Re: The Multi Million Pound Speeding Business
Originally Posted by
JBR
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Change down when preparing to stop?
I just depress the clutch and change into an appropriate gear in case I need to drive off.
Did he mean to go into neutral or just keep slowing down in gear until the engine stalls?
It's more about engine wear and fuel saving. In days of old, when knights were bold and toilets weren't invented they used to advise people to change down gears esp when going downhill. It means the car brakes using the engine rather than the brakes. If you were on a steep hill, there is wisdom in this, you get a more controlled descent. On a less steep hill though you can just coast in neutral allowing gravity to propel the car and use the brakes to bring you to a controlled halt.
This will mean that you will wear the brakes more than you would otherwise, but when a set of brake pads cost maybe £50-£80 and a new engine costs £1000s then it makes sense.
Equally any time you are on a flat road and can see you are going to need to stop for a junction or traffic light then again, coasting in neutral and using the brakes is going to save a little fuel.