the drive is transmitted through larger or smaller diameter portions of the the gears depending on the required ratio.

@steve6: Why wouldn’t you recommend the CVT? My first “automatic” purchase was a 2007 CVT Jeep for my son to learn to drive in. We have learned how to apply the throttle differently so as to keep acceleration smooth and fuel consumption lower. It has 67,000 miles on it in 2 years and 8 months’ time and we’ve had absolutely no problems with it.

Another tip for saving gas in an automatic is to accelerate more slowly. More experienced drivers might consider putting it in neutral when coasting and braking – but keep your hand on the gearshift so you can put it back into drive in case evasive maneuvers become necessary.

Alos, you could do a web search for hypermiling.

@steve6: Why does putting the car in neutral while braking and coasting save gas?

@deepseas72: When your car is in Drive, the drivetrain is engaged, even when decelerating and braking, so that consumes more fuel, plus the brakes are then fighting against the transmission that wants to move the car forward, so it will ease wear on the brakes, as well.

As I mentioned above, make sure you keep your hand on the gearshift so you can go back into drive immediately, in case evasive maneuvers are needed — not only for powering the engine, but also because many vehicle stability and steering assistance mechanisms are also disengaged when in neutral.

(blasted server error! I’m on my iPhone and don’t want to lose what I’ve typed. I also hope this doesn’t post multiple times!)

@hearkat When your car is in Drive, the drivetrain is engaged, even when decelerating and braking, so that consumes more fuel,

How? If the throttle is off, no more fuel can flow, conventionally aspirated or injected/turbo etc. As for braking, it is more effective with the car in gear as it less likely to suffer a wheel lockup.

Most advanced driver training schools would fail you for doing such a thing, it is considered dangerous to drive with the transmission in neutral as if you do suddenly need power you have select a gear before it becomes available. Also, coasting an automatic in neutral can damage the transmission, that is why tow trucks will flat tow or do a rear lift with rear wheel drive automatic cars. Read the owners manual on any automatic vehicle with regard to coast and towing.

@DarkScribe: I guess I’m wrong. I know that when I’m in an automatic (which is infrequent) and I let my foot off the brake and don’t put it in the gas, the car moves forward… doesn’t that mean that the drivetrain is engaged? And when I do feel that conditions are safe to put the car in neutral as I bring the car to a stop, I can feel and hear the difference. I noticed some improvement in my fuel consumption when I did this, but perhaps there were other coincidental variables as well.

As for the safety, when I first mentioned it, I said that ”more experienced drivers might consider” trying it, and I mentioned that safety features on the car are disabled when in neutral. I guess those weren’t strong enough as disclaimers; and if my experience and observations are incorrect, it’s a moot point anyway.

Perhaps I’d fail an advanced driver course for doing that, but many people I’ve encountered during hundreds and hundreds of thousands of miles of driving shouldn’t have passed the Basic course.

As for the damage to the transmission when coasting in neutral, I can neither confirm nor refute your claim. The transmission specialist I was once married to is deceased more than ten years, so I can’t check with him, either. But I am curious… if the car is in Neutral and rolling forward, how the transmission could be damaged.

I am fully aware that you have been driving longer than I, and may have logged more miles, too. It is also very likely that you have more automotive mechanical experience than I, and so I defer to your response and withdraw my suggestion. I can not go back and edit, and so I can only hope that others will read the entire thread. Thank you.

@hearkat if the car is in Neutral and rolling forward, how the transmission could be damaged.

It doesn’t get sufficient oil flow to prevent damage to the bands and clutches if the transmission is in neutral.

See this device used to enable vehicles to be flat towed without destroying the transmission. People who own campers want to flat tow a vehicle, but even if they leave the motor idling in neutral the transmission gets wrecked. Probably coasting down a few hills in neutral wouldn’t instantly wreck the transmission, but constantly doing it would. When I was much younger I towed my wife’s Mustang auto for about thirty-five miles. It wrecked the transmission, even though the motor was running with her in it, steering. It was an expensive lesson. If the motor is off it needs very little distance for the damage occurs.

I can’t drive my 95 Cadillac Deville in drive, I have to put it in 2nd drive to go. I recently had transmission problems but the problem was not fixed. Is it ok to drive like this.

@DarkScribe
Interesting. I learn something new every day. But having the front wheels raised is sufficient?

@SeventhSense Yes, it is sufficient in a front wheel drive car because then the front wheels are not turning, so there is no motion of the shafts and belts in the transmission, and no oil is required for lubrication. Of course in a rear wheel drive car you would have to raise the rear wheels as well.

Makes sense. Could a rear wheel drive car be towed by raising the rear wheels and tow it rear facing forward?

@SeventhSense As far as the transmission goes, yes. However you would need to find a way to secure the steering to stop the car wandering all over the road. I haven’t done any towing myself, so I’m not sure if a security lock would do the trick. Chances are the camper van dealer will be able to sell you the appropriate equipment.