Manual transmission in low...

Where I grew up it was flat and dry. Now I live in Seattle. It's definitely neither here. I've had a couple of people tell me that going down hill on an icy/snowy/muddy/wet road you should shift into low so you don't go sliding around when you have to use your breaks. But then y'all keep saying that you'd "NEVER" shift into low, except for towing etc.
So whats up?
I drive a 96 Nissan hard body with an automatic btw.
 
ac1d0v3r1d3 said:
Where I grew up it was flat and dry. Now I live in Seattle. It's definitely neither here. I've had a couple of people tell me that going down hill on an icy/snowy/muddy/wet road you should shift into low so you don't go sliding around when you have to use your breaks. But then y'all keep saying that you'd "NEVER" shift into low, except for towing etc.
So whats up?
I drive a 96 Nissan hard body with an automatic btw.
Click to expand...

I live on the east side of the state where we get deep snow every single year. I have never needed to shift out of drive, no matter the conditions. I do turn off the overdrive in crappy weather, and if I'm towing. Other than that, it doesn't need messing with, even on a hill.
 
ac1d0v3r1d3 said:
Where I grew up it was flat and dry. Now I live in Seattle. It's definitely neither here. I've had a couple of people tell me that going down hill on an icy/snowy/muddy/wet road you should shift into low so you don't go sliding around when you have to use your breaks. But then y'all keep saying that you'd "NEVER" shift into low, except for towing etc.
So whats up?
I drive a 96 Nissan hard body with an automatic btw.
Click to expand...

Even in low, if you hit the brakes too hard you will go sliding. The key is to keep the tires connected to the road surface by not goosing the accelerator, turning abruptly, or pumping the brakes. I've driven in pleny of ice in "drive" without skidding by using proper technique. If you're a space cadet behind the wheel, driving in low gear helps keep speeds low but doesn't really fix the problem. Manage your speed and traction whether in Low or Drive.
 
ac1d0v3r1d3 said:
Where I grew up it was flat and dry. Now I live in Seattle. It's definitely neither here. I've had a couple of people tell me that going down hill on an icy/snowy/muddy/wet road you should shift into low so you don't go sliding around when you have to use your breaks. But then y'all keep saying that you'd "NEVER" shift into low, except for towing etc.
So whats up?
I drive a 96 Nissan hard body with an automatic btw.
Click to expand...

Putting the vehicle in low before you start descending a hill is basically doing the same thing as keeping the brakes on lightly. It's just smoother and easier and helps keep your speed under control.

Downshifting into low to slow down when you're already moving would be about the same as putting the brakes on lightly; only difference would be that downshifting only affects the driven wheels. Brakes affect all four.

It can make sense to leave a car in 1 or start off in 2 in extremely crappy conditions, since the "shock" of shifting gears can cause you to lose traction. If the roads are that slick you probably shouldn't be driving.

Unless you actually know what you're doing and have a situation-specific need for another gear, you're probably best off leaving the car in drive and using the brakes as needed.
 
ac1d0v3r1d3 said:
Where I grew up it was flat and dry. Now I live in Seattle. It's definitely neither here. I've had a couple of people tell me that going down hill on an icy/snowy/muddy/wet road you should shift into low so you don't go sliding around when you have to use your breaks. But then y'all keep saying that you'd "NEVER" shift into low, except for towing etc.
So whats up?
I drive a 96 Nissan hard body with an automatic btw.
Click to expand...

I would never shift into low in an automatic, unless I was towing and going around some steep grades.

In a manual I shift up and down as appropriate. You can bring the car almost to a full stop before needing to put the clutch in and hit the breaks if you know what you're doing.
 
I got a cheap (Hertz?) rental about a month ago. Small to mid-size Toyota. Didn't go anywhere at all... thing was a lawnmower. Sounded like I was caning it just to keep up with rural traffic.

The relevant point: I think it had a 3-speed auto. I was gobsmacked. I didn't think those things existed any more.

Edit: no current Toyotas have fewer than 4 gears, so at least I'm not insane. Seemed like 3, though it had no tach so I was going by ear. Awful, awful car.
 
ac1d0v3r1d3 said:
Where I grew up it was flat and dry. Now I live in Seattle. It's definitely neither here. I've had a couple of people tell me that going down hill on an icy/snowy/muddy/wet road you should shift into low so you don't go sliding around when you have to use your breaks. But then y'all keep saying that you'd "NEVER" shift into low, except for towing etc.
So whats up?
I drive a 96 Nissan hard body with an automatic btw.
Click to expand...

I've been driving in snow and mud my entire life and I seldom use low. There are times when it's beneficial to shift into low but they are rare; starting on a steep hill that has little traction, 'crawling' off road, starting while towing a heavy load, etc. However, as the others have said 99.9% of the time you're better off leaving it in Drive. I would never shift an automatic into low going down hill unless I was towing.
 
I learned to drive in a manual car and drove them for 10 years,it is certainly more interractive but it doesn't make you a better driver.This "you are more in control" is just cobblers.Also,I remember well the cars from the seventies and eighties,most cars made today are light-years ahead of those junkers,the rust,the weight,the general unreliability,no wonder the Japanese kicked our asses.
 
jrhardy88 said:
I learned to drive in a manual car and drove them for 10 years,it is certainly more interractive but it doesn't make you a better driver.This "you are more in control" is just cobblers.Also,I remember well the cars from the seventies and eighties,most cars made today are light-years ahead of those junkers,the rust,the weight,the general unreliability,no wonder the Japanese kicked our asses.
Click to expand...

It does put you in more control. Anyone who says different must not be a very good driver. ;)
 
I don't know why the title of this thread is "manual transmission in low" when the car being driven was an auto. Of course when going up a hill or going down a hill you can downshift it to either have more torque or engine brake (I never did much engine braking, "Gears for go, brakes for slow"), but in an auto it will do this for you. You should only have to shift it out of Drive and down to either 1st or 2nd if you are towing something or going up an incredibly steep incline. In all the years I've driven an auto I think I have had to 'downshift' an auto maybe a couple times, but certainly never on a regular basis.

My preferred transmission is certainly a manual though.
 
Ethelred said:
I don't know why the title of this thread is "manual transmission in low" when the car being driven was an auto. Of course when going up a hill or going down a hill you can downshift it to either have more torque or engine brake (I never did much engine braking, "Gears for go, brakes for slow"), but in an auto it will do this for you. You should only have to shift it out of Drive and down to either 1st or 2nd if you are towing something or going up an incredibly steep incline. In all the years I've driven an auto I think I have had to 'downshift' an auto maybe a couple times, but certainly never on a regular basis.

My preferred transmission is certainly a manual though.
Click to expand...

I was tired. I just noticed i put in manual haha.
 
And i was more so just letting her know it was there. She just got her license and doesnt know anything about cars, it was more so of a "this is why its here" thing than a "use it" thing.
 
Teaching my daughter to drive. In a manual. I insisted, at least acquire the skill, no knowing when it may come in handy. She moaned about it before we started. Now she thinks it's really cool that she's the only one of her friends that can drive one.
 
That whole 'saving the brakes' thing goes back to the days of drum brakes on all 4 wheels.
On long, steep down hills one could ride the brake and overheat them.
Nowadays with 4 wheel disc brakes, it is a thing of the past.
 
I was following a friend on a mountain road (Sequoia National Forest) after a camping trip. He didn't down shift to slow his truck down, he used the brakes to slow his truck down. Over heated brake pads and rotors don't smell very good.

Ric
 
But they still worked, right?

Do that with the old drum brakes on all four corners and they'd stop working.
:eek:
 
Phydeaux said:
I was following a friend on a mountain road (Sequoia National Forest) after a camping trip. He didn't down shift to slow his truck down, he used the brakes to slow his truck down. Over heated brake pads and rotors don't smell very good.

Ric
Click to expand...

you can overheat anything pushing it, I had 6 pot brembo front and 4 pot brembo rear on my old supra and they would overheat when i was really giving it some on down hills. Just gotta know when to pull over before brake fade becomes an issue...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top