Quote:
Originally Posted by housecat
That's an interesting point you made about gear wear, I never knew about that. Some people believe that leaving the car in gear while coasting may slightly increase wear on the engine (instead of wearing on brake pads in neutral), which would make coasting in neutral a better choice. But the extra wear on the engine is probably next to nothing.
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When coasting in neutral at any speed you have taken your car and turned it into a big, heavy (relatively),expensive (again relatively) soap box racer!
As soap box racers are not generally know for their handling, speed (other then down hill) or ability to avoid sudden changes in the driving situation or conditions you are usually better off to have the car engaged in the appropriate gear at all times. I know that accelerating quickly or a sudden swerve under power has saved my butt as many, or more times, then hammering on the brakes and if I was coasting in neutral those times I would have been screwed.